Rejected Again

Image by Pete Linforth from Pixabay 

I had worked for TJ Maxx briefly in 2020, right in between working for a local bank and working for Michaels.  The job was not the greatest, and I knew that going in, but I liked the manager.  I left on good terms, taking a higher-paying position at Michaels in the same shopping center.

Back then, TJ Maxx could not offer me more than $9.60 an hour.  I was not in consideration for a higher position and was usually tasked with cleaning carts or working as a cashier and pushing credit card applications.  It was mindless, soul-crushing work, so when I was offered the chance to become part of the replenishment team at Michaels for $11.00 an hour, I took it.  Before I even started at Michaels, I was promoted to supervisor and given a wage of $14.00 an hour.  It was never personal—it was the right financial decision for my family, and the TJ Maxx manager knew that.

I thought I was a decent worker at TJ Maxx.  I showed up on time, sometimes waiting to clock in because I was too early.  I did the job the best I could with the limited knowledge I had and the restricted responsibilities that were given to me.  I was quarantined for two weeks that September, and though my coronavirus tests were negative, my illness kept me off work for three weeks due to the inability to pass TJ Maxx’s screening tests for COVID-19 symptoms.

I suppose some employees and supervisors felt I was too detailed with recovery, or when I was tasked with marking down clearance items, a job that required scanning every item in a department.  The manager at the time considered putting me in charge of clearance markdowns, but, unfortunately, she had not told me until after I gave my notice.  I maybe would have stayed longer if I knew I could move up to a position that was less focused on being a cashier.

After I gave notice, I really did not care anymore.  I still performed the job efficiently because that is who I am, but there were two days when I called off due to the state of my mental health.  I struggled with their insistence on pushing credit cards, my personal ethics conflicted with suggesting something that can destroy a family’s finances and that will affect an individual’s credit score.

Still, there were many things I liked about the job, and not just the manager.  It was much more laid-back than I was used to and there were plenty of employees working during each shift.  I was never a TJ Maxx shopper, but I wanted to work in a different environment, and it certainly was different than my previous jobs.

I spoke with the store manager again months later.  I was unhappy at Michaels because their manager was a biased woman who was basically a bitch, unless you kissed her ass or she thought you were a cute guy.  The TJ Maxx manager was leaving for a job that had better hours and was closer to her home.  She told me to reapply anyway.  Shortly after, the Michaels manager informed us that she was leaving, so I stayed to see if the next manager was better.  Unfortunately, my knee issues made it hard to do the job and I left anyway.

I have reapplied to TJ Maxx three times since the labor shortage started.  The first two times I heard nothing, but this last time I received an email that they appreciated my interest, but “are not able to offer [me] further consideration for the position.”  I guess over 15 years of retail experience, including customer service, cash handling, and sales, along with over five years experience in supervising, including three and a half years of experience as a retail manager, is not good enough to be a part-time supervisor at their discount clothing store.

This is why there is a labor shortage.  It isn’t a shortage of workers, it’s corporations not wanting to hire perfectly qualified candidates for positions.  Maybe mid-level management there didn’t like me, but there have been plenty of other jobs that I was over-qualified to perform and was still turned down.  Jobs that are still open and still supposedly “urgently hiring.”

This is really getting old.