It's a pretty rough area where I worked and that reflects in the patronage of the restaurant, I've repeatedly felt threatened by the teenagers that come into the store and trash the tables, tp the toilets and make demeaning comments towards me, it sucks and I've locked myself in the disabled toilets to avoid abuse, the managers don't really do anything about it. Most are arrogant and rude, once a manager told me and another colleague, in response to some kids throwing ketchup on the restaurant wall and decor as well as disturbing other patrons to ask them to leave in a joking manner, I don't really understand what I'm suppost to do as a young looking small girl, when I walked near the area of commutation the kids threatened to throw ketchup on me. I wish more was done to protect their staff from abuse.
I faced abuse from customers constantly, there was better days with mostly families and pensioners but the weekends and bank holidays are hell and spawn the worst types of people. Most people have no manners anymore and will leave trash, opened toys, open salt packets, sauce spread all over the tables and water poured everywhere. Customers have also touched me on the arm or back uninvited, it's really appalling in retrospect, it's probably because of the way I look. I felt like this affected the way the management treated me, like I was just an ant to be crushed under their word.
I felt like I was never appreciated for the work I did here, I busted my back on busy days licking up dust from the floor keeping it clean in the trenches of wave after wave of dirty rude customers . Though I appreciate the amount of times I got to go home early, I never was received any of the treat bundles featured on workplace, I feel like dining area staff are neglected and forgotten here unless you do something wrong.
In December I had a senior member of staff complain about me for the work I did on Christmas Eve, I had started the month prior, they ranted and raved to the managers, bad mouthing me. I felt so small and horrible and the things they complained about were ridiculous like the bins were full, I am expected to also take them out of Christmas day? I'm not responsible for what happens after my shift ends. But since this is a senior member of staff I felt intimidated and couldn't speak up. They bad mouthed me around the whole restaurant when I have just started working and they put me on Christmas Eve, Boxing day and 3 other days that week because they wanted a week off. I felt like I had to avoid this worker after that.
The managers are hit and miss, some are about angels letting me go early and being kind and considerate of me, reaching out for my break. Some act like tyrants making me do work way out of my workload just because it was a non busy day, late in the day with no patrons in the restaurant but they're too stubborn to let me go early for some reason. Your shift manager basically decides if you have a good shift or not, they can work you to the bone or check up on you and let you go early.
Gossip is rampant here, once a manager asked me to go on my break and demeaned me saying, make sure you spend all of it this time in a condescending tone. For context I only spent 15 minutes of my break last shift because my manager forced me to go on break in a rush and im the only one on dining area, the area descends into chaos if I am sent away on break at this rush time. So I only spent 15 minutes and got back to work. The same manager my friend overheard him call me shy with another manager when I was getting ready for my first shift in the back. So obviously the managers had gossiped about my short break which I took to manage the wave of customers.
The male managers tended to be the worst ones, acting condensing and all important, there was two bad female managers but it seemed to be a trend among the prior. Once I had a manager say to me, "Blank can you just stop standing there and do something" What a dehumanising comment to receive, I was taking a break to stand as I had been working for 2 hours straight rushing around, making sure all my stations were clean and proper and then I receive that.
I cant count how many times I ended up crying in the disabled toilets, once I had a group of horrible children run around me in a circle and knock over my cleaning supplies as well as grab those heavy single chairs and throw them across the floor, my manager heard and looked to see but did nothing, I felt humiliated as customers watched on at my abuse, I went on to wail in the disabled toilets for a while desperately wanting to just pick up my things an leave. But I stayed and completely my shift, the management didn't deserve my resilient spirit.
My last shift was on a day when the kids didn't have school, so it was bustling. My shift towards the end was horrendous the mental anguish I experienced was harrowing. A group of teenage boys came in "roadmen" and I was instantly intimidated, the manager on for that night never asked me to get my break, which usually happens for dining area staff even if we don't ask. I had finished all my duties by 6pm I started at 3. I couldn't go to that part of the restaurant or I know I'd be harassed as soon as I slightly walking round that area they jokingly asked for one of their friends to be kicked out. The manager on was always surrounded and busy in the kitchen so I felt I couldn't tell him as I was embarrassed and ashamed, it was 8pm by this point and I still hadn't been given a break. These teenage boys were pushing each other off chairs and yelling at each other and throwing things at one another. I locked myself in the bathroom to escape it and left when I didn't hear the noise anymore I walked out to their tables. I saw my boyfriend and instantly burst into tears going to the toilet again, distressed at the mess left and anxiety I been put through. I cried so much more makeup started to melt off my face, letting out the frustration and abuse I had faced.
It was my final shift and I was given no break, experienced horrible abuse from customers, intimated into a safe part of restaurant away from these youths, the women's toilets were covered in toilet paper when I had just cleaned them. The next day I go to check my schedule and a manger has pasted a break I did not take in my timeline, taking away the money I earned. I told somebody important to change this.
That's not even the worst I've endured. Once another group of teenage boys came in and started making a fuss in the dining area, the typical shouting, throwing rubbish at each other, I'm used to it. As I was cleaning around the restaurant In noticed they kept running in and out of the men's toilets. They start to talk to me telling me they destroyed the men's bathroom, I try to keep my cool in front of these little crotch goblins saying "well I just get paid more if I have to clean it" and "you guys don't intimidate me" they seemed surprised I wasn't cowering in fear and said "well I guess we can do whatever we want to these toilets". I didn't really take them seriously about the threat, thinking the bathroom will be messy but not awful. I told my manager and they stormed over to the toilets and then proceeded to scream at them to get out. They did but then threw something at the sliding door and it shattered, glass going everywhere in the doorway. I go to the men's toilets and the ceiling, every inch of that toilet had been sprayed with ketchup. I didn't have to clean it up luckily but that was a scary experience that will stay with me.
Anyways don't work here if you value your life.
