I'll NEVER frequent that Sammich-Factory Chain again!!!!

Fired without cause and without notice in my "right to work" state.

I never ate very much at the local Sammich-Factory before. The sandwiches were decent, but always overstuffed and falling apart. The lines were usually too long. But it was the customer service – even on slow days when there were no lines at all – that I couldn’t tolerate. I couldn’t hear the sandwich-makers behind the high plastic counter, and resented having to shout over it. They always spoke too fast and couldn’t hear me, so everything on each sides question and/or answer ended up repeated 3 and even 4 times. The faster they spoke, the behinder they got. It made for an uncomfortable, nerve-wracking experience and definitely was not how I wanted to unwind on an already too short lunch break. So instead I would travel a quarter mile further to Borealis Breads and enjoy a hand made sandwich on truly fresh made bread, often with gourmet garnishes, and delicious home-made soup.

Then I fell on extra-hard times and was desperate for some quick income. The local Sammich-Factory manager had just lost 2 people at once, with 2 more giving notice, and was desperate for immediate help. Otherwise, doubtless, she would never have hired a mid-fifties former professional to work alongside a slew of 20 year olds.

And so, I became part of the action behind the scenes and “on the line.”

Whatever happened to labor laws?
I worked temporarily in food service, both fast and slow, some 35 years ago while in college. I distinctly remember scheduled break times. I distinctly remember specific break areas – a discrete table around a corner or by the rest room where we could sit and eat somewhat out of sight and out of the way. I distinctly remember free food provided to help make up for the low wages and hard, hard work.

Today? All gone. I worked 6 hours at a stretch with the manager nipping at my heels if I stopped so much as to scratch an itch, never mind pee. Any food eaten was on the run, while we prepared the “fresh food” for the counter. Yes…if we ate at all, we did so in the same place where we prepared the food, while we prepared the food. Standing. Not a chair in sight. The young women kept bags of throwaway (postdated?) chips and heisted fountain drinks or paid-for bottled drinks at the back of the work counter, un-gloving, grabbing chips, shoving them in their mouths, and re-gloving as they chopped, poured, mixed…and chewed. Occasionally, if things were really slow, the young men made sandwiches, usually with heisted (throwaway day-old) bread and non-measured food. The leftover, day-old bread was kept in a plastic bag under the back counter and taken home, along with end slices of tomatoes and other veggies. Even by the owner.

Some of this is illegal here, where we have the “right to work.” That would be -- the heisted food. Yes, breaks are not required until after 6 hours, and then although the state “recommends” a half hour, there is no actual limit and no requirement for a specific break area away from food preparation.

It is, however, illegal to feed your employees. It is also illegal for the store owner to take home his day-old bread and extra veggies. Unless, of course, you declare the throw-away food as part of their income and pay taxes on it.

The freshness is an illusion – the waste is not.
And so, every day a couple pounds of end slices of veggies are thrown out or, occasionally, “stolen” by the owner. That’s from each store in the Sammich-Factory Chain. An average week probably sees 30+ loaves of bread “stolen,” rotating thieves among the staff and the owner.

That is not the only waste, however. To create an illusion of “freshness,” someone apparently recently handed down a new rule – the lids are no longer sufficient. The small bins that held the chopped veggies and weighed out meat are to be covered with at least one layer of plastic wrap and then topped by the lid. One of the more diligent employees double wrapped the bins before topping with the lid. An hour or two later, the wrap is thrown away and the process repeated. Yes – wrapped in plastic before covering for an hour-- so customers will see the plastic wrap removed and think “fresh!”

In fact, the food arrives weekly; by the time Monday roles around all that’s left of the tomatoes, green peppers and cukes have been sitting at the bottom of a deeply filled box for a week. Many are already shriveled or bruised and rotting, so end up thrown away. Or not.

Pounds and pounds of food sits for a week and then is thrown away while the hungry line up at over-stressed food pantries. Miles of plastic wrap to add to dump sites in every town.

