Starbucks Baristas: The daily grind
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need some help with conflict happening. (self.starbucksbaristas)
submitted by different_as_can_be
okay so, hello please help me. i’ve been a barista for almost a year now. and about 4 months in a fellow barista got promoted to shift supervisor. that’s all cool and fine. but as she was promoted and started learning the ropes, she started to get bossier and ruder. i had noticed she would yell and scold other shifts in front of baristas and be overall unprofessional.
but, one night i was having a rough time and she was especially in a bad mood. the whole time she spoke down to me as if i was dumb or a 5 year old. and finally i’d cracked and started to get frustrated by her tone. so i started to shut down and get irritated, which she interpreted as attitude. a friend came through and she could tell i was upset, so she asked if i was okay and i just gave her a look and the shift in question yelled at me “i know you’re talking about me, i can hear you. if you have an issue you can talk to me about it.” which made me cry, so i walked to the back. she started to further yell at me about my attitude, so i told her my issue and said i didn’t say a word to my friend at the window. she stepped back after yelling for 5-ish minutes and said sorry and moved on.
well, tonight the same thing happened. she failed to communicate what she wanted from me, got angry when i didn’t do what she failed to ask me what to do, and continued to speak down to me like she had before. i again got visibly frustrated, and yet again she carries a derogatory tone and tells me to go to the back. i go back to continue my tasks, and she yet again screams and yells and swears at me. i try to defend myself, but she did this in front of the other baristas too.
overall, anyone have any advice for what to do?
tldr: i’m having issues with a shift supervisor treating me like garbage, speaking to me like i’m dumb, and yelling/swearing at me for extended periods of time. pls help.
but, one night i was having a rough time and she was especially in a bad mood. the whole time she spoke down to me as if i was dumb or a 5 year old. and finally i’d cracked and started to get frustrated by her tone. so i started to shut down and get irritated, which she interpreted as attitude. a friend came through and she could tell i was upset, so she asked if i was okay and i just gave her a look and the shift in question yelled at me “i know you’re talking about me, i can hear you. if you have an issue you can talk to me about it.” which made me cry, so i walked to the back. she started to further yell at me about my attitude, so i told her my issue and said i didn’t say a word to my friend at the window. she stepped back after yelling for 5-ish minutes and said sorry and moved on.
well, tonight the same thing happened. she failed to communicate what she wanted from me, got angry when i didn’t do what she failed to ask me what to do, and continued to speak down to me like she had before. i again got visibly frustrated, and yet again she carries a derogatory tone and tells me to go to the back. i go back to continue my tasks, and she yet again screams and yells and swears at me. i try to defend myself, but she did this in front of the other baristas too.
overall, anyone have any advice for what to do?
tldr: i’m having issues with a shift supervisor treating me like garbage, speaking to me like i’m dumb, and yelling/swearing at me for extended periods of time. pls help.
wellguesswhatpumpkin 8 points 3y ago
Talk to your manager first. Let her know of everything that concerns you about working with this supervisor and what she has done so far. If she is not willing to do anything about it, call partner resources.
Unfortunately some newly promoted shifts let the position inflate their ego and feel like they are the boss now and can treat anyone like that. That’s not true, we are responsible for all of you while running a shift, and under no circumstances should we speak or treat you guys like that.
Unfortunately some newly promoted shifts let the position inflate their ego and feel like they are the boss now and can treat anyone like that. That’s not true, we are responsible for all of you while running a shift, and under no circumstances should we speak or treat you guys like that.
different_as_can_be [OP] 2 points 3y ago
that’s what i was assuming, and the sad part is she’s been a shift for about 6 months. and only recently in the past 2 months has she gotten this bad. i’m hoping that my manager will be easily accessible and understanding of my issues and puts her biases aside. thank you!!
wellguesswhatpumpkin 3 points 3y ago
Maybe something is going on in her personal life? I try not to assume that my coworkers attitudes towards me are maliciously intended and try to ask them in private if they are okay. If you feel confident you can try that as well but I would honestly recommend just having your manager have that conversation with her, especially if she has made you cry before, that’s a huge no no for me when it comes to workplace communication. Do you fear that your manager might not be of much help with this issue?
