"Unprofessional Music"

[Lavellan]

The day hasn't even started and I'm already pissed off. If this isn't the right place to post pls let me know. 

But I pulled up outside my job, parked in the back of the plot as we're required to do, and I had 5 minutes until I had to clock in. So I sat in my car listening to my music (at a reasonable volume. That's a very important detail.) A woman pulled into the space right beside me and was on her phone so she didn't get out of the car.

After my song was over I headed in and clocked in. 15 mins later my boss calls me into her office to tell me a customer called in and reported that I was blaring "unprofessional" music in the parking lot. My boss is a massive pushover when it comes to the customers so she didn't even bother trying to listen to me. Instead she told me I didn't need to "represent the company inside and outside the store". And said instead of waiting in my car I could have come and clocked in early. The song wasn't even vulgar or anything. But she was treating it as if it were. 

"Mercifully" it's not a write up this time. But we're so short staffed there's no way she'd fire me. She wouldn't be able to. Corporate wants as many bodies in the store as possible. 

But I'm pissed off. Every little thing is getting on my nerves and I can tell this day isn't going to go well at all ?

[Apache Raccoon]

I’d be pissed off if I was in your shoes right now, the customer sounds like a massive ass who likes to complain. 

But I can see it from your boss’s perspective and it goes back to the saying “the customers always right even when they're wrong”. 

Don’t want to loose customers or for your store to get a bad reputation, that’ll be bad for you and your colleagues. 

Maybe if you arrive early in future and want to belt out a few tunes before work, perhaps park a few blocks away from company property and make sure you wear a coat over your uniform just in case.

[Elfy]

2 hours ago, Lavellan said:

Instead she told me I didn't need to "represent the company inside and outside the store". And said instead of waiting in my car I could have come and clocked in early.

If a boss said that to me I'd have said I would if they paid me for it.

I don't know why managers expect employees to do unpaid time for them.

[Lavellan]

1 hour ago, Apache Raccoon said:

But I can see it from your boss’s perspective and it goes back to the saying “the customers always right even when they're wrong”.

She needs to be careful because that mentality had already lost her quite a bit of staff. 

14 minutes ago, Elfy said:

If a boss said that to me I'd have said I would if they paid me for it.

I had that conversation with her several times. She also had a problem with me taking lunch breaks in my car and not in the break room. "Because what if someone needs your assistance on something?" She's said before. I told her they need to wait for my break to be over or ask someone else because I'm not the only employee that knows how to do my job. Honestly at this point I'm waiting for her to come up to my window on break to bug me. ?

[Firefly 35]

If you have to clock out for break, your boss legally can't ask you to work while on break.  That would be asking someone to work while off the clock and is actually a reportable offense.

[~Brian~]

@Lavellan

As far as I'm concerned, your car is an extension of your private space. The only time that anyone should be saying anything about what you are doing in someone else's parking lot would be if you are somehow breaking the law, Or you are violating the peace. there are there are plenty of individuals around who I have seen who will turn up their really loud, and I'm talking loud enough so that you all you hear is a booming bass

the only time that would be a problem is if it was during quiet hours by ordinance. if there's no ordinance about this, there shouldn't be an issue. additionally, I don't think your boss has any standing to try to ask you to turn your music down because that is your vehicle. I may be wrong there, but it sounds to me like all she wanted to do was be a little bit ridiculous. Part of the problem is she wanted you apparently to go in early, so that isn't right either. If they're not going to pay you overtime for going in early, why clock in early, and why worry about that.

When I work for the state, I was required To take all of my breaks.  in my job that I had when I was 17 or 18, I had to physically get up and leave my office desk and go to the other side of the plant, and take a short walk. I could get something to drink from one of the machines, or one of the trucks, but I had to leave my desk and actually walk out of my office. This made sure that I was taking all of my 15 minute breaks A morning one and an afternoon one.

Brian

[Lavellan]

24 minutes ago, ~Brian~ said:

@Lavellan

As far as I'm concerned, your car is an extension of your private space. The only time that anyone should be saying anything about what you are doing in someone else's parking lot would be if you are somehow breaking the law, Or you are violating the peace. there are there are plenty of individuals around who I have seen who will turn up their really loud, and I'm talking loud enough so that you all you hear is a booming bass

the only time that would be a problem is if it was during quiet hours by ordinance. if there's no ordinance about this, there shouldn't be an issue. additionally, I don't think your boss has any standing to try to ask you to turn your music down because that is your vehicle. I may be wrong there, but it sounds to me like all she wanted to do was be a little bit ridiculous. Part of the problem is she wanted you apparently to go in early, so that isn't right either. If they're not going to pay you overtime for going in early, why clock in early, and why worry about that.

When I work for the state, I was required To take all of my breaks.  in my job that I had when I was 17 or 18, I had to physically get up and leave my office desk and go to the other side of the plant, and take a short walk. I could get something to drink from one of the machines, or one of the trucks, but I had to leave my desk and actually walk out of my office. This made sure that I was taking all of my 15 minute breaks A morning one and an afternoon one.

Brian

Where I work they're 'supposed' to give us a 30min lunch and 2 15min breaks throughout the day. But they instead give us 1 hour lunch in the middle of our shift, which I don't mind at all. But there have been times where she's told workers to only take a 30 and she'll try to give them a smaller break later on. Technically she's the manager of a separate section of the store, so I don't think she could do that to me, but I wouldn't put it passed her to try when my actual manager isn't available. Today was a lot better for me though because she's had her hands full with HR and another worker for the passed few days. I doubt anything will come of it but as long as she's not bothering me.