Starbucks Baristas: The daily grind
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Three weeks in, cried already. RANT (self.starbucksbaristas)
submitted by tiredperson20
Hey everyone!!
So I'm a green bean and I don't really feel supported or cared for. I had a two weeks training, which included a full day doing online courses, and learning drinks. The thing is: a) i was sent to clean/restock/do the things no one else wanted to do, so i couldnt really practice. B) because we are shortstaffed, i couldnt practice at the register.
Yesterday was my first day at the register and it wss terrible. The district manager showed up unnanounced and scolded my manager and me about me not being fast enough (a costumer asked for merch and according to her i shouldve RUN to take it). Moreover, i'm still getting used to the screen structure (idk what it's called, sorry english isnt my first language) + dealing with costumers + heating/serving food at the sane time on top of offering more items. So when the district manager left my manager said It wasnt my fault per se BC i wasnt trained properly, but she told me i needed to be X3 times as quick from now on. Like how do i do that???? I could barely sleep last night from anxiety. On top of that, my coworkers arent the kindest, don't include me, don't ask me anything, treat me like i'm dumb when i ask questions, but get mad when i mess up and claim that i need to ask everything. Ugh.
I mean i know It could be so much worse, but already dealing with the fast-paced job and the costumers is enough, why are my coworkers not kind??? Also today i cried BC a lady asked me for two"coffees", when i asked the size she said "the regular one" (?), And then when i asked whether she wanted a latte or an americano (i rather make sure on the register instead of making my own interpretation of "coffee" and then have the baristas remake the drink) and she raised her voice saying that she'd already told me 4 times she wanted a coffee.
On top of that, theres this shift supervisor thats always cold, distant, and criticising others for not working enough, so i worked my ass off to please her and yesterday when i asked her something she said "thats too easy" in a mean way. Like, okay, i know it's easy, but maybe if you help me i can be quicker, just like I've been helping you do your tasks last week.
What should i do? Should i stop trying to make friends with my coworkers? Should i give it a few months? Does it get better? Am I just too stupid for this job?
Thank you for reading this far!! 🥺
So I'm a green bean and I don't really feel supported or cared for. I had a two weeks training, which included a full day doing online courses, and learning drinks. The thing is: a) i was sent to clean/restock/do the things no one else wanted to do, so i couldnt really practice. B) because we are shortstaffed, i couldnt practice at the register.
Yesterday was my first day at the register and it wss terrible. The district manager showed up unnanounced and scolded my manager and me about me not being fast enough (a costumer asked for merch and according to her i shouldve RUN to take it). Moreover, i'm still getting used to the screen structure (idk what it's called, sorry english isnt my first language) + dealing with costumers + heating/serving food at the sane time on top of offering more items. So when the district manager left my manager said It wasnt my fault per se BC i wasnt trained properly, but she told me i needed to be X3 times as quick from now on. Like how do i do that???? I could barely sleep last night from anxiety. On top of that, my coworkers arent the kindest, don't include me, don't ask me anything, treat me like i'm dumb when i ask questions, but get mad when i mess up and claim that i need to ask everything. Ugh.
I mean i know It could be so much worse, but already dealing with the fast-paced job and the costumers is enough, why are my coworkers not kind??? Also today i cried BC a lady asked me for two"coffees", when i asked the size she said "the regular one" (?), And then when i asked whether she wanted a latte or an americano (i rather make sure on the register instead of making my own interpretation of "coffee" and then have the baristas remake the drink) and she raised her voice saying that she'd already told me 4 times she wanted a coffee.
On top of that, theres this shift supervisor thats always cold, distant, and criticising others for not working enough, so i worked my ass off to please her and yesterday when i asked her something she said "thats too easy" in a mean way. Like, okay, i know it's easy, but maybe if you help me i can be quicker, just like I've been helping you do your tasks last week.
What should i do? Should i stop trying to make friends with my coworkers? Should i give it a few months? Does it get better? Am I just too stupid for this job?
