First thing I would do is have a general meeting with all employees present. Lay out your expectations and let them know at that time that you will not have any problems finding a replacement if they have a problem with your rules.

Next, I would get a White Board and put down every employee and the times that they are scheduled to work and what jobs that you expect each employee to do for that day of work. Change up the duties daily so that they all get to do the grunt work and the fun work.

Then, give them some type of reward if they either bring in new business, speed up their decorating, make no mistakes on the orders. Keep this also on the White Board so that all can see it as a contest. After maybe a month give them their reward in front of everybody. The reward could be a gift certificate to anything, movie, dinner, store. The more they do to work harder the better the rewards get.

So, be firm in front of all employees at a meeting and state your rules, then Reward them for their good work. Job incentives go a long way.

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I have to agree with Texas Sugar. I think you can be friendly with your employees and still be a boss.
Maybe you can have a meeting with them a morning before they open and let them know that with being an employee short everyone is going to have to step up to help take up the slack and everyone is going to have to work together.
Maybe you can provide each with a daily "duty" list for about 10 days and of course I would also list, Clean Up as you go on it. I think it is easier to keep it neat as you work..
Watch them for the 10 days and see if they have to be separated and reminded what to do, I'd write it down when you have done so to have when you have a meeting with them. Call them in for a one on one with you and tell them the number of times you had to remind them to do the things on their list or separate them when they were doing something together and only one was needed. I would have a warning form and list that this is a written warning and have them sign it and that 3 warnings in 60 days constitutes dismissal. Believe me, by having this all documented, you can avoid them being paid unemployment. I have done this before. Maybe before you do the warning you could have a conversation with them and ask what you could do to help them learn new techniques. Hear them out and if they say they are tired after 8 hours, suggest they may want to shorten their night life. Again reiterate that all need to help more. Hold a morning meeting and show them something they don't know or need more practice with. By teaching them more things it may benefit you by allowing them to help you more so you will be free to do what you need to do more.
I don't think I would hire a manager as it would undermine what you need from these workers right now, however, I think that putting an ad for someone to take the 3rd persons position would help also as you surely will get many more candidates to choose from. Interview them thoroughly so you can not only hire someone for the missing worker but have someone to choose from in case you need to replace either other of the ones still there.
Maybe you can show them things every other week in meetings that will benefit your time even more. After showing them, review how they do and if it is incorrect let them know , show them again and this will show that you mean what you have preciously said, they can and will do it.
Unless they step up to the plate and take on other duties and really work at trying to improve, then I would not offer any other benefits like bonuses.
It may take up some of your time in the beginning but, I think it will benefit you so much later. Be strong, help them learn, let them use what they learn and don't hesitate to give warnings if they persist to not be reliable or respectful. Give praise when it is due and hopefully you can handle all this. Be strong, take a deep breath and dive in. What can it hurt? You can't be worse off than you are now.

evelyn

Wow, makes me wish I lived near you do I could ask for a job. I've only really had "those" bosses.

But....I would separate them and have them work independently. If you are busy then you aren't whispering in the corners. I would also remind them, without a formal meeting about cleaning up after themselves. I personally am an anal cleaner at work. I HATE having to touch a decorating bag that has more buttercream on the outside, than in and I have many times at work refused to use another decorators' bags and I use my own, then clean up after myself so they are left with their own mess.

I used to work with another woman who literally hated me when I walked in the door. On my first day of work she cornered me and hissed (yes, ladies, she hissed!!) nasty things at me. Needless to say that I tried to ignore her I tried to work around her and it just got to the point that I went to the owner and said that's that, I'm leaving. To keep me my boss agreed to only work us on opposite days and that worked until another baker was ill and we were forced to work together, but then she quickly quit. Anyway, the other bakers said it was like a light switch, I would walk through the door and she would go from talking to everyone to slamming things, muttering under her breath, and refusing to do items that were on the day's work list. I swear, I never did anything but get hired!!! It was one of the most strange and uncomfortable things to deal with.

But, back to the subject. If it becomes the two against you weird things happen, like the mean girls in high school. Two not-to-bad people become terrors because they have a buddy to fall back on. So, I would first be sure you are firm when it comes to cleaning up after yourself and the proper storage of the inventory because that is a big deal in a bakery. If you are going to leave a mess for others, they will in turn leave your mess for you to clean up yourself. Period.

I would also document everything, but don't carry a notebook or anything. When specific things happen, be sure to write down the specifics. This is good for when you do have a one-on-one meeting or evaluation.

