After Macy's had been in charge of our store for a few years, they decided to cut the hours of the employees. Those of us who were full-time got more responsibilities. I still had an award-winning Luggage Department, but now I was expected to learn all I could about Housewares, Small Electrics, China, and Bed Linens. The ironic thing was I had no clue how to cook, so that area was very challenging.
So now, I had five departments to work in. Not just one. I didn't mind China, because there were fun people to work with. I also had to learn the Bridal Consulting job. I registered brides for gifts. With Housewares, Small Electrics and Bedding, I hoped they knew what they wanted already. After all, I didn't know what a sham or a duvet was. Maybe they did. I did learn something about China, and I could work a computer, so that was a big help. However, there were times when I had to work all five departments at once. I wished that the management would give us skates to get around. Customer service suffered during this time, and I am afraid that some people took some things out of the door without paying. It was impossible to watch everything. Sometimes I would hear these words from a customer, "Isn't there anyone to wait on me?" I would then come running. Consequently, I would walk from place to place on the floor and not stop anywhere unless I was ringing something up for a customer.
By 2007, the stress of having to make the rounds was wearing on me. I was coming home exhausted every day. And to top it off, I had not had a raise in 4 years. The raises were based on your yearly review. 30% of the review was whether or not you had made your quota in opening credit cards for customers. I didn't want to do that. When I filed for bankruptcy in 2006, I was overextended with credit cards. I knew that people that would open cards would also get overextended. These were the people that would want Macy's charge cards, so in good conscience, I wouldn't do it. So, I would not get a raise. It didn't matter that my Luggage Department was in the top 5 of the entire Macy's company. It didn't matter that I had very high customer service reviews. I didn't open credit cards, so I didn't get a raise.
With the cost of living going up, and me making the same thing for four years, I could no longer make ends meet. I started asking friends for money just so I could pay my rent. Some people suggested I should get food stamps, but I didn't think I was poor enough for them. I should have done it. I was eating cheap food. I could no longer afford to live, which sunk me into depression. I tried everything to get some money, short of robbing a bank. A friend, who lived in Greenville, offered me a free place to stay up there, if I would move. I said yes.
Right before Christmas 2007, I turned in my resignation at Macy's. It sent shockwaves through the store. The store manager asked why, and I told her that I had not had a raise in 4 years and could no longer afford to live. She offered me a 25-cent raise, if I would stay. There was no way I could do that. I was getting angry at everything and everyone. I knew that if I stayed any longer there, that I would go "postal" either on customers or employees or both. Then, I would be fired, so I took the only out I could.
Two days before my last day, our store's maintenance man died. He had a bad heart. He was a big fan of Big Brother as I was. I would tell him what had happened on the show before it aired having seen it online, and he would bet his wife that one person would win the veto or was about to be voted off of the show. He would win the bets, and his wife was never the wiser. He was much beloved in the store. I went to his funeral, which was a day after my last day at Macy's. There was a lot of crying. Unfortunately, there was a going away party planned for me that night. Instead of it being a happy time, the mood was rather somber. I didn't like leaving that way.
I really liked working at Rich's. When Macy's took over, the mood changed. I adapted the best I could, but in the end the demands were just too much. I had asked to transfer to the Macy's store in Greenville if I could work in Luggage up there. I knew all of the people there in the Home Store and management. Our personnel manager filled out the paperwork. I was ready to move to a better place.
