But it's my day off....
So on Saturday a co worker asks me if I would work for her on Monday as she( and her kids) live in this hellhole and she plans to move. There are only 3 people in our department currently- so if she wanted the day off I was the only person to ask as the third person, our supervisor, was pulling the morning shift. I told her that I wasn't too happy about covering for her BUT I'd do it, as she had no one else to ask and if she called in sick... well they'd just call me to come in anyway. Likewise she couldn't switch with me as she was scheduled for 6 days this week and the one day off was Saturday- which she needed off because of aforementioned kids....
My newly minted Sales Manager( think ass't manager) pointed out that I would be getting MORE money for this. I retorted that I didn't WANT money- I wanted the HELL out of Staples. I pointed out to him that my section was grossly understaffed and still am bitter about the defection of one of ours( I'm a small BITTER man). See, she had called in sick for about a month, making me and the mom pick up the slack as our supervisor isn't all that helpful. Both me and the mom wanted the gal calling in sick OFF the schedule... as she wasn't showing up, but we were told that SHE needed the money. Sick gal finally started showing up AFTER they transfer her to the service desk--- Where she's prolly still earning more then me and I *DOUBT* has been disciplined for her call ins...
So I go in today even though it's a WONDERFUL day and I don't want to work at all...
My supervisor told me to copy a Harvard Course packet- library deal type thing. I told her NO! It was copywritten material and that I would NOT copy it. She then went off about she does EVERYTHING!
I repeated that it was copywritten, that this was MY day off and I wasn't going to copy this 'packet'.
She repeated that I don't do anything and I'm ALWAYS looking for excuses not to do things. And that under fair use, we could make ONE copy.
I pointed out that FAIR USE was for an individual, and not to make money... as we would be doing and- that this was it. I took off my apron and went downstairs. I changed and then clocked out.
My store manager then 'talked' to me before I left the store- but after I had clocked out. He asked me to talk to him in his office. He told me and my supervisor shouldn't yell at each other ON THE FLOOR. I sorta pointed out that she started. I then told her that she had ordered me to ILLEGALLY copy something. He pointed out that she was my superior- so shouldn't she know better then me? I angrily replied that a) I went to library school where I was taught all sorts of things about copy right laws and b) that my father was a publisher for 30 odd years.... So if HE wanted to, we could call my father or Havard's Library and ask them if the stuff my supervisor wanted to copy was copywritten.
He then asked me if I wanted to transfer to a different department. I said yeah. He said that my supervisor might be transferred or demoted as SHE was unhappy with things herself. I was like 'whatever' to that as I had heard AGES ago that they were gonna try to fire her.
SO- I came within a razorwire from quitting... and prolly would've if I was scheduled today. My manager did NOT fire me, because well they NEED me. Basically there are 3 people in my department- and neither of the other two want to work Saturday. So my manager wants to keep me til he can replace me.
I *MUST* figure out a way to get out of there ASAP, as I fear I'm gonna end up quitting and I can't really afford that. I doubt I'll be fired as they need me and Staples HATES to pay unemployment, but we shall see what we see.
My newly minted Sales Manager( think ass't manager) pointed out that I would be getting MORE money for this. I retorted that I didn't WANT money- I wanted the HELL out of Staples. I pointed out to him that my section was grossly understaffed and still am bitter about the defection of one of ours( I'm a small BITTER man). See, she had called in sick for about a month, making me and the mom pick up the slack as our supervisor isn't all that helpful. Both me and the mom wanted the gal calling in sick OFF the schedule... as she wasn't showing up, but we were told that SHE needed the money. Sick gal finally started showing up AFTER they transfer her to the service desk--- Where she's prolly still earning more then me and I *DOUBT* has been disciplined for her call ins...
So I go in today even though it's a WONDERFUL day and I don't want to work at all...
My supervisor told me to copy a Harvard Course packet- library deal type thing. I told her NO! It was copywritten material and that I would NOT copy it. She then went off about she does EVERYTHING!
