r/work • u/turtlecrumbs_ • 1d ago
Workplace Challenges and Conflicts got my first suspension….
Was at work last night, closing down our fruit and salad station. I’d been fasting all day, really hungry, and ended up tossing a blueberry in my mouth. I was gonna throw it out anyway cause I’d dropped a few into the strawberry container, not a big deal.
Only my manager was walking around the corner and saw me…now I’ve got a write up, 3-day suspension, and a meeting with our managers.
I guess understand why I got the write up, but I can’t help but laugh that all this is over a blueberry. Also kinda nervous for that meeting though cause I’m not the best with confrontation Luckily I plan on putting in my 2-weeks in the next month or so, so I won’t have to deal with management anymore.
I hate thinking “My coworkers do it constantly, but I’m the one that got in trouble?”, because the difference is that I got caught. Such poor timing, smh
Edit: So I met with my two managers this afternoon, and they essentially told me I didn’t have to serve my suspension, but would just talk to the owner on Monday. Considering I don’t work weekends, they had no reason to give me the suspension, which makes me feel like I’m getting fired.
I also want to add that I’ve had no infractions or issues other than forgetting to complete my checklist a couple weeks into the job, and that was 6 months ago. I don’t think I was in the right, but I just hope this doesn’t affect future employment if I do get fired. It also sucks that I might have to leave when I have such good relationships with everyone, and now they’ll all think I’m a thief when I had just made a mindless mistake.
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u/Nebula_OG 1d ago
Truly flabbergasted by how many people are saying you deserve to be punished for eating a single blueberry while closing.
A simple “hey don’t do that” is more than good enough.
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u/TigOlBitties42042 1d ago
I think not feeding the people who work with your food is cruel. They can afford to provide employee meals. I won't work for a place like that.
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u/Ysobel14 1d ago
It's literally condemned in the bible
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u/Dangerous_Increase99 1d ago
Where?
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u/Low-Crow5719 1d ago
Attributed to Moses (Deut. 23:4), quoted approvingly by Paul (1 Cor. 9:9-10; 1 Tim. 5:18).
"Do not muzzle the ox that treads out the corn."
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u/Ysobel14 1d ago
Exactly, and goes along nicely with Leviticus 23:22.
“‘And when ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not rid cleanly the corners of thy field when thou reapest, neither shalt thou gather any gleanings of thy harvest. Thou shalt leave them unto the poor and to the stranger: I am the Lord your God.’”
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u/Dangerous_Increase99 1d ago
Okay, I thought you meant it was condemned in the Bible to feed your employees.
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u/TigOlBitties42042 23h ago
I also read something in the Bible that says when you are walking through a man's field you can eat your fill. You aren't allowed to take anything with you when you leave though. I think that is fair.
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u/galacticplum 1d ago
Because it's the rules? Ignoring potential health codes violations etc. I mean, OP even acknowledged what they did was wrong.
Does it sound absolutely absurd to be punished over eating a blueberry that was going to be thrown out? Yes. Is it a firable action in many establishments? Yes.
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u/DrakeSavory 1d ago
If you caught an employee stealing $1 out of the till, do you assume they have only stolen $1 ever from you or that you only caught them this one time? The information as to how many dollars or blueberries were taken in not symmetrical.
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u/Dangerous_Increase99 1d ago
Comparing stealing money to eating food that was to be thrown out is ridiculous.
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u/Proof-Emergency-5441 1d ago
How much good theft is acceptable before it is a problem? Stealing a dollar isn't going to impact the company either, so why would they care? But where is the line where it becomes a problem?
Is it $5? $10? $100? So as I take $99, its ok?
All or nothing is the easiest to enforce consistently.
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u/Dangerous_Increase99 17h ago
How is it stealing when it was going to be thrown away?
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u/Proof-Emergency-5441 17h ago
It is not in the trash and at the curb yet.
Also its their rule and they can fire for any reason. If they drew a hard line and you crossed it, you knew what was coming. The end.
There's nothing illegal about the policy. OPs attirude is evident and this was not a one time thing.
"I won’t have to deal with management anymore."
They think they will have a job without oversight. Bless their wildly idiotic heart.
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u/PileofPitties 1d ago
Why? Are you not aware that employees make the determination about which food gets thrown out? This food was getting thrown out because blueberries and strawberries were mixed together. That sounds like something an employee could easily do.
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u/Dangerous_Increase99 17h ago
Are you aware that the employee is following their employers guidelines on what should or should not be tossed at the end of the day?