Thank you for reading this far!! 🥺
mollythewiz 50 points 1y ago
i’m really sorry your store is like this. you’re not stupid. at all. sometimes we are put in situations that we can’t handle and that’s okay. if you want to make friends to make it more enjoyable, go for it! some of the people at my store looked really intimidating at first but they are super nice. you’ll get used to taking orders. it takes time to learn it. there are so many things on the menu i’d be surprised if you had it all memorized and you were new. if you really don’t think you are happy at your job, there’s always a new opportunity out there, i promise. also a little tip- if someone says coffee they probably mean the pike place and regular (the default size) is a grande. :) best of luck.
lavendersigil 19 points 1y ago
Transfer to a different store this one sounds horrible
Word_Uo 4 points 1y ago
This, sometimes the store can be a bigger issue that you only realize till you start at a different store. Although I think there is a wait time for transferring when you start?
alo-san 18 points 1y ago
Honestly, the only thing I can suggest for toxic ass workplace like that is to either speak to your SM (which seems futile tbh) or call our partner ethics compliance department and open a claim?
Or you can always transfer to a different store.
You’re not stupid dude. It’s a crazy ass job and we’re not being properly supported right now.
It does get better after a while, when you find your rhythm, but Your DM and coworkers sounds like jerks. I’m sorry :(
Or you can always transfer to a different store.
You’re not stupid dude. It’s a crazy ass job and we’re not being properly supported right now.
It does get better after a while, when you find your rhythm, but Your DM and coworkers sounds like jerks. I’m sorry :(
mollythewiz 9 points 1y ago
yeah. it makes me feel bad when people get put in bad stores. it makes me feel so lucky.
Aly_Katt 9 points 1y ago
The shift leader I started working with after I was hired was horrid, and I have no idea how she still has a job. It took me going on leave for almost half a year for the store manager to realize my complaints actually had merit. I just don’t understand how people aren’t willing to help newer employees, or at the minimum be friendly with your coworkers that you are stuck with for 6-8 hours a day.
mollythewiz 5 points 1y ago
exactly. a little kindness can go a long way.
alo-san 6 points 1y ago
Same. Like I don’t understand more experienced partners reasoning when they refuse to be helpful. It makes everyone’s job easier and the green bean learns.
mollythewiz 2 points 1y ago
it’s also so satisfying when someone takes your advice and it works. it just makes me happy to see others succeed. the team on the floor has to work together seamlessly to get a good flow going. it’s really hard to do that when other partners are being rude and not willing to help someone learn.
charley-bananas 11 points 1y ago
I want to help but I’m in the middle of my shift. I’m writing this so that I can come back
juliaandy99 5 points 1y ago
Reminding you :)
charley-bananas 1 points 1y ago
Thank you for reminding me👍🏽
charley-bananas 3 points 1y ago
I’ve worked for Starbucks for over two years and had a lot of fun. When I started, I wanted to work at all the stores in my district and see what there was to see. It was so much fun! The store I started in would drop my into pos for all rush periods. I would open and keep things ready for the rush, then register. For three months. Then I took a shift at a Starbucks’s down the street and got put on hot bar throughout morning rush on the first day of pumpkin spice. One of the best shifts I’ve ever had. Starbucks was so much different from manager to manager. It’s not like that in my part of the world now. Every store that’s busy is running permanently undermanned. The most telling part of your tale is that the district manager was micromanaging your store. If your store is doing okay, you might never meet your district. My last store has mega major problems. I know because the regional manager showed up with a large group of store managers and just watched for a day. The simplest way to feel better is to remember that you have the best superpower in your store. Whenever someone starts going in on you about what you know and don’t know, look at them with hope in your eyes and ask them to show you. Don’t say Can you show me, say “awesome, Show me! I want to be the best I can be”. If they won’t for any reason, let them know they have to talk to the shifts about training you. For yourself, keep an eye out on the work people are doing around you. Ask questions all the time. Don’t feel bad about not knowing as you push to make yourself better. Any time anyone speaks badly about the quality or timeliness of your work, get them to train you. Everyone in the company is a partner, all of them what you would ask a partner. Ask us. We’ll help as best as we can. I would love for you to have the fun I’ve had writing at Starbucks!
