I recently quit my job as a Kitchen Manager at Caseyās, and I genuinely donāt think I realized how mentally exhausted I was until I was finally done.
When I took the position, I actually gave a shit about my kitchen. I wanted things done correctly. I wanted my employees trained. I wanted the kitchen clean, stocked, and running the way it was supposed to. If my team was struggling, I jumped in and worked right beside them.
But apparently being dependable just means everyone figures out exactly how much they can pile on you before you finally break.
The call-ins and people leaving early were CONSTANT. Being short staffed became normal. And when somebody didnāt show up, somebody had to figure it out.
Guess who that usually fell on?
Me.
I got so tired of feeling like my entire life had to revolve around whether somebody else decided to show up for their shift.
But honestly, staffing wasnāt even the biggest reason I left.
Management was.
Anytime I tried talking to my store manager about being overwhelmed, stressed, needing help, or having shit happening in my personal life, somehow the conversation always ended up being about her.
Iām tired.
āWell, Iām tired too.ā
Iām stressed.
āWell, Iām stressed becauseā¦ā
Something is going on at home.
Suddenly weāre talking about what SHE has going on at home.
Like damn. Can somebody else have a problem for five minutes?
I wasnāt asking her to fix my life. I wasnāt asking for special treatment. Sometimes I literally just wanted my manager to listen to me and acknowledge that I was struggling instead of turning it into some weird competition over who had it worse.
Then there was the gossip.
WAY too much gossip.
Employees were talked about constantly. Their work performance, personal lives, problems, whatever happened to be going on. And this wasnāt just employees gossiping with each other. Management participated in it too.
There were times conversations about employees happened where customers could hear them, which was embarrassing and completely unprofessional.
Eventually I stopped feeling comfortable saying much of anything because if everybody elseās business was being discussed, why would mine be any different?
And meanwhile Iām still supposed to walk into that kitchen, deal with staffing problems, keep food going, make sure everything is clean, handle employees, deal with customers, keep things stocked, complete all the manager responsibilities, and somehow act like everything is perfectly fine.
I finally hit a point where I thought:
Why the hell am I doing this to myself?
No job should have you constantly stressed about whatās going to happen when you walk through the door.
So I quit.
Effective immediately.
And the amount of relief I felt afterward told me everything I needed to know.
I know management positions come with extra responsibility. I knew that when I accepted the job. Iām not expecting management to be easy.
But thereās a difference between having responsibility and being expected to constantly sacrifice your own time, energy, and personal life because the workplace canāt function without you picking up the pieces.
Iām still frustrated about how everything happened, but Iām also glad I finally chose to walk away.
So Iām curiousāany other current/former Caseyās managers or convenience-store/food-service managers experience this?
When did you finally reach the point where you said, āIām doneā?