Starbucks Baristas: The daily grind
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has this happened to anyone? (self.starbucksbaristas)
submitted by nattiiss
hi, i don’t go on reddit a lot and this is my first time posting on here but i’m genuinely really frustrated with my job, i’m sorry if this is long but i’m sort of in need of advice.
I work in a licensed starbucks in canada and i’ve been a barista here for a little over 2 months now. it was great working here from the start but the longer i work here the worse things get. my training was really all over the place and my trainer left a lot of things out and i wanted to see with my fellow baristas here if any of you might’ve dealt or are dealing with the same situations i am. to start off they never informed me of any sort of benefits, apparently i’m supposed to get them after 6 months but it was only brought up that that was the case after i asked my manager about it. they’re always saying that i’m either doing things too slow or not good enough and it really makes me doubt my ability to do the most basic things like cleaning, if i wash things properly and well yet still at a pretty good pace they complain and tell me i’m working too slowly and i need to hurry up but when i do things really fast and not as well they complain that i need to clean it better and put in more effort. when i do something wrong they only give me shit about it despite all my other coworkers doing the same thing too.
but here’s the thing that pissed me off and frustrated me the most. i started noticing that my pay cheques were short after i recalculated them multiple times thinking i counted wrong but just blew it off thinking nothing of it. up until very recently about a week ago i had no idea but apparently they don’t pay me if i work less than 4 hours, so let’s say if i’m scheduled to work for 3.5 hours one day, i will not be getting paid for those 3.5 hours. and i haven’t been made aware of this until recently. i have worked over 12 hours for free because of all the 3 hour shifts i was given and have missed out on about $250+.
and they knew about this and that i wouldn’t get paid for the hours i worked yet my manager still scheduled me for those 3 hour shifts. i don’t know if i’m just overreacting and i’m making a big deal out of nothing but this is my time and hard work that they just used to their advantage without telling me, i feel lied to as i wasn’t made aware of this when i first started working. i spent my time getting up early in the morning to go to these shifts, spent my time taking the bus, getting rides from people and just overall spending money to get to work just to work a 3 hour shift and spend my time working for free. i ended up telling a family member about this who was furious and said she’d do some digging as she’s sure this is violating some sort of labour law but i wanted to hear your opinions. i know i’ve been working here for a short period of time but i don’t know if i’m doing something wrong, i feel terrible working here, my mental health is getting worse and i don’t want to come off as entitled or ungrateful but i don’t know what to do, i’m sorry this was a long post, if you made it this far i really appreciate you taking the time to read what i had to say, i guess i’m just looking for advice on what to do next in this situation even if it’s positive or negative feedback, either way i will appreciate every comment i get, thank you
I work in a licensed starbucks in canada and i’ve been a barista here for a little over 2 months now. it was great working here from the start but the longer i work here the worse things get. my training was really all over the place and my trainer left a lot of things out and i wanted to see with my fellow baristas here if any of you might’ve dealt or are dealing with the same situations i am. to start off they never informed me of any sort of benefits, apparently i’m supposed to get them after 6 months but it was only brought up that that was the case after i asked my manager about it. they’re always saying that i’m either doing things too slow or not good enough and it really makes me doubt my ability to do the most basic things like cleaning, if i wash things properly and well yet still at a pretty good pace they complain and tell me i’m working too slowly and i need to hurry up but when i do things really fast and not as well they complain that i need to clean it better and put in more effort. when i do something wrong they only give me shit about it despite all my other coworkers doing the same thing too.
but here’s the thing that pissed me off and frustrated me the most. i started noticing that my pay cheques were short after i recalculated them multiple times thinking i counted wrong but just blew it off thinking nothing of it. up until very recently about a week ago i had no idea but apparently they don’t pay me if i work less than 4 hours, so let’s say if i’m scheduled to work for 3.5 hours one day, i will not be getting paid for those 3.5 hours. and i haven’t been made aware of this until recently. i have worked over 12 hours for free because of all the 3 hour shifts i was given and have missed out on about $250+.