qtAnna 10 points 1y ago
this was me as well i’m so sorry you have to go through this. i was trained 2 days (both e-learning) and then my store shut down 2 weeks for covid. when i got back they said they didn’t have time to train me then i got stuck on window or front cash and warm for about 8 hours a day. after a week of learning nothing i asked ab practicing a different station and my shift threw me on CS to stock and whatever, although i didn’t even know what CS was at the time, i wasn’t taught to make coffee or to refill supplies or even where the find the supplies. i texted my manager that night and told her i wasn’t coming back: it was one of the best decisions i’ve made. now i have a job where everyone is nice to me and i’m so much more comfortable there!(:
radpandaparty 6 points 1y ago
Honestly it does get better. I'm almost at 4 years and I remember that I went home everyday for the first 2-3 weeks thinking that I was going to quit. With coworkers you should just give it some time. I ended up getting promoted and I was trash when I first started, everyone has been there whether they remember it or not. It is a process.
Decent_Macaron3444 6 points 1y ago
i cried in the back of the store over a lady asking me for sweet tea as a green bean so yea... the little things got to me bc its STRESSFUL!! but ur shift is definitely unsupportive and i have a shift like that too and i feel like they stop being so snarky once ur not new anymore.. i guess it's a superiority complex of some kind. ive only been at sbux since march so i'm not rlly sure what ur next step would be regarding your shift because i just "toughed it out" but ur definitely not alone. (+ Since grande is the medium size, it's like the standard. Pike is medium roast so standard again. I always put in "regular coffee" as pike but i personally still ask for size just in case they were just referring to the roast and not size and no one's gotten upset with me as of yet👍.) With experience, you learn new ways to navigate unexpected situations. If someone asked me for sweet tea today (for example), I'd tell them our iced tea options. I'd also recommend getting on talking terms with a couple coworkers (doesn't have to be everyone, i have like only 3 coworkers i'd actually want to know outside of sbux honestly) because you can help each other. I'd hope that one barista at ur store would be willing to help you in a genuine and kind way instead of being nasty about it. sorry for rambling but yea
cyan_reynolds 5 points 1y ago
The first couple weeks are the worst, I and many others have almost quit in our first few weeks - but it does get better. Please remember that it's just coffee, just clock in, serve coffee, clock out. Customers might barate you occasionally, but it has nothing to do with you, they have personal issues. Your SM and DM can scold you over and over again about stupid shit like that merch, but they really can't do much other than that. They're too desperate for workers to fire anyone half decent (even people who suck at their jobs), so you shouldn't really worry about what they have to say. Just clock in, serve coffee, clock out. Many sbux baristas are hard on green beans until they've "proven their worth", which is bullshit, but again it has nothing to do with you personally. Just do your thing, and give it some time, and you'll do great!
jaxelliott 4 points 1y ago
I honestly thought I wrote this myself because the same thing is happening to me at my store. I’m a new ssh but bc someone got “COVID” my trainer has been out and my sm has been “training” me as a barista and shift. But they’re running the shift so they have no time to train so they just throw me on every position and then everyone is so rude. Like wtf I haven’t BEEN TRAINED
mmcdonald43 3 points 1y ago
I broke down on my first day — we had two experienced partners test positive for COVID the day before, so the store was wildly understaffed when I came in. I was thrown into DTO, and was just so overwhelmed by all the different buttons, orders, customizations, etc etc that I had a mini meltdown. It did get better though, after about a month I was running solo drive like it was nothing! Don’t be too hard on yourself. It’s just coffee :)
StillEmotional 3 points 1y ago
I cried on my second day of training and am quitting.
