Isn’t it wonderful that none of us have to be responsible or accountable for any of our actions? No, we have plenty of sources that tell us exactly what to do, how to act, what to believe and allow us to abandon all common sense for good. What a beautiful world where no one has to think for themselves, because the Good Book tells you what makes you good or bad, and the obvious police let’s you know how to behave in every day scenarios. *sigh*
Today’s article I found on Yahoo’s homepage was “The lies that could get you fired at work.” The article then told us why it isn’t a good idea to call in sick and show up with a brand new manicure or pedicure! DUH!!!! Seriously, people?! Is there anyone out there who needs to be told the obvious? The other piece of great advice was “do not call in sick right before every holiday, or right the day after!” Again, I was dumbfounded.
I have been a manager for many years and I have given warnings to those who blatantly abused the system. I have had employees who would notoriously be sick on Mondays, Fridays, or one day prior/after a holiday, while being perfectly healthy during the week. I had others who knew exactly how often they’d been sick and as soon as one occurence would drop of the calendar, they’d call in for the next one. “Technically” they hadn’t violated any rules, but that didn’t stop me from telling them that I was paying attention and knew exactly what they were up to. Oddly enough, the sick occurences would suddenly become less. I would not write people up for it, as I said, it becomes tricky to write those up who play by the rules, but when it came to performance review time, I would withhold bonus money and I sure as hell would not recommend them for promotions or help them get ahead. That privilige I would reserve for the hard-workers who were always there and didn’t game the system.
I am shaking my head yet again that people really think that others are that stupid. I am going to add other another great example here as well: Don’t give excuses for not meeting minimum expectations, and then post a blog on MySpace entitled “Bored at Work,” when your boss is on your friends list. Sadly this is not a joke. I’ve had people who had me (their boss) as their friend on their Livejournals, MySpace or Facebook and thought that I would NOT notice the constant postings from work. Maybe they thought that just because we are friends it would keep me from doing my job and reprimanding them for their behavior.
Come to think of it, these articles may not be written for those who really are stupid enough to pull behaviors like that in the first place, and expect that their bosses/peers are too stupid to notice. And yes, peers will tell on others, usually because they are tired of pulling the weight for a slacker, or someone who abuses the system. That includes those who constantly call in sick.
It seems that common sense and common decency have left the planet quite a while ago, and what makes it worse is that those who abuse the systems are usually the victims, or think that others are not smart enough to figure them out. They also tend to be the first ones to complain for not getting promotions or raises and shine with an outstanding sense of entitlement most of us normal mortals can not even begin to comprehend.
But, talking about Muppets who go about screaming bloody murder for an injustice done to them, when usually they are the ones who should be very quiet, is another story and one I could go on for another few pages…as we know 
*sigh* – I really think the human race is de-evolving. I used to be the kind of person who was book smart but had no street smarts/common sense. That was before an emotionally then physically abusive 1st husband, somewhat messy divorce, single motherhood, a selfish 2nd husband who rammed my credit into the dirt, followed by another divorce, bankruptcy and foreclosure. I guess since I had to learn my common sense the hard way, I get really irritated by ignorant, stupid people that couldn’t have a logical thought to save themselves. I used to be very much an idealist as well, and while I do still try to give every human being I deal with the benefit of the doubt, I have become very very jaded from working in retail. And yes I’ve been one of those workers who always comes in (albeit not always on time) while others have played the system- and I have also been willing to take whatever punishment was due me if the others got what they deserved as well- but it didn’t matter. Most recently my best friend got fired- and yes she did something wrong BUT she was actually caught while attempting to CORRECT her foolish mistake, and now the company is trying to scapegoat her as the cause of years of computerized inventory issues which we have all been randomly drug-tested for twice already several years ago. Meanwhile one of those who did play the system (and all of us as well with her constant drama) and finally was fired last year on a technicality recently got arrested in an FBI cocaine trafficking raid! (but at the time it would have been “unfair” to single her out for a drug test- as if they couldn’t have tested us all again- makes a lot of sense no?) And since the incident a couple of weeks ago, the company has cracked down on us in the extreme- treating us like we’re all potential criminals (which is actually official policy anyway) to the point that when I left today I told my boss I was going to sew a large yellow Star of David to the jacket I just submitted to her to search -extreme I know but we’re treated this way simply because we work in a Pharmacy- not because we’ve all done anything or abused the system- we aren’t even allowed to have bottled water on hand to drink, and we can’t just leave anytime we need to because we’re hoarse from answering the phone or dealing with customers.
And the sense of entitlement you mention?- Don’t even get me started on the Medicaid recipients that throw a fit when their meds aren’t FREE- especially the ones that move from another state to get on Tenncare (Tennessee’s Medicaid) OR are here on VACATION (really?- I work and can’t afford to go anywhere on vacation!) and refuse to get their kid’s SEIZURE med cause it’s not FREE (that particular case also had private insurance and would only have had to pay $20 but still refused to get the medication) Meanwhile, many deserving recipients who can’t afford or get private insurance were kicked off the program.
But I ramble. Oh- my boss is a facebook friend (how could I turn her down?), but while I do make comments about work sometimes, I’m careful how I word my rants, and I NEVER post while on the clock- duh, right? Anyhow, as usual I whole-heartedly agree with your point of view.
Oh dear, I often said it, but if I had to work in retail, I’d be in prison. I’d sooner or later assault someone, or something like that, and I have never been in a physical fight in my life before! Hahaha!
Same goes for gastronomy. If I had to be a waitress, I’d be fired within the first week, namely, at the first sight of some self-entitled ass wipe who’d tell me that his food was too salty and that he expects a new meal, even though he ate the entire other meal! Yep, I’d be pouring the water pitcher over his head, while calling him an asshole. NOT good times
I tried the waitress thing once- there were too many menu items to memorize and my nervousness was so obvious that customers complained -but the manager liked me so he made me a hostess instead (minimum wage but no tips)
Well, at least you tried. I wouldn’t even try, haha