So, in my journey to survive in this economy and be debt-free within a year, I took on a second job at Walmart. I survived one week thus far but will I continue? The verdict is still out.
The Reality Check
So to be transparent, I am broke. I know what they say about manifesting and speaking things into existence but baby it is what it is. My business has dried up and is no longer a stream of revenue for me. In fact its an expense that doesn’t even cover the yearly cost of existing at this point.
So after trying various business/hobby things to generate income-all of which failed, I decided to take on a second job again instead of starting an ONLYFANS or some other ratchet choice, to add more income into my what I call middle class poverty stricken life. #whewchile
I think I thought I was ok for awhile because I didn’t have rent to pay but once I relocated and had rent again I realized just how expensive things have gotten. When I had retainer clients, that income was really a part of the income I depended on but it was easy to overlook because I had it. When I had a 2nd full-time job before, I really should have applied every single penny of that income to debt or paying bills months ahead. But I didn’t.
With two incomes I wasn’t feeling any pain so I didn’t realize how much my business drying up was going to hit me once I stopped that job. So several bad decisions later, I need to go back to work. I have spent months attempting to find secondary employment to my main full-time job. I have applied for more jobs than you can even imagine. I had one interview for a local job at former employer (healthcare/hospital) for a position I really wanted because it was overnight and wouldn’t interfere with my current hours however I didn’t get it and other than that Walmart was the only call I got.
Getting Hired
It wasn’t long after I applied that they called and scheduled an interview for the very next day (Saturday). I went to the interview and was interviewed by the store manager (he was late). Well to be honest, it wasn’t really a typical interview. They didn’t ask much other than what you wanted to do. They made no reference to your resume, skills etc. other than asking if you had any prior Walmart experience. He stated he was trying to “change the culture” there which I think was in reference to me clearly not being a young adult who doesn’t want to work *lol
During, the interview he recommended the Deli/Bakery department because it was one of the higher paid departments. I remember asking one question about cooking/baking and was told yes that is part of it but they have someone good to teach you etc. (Now I wanted to ask if they weren’t good why they were on the payroll but I didn’t) We also discussed hours because I had applied for full-time but he was not sure I could get that with my availability.
In my mind, I was thinking I could work as long a day as I wanted if the store was open but he explained no, it would be no more than an 8 hour shift which means I would only be able to get that on the weekends and then after work hours during the week. Anyway, I was too broke to turn it down no matter the hours and was hired on the spot. They told me my pay rate and sent me on my way to await emails about orientation. Here is a timeline for you so you have some idea of the timing between events:
- Call for Interview: June 14th
- Interview: June 15th
- Orientation: July 2nd
- First Day of Work: July 13th
So, you can see even though I was hired on the spot there was no rush to have me start etc. after that. I actually got another call from another Walmart after this but I let them know I had just accepted a position so I am not sure what it was for.
Orientation was like 5 hours or so and was full of a bunch of online “classes” related to your department/job. I was able to do most of the HR portion online before orientation so other than copy my ID they didn’t have to do much. I even selected my vest size prior to even though what they gave me was not what I had put in the system. They also issued our badges. Once you were done with the online education, you were free to go.
You didn’t meet or hear from anyone managing you. For my department, it literally took the entire scheduled time for me to complete the educational courses, that’s just how many there were. Back to back. I remember thinking I hope they don’t think anyone retains that information after having to zoom through that many courses in one session. You are in a room that is open to other staff so it’s not quiet or your typical company orientation environment. They do provide headphones but there wasn’t a Clorox wipe in sight so use at your own risk.
Sidebar story:
A young lady showed up to interview while we were in orientation with yellow hair, a crop top, jeans and sneakers on. She was interviewed by HR in another room and then the HR rep came back and called who I assume the manager was she was filling in for who was busy and informed them about how she was dressed but that she hired her. So much for changing the culture because the first thing I thought when she said she was there for an interview was I would have sent her right back home to change her clothes. So much for changing the culture!
After that I thought I would start immediately however I wasn’t added to the schedule for a couple of weeks. Look, when you are on the struggle bus, you are ready to go so you can start earning. Walmart did not give two damns about my timeline and struggles *lol
I started with two full days on a Saturday and Sunday. When I showed up, it was clear no one was expecting me. They asked me which side (Deli OR Bakery) I was assigned to and I let them know that I had not been given any distinction in the two.