Processed meat product – the illusion of food
Some of the meats are real. The roast beef, bacon, ham, turkey, tuna and chunky chickens clearly came from the real thing.

Then there are the meatballs, the oven-cooked chicken “breast” and the “seafood delight,” or whatever they call them. I call them pieces of rubber, myself. I’m sure that in order to be allowed to use the word meatball, chicken and seafood, there is some actual beef, chicken and seafood in there. Mostly, though, once thawed they look like soy imitation meat. The pizza, by the way, comes from Walmart. At least, according to the box they’re shipped in.

Well, it looks clean, anyway.
We wash our hands constantly and wear gloves when handling the food. There is a real attempt to keep the food clean.

Unfortunately, those plastic hoods that keep the customer’s germs out…tend to trap ours in. Think there isn’t some serious “spray” going on when we’re shouting questions and answers at the customers? Think again. At least one time, I know I accidentally violated that old childhood “Say it, don’t spray it” rule, possibly spritzing the entire meat section.

Exhaled breath (bioaerosol) can contain airborne pathogens and spread disease. With no place for our breath to go, it’s trapped under that hood, where the cooler temperatures could condense it to precipitate onto the food below.

Fact: I am not the employee who spent an entire day handling food and working the food line…with a temperature of 104. (She ended up in the hospital the next day…gotta wonder who she exposed, and what she exposed them too!)

I guess she couldn’t afford a day or two off from work. I wonder how she’ll handle the hospital bill? But that’s the thing. Young people often don’t think like that. They’re easily fooled into giving up basic rights, running their bodies into the ground for the enrichment of anonymous stockholders…and somehow thinking that’s right and moral.

We Don’t Discriminate here at the Sammich-Factory
There is no age discrimination here. There really isn’t. I made beginner mistakes, but nothing too costly. I was not the only one who was spacey, flushed and tired when the a/c broke during a heat wave, leaving us sweltering next to the ovens. I am not the employee who dropped a pound or so of cheese on the floor. I also am not the employee who twice, at closing, left the oven on overnight. Nor am I the employee above who worked at food prep and service with a fever of 104.

Yet after 3 weeks, I was fired – without cause and without notice because, in the manager’s words, “I’m afraid you might get hurt. I know I won’t last here another 10 years myself.”

She had just hired two 20-year-old co-workers’ friends and one 40ish personal friend.

the wonderful insights you have given us on DU about your work in this sandwich factory. I know you needed the funds but something better now awaits you. Thank you for all your posts.

I know that labor laws regarding breaks, etc. vary a great deal from state to state. When I worked in Washington, we had all sorts of mandated breaks, mostly 10-15 minutes (most of which had to be paid). When I worked in New Mexico, though, our mandated breaks were longer (e.g., 30 minutes to an hour), but fewer per day, and they were unpaid (like a lunch break).

I know the Reagan era wasn't good for labor, but at the federal level I don't think much was done in terms of hourly work rules, etc.

I know you made the best out of a bad situation and tried to live each week as a lesson and just did what you had to do to get by. but this is so freaking WRONG!
:hug:

I hope you will find gainful employment or some options that will allow you to use your wisdom and heart in a beneficial way that will truly be a contribution to society. and making sandwiches is not your calling...but this surely makes me think twice about going to any corporate sammich shops for sure! ( I usually go to the local ones where I know the owners anyway...)

There's so much waste, so much drudgery, so much stupidity going on in the world (especially in America!) and I myself have wondered how the hell we are going to pull our collective asses out of the fire if so many are really still asleep and full of greed. the corporate mindset seems to have taken over the populace in so many ways... it's sad and frustrating.

sending you prayers and hugs for better choices and times ahead!
If there's anything else i can do, let me know
and if anyone here in our DU family has any leads to good, "smart" work, may they pm you and pass the info along!

:grouphug:

Part of the policy problem is, as always, that rules have to be designed for idiots and criminals; everyone else can pretty much tell right from wrong.