I also agree with other posters about bringing in people for interviews and give them a tour while they are working. Let them know that you have options. However do it professionally. I had a boss (I write about her a LOT) that hired a prep worker for the kitchen and announced to the whole kitchen staff that the new person is here to replace "worker x" because "worker x" isn't fast enough or catching on fast enough. But, "worker x" was standing there and wasn't even told that they weren't happy with her etc. It was a horrible scene.

One other thing. My management style is a lot like my mothering style. Catch them going something good. At least once, make it look like you just happened to notice that something is really nice, like the color they had to mix by hand, "hey you really got that color just right" or a tray of cookies is really perfectly made, "wow these are perfect, I want to eat one!" You would be shocked what a tiny thing like that can do for morale. You don't have to gush, just make a seemingly off the wall comment, as if it's pulled out of the air and not rehearsed. I used this technique with my kids at their sports things. I hated going to baseball practice 5 nights a week. But I was always sure to watch my kids, and then the rest of the time I had my nose in a book. BUT, when they were done I was sure to mention something I saw without them bringing it up to me so they knew I cared and I noticed and it worked. I hated going to sports!!! But I didn't want them to know that.

Above all, never, I mean never talk to one employee about another. They will almost always run straight back to the first employee and that opens up a can of worms like you would not believe. Yes, I also learned this first hand by the same above mentioned boss. Morale can really break a workplace.

Tami

...................after I finally left that place I always thought I should write a book on how NOT to treat employees.

Fire one and the other will fall into line PDQ.

Wow, lots of great advice! I think you may want to think about implementing a formal evaluation process. I'm guessing you don't have one in place. A formal eval lays out expectations in black and white and is an effective tool to work on improvement in specific areas. On the flip side, nothing boosts morale like a good evaluation, in writing.

I dont know how valid my suggestions will be as I'm in Australia but I do have a couple.

First off - I just have to say wow! it sounds like the work situation over in the US is VERY different to what we have here. 4 weeks holidays plus 10 days sick leave is standard here, and some companies offer more, as well as some pay maternity leave.

I also have to say that whilst you say that 8 hours a day on your feet for a 25 year old isnt hard - I would respectfully disagree. I worked in retail from the time I was 15 (whilst completing school), and I was tired after pulling a full day. Yes, it may not compare to what you do, but you are used to doing that, and they are used to doing 8 hours. Anyone will get tired towards the end of their usual shift time, it's what your body is used to.

Now that is said, here are my suggestions for the business side.

Do you currently have regular team meetings? If not, I think you should start. These could cover the orders for the upcoming week, any admin issues etc. It could also be a time for the employees to contribute and give feedback. From what I can tell in your posts, the employees dont feel connected and engaged with the business - team meetings could both help with this and build team morale.

I would sit down and write out individual position descriptions for each role, and also include KPI's in these. These PD's can then be issued to the employees and explained that this is what the business expects of them, and ask for their input as to whether they believe there is anything that has been missed or whether there will be any issues in adhering to these PD's and meeting (or exceeding) the KPI's. I would also indicate that there will be a small annual bonus/team dinner etc if the KPI's have been exceeded.

I am in my late 20's (not for very much longer though lol), and I can honestly say that for our generation (at least in Australia) it is very much about communication, engagement from the business and consultation. Quality of life is a huge consideration for my generation, as well as acknowledgement. If I dont get any feedback from my boss then I will assume they dont care/dont know what I'm doing and this is not good for a team environment. That being said, I am a very hard worker, but if I dont get anything back from my boss I eventually have to ask why I'm busting my butt working ridiculous hours (and no, just getting paid isnt enough).

Please dont take any of my comments the wrong way, as I said - this may not apply over in the US, and this is my first post on CC so please be gentle!

agree with mrsmay.. but i am also in australia so may not be relevant. You have to stay connected with your "team", set out a positive work environment.. and no thats doesnt mean pretty colours on the walls.. but an environment that centers around positivity, praise for jobs well done etc. It also sounds like your workers roles need to be more clearly defined. As others have suggested get a white board and write the jobs that must be completed for the day for each person. It sounds like they may need a bit of structure. I also dont agree with telling your employees that they are replaceable. To me, that is only going to breed resentment. You will get much better results using the "carrot" rather then the "stick". Please dont take this the wrong way.. but 8 hours is a long time to be on your feet, you are the business owner, you will be putting a lot more into this business than what your employees will. I thinks its unreasonable for you to say that 8 hours on your feet all day isnt that bad. I have worked in retail, and while yes, I usually was the one to start an hour early and finish an hour late, I still think that 8 hours on your feet is a long time! Im in my early twenties, and i dont think its a matter of the younger generation not having as strong a work ethic. I think its different sets of values, different ways of communicating and different experiences that need to be addressed. Yes, giving your employees responsibility in their work should foster pride and a greater connection to your business, but i think that responsibility still needs to be structured.. and needs to eb eased into.. instead of just thrown into it.

