i see now🗿

ive been working at a panda express for about 8 months now and holy fucking shit. ive seen people compare panda to a cult and while i generally roll my eyes at comparisons like this it is apparent that panda uses techniques similar to how cult leaders indoctrinate people. the first step is the pay. nowhere else pays as high as panda at least where i live (idaho), i make $18 an hour and nowhere else pays nearly that much without a higher position in management being required. secondly my manager is always trying to weirdly discourage me from pursuing my college degree. there have been multiple times they schedule me in the middle of my classes/labs even though i was clear about my availability and goals before starting. like when i talk to her to let her know i wont be in until 2 hours after my shift starts bc i’ll be in my lab she genuinely asks me to skip it and is constantly trying to make me feel like panda should be my no. 1 priority. they entrap you further by offering higher positions for higher pay and when u accept you either have to commit to the role or quit (you being demoted to previous position is not an option). The pay is the biggest thing they know they pay higher than most places so they know they can give you high stress shifts back to back. my GM literally made someone who had alr put their 2 weeks in quit bc they bullied them harder (which was the reason they quit). Everyday there is at least 2 callouts bc no one wants to work with our GM. I work BOH and almost every shift i have no support after 5pm and we are an extremely busy location so im usually there until 12am doing closing tasks even though we close at 10:30. Ive been working since i was 14 (im now 24) so i can confidently say no other place (ie. mcdonalds, taco bell, carls jr, etc) have had this big of an issue with callouts. Its infuriating bc i value the pay and work my ass off, in the last 2 weeks over half of my shifts which are never shorter than 8 hours, i have had to go without even a 30min break, one guy got mad at me for even taking a 30 when i was supposed to get an hour (i worked 11am to close). For at least 4 of the shifts. Im there almost everyday bc no one else is reliable, so im usually scheduled 6 out of 7 days of the week. i am so exhausted. I want to quit but i genuinely need the money and pay they offer.