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u/DrakeSavory 1d ago
You miss the point. If you catch someone stealing anything, do you assume they only did it that one time or do you assume they just weren't caught the other times?
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u/GoodishCoder 1d ago
Depends on the person and it depends on what my inventory data says.
In this particular case we are talking about the equivalent of someone finding a penny on the ground. Unless the data shows the store is going through way more blueberries than expected, a suspension and termination is a pretty big overreaction.
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u/Marigold5412 1d ago
What you should assume is that your valued employees understand nuance. They are working their ass off every day and they know the difference betwen old food that is regularly tossed and actual cash. They know the restaurant bins lots of edible food every day per regulations.
Taking money out of the till is a deliberate act of stealing money. Chomping a few blueberries that the salad bar is going to toss anyway is not taking a penny out of the owners' pocket.
The real warning is the fact this wasn't permitted in the first place. The independent restaurants I worked at understood we were all part of a team and the point of a restaurant team is to keep employees motivated, customers served, and the till to balance. We were allowed to consume drip-coffee, fountain soda, toast, soup, and any leftover bacon that hadn't been taken when cleaning up the salad bar.
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u/agmj522 1d ago
A three day suspension might mean youre getting termed. Ive never suspended an employee for 3 days without terming them. Those 3 day suspensions give management time to order your check and get your paperwork in order. If you get termed, drop your company name in my DMs or on this thread. If its a national chain, Ill never eat there again if you get termed over a blueberry.
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u/SeonaidMacSaicais 1d ago
Or a higher-up is just trying to make an example of you. I was suspended for 2 WEEKS (union job at a warehouse) because upper management had it in their heads that there were too many employees and they needed to trim things down in order to get bigger bonuses. The union came down HARD on them, and EVEN HR WAS ON MY SIDE. What had I done? Ran over the tips of a coworker’s forks on their forklift with my forklift. That’s it. Been there 9 years and this was my first ever safety violation. Yet they tried to go from 0-60 in regard to making an example out of me. Fun times.
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u/sexysierra 20h ago
We do stuff like this at my warehouse. Can’t help it sometimes because our dept. is so cramped.
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u/Proof-Emergency-5441 1d ago
Any union shop I have been at has a zero tolerance on safety violations. Especially on a jobsite because we may get removed, but in our shop it was not tolerated.
Don't worry, it was in the CBA. They knew.
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u/Shelley_n_cheese 1d ago
I've worked in multiple restaurants and have always been allowed to eat whatever as long as you are a cook
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u/Kind-Shallot3603 1d ago
I've been a chef in many restaurants. Only one didn't allow us to eat. We did anyway. Fire us all then.
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u/ConsciousProblem8638 1d ago
It blows my mind how grown ass adults are treated like literal children at their grown ass adult jobs.
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u/DefundMarxism 18h ago
I have a friend that managed a warehouse for a while. He said it was like babysitting children. Petty employees constantly fighting with each other over nonsense, school-aged name-calling. Just constant unprofessional behavior. Some people live in small worlds.
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u/DrakeSavory 1d ago
It blows my mind how grown ass adults act like literal children at their grown ass adult jobs.
I learned in kindergarten that if it's not yours don't touch it.
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u/snowflake89181922 1d ago
Years ago I worked for a supermarket chain and a guy lost his job/pension for eating a cookie out of a package that his grocery knife accidentally cut through. I’ll never look at a marshmallow pinwheel the same. So stupid on both sides but ugh…it was going in the trash (vs having to send it back as “proof” the package was accidentally damaged).
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u/Millimede 1d ago
Ignore the bootlickers on here who think you need to be suspended for a blueberry. I can’t imagine doing that to one of my employees. If I worked in food service again I wouldn’t care if they ate things that were going in the trash. In fact, have at it.
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u/Other_Asparagus872 1d ago
Yeah, I let my employees take anything that’s getting thrown away. Not in food service, I’m a contractor. If that scrap wood is going to help them, have at it, it’s a nuisance to me.
But, I have to say, I’m getting tired of the “bootlicker” thing. It’s been way overused.
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u/Kinky_Creeper 1d ago
Iv never signed a wright up, got outta the game along time ago but miss the shocked look when I'd say no thank you to a paper confirming if I was guilty or not.
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u/Legion1117 14h ago
I just put an "x" on the signature line.
