A Job's Worth

Alongside my academic pursuits and in between our ‘world tours’ (as grandad calls them) I’ve had a part time job since I was 16. From the moment I stepped out of Priory for the last time, Trace was on my back to get a job in a shop or a restaurant to make some pennies and learn some life lessons.

Around the same time I started my A Levels, I got offered a job at The Catherine’s Inn where grandad used to take me and Charley Williams every Monday lunchtime in between our college classes. I was thrilled (mostly because it would get mum off my back).

I distinctly remember my first shift, in which one of my now-colleagues slammed a door in my face, I took the wrong thing to the wrong table too many times and my now-manager called the lady on table 1 ‘fat cunt’. I was fresh out of school and way out of my depth…

In time, I grew to love the crazy pub life. I learned how to run with hot plates for 8 hours without a break. I learned to swear like a sailor in the kitchen and smile like an angel out front. I learned that if you’re too slow, you’ll get the shit ripped out of you. Have you ever worked in hospitality? Its NUTS.

I stayed at this job for 2 years, until I met Joel in 2014. Back then, his sister was the manager at The Cellar Wine Bar, and he worked in the kitchen there. As soon as I met the girls and did a shift with them, I knew it was time to leave the Catherine’s. You wouldn’t believe the amount of times I bawled my eyes out at/about that pub, and yet when I handed Justin my notice, it was with a heavy heart. That place grew me up, and I made the most unforgettable friends.

Justin, I appreciate now how nice it was to have you as a manager. I’m back in hospitality now and it’s so weird without you! Hope all is well up there.

Anyway, The Cellar is gorgeous; a quaint, homely wine bar which doubles up as a café during the day. A little (lot) more high-class than the Catherine’s, which was an absolute dream to now 18-year-old me.

I am so pleased to say that I’m still working at The Cellar every other weekend. My very best friends work or have worked here, and The Cellar feels as much like home as anywhere else in the South West.

Recently, we’ve been faced with the realisation that Joel’s full-time job isn’t enough to run a house (and keep a hungry little Tiger). I would’ve liked nothing more than to focus on my MA but there we go – real life is unforgiving. I applied for a load of jobs and, in the end, I heard back from 2. A pub and a beauty counter at Boots.

I went to both interviews and the pub offered me a job on the spot (I’ve been waitressing since I was 16 so I kind of expected to get this one). They even said they were happy for me to go home every other weekend to work at The Cellar and see my family. Nothing from Boots which I was a bit disappointed about because I fancied trying something new. Oh well, I thought, I only need 16 hours. I started working at the pub and everyone seemed really lovely. The job was similar to the Catherine’s (hard work but somewhat fun when you get in to it).

Weeks later, Boots called. They said they’d like to offer me the job. I said “great”, hung the phone up and immediately regretted it… There was no way I’d be able to manage 2 jobs in Nottingham and still be able to visit the family every other weekend.

In the end, my decision was made simple by the Boots rota. They had put me on a short six-week contract (to cover them over Christmas) and wanted me in throughout December with little room for manoeuvre. They had me on 25 hours. Joel’s birthday is in December, The Cellar Christmas party is in December, and Santa comes in December, too, of course. Some things in life aren’t worth compromising. It is a part time job – not a career. I told them I wasn’t prepared to sacrifice important time with my family and friends and left it at that.

I’m loving the pub job to be honest. It gets me out the house, I am making some lovely friends and a little bit of money, too. Most importantly, the managers understand my other commitments, from uni to going home to live my old life every other weekend. I’m way less stressed working for people like that than people who aren’t willing to acknowledge that a) I have a life outside of my part time job and b) my future career (and my heart) is in Language and Literature, not, in fact on their makeup counter...

With regards to the hospitality/retail debate, I think everyone’s different. Joel can’t stand waiting tables but he worked in Tesco for a long time without complaint. I did 2 shifts at Boots and didn’t enjoy the sales-driven atmosphere at all. I’ll take the late nights and the running about any day of the week.

Remember, fundamentally, a part-time job’s worth is money, especially when you’re doing it alongside another job or education, but it can be more than that. An understanding of your needs and your existence as a 3-dimensional human being makes it more than that. Your team make it more than that.

I’ll tell you what my mum said, shall I? Part-time jobs in retail and hospitality are ten-a-penny. If they aren’t willing to employ you as a person, only a number, then fuck ‘em. Go work your 16 hours somewhere else.