different_as_can_be [OP] 2 points 3y ago
my manager definitely tends to favor some people, and sometimes i’m not one of those people. she knows i have a lot of anxiety issues which make me shut down and get frustrated, so she’s aware of that. i’m worried she’s just gonna tell me to suck it up and grow up. i’ve never known of any other issues between people since i’ve worked there so i don’t know her mediation abilities.
wellguesswhatpumpkin 3 points 3y ago
From what I remember when calling partner resources, they will have you talk to your manager about this issue first to see if she can resolve it. It’s unfortunate that she’s this way however give her the benefit of the doubt and let her try. If the issue is not resolved then definitely call partner resources. I’m sorry you are going thru this, especially with anxiety, I know this must not be easy at all and probably makes going into work a lot more stressful :/
[deleted] 2 points 3y ago
nobody is allowed to scream or swear at you at work--coworkers/mangers or customers. starbucks has its issues but they will support you on that. tbh if someone swore at me i would file an incident report with the manager immediately. if that's not an option call PCC.
my original reply was going to say to try talking to the person directly and expressing your feelings, because most people have a human side no matter how bad things get at work. but if you've been subjected to threatening behaviour (verbal abuse), then please don't stand for that at all.
my original reply was going to say to try talking to the person directly and expressing your feelings, because most people have a human side no matter how bad things get at work. but if you've been subjected to threatening behaviour (verbal abuse), then please don't stand for that at all.
different_as_can_be [OP] 1 points 3y ago
i definitely plan on speaking to my manager about it ASAP and saying “look, i can only deal with this so much. but she’s made me cry multiple times.” and like honestly when customers do it i don’t bat an eye bc it’s not worth it, but a fellow partner? not cool.
different_as_can_be [OP] 2 points 3y ago
UPDATE: I’m planning on speaking to my manager at some point this week about the issue. my mindset is that i’m not an innocent party, and that my frustration comes off as attitude, but that it’s embarrassing and hurtful for her to talk to me like that. i made another shift aware of what’s going on and took her advice too, and she said just to go right to our manager for the best outcome possible. thank y’all so much for your help and making me feel better that this isn’t how a shift should act or behave. 💕
MiniAussieMom82 2 points 3y ago
That really sucks you have to deal with that. Some people get on power trips when they get promotions and I’ve experienced that before. It’s unprofessional AF and shouldn’t be tolerated. Unfortunately, it’s often overlooked if they get their job done (I.e. meet the metrics and have decent window times). If the shift hasn’t been responsive to a conversation that is he outside of emotionally charged moments then I would bring the ASM or SM into the situation. However, before you do that, document the hell out of incidents (date, time, exactly what happened) and I would frame it as concern for hampered productivity because we work for a corporation where production and numbers matter. Also, it can be helpful to go into any conversation acknowledging ways we could have handled a situation better and highlight how you are prepared to do better in your next interaction (or have improved in the interactions already) but that you’re not seeing improvements from the other party. Please note that I’m definitely NOT saying you actually did anything wrong. You seem to have handled it as best you could and you shouldn’t HAVE to work in an environment like your shift is creating for you. However, the unfortunate reality of working in a corporation means that sometimes, we will be asked “How could you have handled that better?” And I want you to succeed in this so I’m just giving you a heads up to have an answer ready to show you’ve already tried the possible improvements they could suggest and it hasn’t worked. They will take the complaint more seriously if they see you’ve already tried to do what they will suggest and it hasn’t worked. Is it fair? No. The onus SHOULDN’T be on the victim. It just often IS.
Frecksbux 2 points 3y ago
Damn, i feel so bad that you have to deal with this monster supervisor, do not let anyone speak to you or even YELL at you.
Shes already failed her job if she is treating people like that, id call her out, no one has the right to talk to you like that, if she cant give you direction in work then she shouldn’t be in charge.
Dont let them win you are way better!!!
Shes already failed her job if she is treating people like that, id call her out, no one has the right to talk to you like that, if she cant give you direction in work then she shouldn’t be in charge.
Dont let them win you are way better!!!
brokenlatteart 1 points 3y ago
Honestly you have much more restraint than I do. I would’ve yelled back at her right away. You should honestly try to see if maybe another shift or you manager can talk to her. If nothing gets resolved I would go to the the district manager.
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