Slavery

Corporate Slavery

 

Slavery is a nasty word, isn't it?  People think slavery was abolished in America years ago by President Abraham Lincoln.  The people who think that would be wrong.  There are still slavers out there.  Let's take a look at the word slave and what it means before we look at the slavers:

Slave:  A person under the domination of another person or some habit or influence.

That's one definition.  So you can be a slave if you're under the domination of another person.  I was a slave for a bit, but I finally freed myself.  Sometimes you simply don't want to be dominated anymore.  I was "working" for a casino called Luxor in Las Vegas.  Why did I consider myself a slave?  Because of the way I was treated.  I was never "asked" to do things, I was told.  Usually this entailed the phrase, "You do this, or you'll be fired and end up unemployed!"

In Elkhart, Indiana a man named Tony Rohr was manager of a Pizza Hut.  He refused to open the restaurant on Thanksgiving day, instead wanting his employees to spend the holiday with their families.  He was "told" to write a letter of resignation and quit his job, but refused.  Instead he wrote a letter trying to explain why he hadn't opened the restaurant.  It was only closed twice a year, on Thanksgiving and then again on Christmas.  How dare a slave refuse to quit!  He was then fired.  The franchise owner tried to claim that he had quit and wasn't actually fired.  The Pizza Hut corporate office said "We fully respect an employee's right to not work on a holiday, which is why the vast majority of Pizza Huts in America are closed on Thanksgiving.  As a result, we strongly recommended that the local franchisee reinstate the store manager and they have agreed. We look forward to them welcoming Tony back to the team."

But Tony doesn't want to go back to the "team".  He had worked for them for over ten years and that was how he was treated.  Is it any wonder he probably doesn't want his job back?  t wonder if the corporation would have made that statement if this story hadn't been such big news?  People called Tony a hero for standing up for what he believed in.  When he heard this, Tony said  "No, I'm just some guy who told his boss 'No' and got burned. There are people who save lives."

Back in December of 2012 while working for Luxor I was told that I had to attend a "show" during my day off.  If I chose not to attend this "show", I would be fired.  So I drove to the Las Vegas Strip and spent my day off going to this show.  Part of it was the president of the MGM corporation ranting on about how everyone who was working was damned lucky to be employed and if we expected to stay that way, we'd damned well better do what we were told!  I began getting the feeling back then that I was just another slave.

After finally after having enough of accusations and bullying by managers who treated me with that same "you do whatever I say or you'll be fired" attitude, I quit my job.  To be honest, it's a relief not having to put up with those kind of people for the moment.  I was told that the Luxor employees are again going to have to go to another "mandatory show" this year probably to again be told how lucky they are to be slaves…I mean employed.

When I resigned I had accrued two weeks of vacation time.  The casino refused to pay me for that.  They stated to me that I would be paid, but then didn't bother.  I guess that will really teach me, won't it?  It did teach me something though, that like Tony, even if they ever did offer me my job back I wouldn't take it.  I've learned that I don't want to work for somewhere that doesn't appreciate its employees.  I no longer think I deserve slavery.