(I’m soon graduating university with a degree in computer science. Simultaneously, I’m also working as a working student — a concept in German academia where, rather than working in an unrelated side job, you’re working part-time in your future field of study to gain some experience and build a network, and are paid slightly less than someone with a degree. While the chances that they’ll hire me afterwards are rather high, my dad feels the need to help me get a job. He tells me a friend of his is searching for someone like me. I’m not too eager to apply, but it won’t hurt, either. Calling his friend, I learn that there’s no official job posting yet, and that I just should send an application with my experience and a salary expectation. I do just that, being careful to include a request to keep my application in confidence, and am invited to an interview.)

Interviewer: “First things first. Your salary expectations are a bit high. If [Dad’s Friend] wouldn’t had insisted, we likely wouldn’t have invited you.”

Me: “I think they are more than fair. It’s actually slightly below the average entry wage for someone with my degree, but I’m willing to compromise. What did you have in mind?”

Interviewer: “Something in the ballpark of 14€ an hour.”

Me: “That’s actually even less than I’m currently earning as a working student. I’d be willing to go down to 20€, but that’s about it.”

Interviewer: “I don’t know what to tell you. We simply don’t have that money in our budget for a graphics designer.”

Me: “Wait. What? I’m a computer scientist specializing in UX design, not a graphics designer. That’s a totally different area of expertise! I’m afraid I’m not the right applicant for this job.”

(With this I got up, said good-bye, and went home frustrated, suspecting they didn’t read more than my salary expectations. The next day I went to work and my boss called me into his office. Apparently, they’d also ignored my plea for confidence and contacted my department for a reference without my permission. Thanks, Dad!)

(The owners of the store where I work happen to own two other stores in the same shopping center. To convince people to go from one store to another, we have a promotion going on where you show your bag from one of the stores to get 10% off at the others. I work at the most expensive store, and on this particular day a woman is making a very large purchase.)

Me: “Have you been to our other stores today?”

Customer #1: “No, I haven’t.”

Me: “No problem. If you’d like to go to our other stores, just show your bag at checkout and they’ll give you 10% off!”

Customer #1: “What? Wait!” *takes her card back* “Can you hold my things here? I’ll be right back.”

(I am confused, but hold her items for her, anyway. After a while she returns.)

Customer #1: “There. I went to your other store!”

(She now has a bag from our other store, with a purchase of less than $4. I begrudgingly give the 10% off. Afterwards, my general manager comes to speak to me.)

General Manager: “I understand that you had to give her the 10% off, but from now on I want you to stop asking people if they’ve been to the other stores. They’ll only get the 10% if they show their bag and specifically ask for the discount.”

(I’m not a fan of this idea, but follow the instructions, anyway. A few days later another woman comes in to make a very large purchase. Note that she does not have a bag with her.)

Me: “All right, your total will be [total].” *rings her through* “If you’d like to go to our other stores today, just show your bag at checkout and they’ll give you 10% off!”

Customer #2: “WHAT?! But I just went to your other store! Where is my 10% off?!”

Me: “Well, ma’am, as I said, you have to show your bag. They should have told you at the other store.”

Customer #2: “You should mention this before I buy anything! You’re just trying to take my money!”

Me: “I’m very sorry, ma’am. If you would like, I can refund your purchase and ring you through again with the discount. I’ll trust that you have been to our other store without the bag.”

Customer #2: “No! That will take far too long! You took long enough the first time! I want [product worth more than her 10%].”

(At this point my store manager comes to help out.)

Store Manager: “That’s no problem, ma’am! We’ll get that [product worth more than her 10%] for you right away!”

(After a very long rant and rave about how we should have told her, and how we were trying to take her money, she finally leaves. Later I tell my general manager about the situation.)

General Manager: “Well, I still don’t want you asking people. You’ll just have to do the math in your head and issue cash refunds whenever something like this happens.”

(Whenever my managers aren’t around, I just ask about the bags, anyway.)

