understaffed blues

today is friday and i have no idea what kind of shift i'm in for tonight.
once upon a time i had the world's best manager and i never had to look at my schedule with concern. she always set me up with great people, scheduled shifts properly so we could all take breaks in a timely manner, and always listened to her partners. not only that - she was great at interviewing and hiring solid people.

so, when she was my manager (well, actually in my heart of hearts she still is) i never dreaded going in to work. not even on friday night when i knew it would be insanely busy. unfortunately that is no longer the case.

my current manager means well, i'm sure - but she is hardly seasoned (imho). she's an outstanding barista, but her scheduling needs A LOT of help. what's really sad is she doesn't seem to listen when her partners point out the days when we are understaffed.

not listening + overworked baristas = requests for transfers and two-week notices.

not even my awesome assistant manager can get through to our current manager, and i've heard her try on several occasions.

not only that, she doesn't hold the slackers accountable for anything although she expects 200% from her seasoned baristas. yeah, not exactly fair. it would be easier to dislike her if she were an awful person, but she's actually very nice and personable. she just can't handle managing a high volume store.

it's sad when you can list off at least five baristas that are ready to jump ship because all they hear is "upsale! cut hours! BANANAS! send him home early!". then at the end of the week we are told "hey, don't cut so much labor that you're hurting for bodies during the weekend". um, hello?

i myself have decided to change where i hang my apron. wish i could go to my former manager's store, but unfortunately they're all chalked up.

barista rant: why do you point to the menu board and ask "is that any good?". do you really not realize that from where i'm standing i CANNOT see the menu? that even if i could i would not be able to discern which drink you are pointing to? and that "good" is totally subjective? did you know that i'm not a mind reader? i'd be happy to give you my opinion of any drink, so long as you actually let me know which one you are interested in. is that too much to ask?