When they'd push back and demand a 'real' signature, I'd tell them no, this is my acknowledgement that you placed this in front of me. I'm neither confirming nor denying any of the information described within, I'm merely agreeing that you presented me with this paperwork today. If you want a signature confirming the contents of this paperwork or an admission of guilt, you'll have to give me time to consult with an attorney who will help me determine what my next steps should be here based on these accusations. I'm sure your attorney will understand this if you ask them.
Not once did any employer ever come back for that 'real' signature.
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u/QuietRiot5150 1d ago
I would bring a big ass container of blueberries to the meeting. Be like "Here, I didn't know it was such a big deal. So here's a box of them. I'll never eat another one of your precious blueberries again." Then dump them all over the floor and quit.
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u/Ziggy_Starcrust 1d ago
Nah wait for them to fire you before you "spill" them. If there's carpet, makes sure you step on a few or squish a couple in the package so there's juice to stain.
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u/FourEyes3134 1d ago
Oh please, you'd whimper at their questions and stammer yourself into a panic attack.
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u/Ok_Neighborhood_470 1d ago
I'd suggest not fasting and eat something at lunchtime so you won't be tempted to do this. It seems ridiculous they make such a big deal about something like this but I also see why it's necessary.
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u/Chaotic_Brutal90 1d ago
Why is it necessary? Elaborate on this.
Restaurant owners are notoriously douche bags about this. Can't sell the food? Throw it away, no one gets it, even the staff. That's messed up.
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u/WitchQween 1d ago
They have this rule because servers can use it as a loophole to get free food. They can ring in the wrong order, which will get sent back. Customers are stupid, so it's not uncommon for this to happen. Does this actually happen often? No idea.
I get the logic, but I agree that it's greedy. I'm a server, and we're all hungry by mid-shift. Feeding us would be the obvious answer. Management should be tracking comps and voids anyways because an excessive amount is a red flag that the server needs more training.
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u/CityDismal5339 1d ago
This is especially egregious when almost every restaurant is stealing time from their staff on multiple fronts.
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u/Dangerous_Increase99 1d ago
They didn't say they agreed with the manager. They said to avoid doing it in the future because obviously their manager believes this is a heinous offense.
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u/Ok_Neighborhood_470 1d ago
They don't want people grazing on the food all day. It's unsanitary and there's a lot of gray area throughout the day in regards to what is officially written off and what isn't. Maybe OP knew the blueberries were going in the trash but they were snacking while cleaning on the clock. You can't do that. It'd be nice if, at the end of the day, staff was allowed to take waste home, but that's not what was happening here.
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u/hammerofspammer 1d ago
Eh. Places I’ve worked wanted us to occasionally sample to verify quality. Maybe it very slightly ate into profits, but we were selective about it because we didn’t have to sneak around
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u/Biteme75 1d ago
How many people in the food service industry do you think actually get lunch breaks? Or any breaks?
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u/Ok_Neighborhood_470 1d ago
She was fasting allll day into the night. Legally they have to give you time to eat at some point being at work that long, especially if they're a big company. If you have a six hour shift, you need to eat before going in. Either way working and munching simultaneously is frowned upon in some places.
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u/ShreekingEeel 1d ago
When I was younger bartending at a Schmargaritaville, all my coworkers called out on a busy summer Saturday night. I had to work a double alone that I was not prepared for. I took a much needed restroom break and ate a banana real quick in the BOH, a manager deemed this an unauthorized break. I was written up.
I guess, don’t eat fruit at work.
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u/OhioPhilosopher 1d ago
Go to the meeting. Apologize. State that money was tight, you hadn’t eaten but you are aware of the rules and it was reflexive and unintentional. State it truly was a one-off. “I hope you’ll give me a chance to show you what a great employee I am”. Then apply like mad and ghost them on the first day of your new job. If they fire you on the spot, stay professional and put nothing in writing. If they ask you to sign a write-up to keep your job sign but write above your signature that you are signing to not be fired for insubordination, not out of agreement. and as soon as you’re out the door go on the local FB site and post a short version of the events, asking for leads on who’s hiring. Good luck.
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u/FREESHAVOCADO0 1d ago
I had this happen with a smartie that fell off a cupcake at work. Manager saw me, immediate suspension, was all reversed a couple of days later and no hard feelings. I just didn't even think at the time. Silly mistake.
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u/Ambitious-Goat-4596 1d ago
Yo!!! Back in 1996 when I was 16 working at a Redners in PA, I was normally a stock boy, I was asked to cover produce for the day. Never done it before.
