There’s nothing like a horrible job experience to make every job that follows seem so much better. In my opinion, any job in the food industry can have this effect. Through my experience, I have learned that food service jobs are not for the faint of heart or weak stomach.
In the beginning of my working years, I took a job making sandwiches at Togo’s thinking, “It’s just sandwich making. How hard can it be?” I never realized how hard those people really work.
My first day started out pretty slow, memorizing the different sandwiches and what goes on them. Shortly after, everyone prepared for the sudden rush of customers to come in at lunchtime from nearby offices. I was thrown into the chaos of having to listen to the orders my customers were giving me, while others were shouting orders to my fellow employees and then they shouted the order to the cashier. If I made one mistake I would have to throw the entire sandwich into a bucket we had behind the counter. But when I asked the customers to repeat their order they grew impatient and annoyed. (One thing I definitely took out of this job was a respect for the people who make my food.)
While all of this went on, the manager would sit at his desk in the back and watch us on the cameras he had hooked up to his office. Every afternoon when the rush ended, he would come out and have us count the bread to make sure nobody was giving away free sandwiches and look in the bin and scold us for all the mistakes we made.
His favorite thing to yell at me about was what a terrible job I did wrapping the sandwiches. He tried to have people teach me, but he still wasn’t satisfied with my work. Then one day he decided that I could never be a proficient sandwich maker and that I should be on the cash register instead. (I have to admit that I was not devastated when he came to this conclusion.)
But I came to find out that this position really wasn’t any better because instead of the impatient customers, I had to deal with the impatient sandwich makers who all shouted out their orders at the same time.
After having to go home sick because the smell of cooking meat got to my stomach and slicing my finger in the meat cutter, I began improving and getting into the swing of things. While my sandwich wrapping was never up to my boss’ standards, he permitted me to return to sandwich making during slow hours.
However, my gradual improvement did not persuade me to stay at this job any longer than I had to. As soon as the summer was over, I handed in my ugly green, baggy Togo’s shirt and matching green visor, ran out of that place and never looked back. After that wonderful day of freedom, I have vowed to never return to food services of any kind and leave my sandwich-making career in the past.
Shortly after, I took a clerical job at a printing company by my house. Every day I come to work and sit down at my desk alone. There are no customers lined up telling me to make their lunch, no managers watching my every move on a surveillance camera. It’s just me and my files, spending my time as I see fit. I am given doughnuts every Friday morning and the executives take us to dinner every couple of months to thank us for our hard work. I can’t imagine how I ever did it, or how people still wake up every morning, throw on their uniforms and set out for a day of making people’s meals. I tip my hat to you, food service employees; you are far stronger than I.
Christi Sobodos is a junior journalism major and a copy editor for the Daily Forty-Niner.