I agree with pretty much everything on here. Except the eight hours is not a lot. You may be a great boss/friend but you do have to understand that people have lives outside of work. Work is work and personal lives are just that.

I have held many jobs and have worked double shifts (on my feet all day) but that was me, I can't expect everyone else to have that same stamina and motivation. Just like every pregnancy is different.(ie. Some women go through there whole 9 months with none of the symptoms and give birth with no problems and others have had morning sickness the whole time or end up having complications towards the end) We are all different in one way or another.

As a previous poster said employee morale is very important. If your not the confrontational type then (as silly as it sounds) practice it in the mirror. At a job that I had several years back we had a meeting every morning. Two to three minutes long to discuss whatever the day was going to bring (orders, how many customers, etc.)There would be an emphasis on what was priority and tasks to each and at the end of the week we would do a 20 minute meeting and discuss what how we did and where we needed improvement. During the meeting we also had training, one of the employees would go over "procedures, how to take orders, cleaning and handwashing techniques and so on just to refresh. (alternating with the employees, focusing on something different each week). We did evals every 6 months and it was a great environment for both the employees and the employer. We had incentives like an extra half hour on a break or a movie ticket when we excelled.

If it still doesn't work fire them. Sometimes it is the best situation for everyone. As said before just the increase of members on cc alone should tell you how replaceable they are. Very, just find someone that meets and exceeds your expectations. ( it wont be that difficult)



(Sorry if it sounds mean I really am just trying to give food for thought. Good luck with everything.)

Another Aussie here. I am really surprised at your working conditions in America! Only one week's paid holiday? Wow!

First up, let me say that I have always been a wonderful employee wherever I have worked - I have always had every boss have an open door policy with me should I ever want to return to them and on two occasions I took it. I work my butt off for my employer but I believe it is unreasonable for you to expect an employee to work longer than an 8 hour day just because you do and you are busy. Don't get me wrong, some people do (and I often would to help someone out) but it just should not be an expectation. They are not reaping the rewards that you are by putting in those hours. Your reward is either in the profit margin or the building of the business. You are working to build your business, they are working to sustain their lifestyle. You have different motivations. Our standard work week here is 40 hours - 5 x 8 hr days so working an 8 hr shift seems reasonable. My employers love me because I treat the business as if it were my own but that is because I grew up with my parents owning a business. Most people don't feel that way.

Having said all that, one employer I worked for completely took advantage of me and well and truly underpaid me. He expected more hours of me than any other employer had - like 8am to 8pm for a tiny salary. It didn't take long for me to start to really resent him and the way he was taking advantage of me. I was young and really lacked the lifeskill to negotiate a fair wage - I trusted him to set a fair wage when I started. It became toxic for me. The resentment grew, especially when I could see just how much profit he was reaping and expecting me to work for nix. I left rather than deal with him about it. So the point is, you have to be fair to employees - they will know what others are getting and whether you are taking advantage or whether they are being treated well. Another place I worked for paid me above the award - he didn't have to but he thought it was fair. Because of that, I really looked after his business. I wanted him to continue to succeed because I continued to reap some of that benefit. All of us felt that way and we would talk about it. It was a small family business too.

I honestly don't know which category of employer you would fall into and am not having a go at anyone - just telling my story and giving you an insight into the way employees sometimes think.

As for dealing with these two. I would suggest meeting with them one at a time. I would ask them what they think they are doing well and what they think they need to improve on. Just sit and let them speak. You can then bounce off that - "I agree" or "I am concerned about ..." and then talk about how you can fix it. Another way to deal with conflict is to ask a series of questions "Do you have a problem with your workload?" "Do you find the work difficult to complete" etc if the answer is no, then you say "Then the problem must be with me. What is the issue?" and you can deal with it there. The trick is not to get angry or emotional and to stick to the issue. Don't take it personally. People are usually so taken back by this approach that they will temper the way the say it or may hold it in, but it will bring the issues to the surface to be dealt with. If they hold it in, they will do a much better job of hiding that behaviour so that they don't have to have that conversation with you again. Try to end on a positive note "Great, I'm looking forward to improving our working relationship. Thanks for working on this. I appreciate your efforts".

