We’ve all had to deal with new managers coming in and changing the rules.

In this reddit story, an assistant manager knows what is needed for Friday night rush, but is very much ignored.

Read on to see the drama unfold.

Pizza pizza! Chaos

I was 22 and in college when I got hired as the assistant manager at a pizza place.

After about three weeks of working there, the manager who hired me suddenly quit.

Even though I’d only been there for a short time, I ended up running the store for months until they finally found a new manager.

I was a quick learner, so I picked things up fast. They even offered me the manager job, but being in college, I didn’t want that kind of long term responsibility.

One day, the new manager showed up…and she was a piece of work.

Straight out of the company training program, she came in and started making sweeping changes, completely ignoring the systems we had in place that actually kept the place running.

The new manager starts managing very much by the book.

Our pizzas were supposed to be “hot and ready,” which meant we had to prep ahead of time, but she was all about doing things strictly by the book.

During the week, sales were relatively slow, but even so, when we followed the book, we struggled and customers complained.

But we made it to Thursday.

Now it’s time to fill the new manager in on reality.

That morning I went over the sales numbers with her, explaining how 65% of the pizzas we sold were on the weekends and how crazy busy it got.

I explained how every Friday we made four times as much dough as “allowed by the book” in the morning, how we rearranged the prep tables, pre-folded hundreds of pizza boxes etc.

Basically, the entire day on Thursday was spent prepping non perishables.

After we talked, I assumed she was handling it, so I started counting the cash drawers and stock.

About 30 minutes later, I noticed the dough maker giving me a wide eyed “WTH” look. When I walked over, he told me she had instructed him to make only the “by the book” amount of dough for Friday.

(For context: “by the book” meant we weren’t allowed to make more than a set number of dough balls or prep more than a set number of pizzas, wings, sauce etc.)

She wasn’t listening, so the assistant manager again tries her best.

I reemphasized to her that we absolutely had to make more dough, summarizing everything I had already explained. She pushed back, saying we didn’t need it and went on about food waste etc.

I pushed back harder, knowing I was right, until I finally broke it down mathematically. She reluctantly caved, and we made the extra dough.

Same thing happened with folding the pizzas boxes, she insisted it was a waste of time to prep that many and actually sent the part time person I had scheduled, to do that specific task and a few others, home early.

Thankfully I was able to fold a few stacks of pizza boxes before I went home.

Crisis avoided.

Now it was Friday morning, time for fresh prep.

Every time I suggested an amount of prep needed for a particular item, she pushed back.

I mean EVERYTHING. From stocking parmesan cheese packets to the amount of wing sauce we made.

We FINALLY made it to 3pm. I ended up having to compromise on a few prep items for my own sanity and because I knew the night crew could handle them without it slowing them down too much.

Then it was time to prep the pizzas.

By 4pm we usually had around 100 pizzas prepped. On weekends, we not only placed the dough onto baking sheets but also sauced, cheesed, and even added pepperoni before refrigerating them.

That’s how busy it got, it was the only way to keep up.

So at 3pm the prep crew and I started prepping pizzas. She told us to stop.

It’s time to keep going, the crew doesn’t want to let the night shift deal with being unprepared.

Without stopping, I explained again about our weekend volume…that someone basically had to continue to prep pizzas constantly during the rush because of demand. Basically that what we were about to prep STILL wasn’t enough. She told me again to stop.

I didn’t stop and continued to push back hard, because I knew the night crew would absolutely suffer horribly if we didn’t prep.

By 3:30 it had escalated into a heated argument between her and I. She pulled me outside to try to “put me in my place,” but I doubled down.

While I was mid-sentence, she turned and walked away. Frustrated, I stayed outside for 15 minutes to regroup.

When I walked back in and saw it was almost 4pm, I had had it.

I knew the night crew was going to be the ones to have to deal the lack of preparedness and also, I couldn’t stay because I had an assignment due.

Then, it hit me.

I went outside and called everyone who was scheduled that night, warning them about the mess they were about to walk into.

Almost instantly the phone inside started ringing nonstop, and since it was already getting busy, I walked back inside and jumped on a register, so she had to answer.

One by one, everyone on night shift called out. She didn’t say a word to me about it.

Oh my, time to let reality teach the new manager a lesson.

By 4:45p, all three registers had lines out the door.

She was running around frantic, trying to call people in, she was calling other stores trying to get employees to come in to our location… all while trying to make pizzas in a frenzy.

Since she didn’t mention to me that anything was amiss, I just continued to rapidly take orders for the next 15 minutes or so.

Without saying a word, at 5pm sharp, I looked her dead in the eye, clocked out and left.

That was my last day. I went home and never came back.

Let’s see what the people had to say in the comments!

This person has some leadership experience to share.

This redditor can empathize.

Ahhhh, a pizza question finally answered.

Praise for the person who stood up to management!

In the end it seems as though new managers should come in listening to the employees who have first hand experience.

If you liked that post, check out this post about a rude customer who got exactly what they wanted in their pizza.