Unfortunately, I can't point to a level of cost or service and say "This place is better." because it simply isn't so. Some of the "nicest" places are the worst, and some of the mediocre are the best when it comes to food handling and working conditions.

BTW, for you foodies out there, here's a blind item to annoy you. I worked in a nationally famous (single location) Italian restaurant that everyone who likes to spend too much money has probably visited. The pasta is grocery store pasta. One whole storage room, full of grocery store pasta. The sauces are very good and made from scratch, but the pasta is name brand retail.

And the big Italian chain that everyone loves to defend on DU- store bought pasta AND frozen sauces shipped in for uniformity. Complete with toleration of a revoltingly macho and homophobic kitchen attitude. I've never worked there, but the stories my friends who did can tell....:shrug:

I was talking about a single location place in California. What chain has the DU seal?

And some people won't listen to sense when confronted about the working conditions and low-quality food at that place and the 'WTFTGIF's' or 'Chillie's' or 'Paste Factories' of the world.

They don't necessarily have DU's 'seal of approval', but I cannot understand how anyone here can defend them.

As an aside; Most pasta places don't make their own noodles, and unless they specificlly advertise it, don't expect it. Pasta making on a small scale is arduous, time consuming and requires a high level of skill. I have done it before in a high-class catering place, but most places don't have the time or space. High volume plays a role as well. Good places use the good stuff, often locally made or at least, Italian. Cheap places essentially use generic. Caveat emptor and all that. If one goes to 'OG" just be aware that one is eating cardboard processed food turned out by people who are probably not being paid enough to put up with shitty working conditions.

The joint is the butt of a thousand DU jokes.

Not being a snob either, it's not that I wouldn't go to Olive Garden, it's just that I never have. The three that are "near" here are all 8 -50 miles from here and north of here, which means Clearwater and we don't do Clearwater unless it's absolutely necessary because of the traffic up there.

For meet-ups I should think a reasonably prices restaurant which doesn't get their ass on fire if you ask for separate checks and whose food is not lethal would all add up to a chain place for consistency if nothing else.

I am going to go for dinner to one of the places mentioned by Kessler for "dinner."

I use the term in quotations, as dinner is not exactly what I will consume. By now I absolutely know better. But I want to do some people watching. I want to see, with my own eyes, how people addicted to food eat.

So in order to do that, I need to buy some "food," and eat it, while watching my fellow diners.

service industry generally sucks. You'll find something much better, I'm sure.

mandates breaks after specified time on the job. However, that may only apply to workplaces with some minimum number of employees, and it's possible that your local outlet didn't reach that number. It's researchable. I do believe that federal minimum wage and overtime laws apply across the board, regardless of number of employees.

Some states mandate breaks. Some don't. Some mandate a minimum time length. Some don't. Some mandate an area separate from food prep, for health and safety reasons. Some don't.

I think there was a time when Federal law had mandates. It seemed that way back in the early 70s...

I worked at one of these about 5 years ago, was 42 at the time.

Jesus Christ it's hell and my experience was almost exactly how you described your experience with the exception that I had found another job as a desk clerk at a motel.

Motel job = 8 hour shifts, no breaks for eating or bathroom. No benefits whatsoever. No overtime even though I worked an hour or so OT at least 2-3 times a week and your employer always trying to put another duty into your job description for which you DO NOT GET PAID.

Right to work is one fucked up deal disguised as a benefit to both employer and employee.

all their "rights" were basically *responsibilities* to the communities in which they profit. Gee, that actually makes sense.

Been following the saga of the sammich shop on the other forum as well. Sorry to hear about the 'letting go'. Just went thru most of the same stages you did with a bakery I was working for only over the course of 6 months. The only reason I kept the damn job as long as I did was the fact I was hidden from the bosses whilst working at 1AM. I had to go in sick too. There was no-one to replace me on the schedule because my bosses were too tight to hire properly. Fortunately, I don't work directly with customers and have the ability to walk away for a moment while sneezing, etc.

