After working til midnight on New Years Eve, my next shift started at 11 AM. When I clocked on I was told that two employees called in “sick.” What a shocker! After New Years Eve, can they make it much more obvious!? Grrrreat! So we had two checkers instead of four by noon. People were coming in to get groceries for the Rose Bowl and the lines were ridiculously long. This is one of the biggest games in Oregon Ducks football history and the whole city is rooting for a victory at the Rose Bowl against Ohio State. Even if we had four checkers it still wasn’t enough, our schedule writer forgot that this New Years day is an unusual one because of the football game. The lines were filled with cranky customers. Seems like some of them just woke up or had really bad hangovers and to have them stand in super long lines didn’t help their attitudes. There was another checker coming in at 12:45 PM and he was going to be our savior but as 12:07 hit, I get a phone call…
Checker Irv: Hey man, I’m really sick and I can’t make it today…
Me: You kidding right?
Checker Irv: No way, I had a bad night.
Me: Oh really, you did?
Checker Irv: Yeah, so I can’t make it.
Me: You didn’t happen to hang out with David and Jeff yesterday did you?
Checker Irv: Uh, yeah…
Me: Well…
Checker Irv: [cuts me off] I know, I’m sorry man. I’ll be ready tomorrow.
Me: I was just going to say your two buddies just called in before you.
Checker Irv: Oh… so what does that mean?
Me: It means they beat you to it and you gotta come in.
Checker Irv: Crap… I’ll be right there.
When Irv came, things went a lot smoother. Too smooth because he came when we weren’t as busy.
With the game going on, the store was very slow. We focused on restocking the beer aisle but you can’t stock anything you don’t have. We put out our back stock the night before and the beer vendors didn’t bother coming in today.
I didn’t have to ask anyone about the outcome of the game. I can just tell by the customers faces and moods that the Oregon Ducks had lost in the Rose Bowl. Its always been like that on Saturdays during football season. If the Oregon Ducks or Oregon State Beavers win depending on the customers team then they are the best customers a grocery clerk can ask for but if they lose well, its a crappy day for those that are working. I’m so happy college football is over…
{ 16 comments… read them below or add one }
Gosh, I can just imagine the variety of people you come across daily!!!!!
Years ago when I was in the restaurant business all the young employess called in sick like crazy. Saturdays and Sundays we wanted to murder those young people cause we worked like dogs shorthanded so much.
Secretia
Awwh I have been there before.
I hate when you call in sick and someone gets there before you!!
I used to be a cashier at a Walmart Supercenter. I feel your pain! Oh, the horrors that came from that job. To all you shoppers out there, treat your cashiers with respect! They are human, you know!
Sounds fun (Sarcastically) I know the day started off as hell but it sounds like it at least slowed down so you could catch your breath
What a buncha wimps!
I worked a weekend mailroom gig at the Bank of America back in college. I had the worst shift, 7a-3:30p. Meaning I had to wake up at 5:30ish on Sat and Sun mornings, get ready and rush to work. Let me just tell you…that didn’t stop my Friday and Saturday night social life. I can’t even remember how many times I dragged my sorry ass to work with the worst hangovers. There were times I was still lit from the night before. Once I even barfed in the parking lot at work. Paul, you need some troopers working for you!
I have never understood ‘pulling a sickie’. The only time I’ve ever done it was as a teenager in my first job and looking back I now know I was clinically depressed, so that doesn’t count.
What are they thinking? Seems to me that’s the way to make sure you’re on the short list when times are hard and employees need to be cut back. Also, it’s just plain selfish.
Come to think of it, I’ve never understood the stocking up for the game thing, either. Don’t people plan ahead? If I know there’s going to be something I need party food for in a particular week, I get it with the main shop if I possibly can. But I guess that makes me one of the strange people who make grocery shopping interesting.
Oh, what a joyful time you’ve had! That was hilarious that all three buds tried to blow off work!
I hope they’re better workers the rest of the year!
GO BUCKEYES! I was so rooting for the buckeyes. screw the Pac-10!
I love how the guy just gave up and ended up coming in to work.
I once worked for a company that denied workers sick days if they called in before or after a holiday. Maybe your store should adopt such a policy.
good for you – letting your colleague know that real men show up for work, hangover or no. I haven’t watched a football game in at least 2 years. But I prefer to go to the grocery store during big bowl games. Better parking, fewer customers, minimal waiting, quick, easy.
@Alicia – Yeah, something is usually going on but I have backlogs of stories ready to go.
@Secretia – You and me both.
@Ian – Haha, yeah I figured I would counter with that.
@Surfie – Thank you!
@JStar – Definitely, a breather is all we need sometimes.
@Jay – I know right? It happens every year. It is selfish because it only takes one person to call it to ruin the day.
@Phoenixism – Whoa brotha! Thats hardcore .. now I know you got some stories!
@Kathryn – They better be.
@Genesis – Secretly I was too…
@Sharon – At my place you have to be sick 3 days in a row to get any pay.. which no one ever gets it unless your really hurt.
@Diane – Now thats what I call a smart shopper!
Eff Google Reader for me missing this catastrophe. This makes me sad for you. I’ve so *been* there. I had a girl call in with a “migraine”. To her I replied “Yeah, I’m hungover too.” And hung up. She came in.
I win!
My daughter works the Italian section of the deli at a large grocery here. She gets called in a lot when others don’t show. She wonders why the person who complains the most about not getting enough hours often calls and asks her to take his shift.
You know Peter, I have a story of that lined up! I bet your daughter has tons of stories!
gawd, that pisses me off. Isn’t it such a lovely coincidence that the new years day people call in “sick”?? I work at fred meyer and i don’t drink or party, so i have never done that to anyone. I just loved hearing from my fellow deli workers “oh man i hope don’t work the day after Halloween, or after Christmas, or after new years (and so on) cause i’m gonna be so smashed!” Lo and behold, they have to work, and then guess who calls in saying there were sick…what? all 3 friends who went to a party last night are sick the next day?? what a coincidence….some people have no work ethic.
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