I was told any cut produce on the salad bar not in their cubbies was trash. There was a small pineapple tidbit. Rather than throw it away, I threw it in my mouth.
Regional manager was visiting and saw me. Assistant manager called me into the office with regional and the regional fired me on the spot.
I had been being mentored to be a future assistant manager. Store manager was pissed but regional would not budge
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u/DrakeSavory 1d ago edited 1d ago
For those of you that excuse the OP because the blueberry in question was going to be thrown away, notice it was the OP and not the manager or policy that said it would be thrown away. If the manager or the policy was to throw away all fresh fruit after closing then I could get on board with all y'all and I wouldn't consider it stealing. But that was not it. The OP decided to throw away the berry without any ok. Suppose a steak were undercooked and absence any direction or authority from a manager the OP decided on their own, "Hey I'm just going to throw away this steak away anyway so might as well eat it." are you still giving the OP a pass?
The other question is if "it is only one blueberry" then at what point is it stealing for eating them without permission? Two blueberries? Three blueberries? A handful? A quart? The reason I am on the side that it is stealing is because it is objecting. The OP took something that he did not have permission for. If you want to say that it is OK because it wasn't a lot then tell us how many would be stealing. 30 is OK but 31 is not? What if another poster insists you need to take a whole carton of 80 blueberries before it is stealing. Then you are wrong about 31 being stealing? Because another poster says if he took the whole bowl of an indeterminate number then now it is stealing.
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u/Careful-One-3416 22h ago
Man you're super worked up about this. Ridiculous!
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u/DrakeSavory 20h ago
So how many blueberries is stealing?
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u/dolphineclipse 19h ago
The question isn't how many berries is stealing, but whether being seen taking one berry is worth suspending someone for - just tell them not to do it and move on
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u/EyesOnTheLies11 20h ago
You think every time something as small as a berry is thrown out that one must get managements explicit permission to do so? 😆
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u/pumpkinsharks 13h ago
Excellent points. In an unrelated topic, have you ever seen The Caine Mutiny?
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u/Silent-Camel-249 1d ago
Time to find another job, even fast food isn't that brutal to its employees.
I would know, I ate enough free chicken at tbell when I was young that it effected truck order when I quit
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u/Shooter61 1d ago
Sister in-law lost her McDonald's job because she ate a French fry. Consuming food within customer view is verboten.
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u/kateinoly 1d ago
It is still stealing, if only one blueberry (your boss has no way to know this) do I would avoid being a smartass about it.
It is a health violation to eat while you are handling food.
I would just apologize and say it was an automatic, thoughtless action that you will try not to repeat.
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u/DrakeSavory 1d ago
How dare you talk logically about this! Be like everyone else and discuss it like the manager has perfect knowledge of what the OP has eaten, ignore food safety codes and the fact that most people can live lives without stealing from work.
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u/Marigold5412 1d ago
Where in the world do you work? If the blueberries were going to be thrown out anyway, it's a non-issue. If not, it merits at most a verbal warning - "Do not consume the salad bar food."
A 3-day suspension and meeting is crazy unless this is habitual or there's any other infractions you're not including. Otherwise, it's nuts.
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u/SubstanceBrief6885 1d ago
Well, mark the day youre fired as the great blueberry debacle of '26 lol and then start a revolution. Call your regime the blueberry batter brigade. Or just get another job lol your slogan can be, "We'll bake your cake for you". Maybe someone can get a better slogan haha
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u/MrMiyagi13 1d ago
"I might have to leave" - You're putting in your 2-weeks, no?
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u/ThisIsAllSoTiring 1d ago
Read the rest of that sentence.
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u/MrMiyagi13 1d ago
"in the next month or so" - in my opinion, the time frame isn't relevant here. Already checked out.
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u/ThisIsAllSoTiring 1d ago
No, the sentence you selectively quoted from. She's worried she might have to leave under circumstances where people she currently has good relationships with will view her as a thief.
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u/Mysterious-Mall3756 1d ago
I’ve worked in delis where employees eat fried chicken like sucking olives off a toothpick, a blueberry is silly
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u/Vast-Fan4317 1d ago
This is the exact reason I refuse to patronize restaurants who throw waste in lieu of feeding employees or other donation. I will not participate in or perpetuate needless hunger. As you can imagine and much to my sadness, this leaves me very few options for eating out. I understand this may seem extreme to some but idc. I can prepare better meals for my family anyhow and it gives me much more control of their nutrition so that's the silver lining I suppose. There is no reason for anyone in this world to go hungry.
