The Aim of the Game

"You can take this job and SHOVE IT!!"

How many times have you heard or actually said that to your manager? Anyone? I'm pretty sure we all have thought about it a time or two. However, when you think about it, is your manager really to blame for the conditions that bring you such frustration at work? After all, they are just doing their job like everyone else. Sure, sometimes they are to blame for specific situations here and there, but, for the most part, it's all the handy work of the higher ups. The fabled crack crew of the law makers, the play makers, the REAL masterminds behind every operation. So, again, is it really your direct manager's fault that your job sucks?

I work at Wal-Mart and I have been there close to three years at this time. It'll actually be the third year for me in March 2014. If you combine the other two times I have worked for Wal-Mart along with this one, you can say that I have been a part of the company for close to five years. All in all it has been a pretty good run so far. I have had plenty of ups and downs during my "career" in retail. Just like every job out there, there will always be the group of people who hate and loathe it with a passion, yet never do anything about bettering themselves and moving on to greater things. On the flip side of the coin, you have that other group of people who are thankful for every moment of being there and saying that they have a job. Rather mundane, don't you think?

Regardless of your particular working environment, there will always be problems. Some problems are simple and can be fixed with just a polite conversation. Others tend to stick out like a sore thumb and can only be removed by time. Then you get the problems that hang around like a stale fart in a small room. You want to ignore the fact that it's there, but nothing you say or do makes it any more pleasurable to be there. Also, you might be holding your breath for quite a long time while trying to make your escape. Pro tip: Don't eat Taco Bell on a busy day. If you do, bring extra pants. All in all, every job has something similar to bring to the table during family meals, whether you like it or not. We all have that one cousin that is proud of accomplishing nothing with their life, don't we?

The same can be said for working at Wal-Mart across the board, and it is being said right now across the US. As the growing number of concerns regarding the integrity of Wal-Mart are being introduced, more and more strikes are showing up all over the United States. This is a big concern for members of the management team due to the fact that they know their employees have access to this information. In fact, some stores have gone to great lengths to try and squash the so-called "rumors" about the truths behind Wal-Mart and how it operates on a day to day business scale. The real truth of the matter is that they cannot be silenced. Every time one story or rumor is supposedly misdirected or proven to be a false statement, another shows up to counter the recent counter on the previous issue. This overwhelming concern is putting a strain not only on the management team of the stores but also the associates. Who are they to believe? What are they to understand? After all, we are trained to do rather mundane things in our work areas and we are expected to perform with 100% loyalty and devotion to the company that is apparently doing double dealings behind the scenes. Why would we not want to be concerned with the integrity of those we work for? After all, if it wasn't for those at the bottom of the ladder, supporting the corporation by providing customer assistance and selling their products, then the people sitting in the penthouse on top of the ladder would have no income, right? We are asked to do so much, but we are not allowed to voice our opinions regarding our own integrity in the matter. Is this management's fault once again, or are they just doing what they are told and they are in a similar position such as we are?

In my opinion, I know that I work for a company that has very questionable intents and a jagged history. I know that there are things I do on a day to day basis that are wrong and unjust and unfair to those who shop there. I know that I have to sell my own dignity to keep my employment. I know all of this, yet I still choose to work there. So who am I to complain? Who am I to judge? Who am I to say that the company is doing wrong with what they demand of their employees and how they treat said employees? In the eye of the corporation, I am a nobody. I am disposable. I am just another number in the system trying to work my way through life and stay alive. Do you feel the same way? Do you feel as though your company does not truly appreciate what you do for them and what you have to deal with in order to maintain customer satisfaction? In essence, this is a major part of the current situation in regards to all the protests against Wal-Mart as a whole. Some of it has merit while other information and complaints do not. However, instead of looking at the situation as a whole, why not break it down to, say, a single store and a single worker inside that store. Have you asked their opinion on the whole matter at hand? If not, let me give you one.

Yes, I work at Wal-Mart. No, I do not like some of the rules and the ways that we are treated. There are a lot of things to complain about, but the big question remains of why I still work there. The true Wal-Mart, in my opinion, is not the company as a whole and what they stand for. The true Wal-Mart is made of the people you work with. After all, how often do you really get to talk to, much less work with the higher management team? You spend most, if not all of your time working with people on the same level in the same situation as you are. These people are what make Wal-Mart worth the time and effort of working there seem tolerable at best. We all have good days and we all have bad days, but the level of understanding from one another in the same area of the store is such a relation that they might as well be a part of your biological family. It is within that regard that you find the motivation to continue through the work day, making the best of the bad situations you may run in to. After all, for every bad customer we have to handle, that's one more story to tell in the break room for people to enjoy.

In several instances, there are several employees and even members of management that make the act of working at Wal-Mart a good experience. Our management team at my current location is composed of some great people. Not only are they understanding managers, outside of work they are your friends. They joke with you about customer experiences. They share their history with you. They understand you because they have been in those situations before and somehow they made it through okay. Of course, at every place of business, there will be a small contingent of management that nobody really favors. These people are usually misunderstood at first and they tend to make a come back on the positive side of things, however, there can be a select few that leave their mark of disappointment on everyone they meet. Thankfully at my location we don't have very many of these particular people, but that could change at any moment, as is the case with anywhere you work.

Case and point for the time being is that, no matter where you work or what industry you work in, there will always be problems that you cannot avoid. Although it goes without saying that you need to make the best of everything you have, this goes double with your job, career, or profession. Why do something you don't enjoy? Honestly, we have to. No way around it. I personally do not favor working at Wal-Mart for a career because I know I have more potential. For the time being though, it's just a lot of hurry up and wait for the right opportunity to present itself.

With everything being said, it now brings me to the surprise ending of the plot twist. I am a member of the OUR Wal-Mart group, the Organization United for Respect of Wal-Mart workers. I support what they are doing to try and make working for Wal-Mart a fair and pleasurable experience. I have seen and been subject to the things that Wal-Mart does to force their employees to be silent and to work without question. I have been subject to hurtful assumptions from members of management in the past and I am still experiencing these issues today. I have seen the hard working employees be ignored and tossed to the side, being told they were "not qualified" for positions or being told to "underachieve" at their job, whereas the employees that fail to achieve anything get promoted for their short comings and never get disciplined for their lack of work ethic. I support the movement for a fair working environment and I believe that it can be achieved through understanding and teamwork.

Think of me what you will for the truth within the reality is not what can be seen, but what can be felt. And truth be told, I feel that there is something very, very wrong with Wal-Mart as a whole. I feel as though the time is coming when they have to make a choice, and I feel as though they will punish those against it as they have in the past. OUR Wal-Mart has my support and understanding as does any other Wal-Mart worker or any other worker in a similar situation. Your voices are being heard, and they are appreciated.