A Dead-End Job

About two and half years ago, I started a job at Jack in the Box. I was hired as a cashier, and was eventually cross trained to work in every area of the restaurant. As I worked there, more and more responsibilities were placed on me. After a year of employment with this company, I applied for a management position. After three months went by I was sent a letter telling me I had been denied the position. This started the whole sequence of events that led me to secure another job outside the fast food industry. My job with Jack in the Box was going no where, and I was not willing to be in a dead-end job anymore.

During the three months that I was waiting to hear if I was going to be offered the position, I was acting as a shift leader. I would run an afternoon shift while all the other managers were gone for the day. As an acting shift leader, I learned that this job was not what I wanted. There was a lot of negativity in the air from both the crew and the managers. Everyone bickered about how the restaurant was run, and no one liked the management team. As an acting shift leader, I had to deal with the management team and the crew. It was not always easy being in this position because I was never properly trained on how to deal with any of these issues when they arose. The crew would complain to me about the managers, and the managers would complain to me about the crew. How does one cope when both sides are attacking you? All this did was make it harder for me to do my job, and made me not want to be a shift leader or manager.

Another reason my job was not going anywhere is that the manager did not want to work with me. Sure he gave me good hours and a small raise every six months, but did he fight to make me a part of the management team? No, he just kept using me as an uncertified shift leader for the next several months. It wasn't until he got a new assistant manager did he take me out of that position and make me the permanent maintenance person. I was not pleased with the fact that I had to clean up all the machines, and still take care of all my other responsibilities that just kept growing. I would get my maintenance done just in time to help the morning cook setup the kitchen for lunch. How was this going to help me become a manager? Where was all the help to be promoted to manager? Wasn't my goal with this company to become a restaurant manager? Yes, I wanted to become a restaurant manager while finishing college. After that I wanted to get my bachelor's degree so that I could move up to become an area manager. All my dreams were stopped when corporate said no, and my manager did not fight for me.

After about six months of trying to make it into a manager position, one of my fellow teammates applied for the position. She too was turned down by the company, but my manager helped to sway the corporate decision. The decision was overturned, and she was able to be certified as a shift leader. I was a little upset to hear what they had done for her, but weren't willing to do for me even though the manager kept telling me that I was a good worker and very valuable. My manager never again helped me go anywhere in the restaurant. I stayed as a maintenance person for another year. There was no hope of me ever advancing into a management position, but I stuck with it. The job was becoming boring and not very enjoyable, because I fell into a big rut and felt like I was going no where.

As that next year unfolded, things at Jack in the Box just got worse. The new shift leader started changing things and was upsetting most of the crew. She became one of my supervisors, and I was having a hard time adjusting to her telling me to do things. I became very angry! I also got very stressed out trying to follow orders from all the managers. During that year company policies started to change and no one kept me informed about them; therefore, I got in trouble for not following the proper procedures. That stressed me out worst because I wanted to show the company that I really did have what it took to become a manager. I strived to hit the mark and show everyone up. It didn't seem to matter what I did because it never was enough. I would do extra cleanings and go out of my way to help other teammates, but all to no avail. The manager never really cared what I did as long as the restaurant was somewhat clean. I started to hate where my job was going because it sure wasn't getting me any closer to becoming a