A female co-worker mentioned later how they have a hard time keeping people due to all the cleaning (red flag). This probably should have been mentioned during the interview and I would have selected another department. But anyway, there was no break- in period. Training is live and direct and you are off to the races. It was recommended that I wash the dishes that first shift because that would probably be the easiest.
Busted Like a Can of Biscuits
I am going to fast forward here and summarize. I was shown tasks as they happened from cooking, slicing, checking temperatures etc. And I did indeed do the dishes when it was time to cleanup. All I can say is after 8 hours on concrete floors with no support mats down for the floors (I was shown where the new mats were up against the wall still in the box when I asked about this and basically the mats being big and cumbersome was the excuse I was given as to why they weren’t on the floor) my back, hips and feet were over it. Instead employees were recommending some expensive support sneakers for support that I could get off amazon etc. They also said the store had back braces but didn’t know where you got them from. I mentioned in my first email to HR about them but since I never got a response I am not sure if this was accurate information.
I realized I needed to move around more because standing long-term at the sink or anywhere was not the life my over 50 body wanted. By the 2nd full day I felt broken when I got off. Like Epsom salt bath me and dive right in the bed type stuff. Like can I really do this every night? Did I just have a gym worthy arm workout just from flipping rotisserie chickens in the oven? Do I want to be splashed with degreaser, grease and water every day? Is swollen feet, stiffness and stretches in the back hall my new normal?
And of course my over critical thinking self is in my head rearranging how I would do things If I was in charge *lol By midway of Day 2 I knew the answer to these questions and had already reached out to HR but I told myself I would commit to completing the week that I was scheduled for. I realized I hadn’t had a standing job in many years and so maybe something with more movement and off that concrete
I also –as I do on any new job- I observe a lot. I take in who is doing what, who says what , who isn’t working, who works hard, who people don’t like –all of the things. Let me give you some more background on things I noticed during the entire week. Firstly, I was the only black woman there. Because I just knew a “sister” was going to give me the real deal about whether I should run and not walk to something else *lol Not a big deal otherwise but next, the department is heavy on men versus women which I honestly found telling. Not counting the bakery side there are only two women including myself.
By day 2 I had met the entire department (there are typically 3-4 people scheduled at a time). The only other female seemed to stay in the cooler or at a back table working doing the more app used parts of the job versus the more labor intensive things. She said she had been with Walmart for 20 years so I assume she has just figured out how to work less over time as she had no Lead role in the department but all the men gave me the impression that she was “good at telling them how to do what she doesn’t do herself.” The dynamics in the department were pure comedy in the midst of me trying to stretch away a back spasm in the corner.
Now lets go back to this schedule. So the next week after this initial first week, I was given no hours. ZERO. I was however scheduled the week after that. What I discovered on my last day of the week when I mentioned about not being scheduled the following week, was apparently everyone’s hours were being cut. I asked my co-worker when they said it, “Well why did they hire me then?” I didn’t and still don’t understand why you had a position open and yet you are cutting back on hours for the department (or the store-not sure). So, not only can I not get 40 hours a week in this department but I also can’t even get 40 in a pay period because I can be dropped from the schedule all together for a week at a time. And the hours I work Monday-Friday I will basically just be coming in to clean up due to the time.
The next weekend that I was scheduled for was actually not even full days so again I was just coming in in the evening to clean on days when I had full availability. There is a still a 2 hour window to “serve” however cooking has stopped by that time and from what I gather things slow down drastically during that late time of day. Even on the week I was scheduled after the empty week, they didn’t even give me full days work on the weekend but they added 30 minutes to my weekday shift length. So again I am just coming in to clean because on the weekends I can work anytime but they still scheduled me for the late part of the shift ending at 10pm.
Look, this is one of the highest paid departments because it should be. If you are doing the work and not vanishing and everyone is working together and being a team so there aren’t low performers getting over and high-performers burning themselves out then they deserve every penny for cleaning all the equipment etc. they have to dismantle and clean daily, covering for bakery when they are gone, on break or missing in action, cooking and all the other tasks including getting pulled by other department managers to “help” them out. But I would honestly rather make less and do something I enjoy and something where I won’t feel like I just went back to the gym after 10 years off every night.
