work

I.   There is fuckery at work. One particular department that works very closely with mine is positively fraught with dramaz, and filled with very large personalities who feel very strongly that they are in the right about things not related to anyone's job so much as the individuals in questions' personalities. Unfortunately they are, to a wo/man, largely mistaken and, quite often, highly offensive. The very worst offenders outrank and/or outnumber the ones they offend the most, myself included, and therefore there is unhappiness amongst The Little People, most especially in the department led by said very large personalities, but also in those in the other departments who work most closely with that one (including mine). Which is all a very longwinded way of saying that there is fuckery at work, but also that today said fuckery, which is usually confined to matters of personal taste and interpersonal civility (or lack thereof) and/or Screwing With Underlings Because They Can, went to the place of the kind of -ism that is absolutely and actionably Not Fucking Cool by any stretch of the imagination, as in workplace hostility toward an entire race/gender/religion/sexual orientation/pick one I'm being deliberately vague in general and yours truly in particular. Which? Crap, utter crap, and I'm both scared silly by the potential ramifications of Saying Something (in the sense that I really need my job and really do NOT need to make any enemies in high places) and scared silly by the potential ramifications of Letting This Slide (in that people treat you how you let them and these particular people are already Not Nice and at some point one begins to wonder what is next and at what point, if any, one's basic human dignity is compromised beyond the point where risk-avoidance is worthwhile, and to HELL with the economy). It's a shitty place to be. I don't enjoy it.

II. Speaking of compromising basic human dignity, in the service industry you cater to customers from all walks of life. Some are stereotypically good people (clergy, for example) who are total jerks to those who serve them. Some are unquestionably bad people (hit men/drug lords/con artists/pimps/again with the vague) but are perfectly pleasant. Both the former and the latter enjoy good service, and the latter tends to have more money. Tonight I ran into a customer from the latter group, and made more as a tip than I typically do in wages in two days. My customer was charming and pleasant, and I enjoyed our banter, and I was overjoyed with the windfall that tip represented to my family, but I am also a little uncomfortable with the fact that, well, I was charming and pleasant in return to someone who probably belongs on the other side of some bars and/or would most benefit society by leaving it via the death penalty (and also someone from the department I mentioned above went out of their way to condemn me for going the extra mile, service-wise, for said customer, but I was only doing what I'd do for anyone who dropped that much cash in our establishment and didn't really see the point in losing my job and said customer's business by Taking A Stand).

   What would y'all do with the above?

Comments

[jen]

I don't know what I'd really do about the first given the need to keep jobs, but in theory if the -ism is that bad it is also against the law probably and your work's EEOC-type person should be notified. And relatedly, unless you have firsthand evidence/knowledge that the bad person is so bad, you not only can give them the normal standard of customer service and take the big tip, but you're kind of obligated not to blow them off based on rumor and hearsay. fun with ethics! hope things improve.

[Jackie]

No idea about point one (sorry!)

Point two, you did exactly what I would have done. Same service to everyone, no matter their background or general fuckery - and you benefited by that persons generosity and thankfulness for your service. I see no problem there.

[krlr]

What kind of place are you working at that known hit men/drug lords/con artists/pimps congregate next to the clergy? And how does one recognize said hit men/drug lord/con artist/pimp? I get most of my news by radio & the Sun morning shows... not sure I'd recognize my friendly local drug lord by face. I would think you are actually talking about GOPers but then again, I'd guess they'd be more the non-tipping clergy type. It's a mystery!

Also, I'm fascinated that of all the sites about that receipt to link to, you chose patheos.com

DBs at work suck. Sorry.

[LZoot]

First issue: Balance sheet. What do you have to gain by sticking your neck out vs what do you have to lose. (I'm in one of those myself, only more amorphously and in terms of funding orgs and politics. I'm shutting the hell up for now, even though spouting would be oh, so satisfying.)

Second issue: Unless said customer is breaking the law in front of you, you're doing your job and being compensated. Customer service is not a job that includes being a moral arbiter, so far as I know - or at least it wasn't when I used to be in that line. Smile, take the tip, walk away whistling! ;)