Working in Retail After Losing a Job
Joseph Williams was a veteran political reporter who was fired from his job at Politico. Unable to get another journalism job, Williams took a job at a sporting goods store to make ends meet. He wrote about his experience for The Atlantic:
Of course, I had no idea what a modern retail job demanded. I didn’t realize the stamina that would be necessary, the extra, unpaid duties that would be tacked on, or the required disregard for one’s own self-esteem. I had landed in an alien environment obsessed with theft, where sitting down is all but forbidden, and loyalty is a one-sided proposition. For a paycheck that barely covered my expenses, I’d relinquish my privacy, making myself subject to constant searches.
“If you go outside or leave the store on your break, me or another manager have to look in your backpack and see the bottom,” Stretch explained. “And winter’s coming — if you’re wearing a hoodie or a big jacket, we’ll just have to pat you down. It’s pretty simple.”
When he outlined that particular requirement, my civil-rights brain — the one that was outraged at New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s stop-and-frisk policy and wounded from being stopped by police because of my skin color — was furious.
Walk out immediately, it demanded. No job is worth it. Your forefathers died for these rights, and you’re selling them for $10 an hour.
Photo: Walmart
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