You’re All Just Sacks Of Meat To Her

(It’s a week before Easter Sunday. The store just opened up, so there are only a few customers in the store along with me and five other employees. Two are occupied with the registers, and the rest of us are in our freezers or backrooms doing the early morning prep for the day. One of the meat-cutting employees collapses in the middle of the aisle while filling a meat case with Easter hams. The meat manager comes from the back and finds the meat cutter with a purple face and blood around his head. He leaps into action and pages for help, calls an ambulance, and then goes to our coworker’s aid. There is an older lady nearby who does not care one wit for the dying man at her feet.)

Customer: “Can you get out of the way already? I need a ham!”

Meat Manager: *ignores her, trying to revive the meat cutter*

Customer: *swats at the manager* “Don’t you ignore me! Didn’t you hear me? I need a ham!”

(I come rushing up at this point, having heard the commotion over the intercom as well as the yelling woman. I go up to the customer and try to wave her off. The store manager rushes over at this time, too, along with another customer who is a registered nurse. The nurse goes to the fallen man’s side and tries to help revive him.)

Me: “Ma’am, I’m sorry, but we can’t get a ham for you right now. We have an injured man who needs our attention.”

Customer: *starts screaming* “I don’t care! I’m the customer and want my ham!”

(I try to hustle her away, asking her to do the rest of her shopping and I’ll get a ham for her later. I just want her gone, but she won’t budge. The others are busy with our coworker.)

Customer: “No! I want to pick out my ham. I need my ham now. I need it for Easter. That fat a**hole is in the way, and you are all useless. Get out of my way!” *steps over the collapsed meat cutter*

Meat Manager: *yells at the lady* “My friend is dying! Get away from him!”

Nurse: “Are you serious?! You need to get away now, lady!”

Store Manager: *picks up the heaviest ham he can reach and throws it right at the woman* “There! Have your d*** ham.”

Customer: “Why, I never! I’m going to make a complaint about you all!” *leaves the ham on the floor beside buggy*

(The paramedics eventually arrived, but it was too late: our coworker died that day. I went and watched the video with the store manager and the others, to see what exactly had happened. Apparently, our coworker had a heart attack and fell to the ground, cracking his head on the corner of the meat case then hard on the floor. He was on the floor for five minutes before the meat manager found him. During that time, three customers walked right past him, but not a single person said anything about it. Oh, and that lady did indeed lodge a complaint about our conduct, and we all got in trouble with corporate for not being more accommodating to her needs. I lost all faith in my fellow man that day. A ham was worth more to those people than a dying man, our good friend.)