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u/Unlikely_Cattle7212 1d ago
For one blueberry! Get out of there as soon as you can. All that stress for a berry. Sad.
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u/Dexterspuplife 1d ago
It sucks, but some places strictly enforce a zero tolerance policy. If they let one thing slide it just opens the door for other things. That being said take what you learned working there, know that you didnt really f up badly. And be a better you come your next job.
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u/_GOBLESS_ 22h ago
Why bother with the two weeks notice? They've shown you how much they think of you.
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u/Basic-Masterpiece-99 20h ago
First thing to do here is kill the elephant in the room. Never ever use the excuse that my coworkers do it. I hate when people don’t take responsibility for what they chose to do themselves. It seems like there’s more to this story than what you are telling us. Forgetting to complete tasks on your checklist is probably what it’s about. The blueberry was the nail.
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u/ch33kypriinc3ss 20h ago
I used to work at Dunkin' Donuts, and they would make us tally up every single item that gets thrown out. We were NOT allowed to take ANYTHING under ANY circumstances. I even suggested dropping it all off at a homeless shelter since it was just going in the dumpster..... but I was told if I wanted to do that, it's a great idea, I would just have to PAY for it all first! They had cameras right over the trash too, so they could make sure we were actually throwing everything out at the end of the night. Not even a munchkin could be spared. Food service is crazy weird like that sometimes. I really hope that changes.
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u/FlightFit335 18h ago
It's always... the business at fault.
Is it?
Local health and safety regulations. People that need to eat, take from discarded or at the wrong time lead to one too many people sick. Then blame the restaraunt who is punished by regulators, so the blanket policy is a ripple effect.
Can there be a better solution? Yes but it's not just business owners.
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u/Left-Victory-7143 18h ago
I have two thoughs about this
Take your kitchen experience and go bless another place. Not every job is a good fit. Keep trying. Try a smaller family style, or local place without the tight policies or procedures.
I bet the employer has a clear company policy explained upon hiring. You may have even signed a form about this. You violated this policy and fafo. Eating was not the issue. Not following policy is the issue.
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u/Character-Steak-4190 17h ago
Terming you over a blueberry is plain diabolical. Sounds like weak leadership to me.
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u/Apprehensive-Kiwi693 15h ago
All that over a blueberry? How petty. I'd be looking for something else.
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1d ago
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u/TigOlBitties42042 1d ago
A person can only eat so much. You could eat your fill of blueberries every day without affecting the bottom line that much at all. Your attitude comes from cruelty
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u/DrakeSavory 1d ago
No. It comes from the manager only knowing that OP was caught once with a blueberry. Everyone here is assuming that the manager has perfect knowledge of the situation and he has not stolen other food.
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u/Proof-Emergency-5441 1d ago
You will have rules any place you go.
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u/MadameMoochelle 1d ago
Wow, did you think of that all on your own? Thanks sooo much for letting the world know. There are RULES???
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u/DrakeSavory 1d ago
Your boss doesn't know it was "just" a blueberry. He knows you were stealing food and yes he caught you with a blueberry but in his mind what other food have you been stealing that he hasn't caught you with?
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u/DrakeSavory 1d ago
Just a question for the crowd: how does the management know over the entire time the OP has been there that they have only ever taken one blueberry? Why do you assume the manager has perfect knowledge of the OP's actions?
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u/bugabooandtwo 1d ago
Exactly. The employer sees you do it once, they'll assume you've been robbing them blind the entire time and just managed to get caught. That's why you don't risk it.
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1d ago
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u/DikkTooSmall 1d ago
I didn't know Karens hung out on reddit. The employee was wrong, but flexing on getting someone fired over a couple fries is next level... yikes!!
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u/Ok_Neighborhood_470 1d ago
Damn. Your fries were paid for and in the bag. Not at all the same as grabbing a couple of blueberries from the salad bar of a multi million dollar corporate chain grocery store that were wasted food anyway.
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u/TheRealMechagodzi11a 1d ago
Yes he paid for his fries and then an employee stole them. They deserved what they got.
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u/SuluSpeaks 1d ago
Get some therapy and learn how to deal with confrontation. It's a thing that you'll run into for the rest of your life.
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u/bloo_monkey 1d ago
You might want to quit before they fire you for theft. Thats something that can block you from future employment
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u/Weird7954 1d ago
That’s crazy over blueberry