I repeated that it was copywritten, that this was MY day off and I wasn't going to copy this 'packet'.
She repeated that I don't do anything and I'm ALWAYS looking for excuses not to do things. And that under fair use, we could make ONE copy.
I pointed out that FAIR USE was for an individual, and not to make money... as we would be doing and- that this was it. I took off my apron and went downstairs. I changed and then clocked out.
My store manager then 'talked' to me before I left the store- but after I had clocked out. He asked me to talk to him in his office. He told me and my supervisor shouldn't yell at each other ON THE FLOOR. I sorta pointed out that she started. I then told her that she had ordered me to ILLEGALLY copy something. He pointed out that she was my superior- so shouldn't she know better then me? I angrily replied that a) I went to library school where I was taught all sorts of things about copy right laws and b) that my father was a publisher for 30 odd years.... So if HE wanted to, we could call my father or Havard's Library and ask them if the stuff my supervisor wanted to copy was copywritten.
He then asked me if I wanted to transfer to a different department. I said yeah. He said that my supervisor might be transferred or demoted as SHE was unhappy with things herself. I was like 'whatever' to that as I had heard AGES ago that they were gonna try to fire her.
SO- I came within a razorwire from quitting... and prolly would've if I was scheduled today. My manager did NOT fire me, because well they NEED me. Basically there are 3 people in my department- and neither of the other two want to work Saturday. So my manager wants to keep me til he can replace me.
I *MUST* figure out a way to get out of there ASAP, as I fear I'm gonna end up quitting and I can't really afford that. I doubt I'll be fired as they need me and Staples HATES to pay unemployment, but we shall see what we see.
2 Comments:
At 10/05/2004 03:02:00 PM,
Unknown said…
Sometimes these Staples stories give me horrendo McDonald's flash-backs.
A question, would you be legally liable for copyright infringement if you were ordered to make the copy by your supervisor (I would imagine that the supervisor would be liable, whereas you'd be safer because you were acting under the threat of loss of livelihood).
Those people should really just go to Kinkos and self-service copy their schoolbooks.
At 10/06/2004 09:05:00 AM,
Drew said…
First- we do have self serve copiers. HOWEVER, 1 they are pieces of crap. See Staples is one of those companies that want to get a MAXIUM return on a MINIUM of investments. They don't realize that it sometimes takes money to make money- so often we only have one or two self serves working.
Second is you underestimate the laziness of college students and teachers. YES, they are HARVARD kids but they would rather PAY us to copy their books then do it themselves. AND they get huffy when I tell them to use the self serves. They point out how much of THEIR precious time it will take to do this task and they'd MUCH rather pay the extra cent for me to do it instead of them( we charge 6 cents for self serve, 7 cents for copy center copies).
And then we get into a slippery slope for legally liable. You see one of my FAVORITE phrases( and I'm being ironic here) is "But X did it for me before" Basically if someone under charges a customer for something- they feel entitled to the mischarge for the rest of their life... or the service. SO if SHE is copying something for them and then they come in on MY watch, the customer could make a stink... which I'd much rather avoid.
Which my supervisor could also do. If I said this is copywritten... and she tells me just do it... and I do, well then if she overhears me refusing an order later she can caw over my waffling- point out that I did a copywritten packet before... and then order me to do the next one as well.
Then there's the fact that my 'office culture'- well while Staples TECHINCALLY might not want me to break the law, they passively are happy for the money if I do. Thus I did not call corporate on the cow... because I knew they wouldn't REALLY do anything to her- they want money.
And finally it comes to my own morality. While Staples might not care to know better, and my supervisor wants to just make a couple of bucks- *I* know better. I don't want to copy copywritten stuff not because I'm a lazy fuck but because I know it's wrong. Because I don't want to lose my job, I do point out the self serves after refusing to copy something- heck as a graduate student I copied course packets( not books as I'd borrow them from the library) BUT I know it's wrong to copy a whole fucking book because you don't want to BUY IT! And if everyone was able to get away with it, maybe my dad wouldn't have been able to afford to send all three of HIS kids to college.
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