So I started a bar job a few weeks ago. It was a fairly large bar with about 8 staff working on a shift at one time On the first day I was feeling very nervous and anxious, you know just the normal new job jitters that most people get on their first day.
Now usually the management and staff are aware of this and try to make you feel as welcome as possible when you’re first starting, or so I thought.
When I first walked into the bar I told one of the barmaids I was new and she took me to the manager. I introduced myself and put out my hand to shake his, trying my best to be polite and create a good impression but he just stared at me and said, “so you’re the new starter eh” then he grunted and shoved me in a back room to watch a short video about health and safety. No one came in to check on me the whole time I was there and so after waiting a bit after the video ended I decided to find my own way back to the bar. I asked one of the staff what I was to do next and She told me in a none too happy way I was to work on the far till.
By this point I still had next to no training so I asked one of the staff if they could show me how to use the till. The person made a big sigh like it was a big effort to have to show the new kid what to do. They showed me briefly where things were but there’s like nearly a hundred different orders to remember on the screen and there was no way of remembering every single one.
My first shift was a busy Friday night and I kept having to ask the other staff where certain drinks were kept and they would tell me in a very patronizing way where to find them, as if im supposed to know where every single drink is kept when I haven’t been told.
At times when the bar quietened down I tried to talk to the other staff. Every time I approached them and asked a few questions to get to know them they would give a brief answer and then tell me I should be wiping the bar or could I just wash those dishes over there. Then they would just go off and talk to one of the other barpersons.
We had a staff room and whenever I went there on my break there was always a group sitting round chatting. I would walk in say hi but get no response. They would sit there chatting about what they did last week and talk about their friends or bitch about other people they knew. I would sit on my own listening to their conversation but not knowing what or who they were talking about I could not contribute. The few times I did they would answer in annoyance and then go back to chatting among themselves.
Not once did they ask me a question or make an effort to get to know me. I was the one putting all the effort in..The manager ignored me the whole time I was there, not once did he ask me how it was all going and if I was settling in. This went on for days until a couple of weeks later the manager finally spoke to me only to say there were a number of complaints from other bar staff that I had been making mistakes with orders. This annoyed the hell outta me because they never gave me the proper training in the first place and not one of the bar staff had come to me to tell me what I had done wrong or given any advice they just complained straight to the manager.
On this same night one of the female bar staff said to me. “Hey you need to converse more you’re too quiet”. I felt so angry after she said that, that I pulled my key out the till, put it on the bar and walked out the front door without telling any of the staff or the manager I quit..
Sorry for the long post I just needed to vent. This sort of thing seems to happen to me wherever I go or whenever I start new jobs.
What jobs do you guys do?
Now usually the management and staff are aware of this and try to make you feel as welcome as possible when you’re first starting, or so I thought.
When I first walked into the bar I told one of the barmaids I was new and she took me to the manager. I introduced myself and put out my hand to shake his, trying my best to be polite and create a good impression but he just stared at me and said, “so you’re the new starter eh” then he grunted and shoved me in a back room to watch a short video about health and safety. No one came in to check on me the whole time I was there and so after waiting a bit after the video ended I decided to find my own way back to the bar. I asked one of the staff what I was to do next and She told me in a none too happy way I was to work on the far till.
By this point I still had next to no training so I asked one of the staff if they could show me how to use the till. The person made a big sigh like it was a big effort to have to show the new kid what to do. They showed me briefly where things were but there’s like nearly a hundred different orders to remember on the screen and there was no way of remembering every single one.
My first shift was a busy Friday night and I kept having to ask the other staff where certain drinks were kept and they would tell me in a very patronizing way where to find them, as if im supposed to know where every single drink is kept when I haven’t been told.
At times when the bar quietened down I tried to talk to the other staff. Every time I approached them and asked a few questions to get to know them they would give a brief answer and then tell me I should be wiping the bar or could I just wash those dishes over there. Then they would just go off and talk to one of the other barpersons.
We had a staff room and whenever I went there on my break there was always a group sitting round chatting. I would walk in say hi but get no response. They would sit there chatting about what they did last week and talk about their friends or bitch about other people they knew. I would sit on my own listening to their conversation but not knowing what or who they were talking about I could not contribute. The few times I did they would answer in annoyance and then go back to chatting among themselves.
Not once did they ask me a question or make an effort to get to know me. I was the one putting all the effort in..The manager ignored me the whole time I was there, not once did he ask me how it was all going and if I was settling in. This went on for days until a couple of weeks later the manager finally spoke to me only to say there were a number of complaints from other bar staff that I had been making mistakes with orders. This annoyed the hell outta me because they never gave me the proper training in the first place and not one of the bar staff had come to me to tell me what I had done wrong or given any advice they just complained straight to the manager.
On this same night one of the female bar staff said to me. “Hey you need to converse more you’re too quiet”. I felt so angry after she said that, that I pulled my key out the till, put it on the bar and walked out the front door without telling any of the staff or the manager I quit..
Sorry for the long post I just needed to vent. This sort of thing seems to happen to me wherever I go or whenever I start new jobs.
What jobs do you guys do?
