A Like-ly Story

(My coworker was the assistant manager last year. I don’t know what happened exactly, but I was told by my managers that she and the general manager couldn’t handle it, and quit after about three weeks. They were hired again as cashiers. I don’t like my coworker because she treats everyone younger than her as an idiot — not good when 90% of employees are in their early 20s. She doesn’t like me, either, and always talks about me behind my back. I don’t pay attention because I am in between jobs and waiting to start my engineering job. The managers put us on different schedules to prevent conflict. This is about 30 minutes before I am supposed to clock in.)

Assistant Manager: “Hey, [My Name] is coming in about half an hour. Can you let me know when she does?

Coworker: “No.”

Assistant Manager: “Excuse me?”

Coworker: “No. I don’t like her.”

Assistant Manager: “Well, I don’t care about that; just tell me when she gets here.”

Coworker: “No! She’s a spoiled brat and acts like a know-it-all and doesn’t respect her elders. I try to help her and she just rudely cuts me off and says she’s so smart that she can figure it out herself. If she’s so smart, then why is she working as a cashier? I’m not helping that rude w****!”

(My managers and I have a great relationship. I always come when they’re short-handed, I show up on time, and I am a great worker. They also know my story and know I’ll be starting a new job soon.)

Assistant Manager: “Okay, fine. It’s okay if you don’t tell me when she gets here; I’ll just keep you on register. In fact, I’ll call her and tell her she can have the day off. I know she’ll appreciate having more time to move into her new place after her stepdad kicked her out, and I know she’ll love a break after working 28 hours these past three days because you called out ‘sick’ twice. And once this job is over, you can go back to your full-time cashier job at [Grocery Store] while [My Name] starts her new engineering job with [Well-Known Local Company] and you’ll never have to see her again.”

(I only wish I could’ve seen my coworker’s face when this happened. I did show up about half an hour later, and my coworker told my manager I was here and sulked out. The job and customers weren’t the best, but I was glad to have such amazing managers!)