and they knew about this and that i wouldn’t get paid for the hours i worked yet my manager still scheduled me for those 3 hour shifts. i don’t know if i’m just overreacting and i’m making a big deal out of nothing but this is my time and hard work that they just used to their advantage without telling me, i feel lied to as i wasn’t made aware of this when i first started working. i spent my time getting up early in the morning to go to these shifts, spent my time taking the bus, getting rides from people and just overall spending money to get to work just to work a 3 hour shift and spend my time working for free. i ended up telling a family member about this who was furious and said she’d do some digging as she’s sure this is violating some sort of labour law but i wanted to hear your opinions. i know i’ve been working here for a short period of time but i don’t know if i’m doing something wrong, i feel terrible working here, my mental health is getting worse and i don’t want to come off as entitled or ungrateful but i don’t know what to do, i’m sorry this was a long post, if you made it this far i really appreciate you taking the time to read what i had to say, i guess i’m just looking for advice on what to do next in this situation even if it’s positive or negative feedback, either way i will appreciate every comment i get, thank you
OrdinaryIdea 7 points 2y ago
I’m a barista in the US and we get paid for every second we work. I’m not sure if it’s different in Canada but either way that makes no sense at all. I would definitely do your research or call corporate because that definitely sounds like they are breaking some kind of law.
As far as them complaining that you are working too slow (because you are taking the time to do things the right way) and complaining you didn’t do the work the correct way (because they pressured you to hurry therefore you weren’t able to do it correctly) ignore them. All you can do is your best. Go at a pace that is comfortable for you, the #1 way to get stressed is to be rushing to do everything your entire shift. Other people like to project their negative emotions onto others (such as being stressed and lashing out at other co workers) but you can’t let it ruin your state of mind. Relax, do what you know how to do at your own pace, and remember that it’s just a job and it’s not worth draining your mental energy over. I really hope you get everything figured out and stay positive!
As far as them complaining that you are working too slow (because you are taking the time to do things the right way) and complaining you didn’t do the work the correct way (because they pressured you to hurry therefore you weren’t able to do it correctly) ignore them. All you can do is your best. Go at a pace that is comfortable for you, the #1 way to get stressed is to be rushing to do everything your entire shift. Other people like to project their negative emotions onto others (such as being stressed and lashing out at other co workers) but you can’t let it ruin your state of mind. Relax, do what you know how to do at your own pace, and remember that it’s just a job and it’s not worth draining your mental energy over. I really hope you get everything figured out and stay positive!
nattiiss [OP] 3 points 2y ago
i really needed this, i felt like i was in the wrong with all of this so thank you!❤️
OrdinaryIdea 3 points 2y ago
You are absolutely not in the wrong! You should get paid for your work and have your work appreciated. Also remember no question is a stupid question. I’m 5 months in and still have to ask questions everyday, it’s how you learn :)
SchemingPancake 2 points 2y ago
I so so agree with everything that’s in the above comment! Also please call corporate! Or your local whoever it is who regulates work! I’m also in the US, but this would be hella illegal here. Companies have gotten in huge trouble for minutes of not paying for work done, not to mention hours of it!! That’s absolute bull crap!! You’re not overreacting or in the wrong. They’re treating you terribly by doing this! Please please please reach out to someone about this!!
nattiiss [OP] 2 points 2y ago
i will thank you!
I_prefer_naps 2 points 2y ago
At two months you're still learning, so it sounds like they're being pretty unreasonable.
You could ask for specific advice on how to do things in a more timely manner, and let them know that just telling you to be faster is unhelpful.
But yeah I think them keeping your wages is illegal. I follow r/legaladvice, they get posts like these quite a bit. They usually recommend reporting to dept of labor.
I think there is r/legaladvicecanada since you're in Canada.
Edit: Also, I'd document everything. Get copies or pics of paystubs and your schedules or clock in/out times. Keep a log and write down when you had conversations about them not having to pay you for over 4 hours, like who you spoke to and when. You'll have everything to back up your claim at your fingertips. I actually do this, not because I mistrust my company, but because they're human who input numbers into a computer and humans make mistakes.
You could ask for specific advice on how to do things in a more timely manner, and let them know that just telling you to be faster is unhelpful.
But yeah I think them keeping your wages is illegal. I follow r/legaladvice, they get posts like these quite a bit. They usually recommend reporting to dept of labor.
I think there is r/legaladvicecanada since you're in Canada.
Edit: Also, I'd document everything. Get copies or pics of paystubs and your schedules or clock in/out times. Keep a log and write down when you had conversations about them not having to pay you for over 4 hours, like who you spoke to and when. You'll have everything to back up your claim at your fingertips. I actually do this, not because I mistrust my company, but because they're human who input numbers into a computer and humans make mistakes.
nattiiss [OP] 1 points 2y ago
i write down every shift i worked and how many hours it was, to keep track and just know how much i’ll be making for my next pay cheque but now that you mentioned it i’m definitely going to make a log of everything! thank you!
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