They didn't want "Boyfriend+Girlfriend!!!"

keylargo submitted 606 days ago

I have a TON of good firing stories!

The summer after my sophomore year in college I had to get a part-time summer job. My friend Cathy from high school didn't go to college and worked full time at ******** Dept. store so she suggested I apply there so we can work together.

So I apply for the job after Cathy refered me and they asked how I knew Cathy. I told them "we're really good friends from high school. We hang out a lot when I'm home." (I tend to give extraneous details) So the Mgr. gets all stern and she says "Are you boyfriend/girlfriend? Because we don't like to hire boyfriend/girlfriend...it tends to be a bad situation."

First of all..BF/GF? Is this 5th grade? Second of all, although I didn't know it at that time...I'm completely GAY and never had any interest in girls beyond friends! But I come off as a pretty straight guy...it's hard to tell. I assured the Mgr. That Cathy and I were just close friends...no love interest at all!

So I get the job as a cashier and it was a nightmare! EVERY single time I even so much as said ONE tiny little word to Cathy I got reprimmanded! Gail, (the Mgr.) would constantly monitor every bit of contact I had with Cathy and I'd get pulled aside and lectured about how "we told you...we don't hire boyfriend/girlfriends! I can't have you distracted by your girlfriend!" Too bad I wasn't "out" yet because I SO wanted to yell "I don't even LIKE girls!"

One day I was at my register and I was yapping away for 3 hours to these two other cashiers, Lucy and Sabrina....Gail walked by a 100 times and smiled and said nothing. A while later Cathy walks by and I asked her what time she got off work. Gail pops up out of NO WHERE and screams "what did I tell you about talking to Cathy!! This is exactly why I don't hire boyfriend/girlfriends!!!"

Another time Cathy called me on the little phone that each cashier station had. She was calling from the cust. Service desk. I picked up the phone, said 2 words and then Gail was up my ass again asking who I was talking to. "I said Cathy...but SHE called ME and it's work-related!" So Gail storms over to Cathy and says "What are we going to do about your boyfriend? I told him I didn't want this to happen...your relationship is a complete distraction to him!" Cathy didn't even get in trouble!!!! Cathy tried to tell her that SHE had instigated the phone call and that I'm NOT her boyfriend but Gail walked away and went over to lecture me about how she's not going to warn me again.

As the month of July rolls by I'm talking to EVERY person that works there every time there is a slow period in the store. Gail could care less...I'd stand there yapping for hours and sometimes Gail would even join in! BUT If I so much as GLANCED at Cathy I got screamed at.
So on this day, I was out in the loby of the store ON MY 15 MINUTE BREAK and I had a hotdog in one hand and a drink in the other...I had only been ON BREAK for 5 minutes when I see Cathy leaving for the day (she worked 7AM-2PM, I worked 1-5). She stopped and asked what our group of friends was up to tonight. As I started to tell her about a pool party, GAIL comes STORMING out into the lobby and says "What a surprise!" (angrily...REALLY angrily) Then she barks, "Cathy! Isn't your shift over? Go home!" Then she looks at me and yells "I just don't know what to say! There are are lines of 20 people in the store right now and you're sitting out here talking to Cathy! This is inexcuseable!!!"

I was SO shocked!!! I held up the hotdog and the drink and said "Um...I--I on break! I just sat down and started my break...I wasn't just out here talking!" and she screamed "I TOLD you, NO talking to Cathy! Now throw that away and get on your register!!!" I actually had to throw my entire hot dog and drink into the TRASH and go back to my register!!!!

So after the rush of customers, Gail comes over to me and starts lecturing me. I was like "I was on my BREAK! Cathy was just walking by on her way out!" and Gail gave this weak "I'm sorry" apology, but then told me about some rule I NEVER EVER heard of...something about how if you're on lunch, or break and there is a huge rush of customers you must be on-call to jump on your register...even if you're on break. Then she asked me to join her in the office and she sat me down and gave me this LON speech about how she's letting me go because I "don't seem to be interested in working" and "All you seem to be interested in is talking to Cathy...and I TOLD you from the start I didn't want any Boyfriend/Girlfriends getting in the way of the job!!"

I didn't even bother sticking up for myself...It wasn't worth it...I could talk to everyone in the store and I did my job and rarely had any problems...I went home and I was thrilled because summer still had a month left until I had to go back to school and it was too late to find another job so I goofed off the rest of the summer...thanks Gail!