Another Christmas ruined...

[CyberLurch]

Personally, I love to ruin a Christmas. Oh, not to be mean, of course (though I do hate the holiday). No, my reason to love ruining a Christmas is to serve up a heapin' helpin' of reality to those who believe THEIR rules apply above all others.

"What do you mean, this online purchase from a vendor in China won't be there tomorrow? It's a Christmas present, and tomorrow's Christmas, DUH!"

Not verbatim, of course - merely representative of the mindset of some of the people I've had to deal with.

Channeling retail manager: What do you mean your main job is closing down for a couple of days? We're not closing down - and THIS is your main job. Even though your other job pays more per hour, and gives you benefits and more hours than we do, WE are your highest priority.

Oh, you could very well have been the person I spoke with a couple of weeks ago at one of the 'dollar' chain stores.

Applied for a job, was called for an interview. The job they offered?

Average 16 hours, maximum 24 hours a week, minimum wage, no benefits. Virtually no chance at all of more hours. Nothing particularly unusual about any of that, especially in this region, but....

I HAD TO BE ON CALL 24/7/365. This specifically excluded having another job, and yes, it was literally 24 hours-a-day availability, because they often received their truck in the wee hours of the morning.

Gee, it sounds wonderful, and I'm really grateful to you for wasting my time like this; nonetheless, I must decline. But, feel free to call me if/when your tenuous grip on reality becomes more substantial, okay?

[Lace Neil Singer]

Don't you work at a petrol station that's part of a supermarket? Wouldn't it be cheaper to go in there when they're open?

But that would make sense! Customers are above such petty considerations!

[Kittish]

Applied for a job, was called for an interview. The job they offered?

Average 16 hours, maximum 24 hours a week, minimum wage, no benefits. Virtually no chance at all of more hours. Nothing particularly unusual about any of that, especially in this region, but....

I HAD TO BE ON CALL 24/7/365. This specifically excluded having another job, and yes, it was literally 24 hours-a-day availability, because they often received their truck in the wee hours of the morning.

Gee, it sounds wonderful, and I'm really grateful to you for wasting my time like this; nonetheless, I must decline. But, feel free to call me if/when your tenuous grip on reality becomes more substantial, okay?

Dunno how long ago this was or where, but at least now in the U.S. being on call requires being paid for the hours that you're on call.

[notalwaysright]

Dunno how long ago this was or where, but at least now in the U.S. being on call requires being paid for the hours that you're on call.

It's possible that it wasn't in writing as "on-call." Instead, an employee would be required to have completely open availability. Then they can just change the schedule at the last minute, which is legal as far as I can tell. I think unions do have different rules, but I'm sure this job wasn't union.

[EricKei]

For the on-call thing: If it explicitly forbids having another job, I'd say that qualifies as "on call," and must be paid.

"What do you mean, this online purchase from a vendor in China won't be there tomorrow? It's a Christmas present, and tomorrow's Christmas, DUH!"

Just because it's a Christmas present, that doesn't necessarily mean it'll be present on Christmas ^_^

[Sliceanddice]

Ha ha ha ha...

A co-worker of mine is from England. He likes to joke (regarding United States English) that: "There's English, and there's wrong".

To honest it is more likely that American English has more in common with the original English pre revolutionary war, as unlike England we didn't have such a European and Asain effect on our language, and if you examine old English so many of the words are so scrunched up and the spelling can and would change just cause the writers where living 15 miles apart that all versions are correct.

If I remember correctly there was a period of time when Queen was spelled cwin or something similar and Ye is not nor was it ever pronounced 'Yah-we', the letter Y just happened to look like a Gaelic symbol that was pronounced Th so ye=the.

[RealUnimportant]

Who pronounces Ye as "yah-we"?

I think I just helped spoil an Xmas, as someone who was definitely old enough to better hadn't accounted for the holiday timetables & works. Oh well, sucks to be them; I'm not working from noon in the 23rd until noon on the 27th thanks to my CI-inspired roster change!

[Lace Neil Singer]

For the on-call thing: If it explicitly forbids having another job, I'd say that qualifies as "on call," and must be paid.

Just because it's a Christmas present, that doesn't necessarily mean it'll be present on Christmas ^_^

Or this Christmas... maybe Christmas 2017?

[CyberLurch]

For the on-call thing: If it explicitly forbids having another job, I'd say that qualifies as "on call," and must be paid.

It wasn't stated specifically as 'I couldn't have another job', though I'll admit I inadvertently worded it that way. When I mentioned that I would have a problem with 24/7 availability BECAUSE I would need a second job, the interviewer was quite adamant about that 24/7 availability, which makes it functionally impossible to hold a second job.

I know, it basically amounts to the same thing, and the more that I think about it, I realize (or at least suspect) this was some legal doubletalk. A company really has no legal grounds to forbid an employee from holding a second job unless it's stipulated in the employment agreement, but actually putting that term into an agreement opens up a whole 'nother can of worms - the aforementioned legal 'paid on-call status' being probably the most obvious of them. So this was likely some way to dance around that little problem.

[EricKei]

AFAIK, The Y in "Ye" was simply how the Thorn ( þ ) character ended up being rendered on printing machines, as nobody wanted to fabricate what was, even then, a reasonably archaic/out-of-fashion character. The pronunciation ("th" in "there") did not change. þus...er, *ahem* Thus, "Ye Olde Shop" should be pronounced like modern English "The old shop."

[Racket_Man]

Traditionally my pizza place has always closed early on Xmas Eve.

Back when I started we closed at 6pm instead of the usual 11pm/midnight. After we moved into a new store 10 years ago we started to stay open on Xmas Eve till 9pm instead of 1am/2am.

I suspect this year as in other past years there will be the howl "YOU RUINED my Xmas/Xmas Eve cause you were not open or would not take my order after you closed!!!!!!!!!" or "YOU DARED to cancel my order because you were closed!!!!!" or some variation thereof

[Lace Neil Singer]

Traditionally my pizza place has always closed early on Xmas Eve.

Back when I started we closed at 6pm instead of the usual 11pm/midnight. After we moved into a new store 10 years ago we started to stay open on Xmas Eve till 9pm instead of 1am/2am.

I suspect this year as in other past years there will be the howl "YOU RUINED my Xmas/Xmas Eve cause you were not open or would not take my order after you closed!!!!!!!!!" or "YOU DARED to cancel my order because you were closed!!!!!" or some variation thereof

Oh, there will be. XD I will never forget the SC who called up on Christmas Eve to ask when we were open Christmas Day, and on being told that we were closed for two days, screamed, "You ruined my Christmas! What am I supposed to do for Christmas dinner? My kids are going to starve and IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT!!!" *cue venomous slamming down of phone*

[Racket_Man]

Oh, there will be. XD I will never forget the SC who called up on Christmas Eve to ask when we were open Christmas Day, and on being told that we were closed for two days, screamed, "You ruined my Christmas! What am I supposed to do for Christmas dinner? My kids are going to starve and IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT!!!" *cue venomous slamming down of phone*

Surprisingly quiet after 8pm tonight and NO after 9pm/close internet orders and only 2 phone calls.

[Minflick]

How do the phone slammers handle cell phones?? Hit that red button viciously? While all onlookers snicker?

[Sliceanddice]

Who pronounces Ye as "yah-we"?

Auto correct apparently