I've been browsing this site for awhile, but I finally had to make an account and join in on the forums. I am so close to quitting and so full of spite and bitterness- so of course I had to vent here!
The manager of my store has been manager for 1 year and been with SBUX for 5. He barely keeps things in control and has a very high barista turnover rate. I was only hired in January, and already I've witnessed 8 people quit or take leave (also quitting, just pretending like they aren't). In April my store had 1 SM, 1 SS, and 6 baristas for about 3 weeks. It was terrible and we were all expected to pull overtime.
We recently got an assistant manager from another store who is wonderful- but the problem of our SM remains. He takes so many shortcuts and skips vital things. A few examples; we have no community board, we didn't have a green apron board until I volunteered to make one, he's at the store maybe twice a week, and he never does things for baristas that Starbucks encourages. For example, our new ASM had a MUG award pin (among other pins) on his apron and all of us were curious about it. Turns out these pins are from different things and challenges and events every store is supposed to have, and even one of my partners whose been there for a year had no idea what they were.
My SM recently put something on the barista need to know that stated if you are sick, you MUST work the shift, find coverage, or have a doctor's note. He made this rule up- the sick day limit is 3 shifts, then he can ask for a doc's note. He decided to come up with this after firing a girl who called out for 2 consecutive shifts without finding coverage- and he fired her on the phone. Our DM was angry about this but nothing has changed.
All this is crappy, but what's making me fed up is an incident that happened last week. I came in the store when I wasn't working and went in the back to grab my schedule and chat with someone on their break. My SM was in the back too and took a Polaroid (damn Starbucks hipster) picture of my fellow barista and I. I looked awful in the picture, and I'm a very self conscious, sensitive person, so I picked it up and asked if I could throw it out. He snatched it back and said "These exposures cost a dollar each! No way!" So naturally I offered him a dollar and he said "No. I'm gonna make a mural of all my pictures, I NEVER throw pictures out." At this point I was tearing up and pleading with him because I didn't want him to keep this embarrassing picture and have others see it. I was just very uncomfortable with that. I was begging "Please, PLEASE! Just throw it out." And he just refused and seemed to be getting angry with me. I left crying and the next day, my shift with him was pretty tense but he seemed okay. I was uncomfortable. I'm really irritated about this and how insensitive he was. I am an excellent worker- kind of a doormat who can't say no, but I am damn good at what I do and if he doesn't change his ways, he's going to regret this. I've already started applying other places.
/rant over. Who else has bully managers?