I got shouted at again at work last night. A regular was waiting 20 minutes for his fish and chips, and for some reason, he thought this entitled him to shout and swear at me because he wanted his food. Bear in mind, this man is in his 50s and was perfectly capable of ordering his food earlier, but apparently kicking off at me was the better option.
He told me to call the chef and tell him to "hurry the fuck up". My boss was in the kitchen last night. I'd have been fired on the spot.
This got me thinking about the crap I've had to put up with in hospitality. I love my job but I really do put up with some shit. So here's a comprehensive list of my top five work moments, to remind people to be nice to people who serve you.
1) Being licked
I worked in a student bar for the last two years of university, and for the most part, it was pretty chill. I'll admit I wasn't the best worker, but attempting suicide, battling a drug addiction and putting a man in prison will inevitably affect your job performance. I was working in the club section of the bar one night when I handed someone their change, and they licked me in response. After spending a good amount of time scrubbing myself clean, I returned to work, but I still wasn't a massive fan of the whole thing.
Don't lick strangers. It's unhygienic and weird.
2) Being filmed
During Covid, before we went into full lockdown, a customer refused to wear a mask in the cafe I worked in, claiming asthma prevented him from doing so. For the record, I'm also asthmatic and wearing a mask never affected me, but I guess everyone is different.
We were unable to let him into the venue, but offered to serve him outside. This led to shouting, screaming and my boss and I being filmed as he claimed we were violating his human rights. This then led to someone else filming him and me and my co-worker crouching on the floor, giving up on a shift before it had even started.
Eventually, he got his croissant, but only after a manager from another venue came over to calm him down. '
Now, last time I checked, croissants were not a human right. I mean, they taste good, but I don't think anyone has ever been prosecuted for refusing to sell someone baked goods inside. This was a bit of a unique one. Covid sent all of us a bit mad, but don't film people who are serving you. Unless I concent to being filmed, put the fucking phone down.
3) Being threatened
When I worked in my last bar, I asked a customer to leave the venue after he made a false claim about another member of staff. He was drunk, I was tired, and I always side with my co-workers when it comes to ridiculous claims against them. On his way out he repeatedly told me that if I wasn't a woman, he'd smash my face in with a glass. An undoubtedly sexist claim, I mean, surely I'm just as capable of taking a glass to the face as any man, but still rude all the same.
You could say that it was the drink talking and that he wouldn't have said that if he was sober, but that's no excuse for being a dick. Luckily, I've been in this industry so long that I'm completely unphasable at this point, but not everyone feels this way. There are plenty of people who would, quite rightly, have been upset by this. So maybe just don't threaten people in general, just in case.
I also had someone threaten to come into my bar and kill all of us the other day, but that was a far less personal.
4) Assault
I don't think this one was intentional, but I still wasn't a fan. Two people jumped over my bar to steal a couple of bottles of spirits and smacked into me on their way out. I hit the floor like a sack of shit and it's one of the reasons I'm looking to take self-defense classes. Obviously, the best way to win a fight is to avoid one in the first place, but sometimes these things can't be avoided.
In hindsight, I could have avoided walking into his path. I could have stayed out of the way. But either way, assaulting me wasn't the right thing to do. Theft is also not okay, but that's far less personal.
Side note, there's a chance you could get someone fired if you steal while they're on shift depending on how much of an asshole your boss is. Maybe think about the financial future of the people you steal from next time you feel like boosting a bottle of rum.
5) Pouring a beer over my head
That's just rude.
Stay safe on the road
Jess
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