Retail Guilt
I was hired at my current place of employment as a Part-Time Seasonal Employee. I was hired to work in soft-lines (the clothing department), overnight, and was told to expect less than 30 hours a week.
I have to say that while I've been mostly held to those terms and limitations, I find myself staying an extra hour or so after my scheduled shift to help complete the as many of the tasks for the day as possible before my grace period ends. Typically I make it to the time clock before the store opens at eight o'clock in the morning (which is the end of the grace period).
My weekly hours are averaging about 28. And aside from Black Friday and the following Monday when we had a double truck (two trailers full of freight) to unload, I have not had to stay past store opening, which is great because I don't do well with the general public being all up in my business.
While I don't mind staying the extra hour or so to help out when necessary, I am starting to get this overwhelming sense of guilt for not staying even LONGER to see the tasks through to absolute completion. If the manager asks for me to stay to a certain time to "push the zee's"* I typically will, unless I have a doctors appointment scheduled or am feeling particularly awful (my feet are the main source of awfulness occurring).
*The zee's are the rolling bars we hang clothes on as we unpack them from boxes and pushing them means to take the items to their respective departments and hang them on the proper racks on the floor for shoppers convenience.
But there are not just zee's to push in soft-lines, there are also buggies. The buggies are simply shopping carts used to sort "tableware and accessories" to their respective departments. The buggies contain items that are folded and placed on fixtures throughout the soft-lines departments, as well as items such as socks, underwear, purses, scarfs and the like.
To explain a little further before I move on, there are five of us on the overnight team responsible for soft-lines. Three of us generally work the zee's and the other two work the buggies. When one group or the other finishes with their work, we are expected to join the other team and help out until it's quitting time.
A few times I've been asked to stay after completing the zee's to help out with buggies. And pretty much every time I've been asked to do so, I've been given a time frame to work in before I have to clock out. And when I'm asked to stay, I do so with no qualms and no protest. If they're willing to give me more hours and I don't have any reason not to stay, then sure why not!
But its days like today when I feel the overwhelming guilt. The zee team worked hard to complete the zee's today. Much like the last two working days before today, we have been inundated with hanging freight and it takes all of our scheduled work time to get it "mostly" completed. We have been ending up with merchandise we cannot get pushed onto the floor before the end of our shifts.
Voluntarily I have stayed through the grace period that runs until eight o'clock on each of these days. I've not been asked to stay any later, and with as badly as my feet have been bothering me, I haven't volunteered for anything longer than that. If I were asked, I'd stay. And I think that's where my guilt comes from.
I know the work needs to be done. I'm not one to be flippant about just letting things fall onto someone else and I absolutely hate leaving things undone. Plus, I know if we don't complete it today, we get stuck having to do it the following work day.
Of course there is one member of the three man zee team that is full-time and typically scheduled to work much later into the morning. I know that she can get the work finished without me, but I feel awful leaving her to do it all.
I am probably just crazy for feeling that way, since she is used to staying later and is scheduled to do so. But it still makes me feel bad. But of course, that's not all the of left-over work providing me with guilt.
The gals responsible for buggies have been ending up with a boat load of work to get completed as well. And even if/when the zee's are completed before my departure for the day, I know they have a lot to do and could really use the help. But I cannot just stay for my own selfish guilty reasons. And if I were asked, I would have no problem whatsoever staying as late as asked. I could volunteer to stay and risk the manager saying no anyway. I guess that simple gesture would help alleviate my guilt. But again, my feet are taking quite the beating as it is and volunteering to stand on them for more hours just isn't something I can bring myself to do. So there is that.
I know it's probably really pointless to get worked up over it or even worry about it. I'm fulfilling the requirements of the job I was hired to do, even going a little above and beyond on most days by staying an hour later than scheduled (which by the way is acceptable without having to get permission or being asked by management). So really I should feel good about what I do get accomplished each day.
But instead I still feel guilty.
Damn my work ethics.
I have to say that while I've been mostly held to those terms and limitations, I find myself staying an extra hour or so after my scheduled shift to help complete the as many of the tasks for the day as possible before my grace period ends. Typically I make it to the time clock before the store opens at eight o'clock in the morning (which is the end of the grace period).
My weekly hours are averaging about 28. And aside from Black Friday and the following Monday when we had a double truck (two trailers full of freight) to unload, I have not had to stay past store opening, which is great because I don't do well with the general public being all up in my business.
While I don't mind staying the extra hour or so to help out when necessary, I am starting to get this overwhelming sense of guilt for not staying even LONGER to see the tasks through to absolute completion. If the manager asks for me to stay to a certain time to "push the zee's"* I typically will, unless I have a doctors appointment scheduled or am feeling particularly awful (my feet are the main source of awfulness occurring).
*The zee's are the rolling bars we hang clothes on as we unpack them from boxes and pushing them means to take the items to their respective departments and hang them on the proper racks on the floor for shoppers convenience.
But there are not just zee's to push in soft-lines, there are also buggies. The buggies are simply shopping carts used to sort "tableware and accessories" to their respective departments. The buggies contain items that are folded and placed on fixtures throughout the soft-lines departments, as well as items such as socks, underwear, purses, scarfs and the like.
To explain a little further before I move on, there are five of us on the overnight team responsible for soft-lines. Three of us generally work the zee's and the other two work the buggies. When one group or the other finishes with their work, we are expected to join the other team and help out until it's quitting time.
A few times I've been asked to stay after completing the zee's to help out with buggies. And pretty much every time I've been asked to do so, I've been given a time frame to work in before I have to clock out. And when I'm asked to stay, I do so with no qualms and no protest. If they're willing to give me more hours and I don't have any reason not to stay, then sure why not!
But its days like today when I feel the overwhelming guilt. The zee team worked hard to complete the zee's today. Much like the last two working days before today, we have been inundated with hanging freight and it takes all of our scheduled work time to get it "mostly" completed. We have been ending up with merchandise we cannot get pushed onto the floor before the end of our shifts.
Voluntarily I have stayed through the grace period that runs until eight o'clock on each of these days. I've not been asked to stay any later, and with as badly as my feet have been bothering me, I haven't volunteered for anything longer than that. If I were asked, I'd stay. And I think that's where my guilt comes from.
I know the work needs to be done. I'm not one to be flippant about just letting things fall onto someone else and I absolutely hate leaving things undone. Plus, I know if we don't complete it today, we get stuck having to do it the following work day.
Of course there is one member of the three man zee team that is full-time and typically scheduled to work much later into the morning. I know that she can get the work finished without me, but I feel awful leaving her to do it all.
I am probably just crazy for feeling that way, since she is used to staying later and is scheduled to do so. But it still makes me feel bad. But of course, that's not all the of left-over work providing me with guilt.
The gals responsible for buggies have been ending up with a boat load of work to get completed as well. And even if/when the zee's are completed before my departure for the day, I know they have a lot to do and could really use the help. But I cannot just stay for my own selfish guilty reasons. And if I were asked, I would have no problem whatsoever staying as late as asked. I could volunteer to stay and risk the manager saying no anyway. I guess that simple gesture would help alleviate my guilt. But again, my feet are taking quite the beating as it is and volunteering to stand on them for more hours just isn't something I can bring myself to do. So there is that.
I know it's probably really pointless to get worked up over it or even worry about it. I'm fulfilling the requirements of the job I was hired to do, even going a little above and beyond on most days by staying an hour later than scheduled (which by the way is acceptable without having to get permission or being asked by management). So really I should feel good about what I do get accomplished each day.
But instead I still feel guilty.
Damn my work ethics.
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