(I am working a sandwich shift at a high-end retailer. Basically, I closed the night before and I’m opening the next morning. Therefore, I’m more aware about what has been going on in the store, but also more sleepy. We serve upper-class individuals, and right now we are selling a lot of holiday-themed items. I come up to customer who is looking around a bit confused.)

Me: “Hello, ma’am. Are you finding everything you’re looking for today?”

Woman: “Well, I wanted this cooler that I saw a few days ago; it was big and red.”

Me: “Ah, the picnic cooler. I apologize, but we sold out of those last night.”

Woman: “But they were here yesterday.”

Me: “Yes, we sold out of our entire stock last night.”

Woman: “So, you don’t have any more in stock?”

Me: “At this particular store we do not. I know because I did a check last night and they said that we did not have any more. There are some coming in after the holiday.”

Woman: “That’s not acceptable; I need one of those for tomorrow.”

Me: “Well, we can order them to be shipped to your house, which you’ll get free shipping for, since we didn’t have them in stock, or I can check local stores which have them.”

Woman: “Okay, search which stores have them.”

Me: “Okay, so [Nearest Store] has six in stock. They are about twenty minutes’ drive a—”

Woman: “I don’t have time to go there; do you send them between the stores?”

Me: “No, but I can run a back order from the warehouse.”

Woman: “No, I need you to send someone out there to pick two up for me and come back and bring them to me.”

Me: “We… don’t do that.”

Woman: “Well, I don’t see why you don’t have those in stock. I wanted to buy one and you should have saved it for me.”

Me: “We can’t have saved it for you if you didn’t order it for pick up. Someone else saw it and they bought the last available ones.”

Woman: “But I didn’t buy it.”

Me: “Okay, but somebody else did last night.”

Woman: “But it wasn’t me.”

Me: “That’s correct; it wasn’t you. Now, I can back order them, I can ship them to your house, or I can give you other options, but those are the only things I can do for you today.”

Woman: “I need them. You didn’t tell the person who bought them last night that I needed them for tomorrow.”

Me: “He saw them, he liked them, and he was here when we had them. If you had purchased them yesterday afternoon, then you would have had the ones you wanted.”

Woman: “But don’t you know who I am?”

Me: “Who you are doesn’t make a difference to me, apart from that you’re a guest like he was. Now, I’m sorry for the inconvenience, but I’ll ask you how I can help you keep your cool.”

(The woman left without ordering the coolers, looking a bit upset about it. Even though we were indoors with soft lighting and good AC, she NEVER took off her Gucci sunglasses.)

(My new store manager is a b****. She belittles us in front of customers — “Did you really think that was the smartest choice, or just the easiest one for you?” — she ignores us when she doesn’t want to answer a question, and she seems to go out of her way to find reasons to write us up. I’m at home, a few hours before my shift starts, when my phone rings. It’s the store number.)

Me: “Hello?”

Manager: “Where are you?”

Me: “Home.”

Manager: “And why aren’t you here?”

Me: “Well, I don’t start until 5:00, and it’s 1:30.”

Manager: “No. You’re scheduled at 1:00 today.”

Me: “I’m scheduled at 1:00 tomorrow, but 5:00 today.”

Manager: “Wrong.”

(There is an awkward twenty seconds of silence.)

Manager: “You’re going to get written up.”

Me: “I work at 5:00 today.”

Manager: “I just told you it was 1:00.”

Me: “And I’m looking at the photo I took of the schedule the day it was posted. It says 5:00 Monday, 1:00 Tuesday.”

Manager: “So, you do know how to read a schedule!”

Me: “It’s Monday.”

(Another twenty seconds of silence.)

Manager: “Don’t be late.” *hangs up*

(When I arrived at work — at 4:55 — my manager was sitting by the time clock. As soon as I walked in, she rolled her eyes and stormed out. Later, I found out that she had already written me up for tardiness and was planning on using it if I was even one minute late that day.)

