I am not a leader. I'm more of an independent but I take direction very well. My boss used to apologize for asking me to do "off book" things (not in my job description). She was actually a little defensive. But I keep telling them (Team Leads) if it's in the 10 Commandments I'll do it. I have done just about everything including unloading a pallet of dairy freight in the cooler (it was great as I was having a hot flash).
But you can tell me what you want, stick me in a corner and leave me. That's what I mean. I'll do it. And if I finish early I'll do some other things you mentioned.
Now at the Post Office they had a union. An example, Ron spilled a gallon of mustard when we had the deli, he knocked it off the hand cart and it ruptured. Ron didn't know, he stepped in it, walked around, "tried' to clean it up before he started yelling for me. There was a custodian standing there the whole time. I took a look at it and said, aloud "I need a mop and bucket". The custodian just shrugged.
I remembered seeing them in a closet near the front entrance, so I went in the closet (!) got the mop and bucket, filled it with clean water, went back, mopped up the gallon of mustard, dumped out the water, got fresh water, mopped it all clean. A supervisor walked by and said "Why did you go in the closet?"
I pointed at the custodian, standing there. "He wouldn't help, it was a safety hazard". No, I was told, the safety hazard was me getting the mop and bucket, that *they would always clean up a spill for me* (HA! Not in twenty years did they lift a finger!) And they made a call to Ron's supervisor and got me in trouble.
That's why I don't like unions. Later on a Postal Worker told me it was basically "job stealing' that only certain people were allowed to do certain jobs, and it someone else did the job even for a minute it was Big Trouble.
But I just remember the insolent creep standing there in his coveralls watching.
But I've been working my entire adult life and seen a lot of people. Ron was a terrible husband and human being but he was an excellent manager, one of the best I've ever seen.
An example, and I've shared this before. We had an employee, "Jane". She was very talkative, I think had ADHD, but she did the work of 4 people and always had a fantastic attitude. But she liked to wear tight leggings and crop tops. She'd had 5 children. Not only that she kept saying it was the same size she wore in high school. The leggings were pushing the excess to her "muffin top" belly and it was pretty awful. One of the customers complained to Ron.
He took Jane off to a quiet corner of the cafeteria, sat down, told her, first thing "You're not in trouble" . I watched from afar. Within a minute or two he had her laughing about this. She nodded several times, he gave her something, they got up, she put my apron over her clothes. The next day she was wearing something appropriate.
He had to tell her "The customers say you are so fat you are making them sick". And he got her to laugh about it!
I asked him what he gave her and he said he gave her $50 to buy some new clothes.
One of my team leads (not the spicy one) is very good at relating to people but has told me more than once "I will throw you under the bus to save my job". Not what I was looking for!
But we have an associate. She generally helps Chief Snitch and is very good spirited about her treatment (poor). But CS was off on Friday night when we were very short staffed. She made sure I got my lunch, had everyone managing the details, etc. She is a natural. I told (throw you under the bus) my Team Lead and she agreed.
The team leads are encouraged to cultivate good prospects so I know they'll keep an eye on her.
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