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| Old Market Pub & Brewery Andy & Shelly Bigley Discrimination, Disgusting Food Practices, Filthy Kitchen, Bad Management, Wrongful Termination Portland |
| 1st of Oct, 2011 by User831358 |
This business had been operating barely within the legal guidelines of the health department and OSHA for a number of years. The general manager told me that OMP has recently had a health department inspection that almost forced them to close their doors. They buy and keep products that are past their expiration date. I have been forced to serve food that I would have refused to eat, including cucumbers that have gone bad, ketchup with ants crawling around inside the bottles, and nacho cheese sauce that has been heavily food-colored. They color it because the cans of cheese they have are extremely old, so old that the liquid cheese has turned white. They actually call their nachos "Neon Nachos," because of the extreme orange of the food dye they use. I was coerced into signing documents stating, among other things, that I would change dates on products after having opened them, showing that the product was "new," when it was not. These documents also required of the OMP employees that we agree to have our time adjusted at the owner’s discretion. If I (and all other employees) did
not sign, the owners refused to issue paychecks. I was not given copies of the documents for my records. I stated during my initial interview that I had a health concern, namely hypoglycemia, and would need reasonable accommodation to perform my job to the best of my ability and keep myself healthy. The general manager assured me that I would not have a problem with it, that I would be given the opportunity to eat during my shifts. That never happened. The owners have stated that it is against the law for employees to bring their own food and/or beverages into the restaurant, and I am unable to stomach the food they serve due to OMP’s lack of food quality and due to my unique dietary needs, as well as the fact that OMP does not provide an employee break room or any area in which employees can eat during their shift without neglecting their jobs. I was told I could take a half an hour break to eat, but I rarely worked over six hours, and so was rarely eligible for a break. The OMP’s food is unpalatable, especially to
someone who has Sensory Integration Disorder and super sensitive taste buds. I felt uncomfortable doing it, but I snuck my own snacks in almost every time I worked. I was warned by the cooks when I started working there that I shouldn't
eat anything from OMP unless it was deep-fried or pizza, because those were the only items that were cooked enough to kill the bacteria and keep one from getting sick. One of the cooks even warned me not to eat the chili, as it
causes extreme diarrhea. Recently, I fell on the job and injured myself, causing severe edema and bruising to my elbow and hip, after having come around the bar at a fast walk with my hands full, and having slipped in beer that a patron had spilled. There was no wet floor sign. I was wearing non-slip footwear, but I was unable to maintain my balance. My left foot slid underneath me and I hit the floor hard, my right hand sliding through the glasses that had broken during my fall. I got up quickly and with the help of a coworker, was able to maintain my composure throughout the remainder of my shift. I was in a lot of pain, and the GM did not offer me an incident report, she did not even ask me if I was okay, if I needed to take the rest of the evening off. She patently ignored the incident, other than to tell me she didn’t believe me when I said I wasn’t running when I fell. I did confirm with several customers who witnessed the incident that I was not doing anything unsafe, that my fall was the result of an accident. I worked the next morning, but was in so much pain that I had to call in sick for my evening shift. I never had a verbal warning or any kind of disciplinary action while employed there. I was told repeatedly that my performance was improving, was given some constructive criticism, improved where I needed to improve. Recently, I informed my employers that I was pregnant, and that I would need to keep much better control over my blood sugar levels, to keep myself and my child healthy, and the GM reacted with quite an attitude. At the time, my blood sugar levels were dropping rapidly. I had eaten before my shift, but I’m supposed to consume two to four grams of protein every two hours to maintain a stable blood glucose level. The GM demanded that the kitchen manager make me food, and when I tried to explain politely that I couldn’t eat the food, that I had my own high protein snack, the kitchen manager rolled his eyes and mumbled about “drama,†and the GM rolled her eyes and walked away from me. I took the opportunity to go outside and eat not only my granola bar, but some beef jerky as well. I returned to my duties, and despite the fact that I was having a hard night; my tips reflected that my guests were happy with the level of service they were receiving. As the evening went on, I continued to try to keep my emotions under control; I don’t normally feel like crying for no reason, so I’m assuming it’s the elevated hormone levels in my body that are making me feel so emotional. After about 45 minutes without having a single new table, my section was clean and I was without a task. I was discussing something work-related with one of the cooks, standing where I could see any new guests coming in, and when the GM saw us talking, she flipped out on me. (Incidentally, I have seen numerous other employees standing around/texting, etc. without any consequences from the GM.) She told me I was cut (not taking new tables, do side work
and check out). I said “Okay, thank you,†which is what I always say when my boss gives me an instruction. I went on to try to explain to her that I was attempting to regain control over my emotions by talking to a co-worker about
non-emotional things, but she cut me off and yelled at me, “Clock out, don’t even do your side work, just GET OUT!†I ran my checkout, went to the back counter to finish the financials, and there I burst into tears. The other girls were very concerned. I explained to them that I was overwrought because of the hormonal changes I’m experiencing, and I felt that my GM hated me, although I’ve worked my tail off there, been a team player, and given 100% every time I worked. The GM avoided eye contact while signing my checkout. I clocked out and left. When I showed up before my shift the next day to collect my paycheck, the Manager on Duty looked slightly confused to see me, then said “I heard we were only running with two today,†meaning that I had been taken off the schedule. I was not informed by the GM, who called me while I was driving away. I rejected the call because I was driving, and she
didn’t leave a message. I returned to OMP around 11AM, to collect tips from a previous shift. (Several of the servers had credit card transactions that didn’t go through because of a computer glitch, and we were required to pay the guest’s entire tab, including the tip, out of our own tips, until management could get the paperwork straight.) When I walked in, the MOD took me to a table, sat me down, and told me I was being fired. I asked why and she said that she was told I “wasn’t hackin’ it.†She said she liked me and she was sorry to have to fire me, that they made her fire me, and that she didn’t understand why they (the GM/owners) didn’t fire me themselves. She also told me that she would text me when the $35.65 they owed me was available, that the deposit from that night was $100 short, and that the owner needed to go through the books before he would pay anyone out from that night. The owner was standing at the bar, drinking Bud, as usual, and refused to look at me, even when I made every attempt I could think of without being rude to get his attention. He obviously knew what he was doing was wrong. I believe that they fired me because I’m pregnant and they didn’t want to deal with any pregnancy symptoms or maternity leave. They certainly never provided me with reasonable accommodations for my hypoglycemia, which is rather severe. I felt like I had to be sneaky and deceitful just to
keep my blood glucose stable, and I felt uncomfortable at work almost all the time. I felt that the GM played favorites, and I was uncomfortable with the idea of being one of her favorites after I watched her swat a co-worker on the
rear. The fact that the GM is sexually harassing people is unacceptable. I felt extremely uncomfortable around her most of the time, partly because she didn’t like me, and partly because I was afraid of what she would do if she did like
me. Working there was like walking on eggshells. I was afraid to ask for an incident report after my fall because I was told by a co-worker that others had been fired for falling on the job. I wasn’t sure whether to believe that, but I
do now! Note: The owners say that their beers are all organic, but I believe they would have a hard time proving it if they were asked to. They have gone as far as to state that all their beer is organic on their menu and website. I believe that if they are advertising organic beer, they need to be able to detail how it is organic, which they cannot do. The GM didn’t even know what the seasonal beer was made with when I asked her last week. I had to wait till the brewer came in to ask him. In the meantime, my guest was left wondering. |
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