Also, given how busy you are, it may be an idea to slightly raise your prices and use those extra funds to work out some incentive based scheme where you reward them for the efforts and attitude.

Just to clarify. Most US companies offer their full time employees 1 week paid vacation upon being hired and a handful of sick/personal days.

The longer you work for the company the more vacation time you earn. For example my DH has been with a large financial institution for almost 15 yrs and he has earned 5 1/2 weeks paid vacation and 10 personal days for a total of 38 paid days leave a year. Not so bad.

Every company is different as is every job.


Since I'm self employed I take 3 weeks a year, but I only work 4 days a week.

Being a business owner I can say with confidence that nobody will ever work as hard for my business as I do. When I started out almost 20 yrs ago, I was always the first one in and the last one to go home. I don't expect any of my employees to work the hours that I do, but I do expect them to work while they're at work and they all know that.

If they don't do their jobs, they're shown the door. Period. Unemployment is at a record high in the US and there are plenty of capable people willing to do these jobs if my employees don't want them.

And, I'd rather hire 40 - 65 yr olds any day of the week....I've experienced employees of all ages and sexes and most definitely the older the employee the more loyal and conscientious they are. Again to clarify...this has been MY personal experience. I'm sure there are plenty of conscientious 20 and 30 yr old workers...hopefully my 2 kids who are twenty something are good employees. They better be. lol

I've also never had to take a cell phone away from my older employees while at work but I have from the 20 somethings. You'd think they 'd know better, but they apparently don't.

I'm not sure where you are and what overtime laws are in effect, but if you employees are aware of how the laws differ and what they are working--it might be a place where they are feeling resentment. For hourly employees, the federal standard is 40 hours a week, then time and a half in pay. But in CA, it is anything over 8 hours a day ( of course it is more complicated than that, but that "8 hours a day" is the take away from it) is considered overtime.

If you are working extremely long hours and expect your hourly employees to do the same, there is going to me some resentment and I wouldn't doubt that they feel under-appreciated. Are you asking them to work more than 8 every so often or are long days on the schedule on peak production days? Do you have fun time put into work culture (a catered lunch every so often, birthday celebrations?), or is the atmosphere always one of produce! produce! produce (and then find a way to do more?).

I'm just brining up points of workplace 'culture' because if the employees you have now went south and were open to follow a secondary leader (who must have spoken to their hearts a bit more), then there is a good chance that it might happen again. Unless you find the perfect employees who exactly share your dedication and desire to live and breathe the business, you probably need to explore ways to maintain and develop a happy work force for future employees.

good luck!

I dont have any employees...but I work for a hospital pharmacy. I have observed first hand what happens when the manager tries to be easy going. Now, we are a really laid back department. People really do come in late all the time....10 min to 30 min, and sometimes they call first and sometimes they don't. When a pharmacist's wife is having a baby, they find coverage for him so HE can be off for a couple of weeks....which I find odd. Nice, but odd. You can create your own schedule....if you have a regular class, and can't be there at your shift from 2-10 until 3pm....no problem.

The problem here is: if you dno't enforce this stuff, you can't enforce other stuff. You can't write someone up for calling off work, when you know that she called off work because she was hung over from the night before's party.

You can't discipline anyone for failing to do their fair workload. If you don't enforce one rule, you can't enforce the others, that's all there is to it. Being friendly is spectacular, but what I keep telling my DH is: you can't be 100% likeable and be a good manager. In order to keep things running smoothly, you have to be the bad guy, the party pooper, sometimes.

You can hire a manager, but the employees have to know that the authority behind the manager is you, or the manager has no authority, either.

Everyone is expendable.

As far as the "I'm tired after 8 hours" thing....so what? If you're here overtime, you're being paid OT and you should shut up and work. Otherwise, get out. Everyone is tired after 8 hours, that's no excuse for lazy work or sloppy work or a crappy attitude.

As far as what people are being paid and their benefits: If they are hired and the benefits /pay are explained in advance, and your expectations are made clear in advance, then they have NO EXCUSE for slacking off. If they don't like working for those recompenses, then don't. Of course, if you can't hold on to quality employees, then you have to re-evaluate, but I think most people understand the differences of working for super small companies vs large corporations. Having dinners at your home for employees, buying Christmas gifts, giving days off for special occasions or closing the shop....whatever you can work out to make them feel appreciated for their lack of the type of bennies they might get at a huge corp will make them feel special and part of a team.