Seaweedgreedy 2 points 1y ago
Are you really a starbucks barista if you didn’t have a few meltdowns and considered quitting your first week? LOL we genuinely all deserve better but if you do decide to stay and push through, I promise it gets better/easier after the two month mark. Although If I were u and your coworkers are still being assholes after a few weeks/months I would definitely transfer bc you don’t get paid enough to deal w shitty customers AND coworkers.
roseshrub 2 points 1y ago
Things like this are why I became a trainer. I love teaching people and thoroughly guiding them through the process of learning the sequences and types of beverages while encouraging them to ask me questions because there really isn’t such a thing as a stupid question (at least in my opinion) and green beans like yourself need to be treated with tremendous patience and understanding.
Especially since you have a lot of information thrown at you and such little time to retain it all, and even after the session is over you’re just thrown into the thick of it with the rest of the team.
I hold myself responsible for my green beans after training too, to make sure they truly understand the concepts and adapt as they continue to work with us.
I wish you were one of my babies, I would’ve loved to give you the training you need. I’m so sorry to hear you’re going through such a tough time at your store. Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither are you. Your coworkers should be ashamed of themselves for creating such a toxic environment for you and you have no business wasting any more of your time in such an awful place.
Have you tried to transfer?
Especially since you have a lot of information thrown at you and such little time to retain it all, and even after the session is over you’re just thrown into the thick of it with the rest of the team.
I hold myself responsible for my green beans after training too, to make sure they truly understand the concepts and adapt as they continue to work with us.
I wish you were one of my babies, I would’ve loved to give you the training you need. I’m so sorry to hear you’re going through such a tough time at your store. Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither are you. Your coworkers should be ashamed of themselves for creating such a toxic environment for you and you have no business wasting any more of your time in such an awful place.
Have you tried to transfer?
briannuzzi 2 points 1y ago
honestly I would just quit. I don’t see any benefit of you working at this store. if you still wanna work for starbucks I definitely recommend transferring to a different location, because this work environment isn’t healthy for anybody!! you’re definitely NOT too stupid, starbucks is a really hard and intense place to work (especially nowadays with the pandemic, product shortages, customers becoming more and more demanding and hellish for some reason, etc) and it’s completely normal to struggle at first, and having unsupportive managers and coworkers definitely doesn’t help. that’s what I wish your coworkers and managers would remember because no one deserves to be treated this way! if the behaviour doesn’t get better I definitely recommend transferring or even just quitting if you don’t wanna bother with the stress this job causes most of the time. also PLEASEEEE stick up for yourself next time your manager makes a comment like that! you don’t have to be snarky back but maybe bring it to your store manager about how shes rude and condescending. or just tell her off if you decide to quit hahahaha (I used to have a manager like this when I worked at a restaurant and it’s infuriating)
_lips_like_sugar_ 2 points 1y ago
Its honestly so toxic. My store is the same.
(A PSA though...lattes and americanos are espresso drinks, not coffee drinks. Coffee is what's in the urns...pike, iced, etc. Espresso is in the bar machine.)
(A PSA though...lattes and americanos are espresso drinks, not coffee drinks. Coffee is what's in the urns...pike, iced, etc. Espresso is in the bar machine.)
Seriously_jst_4real 2 points 1y ago
1) I am so very sorry to hear that you're having a hard time and that it sounds like you are in with an unsupportive crew.
2) some shifts are harder to learn and train on and/or have staffed. What is your availability like? If you are working during your store's peak, if you have availability off peak check about getting more shifts when it's quiet less stressful.
3) Talk to your manager about your learning style-especially if you need the computer training and it was just too disruptive during your assigned day.
