Hello,
my name is Erin and I work for a large Retail Company that sells Men's Clothing... I've been with this company for only 3 months, but have been in the same category, of Men's Clothing, for 2 years previous to my employment with my current employer.
My problem is that I feel I am being treated unfairly, mainly because I am a Female, but additionally because of my age group.
My current Manager was promoted to his posistion the day he interviewed me. He has been with the company less then a year. I was brought on as a member of management, at the same time another was (who was also a woman). So, we basically have a whole new Management Team.
One of the main reasons I was hired was because of my previous Retail Management experience.
I started feeling like I was being treated unfairly shortly after my first day. I tried to ignore it, and understand that it was probably just the new Manager's way of "Micro-Managing" his new store. I gave him chance after chance because I thought he was just trying to find his own way of doing things.
I can honestly say that there is something he says to me everyday that I could take offense to. I realized that he frequently makes comments about women in the workplace and started to wonder if his comments are related to how he treats me and the other women I work with.
Some examples of his comments are: "Don't take offense to this, but I need another Male Keyholder, someone who can actually handle things" and one particular comment that eats away at me, one of the first times we tried to discuss how I felt that he had disrespected me, he said in response to an incident where I became upset and cried because he disrespectfully and wrongfully reprimanded me in front of other associates was "I do not have the time, or quite frankly, the desire to deal with emotion."
My response was "If you had said what you said to anyone else, they would have become upset too. I can't help that I am a Woman and that my reactions are more emotional then that of a man. I don't feel that I deserve to be reprimanded for becoming upset when you treat me unfairly"
After that discussion, he apologized and shredded the "write-up" that he intentionally had made for me. He even admitted that he shouldn't have reprimanded me because he hadn't even listened to my answer before doing so. He said I could go home early so that I would feel better when I came back to work on Monday.
He doesn't trust me to complete any task he assigns, although I haven't failed to complete something in the past. He likes to control everybody and every move that you make. Yesterday he insisted that I follow HIS instructions on how to tape a box up securely. I've been in retail longer then he has, and am quite capable of taping a box up. I was very insulted after I assured him I could handle it, and he still said I needed to do it like he said. There wasn't anything different about how he said to do it... not one thing.
The incident leading me to write this, happened today. Everytime I have an issue with how he talks to me or treats me, he makes it look like I'm irrational and immature because I get emotional.
After I attempted to contact my Regional Manager with no luck, I called our HR department. The man who called me back didn't want to hear what I had to say, in fact, one of the first things he said was "I am aware of what happened, I just got off the phone with your Manager, and let me tell you, the behavior you exhibit is not what we need out of a member of Mgt."
Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the President of Employee Relations supposed to be FAIR to me and be OBJECTIVE? This man talked as if he already passed judgement on me when he had never spoke to me before. I told him that I didn't agree and he asked what my side of the story was, as soon as I started to tell him he kept interrupting me and telling me how immature behavior is not acceptable.
I wasn't aware that I was displaying immature behavior, I think I would have just quit on the spot if I were being immature.
I feel that he discredits my abilities because I have more experience in Retail then he does and he is intimidated because I am a Woman. I feel that he is disrespectful in the way he talks down to me, as well.
Please forgive my grammatical and spelling errors, I have been trying to figure out what to do since the incident today. I feel that the Comapny is trying to get me to quit by making me as miserable as they can, so that I have no grounds for any complaint of this sort. And I am miserable... I don't want to just walk away and let him walk all over me. I think I deserve a healthy work environment and this is not it. I don't know what to do, I can't just keep taking it.
If anyone has actually read this entire post, you should know that I do appreciate it... I'm extremly frustrated and I have to be at work at 9 tomorrow so I need to get some rest. I just don't know what I can even do at this point.
my name is Erin and I work for a large Retail Company that sells Men's Clothing... I've been with this company for only 3 months, but have been in the same category, of Men's Clothing, for 2 years previous to my employment with my current employer.
My problem is that I feel I am being treated unfairly, mainly because I am a Female, but additionally because of my age group.
My current Manager was promoted to his posistion the day he interviewed me. He has been with the company less then a year. I was brought on as a member of management, at the same time another was (who was also a woman). So, we basically have a whole new Management Team.
One of the main reasons I was hired was because of my previous Retail Management experience.
I started feeling like I was being treated unfairly shortly after my first day. I tried to ignore it, and understand that it was probably just the new Manager's way of "Micro-Managing" his new store. I gave him chance after chance because I thought he was just trying to find his own way of doing things.
I can honestly say that there is something he says to me everyday that I could take offense to. I realized that he frequently makes comments about women in the workplace and started to wonder if his comments are related to how he treats me and the other women I work with.
Some examples of his comments are: "Don't take offense to this, but I need another Male Keyholder, someone who can actually handle things" and one particular comment that eats away at me, one of the first times we tried to discuss how I felt that he had disrespected me, he said in response to an incident where I became upset and cried because he disrespectfully and wrongfully reprimanded me in front of other associates was "I do not have the time, or quite frankly, the desire to deal with emotion."
My response was "If you had said what you said to anyone else, they would have become upset too. I can't help that I am a Woman and that my reactions are more emotional then that of a man. I don't feel that I deserve to be reprimanded for becoming upset when you treat me unfairly"
After that discussion, he apologized and shredded the "write-up" that he intentionally had made for me. He even admitted that he shouldn't have reprimanded me because he hadn't even listened to my answer before doing so. He said I could go home early so that I would feel better when I came back to work on Monday.
He doesn't trust me to complete any task he assigns, although I haven't failed to complete something in the past. He likes to control everybody and every move that you make. Yesterday he insisted that I follow HIS instructions on how to tape a box up securely. I've been in retail longer then he has, and am quite capable of taping a box up. I was very insulted after I assured him I could handle it, and he still said I needed to do it like he said. There wasn't anything different about how he said to do it... not one thing.
The incident leading me to write this, happened today. Everytime I have an issue with how he talks to me or treats me, he makes it look like I'm irrational and immature because I get emotional.
After I attempted to contact my Regional Manager with no luck, I called our HR department. The man who called me back didn't want to hear what I had to say, in fact, one of the first things he said was "I am aware of what happened, I just got off the phone with your Manager, and let me tell you, the behavior you exhibit is not what we need out of a member of Mgt."
Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the President of Employee Relations supposed to be FAIR to me and be OBJECTIVE? This man talked as if he already passed judgement on me when he had never spoke to me before. I told him that I didn't agree and he asked what my side of the story was, as soon as I started to tell him he kept interrupting me and telling me how immature behavior is not acceptable.
I wasn't aware that I was displaying immature behavior, I think I would have just quit on the spot if I were being immature.
I feel that he discredits my abilities because I have more experience in Retail then he does and he is intimidated because I am a Woman. I feel that he is disrespectful in the way he talks down to me, as well.
Please forgive my grammatical and spelling errors, I have been trying to figure out what to do since the incident today. I feel that the Comapny is trying to get me to quit by making me as miserable as they can, so that I have no grounds for any complaint of this sort. And I am miserable... I don't want to just walk away and let him walk all over me. I think I deserve a healthy work environment and this is not it. I don't know what to do, I can't just keep taking it.
If anyone has actually read this entire post, you should know that I do appreciate it... I'm extremly frustrated and I have to be at work at 9 tomorrow so I need to get some rest. I just don't know what I can even do at this point.
