He Asked for Extra Pay on the Store’s Busiest Day — Got Scolded, Then Left Them Short-Staffed
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No overtime means no overtime. Even Thanksgiving rushes have clocks.
So when 10 p.m. hits, one grocery clerk stops mid-checkout.
The manager suddenly inherits the line.
See why one strict rule backfires beautifully.
Not allowed overtime? Have fun checking everybody out.
I used to work as a checker/stocker at a grocery store. Our store manager (Mike) was a d-bag, and would always try to screw people.
There was massive turnover at this store.
Screwing people over at a grocery store!? Can’t get much more of a low life than that.
So one day, I get called into his office and asked why I gave overtime on my time card.
I was usually scheduled for 1-10pm (hour lunch), but the store didn’t close until 10, so I had to count out my drawer afterwards.
Doesn’t seem crazy to account for the hours you’re actually on the clock.
I explained this to Mike and he didn’t care.
He went off saying that I should be doing this earlier, and that I was to leave at 10 on the dot so that I had NO OVERTIME.
Disappointing, but unsurprising manager behavior.
Got it, boss man.
A couple of weeks later it was Thanksgiving time.
We had extra checkers, but from 8-10pm, I was the only one besides the manager who closed the store that day (Mike).
Only two closing staff members during Thanksgiving!? Seems like there are a ton of issues with Mike’s management.
I made the announcement at about 9.40 that we would be closing in 20 minutes, and to please finish up your purchases to check out.
Shoppers can start acting insane when they know they’re under a time constraint.
People started coming up to check out, and their carts were LOADED since it was almost Thanksgiving.
I go about checking them all out, but then the clock turns to 10:00.
Cinderella had her pumpkin coach, this person had their cash register.
I stop in the middle of my transaction.
Call Mike on the store phone and tell him I’m leaving since I can’t have overtime. Walk over and clock out.
Bold. Also could not have gone over well.
There are still 6 to 7 customers with full baskets in line at this time.
Mike comes over and is yelling at me as I’m walking out.
But I remind him that he specifically told me that I can’t have ANY overtime.
These types always seem to hate the taste of their own medicine more than anything else.
When I got into work the next day, I was written up.
But it was worth it.
Apparently he spent the next 30-45 minutes checking people out.
Getting written up seems like a slap on the wrist all things considered. All of that sounded pretty worth it.
Let’s see if the comments agreed.
All commented in favor of the poster.
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A few folks called out the obvious flaws in the manager’s ability.
Others shared similar stories in solidarity.
Many chimed in with practical advice.
If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about a company that didn’t expect their work-from-home policy to result in better time off benefits for their employees.
And applauded the generosity of small business owners who don’t nickel and dime.
OP clocked out exactly at 10 as ordered, leaving six or seven customers with full carts still waiting.
His manager spent another 30 to 45 minutes checking everyone out, then wrote OP up the next day anyway.
No overtime sounds great until the boss becomes the closing cashier.
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