I was hired as an assistant manager at a Family Dollar store two years ago. I was a hard worker, and I really enjoyed the job. When I inquired about the possibility of managing my own store, Mike, my manager told me "Be careful what you wish for!" Man, was he right.
I was offered a problem store that had seen 5 or 6 managers before me. I was told that I would only be at the store for a few months. I was there for a year. Promises, promises!
I was supposed to go in and work miracles, and in the beginning I did. The store was a filthy pig sty when I took over. The shrink was 12%. During my first inventory we brought it down to 9%. On my last inventory in April, shrink was 6%. I was told that I would receive a bonus after inventory. I never did. Promises, promises!
I must have been doing something right. Longtime customers said that they had never seen the store looking better. I was promised a raise, and extra money for gas since the store is 25 miles from my home. I never received either. Promises, promises!
The problems occurred when my payroll was cut. It was impossible to operate the store on the budget that my district manager provided. I was in the store from open to close on some nights. On average I was putting in 60-70 hours per week. Many days I worked the store alone from 9-12 just to stay under payroll.
My surveillance system was a joke, even though the store was located in an area known for high crime activity. Shoplifters knew that we had no floor coverage most of the time so stealing was commonplace. I requested security like some of the other Family Dollar stores had in the area, but it never came. Promises, promises!
In the end, I was terminated for "store conditions". I agree that due to the fact that I had no payroll, no coverage, no one to recover, no one to help work freight, no one to sweep, no one to mop, no one to pull weeds, no one to work security, no one to work the truck, and most of all no support from upper management, that maybe I should have been given the boot.
When I came to the store, there were major problems with the building itself. The roof leaked, and according to roofers, it was beyond repair. It needed to be replaced. I begged for repairs through the proper chanels, namely store maintainance, and my district manager. Nothing happened until I personally called the health department to come in and test for black mold. The health department threatened to condemn the building. My crew and I were suffering with respiratory ailments due to the damp, moldy conditions of the store. Everyone threated to quit due to unsafe, and unsanitary working conditions. I was labeled a troublemaker.
But let me add, No one can live up to Family Dollar's expectations for their managers. Only a fool would try. I have been in retail for over 20 years, and in that time, I have never seen such an inadequate, pretentious bunch of jackasses as the upper management of Family Dollar.
I would not want my worst enemy working for that company. When I was fired, the only reaction that I had was, "Good Riddance!!!"
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