Me and my brother had a good laugh about my entire hiring and work experience when I shared it with him. But honestly it was really exhausting for me. I never heard from HR and so I emailed who the app said I reported to later that week and he actually came by the department on what I had deemed my final day and asked me my name and if I was the one who had emailed him. He never introduced himself but I saw his name on his badge and recognized it immediately. He said the actual supervisor would be in the following day and he would discuss with her concerning see if I could simply move to another department. I had already let everyone I contacted know if not, that was understandable but either way my last day in Deli/Bakery was that day.
So while I was waiting for a response, I continued to job hunt because the bills keep coming. I also continued to submit interest via the app to other roles within Walmart and request a Family Hardship waiver request so that I could apply and move to other jobs via their system as the rule is you can’t move for six months.
After another week I still had not heard from anyone so I then reached out directly to the store manager via the same app email who had actually interviewed/hired me. I thought this would surely generate a response however I still have not heard from anyone. It has now been a few weeks and I don’t even know how to handle the entire situation. Absolutely, no one has replied to my emails or called and left a voicemail to inquire why I am not at work (because they still had me on the schedule) or to let me know if I can change departments. I did get an alert this week via the app that said I had been removed from the upcoming schedule.
- UPDATE: When I just attempted to log-in just now it says my account has been disabled.
So apparently the answer, is that they had no other role for me and didn’t feel obligated to explain it to me either. Well so much for trying on my part when I reached out to HR, the coach, the manager by way of the coach and the store manager. I attempted to call the store and they actually had an HR option on the phone tree but the phone just rang.
Here is the timeline on my contact email attempts:
- Email to HR 7/14, Email to “Coach” 7/17, Email to Store Mgr. 7/28
When I attempted to go back to Walmart.com to see if I could now apply for new jobs instead of being rerouted to the current employee workflow, I got the following message:
Pre-Employment Verification
Unfortunately, it looks like you are not eligible for rehire at Walmart at this time. You will be eligible to reapply on 07-01-3000. To know more, please contact the HR Manager of the facility #### that you previously worked in at (###) ###-####.
Well alrighty then. I am sure I will be dead by the year 3000 and will no longer need employment. I will try to call tomorrow to see if I need to turn my badge and vest back in to anyone and also to let them know I do not appreciate being marked as unable to rehire when I took steps to prevent that and didn’t garner any response. I will update this post once I am finally able to speak to a live person.
- UPDATE: attempted to reach someone in HR all weekend but got no answer via phone. It was mentioned to me a couple of times that someone was here sometimes on the weekend but this may the weekend when no one in HR was there. There was no VM to leave a message and the phone just rings. When I tried to overall store operator to inquire, it just rang also. Will try to call on my lunch tomorrow to see if I can reach someone during standard hours.
- UPDATE: Also when I attempted to apply for another job today at another Walmart I got the same message about not being eligible for rehire but the date was now saying February 2025.
On another note, I am really intrigued with people who live in their cars, buy RV’s and tiny homes. I see now why so many are sacrificing many of the things we have or think we need and seeking debt free, less is more type living. Thank goodness I don’t have kids because I would surely be in a worse situation if I was single parent dependent on one income like now. Kudos to everyone out there who is making those ends meet with superglue and ducktape who have even more going on than me because taking care of me alone is wearing me out *lol Making life decisions between whether you can feed your kids, pay that co-pay at your doctor’s appointment, dip into your savings monthly or purchase gas is problematic. I am grateful for the income I do have even if I always feel like I am stretching it or dipping into savings but the hunt for a second job will continue because while I may not fit the definition of “broke” it’s definitely needed.
HR Expert Explains Changes in Staffing, Who is Hiring and What Senior Leaders Need to Do Next
I currently have applications in for everything from retail, administrative/customer service, healthcare related patient intake, delivery driver and housekeeping. I even signed up for Uber after seeing some people talking about it on IG but have been talking myself out of it ever since. Its a work in process convincing myself that every psycho in the county won’t be in the backseat or have me getting snatched after dropping food at their door. And while I get more “we decided to go with other applicants” than interviews and more no’s than yes’s I am still hopeful that the right opportunity, with the right hours will come along.
Stay tuned for more of my income stream saga and in the comments let me know have you ever had to take on a 2nd job to make ends meet? Have you ever accepted a job only to find out almost immediately it wasn’t for you? If you are over 40 have you ever taken a job and realized you didn’t have that same stamina from your 20’s? Share your journey.