4) Another thing might be trying out the "3rd place" aspect of the store. And if you have free time just kind of hanging out maybe making some light conversation with the other crew members on the other side of the bar for some informal learning-and some time getting to know your fellow partners. Maybe even check with your store manager about picking up a couple hours here or there to get some hands on training. Again this depends on your availability and possibly your store's scheduling requirements.
5) You could ask about transferring but you might not have the time in with the company to get a transfer. But another option might be asking about getting some training shifts in at another, maybe slower, location. Check with your store and DM both.
6) lastly the same cold comfort that you've probably already heard. It takes time. Be kind to yourself. If you can, try not to let criticism get to you. Every food industry job is suffering from understaffing right now, but customers (at least in the US it seems) are just as demanding as ever which just compounds the issue. If you can push through this learning period and put your best effort forward I am sure you will be fine. But. If it is too much-all we do is make coffee and it isn't worth pushing yourself to your breaking point. There are other entry level jobs out there-and that's all this is.
Good Luck, and Take care!
2) some shifts are harder to learn and train on and/or have staffed. What is your availability like? If you are working during your store's peak, if you have availability off peak check about getting more shifts when it's quiet less stressful.
3) Talk to your manager about your learning style-especially if you need the computer training and it was just too disruptive during your assigned day.
4) Another thing might be trying out the "3rd place" aspect of the store. And if you have free time just kind of hanging out maybe making some light conversation with the other crew members on the other side of the bar for some informal learning-and some time getting to know your fellow partners. Maybe even check with your store manager about picking up a couple hours here or there to get some hands on training. Again this depends on your availability and possibly your store's scheduling requirements.
5) You could ask about transferring but you might not have the time in with the company to get a transfer. But another option might be asking about getting some training shifts in at another, maybe slower, location. Check with your store and DM both.
6) lastly the same cold comfort that you've probably already heard. It takes time. Be kind to yourself. If you can, try not to let criticism get to you. Every food industry job is suffering from understaffing right now, but customers (at least in the US it seems) are just as demanding as ever which just compounds the issue. If you can push through this learning period and put your best effort forward I am sure you will be fine. But. If it is too much-all we do is make coffee and it isn't worth pushing yourself to your breaking point. There are other entry level jobs out there-and that's all this is.
Good Luck, and Take care!
Spare_Cauliflower917 1 points 1y ago
You get used to the register super fast so no worries! I am the youngest in my store and haven’t really made any friends with co workers. Just try your best and don’t overwork yourself - remember it’s just coffee and your coworkers may take their frustration out on you sometimes which is unfair but not personal
TheActualFridge 1 points 1y ago
don't worry op I think we've all cried at work, especially Starbucks, you're not stupid. I work at a college campus starbucks and I cried in the back after a student screamed at me when her card declined, she called me a "stupid massive bitch". been yelled at before but this really got to me cause she's a regular and it just came outta no where
it's a fun job but can get stressful very fast, that's why I think it's important to have coworkers who support you. your store unfortunately does not have that, see if you can transfer stores? hasn't in there greenbean! 🥺
it's a fun job but can get stressful very fast, that's why I think it's important to have coworkers who support you. your store unfortunately does not have that, see if you can transfer stores? hasn't in there greenbean! 🥺
[deleted] 1 points 1y ago
I saw a bunch of problematic customers on the main starbucks reddit page. Legit got mad at a barista and threatened that barista once more because they didn't wanna start the pay it forward chain. They can't purchase anything for the customer as a green bean.
Benedrylboof 0 points 1y ago
If you don’t know exactly how to make a drink just guess
That’s what I did and it worked out lmfao
but honestly dude just go somewhere else, the Starbucks I worked at wasn’t THAT bad but was bad enough, if the workers had been awful I would have walked out the second day like piss off i can go work at Panda Express down the street
That’s what I did and it worked out lmfao
but honestly dude just go somewhere else, the Starbucks I worked at wasn’t THAT bad but was bad enough, if the workers had been awful I would have walked out the second day like piss off i can go work at Panda Express down the street
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