(I have a limp; four years ago I cut my leg open with a framing blade while working, right down to the bone. A year ago: I am paying my Internet bill online when there is a hiccup. The paid page does not display, but it says it’s safe to reload. Basically, it says, “Oops! We had a problem. Reload and try to pay again,” so I do so, and attempt to pay again. I write the charge down in my notebook, determine my balance, and go grocery shopping at a few places. It turns out the first charge DID go through, even though the website explicitly said it did not. I end up paying my bill twice, leaving me with around $20 in my account before going out to food shop. I end up getting hit with FIVE separate overdraw penalties the next day, totaling $100 plus the actual food purchased. My bank tells me they can contest two overdraws yearly, and the other three will need the Internet company to admit the mistake before they can contest the fees. So, I call the big company:)

Day #1:

(I call, and a person picks up. I explain what happened.)

Employee #1: “I see the two charges, but it will take up to a week to clear before I can refund you. It’s just a precaution in case the bank issues a chargeback in the meantime, or you would be in trouble for theft over a mistake.”

Day #8:

(I call, explain it all again, and the employee admits the notes are on my record.)

Employee #2: “I see the charges. Whoever told you a week should have told you up to two weeks. Give it another week.”

Day #15:

(I call AGAIN. I’m starting to panic; the month is halfway through, and my account is still overdrawn. A person picks up.)

Employee #3: “Oh, well. We are seeing only one charge here. We never got the second payment.”

Me: “Excuse me? Two people told me they saw two charges, and I’m looking at my online statement. You guys double-dipped. The money was withdrawn on the third.”

Employee #3: “Well, I only see one charge on our end. But if you take your bank statement into a local branch as proof, they can fix it.”

(I limp up to my bank — I don’t own a car — for a printout, and they happily highlight the two charges. I then limp two miles, one way, to the local office in 90-degree temperatures. THE LADY REFUSES TO LOOK AT THE STATEMENT. She pulls up my account, and keeps stating:)

Branch Employee: “I only see one charge.”

(Then, she looks away when I hold up my statement. She also REFUSES to turn the monitor towards me to show ME proof, and even turns her back to me when I slam my statement down on the counter after the seventh repetition of:)

Branch Employee: “We only have one charge. It does not matter what your statement says, or what they told you on the phone.”

(I am admittedly VERY angry that someone, somewhere, has lied, maybe more than once. So, I limp the two miles home, grab my phone, and call them again.)

Employee #4: *goes into normal greeting spiel*

Me: “I am sorry to rudely interrupt, but you cannot help me. I am very angry, and I want to talk with a supervisor as of right now, if not five minutes ago.”

Employee #4: “I am sorry you are upset, and I am motioning for a supervisor. Are you sure I cannot help?”

Me: “I have been through this for the last two and a half weeks, and I will only repeat myself once more, to a Super. I am sorry if I am giving you attitude, but I am livid.”

(A supervisor picks up:)

Supervisor: “I see the records here that you have contacted us three times and—”

Me: *in a cold, low voice, as I do not yell at people when really angry* “Yes, and the first two times, I was told, and I quote, ‘I see the two charges.’ The third time, I was told, ‘I don’t see a second charge,’ and, ‘Go to a local office to fix it.’ I. Have. A. Limp. I walked two miles, one way, in 90-plus-degree weather, only for the lady in the office to flat out refuse to help me, refuse to say anything except, ‘We only see one charge,’ and refuse to look at my bank statement. Now, I am back home, in pain, and you are bearing the brunt of my wrath when you had nothing to do with this. I suggest you figure out just who lied to me, because you dealing with me is their fault. Now, I am saying this once, and once only: It’s Tuesday. If the second charge is not in my bank account by Friday, I will get a lawyer and go to court over the mental stress this has caused me worrying about next month’s rent and groceries due to overdraft fees I can’t dispute without your input, plus the physical stress over walking four miles with a bad leg on what may have been a g**d*** lie. Okay?”

Supervisor: *clearly floored* “I… well… I will see what I can do.”

Me: “Thank you. And for any record: the lady who took my call today, and you, were courteous.”

(I then hung up to have a VERY good scream. Come Thursday, my bank called me to let me know the second charge was back in my account, and all overdraw fees could be, and had been, returned, as well. I hate when people scream, “SUE!” but after over two weeks of BS, I was 100% ready to do just that.)