I felt good (holy, even) baking bread, but couldn't handle the micromanagement and downright cruelty of the owners of the place. In the end I was fired for putting in two weeks notice.

What state are you in? Illegal to feed employees? I expect meals as pert of my compensation (although after twenty-plus years in the biz, I rarely eat at the restaurant I work in).

If you have to fall back on food service, here's my meager 2 cents as someone who jumped at the opportunity to dishwash in an upscale bistro rather than wait tables in greasy spoons thus leading to a career, if not fabulous, at least steady, decent-paying and relatively happy: Seek out mom and pops, privately owned reataurants, high-end restaurants (or delis, your fave deli you mentioned might be a far better place to work than subs-r-us), or your local co-op (assuming you have one)... Basically avoid big chains with cheap food like the plague. The 'benefits' look tempting on paper, but do not make up for low pay, bosses who care more for their status with corporate than they do their employees, and inhuman working conditions reminiscent of 19th century factory work. You'll never get the bennies anyways, they are the carrot on the stick to goad you into working harder because if you work hard enough, you might just get a fifty cent raise and get a fancy management title which will assure that you will be in that damn restaurant until the cows come home with no food and no breaks and much more responsibility, but hey, you aren't part-time anymore and have 'benefits' and a key to the shop.


Good luck with your job search. :hi: If you aren't getting unemployment already, look into it. Sounds like they don't have a valid reason for termination. My ex-boss didn't, and was too pissy to send requested forms to the state, so even in this right-to-work state, I've been able to collect for a couple of months now to supplement my job which is currently PT (tho not for long! :) )
Take care NL and :hug: !

but just a couple of points:

"Right to work" and "At will employment" are different and often confused concepts.

"Right to work" laws are enacted to prohibit agreements between trade unions and employers making membership or payment of union dues or "fees" a condition of employment, either before or after hiring.

"At will employment", OTOH, is a concept that allows either party to end their employment relationship with no liability to the other party (unless, of course, there is some specific employment contract in place).

Maybe it depends on the state or local health code, but here, we weren't allowed to eat or drink in the prep area.

I hear ya loud and clear about the conditions. I've worked at places that refused us lunch hours, even told us we weren't allowed to go to the bathroom. We had a waitress pee herself because they wouldn't let her take a break. At another place we were told to cook and serve the chicken even if it smelled so bad that it made us gag. We could only throw it away if it made us puke.

I'm sorry you were fired. I hope you're able to find a better place to work.

That's certainly unsanitary, and probably a code violation.

even A rated restaurants have ahem, issues

I used to get bit gashes in my arms from the thick staples that the TV boxes are sealed with. My back hurt from lifting 30" Sony's above my head all the time. The BB manager bought us weight belts and required me to use one all the time (didn't want worker's comp). And of course, there was NO REST at Christmas time. I'd have to juggle 4-6 customers at once and keep an eye on the kids to make sure they don't climb on the ladders we had around (since little Davey getting hurt would be our fault).

I think I had it pretty good at that place now.

I cannot stand to go in that place. There is a SMELL which turns my stomach. I suspect that it is the "fresh-cooked bread,' which is probably coated with hydrogenated oil flavored to imitate butter. It causes me nausea and yet I have allowed myself to override the stench and order anyway. No longer. Once I had ordered a footlong veggie and gagged half-way.

"Right to work" also means in Orwellian lingua, "Right to fire" without notice or reason. But you are supposed to give 2 wks notice no matter what.

3 wks isn't enough time to be able to go to apply for unemployment so that is out of the question. I would see if you can get the city to investigate their health and business practices. They are way over the red line on it from what you have related. If the city isn't in the red themselves concerning finances and have enough personnel locally and also the Federal gov't with OSHA. Even the BBB can investigate and find them wanting.

I am sorry for you treatment and I would say that as things get even more worse, it won't improve for you or anyone. The sign of the times is ugly and retched for the hard worker.

:thumbsdown: :thumbsdown: :thumbsdown: :cry: :cry: :cry: