First it seems that to get a p/t job it is "Who you know" just as much as a grown up trying to get a job these days. A friend of my sons started working there as his sister was a waitress there so the friend put in a word for my son. The hours were really bad: every Fri, Sat and Sunday night. But the worst part is he worked for weeks without a paycheck. As a busboy on Sunday he would bring home cash as it is a % of what the wait staff made so he would have $100 cash, which we knew was pretty exciting to him but we reminded him he worked a lot of hours--like 24 for that $100. And where was the paycheck? He was supposed to get $2.00+ per hour as a base salary. I swear to you every week he asked the mgr and the owner (the wife) when he would see his paycheck. Turns out the rarely had a paycheck for the busboys. Which we found out later is why they quit every 6 weeks or so. After about 3.5 weeks he got his first paycheck. But then it was a hassle to try and get the second and last paycheck.
Once the wife distinctly told him that she would be there on a Monday as "they had run out of checks". They wrote checks by hand just like a home checking account. She was a no show. Then the following Saturday night he saw her at a table with husband and they had finished eating and he asked her when he would have a paycheck and she said, "Don't ask me about that while I am relaxing having dinner."
Seriously? Does this woman think that this 16 year old boy has no family? Does she not have a clue that he has a momma who loves him? I wanted to go there one night when she was there, approach the table and go all New Jersey Housewife Teresa Giudice on her. Either that or I did have fantasies for real of going to the restaurant and inform them I wasn't pleased and then approach every table and tell customers how the restaurant does not pay its employees!!!
Well, our son had reached his limit of this place not knowing how to hire enough busboys to give them more normal schedules or to pay them as they should so he quit after getting one paycheck but being owed another. The mgr assured our son that the last paycheck would be there a certain day and after going in it wasn't. Well, the next day Hubs and I moseyed on over there at about 5:30 pm. We asked the young hostess for the owners and then the mgr quickly came over. Hubs introduced himself and the mgr (who is older, much older than I thought) said, "Oh yes, he is such a good boy. He is my favorite." And Hubs said, "Well, then do the right thing by him and make sure he gets his check. You guys OWE HIM MONEY."
And then the next day or so our son went by and the check was ready. And the mgr said, "Be sure to tell your dad that you got your check." In all my years, I never thought that we would have to practically have a scene for our son to get his paycheck. And we really didn't have to and shouldn't have to. I think both Hubs and I were SO CURIOUS as to what kind of people cannot pay a 16 year old a check that only totaled about $65. The only thing this place has going for it is that it has a primo location at a pretty, outdoorsy shopping area (where Hubs and I needed to do an errand anyway).
So our son then had the month of November off and then right after Thanksgiving he started his second part time job and I know he felt different being able to tell the owner that he had prior experience.
Next up: there was an incident at this new job.
6 comments:
O...M...G! Ok, first of all, god bless you guys for going there and demanding the check. Notice how quickly the check came after that. Second, you are so right about their biz practices: what kind of people do they think they are? And lastly, that last littly cryptic comment she made to him about "tell your dad you got your check" is UNBELIEVABLE and b/c I cannot seem to let stuff go nowadays, would have had to be dealt with by me, even after it was all over. I would have had to go in there again and ask her exactly what she meant by that snyde comment. I love your fantasy og going to each table and telling on them. I would then have to start a campaign against the restaurant. Get Anonymous to hack their computer or start a campaign about their biz practices. People do it all the time. These people need to learn. Tell your local BBB. Great post! Can't wait for follow up.
Oh my goodness. I can't believe they were trying to scam the busboys like that. They certainly give small business owners a bad name. My company actually employees lots of 16-18 year olds at our centers for part time employment (5 days a week from 3-6- so it's great for those teenagers who don't have after school sports) and we actually have a different problem. We have to make sure that our parents understand that they actually have a JOB that other people depend on them to do and they just can't not show up because mom or dad want them to mow the lawn. We actually have to have the parents sign a form saying that they understand that their minor now has a job. It is kind of ridiculous when you think about it. I hope this 2nd job is a happier story!
We have steered clear of restaurants as work sites for our kids. Too many stories from our days in police work led us to that decision. They thought we made this stuff up until a nearby one closed after a drug bust. : /
Adventures--it was the older man mgr who had the check for him a few days later. he acts like the gatekeeper. They are from the same country. Like M says below--maybe it is a mafia group. My post would have been so much longer and more tedious if I outlined HOW MANY days he went in just for his check, over and over. lso when Hubs and I were there, Hubs was polite with an intro and words but you could see the big , tense, jawline.
Heather--Job #2 is totally different....but Mama is still nervous....
M--I think this place does need to get busted. In fact, I read thru the Yelp and other reviews and one says, "Is this place a front for something? The food is OK and service is horrible." I also found a site of an ex-EE who complained. The original friend quit too but another friend started at that time as my son and friend told him straight up he will get cash from the tips but little else. This busboy is more mouthy than my son and asked lady owner for his check on Sat nights too and she dissed him too. I have tried Googling these people but no dice yet.
Curious to know if the friend and his sister who put in the good word for him ever got paid? Are they still working there?
Not fun when you're going through it, but the drama sure is fun to read about! :)
oh my goodness! my daughter would die. she is used to being overpaid as a babysitter. i think she would have throttled them.
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