Maybe i'll crash and burn as an employer, and that's why I like being a one woman show. But it makes me angry when people take an attitude that they deserve more than they agreed to when they accepted the job. Yes, experience and length of service should be rewarded.....but really....don't take the job if you don't like the terms or don't want to work.

CC needs a like button. Spot on Karateka!

Thanks for all the input!
I did talk with the girls and they were feeling a little resentful to the girl who left, and were missing her as well. They didnt realize they were taking it out on me, and knew by my tone they were in trouble, So they have really improved a lot! They are accepting the new girl and hopefully will accept the other new girl we have starting in a couple of weeks.

As far as pay and benefits, we are pretty much the same as everyone else in the area. Actually, we pay better then the bakery down the street from us, and offer better benefits. The bakery this girl went to is the exception, not the rule, for the area. Many of my employees are NOT very money motivated, so I dont think they think they are underpaid.
I do pay overtime, but it is a rare week when anyone puts in more than 40 hours. We do a schedule every day and they know they get to leave once the list is done. So that is a great motivator.
I also offer them if they want to go to a class, I will pay for, and if they want to make a cake for a friends birthday, etc, they can do it after hours. My non compete agreement they sign is very fair and my non disclosure agreement is standard.

I dont know anyone in the food industry that offers 3 weeks paid vacation right at hire. Not even exec chefs in this area do that well! The average line cook makes half what my girls get paid.
I agree with a lot of things people are saying the 20 somethings are a hard bunch. They cant put down their cell phones (I had to make a rule NO TEXTING during business hours..) And they dont seem to care about their future. I dont remember being that way.BUT I have found many 40 somethings complain that the work is too physical and they cant lift this and cant lift that
I agree also that people need to understand why they are being hired and what is involved and if its not what they want, they shouldnt take the job. I tell them all the time that we are NOT ace of cakes, we dont throw fondant and play our guitar during working hourswe work very hard, but we have good music playing, we joke around and everyone has their own work space and tools. But people still seem to think they just sit around and take all day to decorate one cake.
Thanks again for your input from everyone! I am not going to hire a manager, but I want to one day, as I just dont have time to go out and market and such.

that is so good to hear! I'm glad everything worked out in the end.

I'm happy you sorted it out too! Owning a business with employees is a whole different ballgame.

I love being self employed but there are many things I hate about it too and the main one is dealing with immature lazy employees. The cell phone thing is probably my biggest pet peeve. When I hire people I tell them "no cell phones during working hours except their break time" and they look at me like I have 2 heads with fire coming out of my eyes and mouth. What is so wrong with not allowing cell phone usage? We all got along fine without them when I was their age.

One last thought on that...the cashier at Kohls was text messaging in between sales today while I was shopping. aaaahhhhhh youth. I don't think they could live 1 week without their dumbphones. lol

Good luck!

I know this is off topic, but I had to reply about cellphone problems. My family runs a small business (not baking) with about 10 employees. They recently hired a new office worker and she was duly informed of the NO CELLPHONE policy in the office. They are supposed to put it in their desk during the day with it turned off. She also signed an agreement stating that she understood the policy.

On her second day, my mother saw her repeatedly texting someone, so they reminded her of the policy and wrote her up. On her third day, she "hid" her cell phone between her breasts and every time is buzzed she would excuse herself to the bathroom to text whoever was texting her. Apparently the phone was visible to anyone who got close to her, but she must have thought it was completely hidden.

Needless to say, she was fired, but I LAUGHED MY HEAD OFF off when my mom told me why they fired her.

I ahd one girl always complain about stomach problmes and always ahving to go to the bathroom. Of course she was just texting her little heart out...and she was fired rather quickly.

My old boss had the same problem, I can't believe what is so important that you have to be texting all day at work!!?? It isn't always young people either!

When I was finally full time and my kids finally had mobiles they went with a plan that was text only. So if they had an emergency at home they couldn't call me but had to text me. So I explained to my boss's daughter (she ran the front of the house and was lovely to get along with) about my dilemma. Since I never had a problem "over-using" my phone at work she didn't mind me keeping it on the shelf with the orders. If I had a child emergency then it was there for me, but I think all summer my daughter texted me once to let me know to bring something from the market on my way home from work.

Both my kids understand when it isn't appropriate for phones. I am just floored when other employees just couldn't ignore their phones!! It wasn't home emergencies or anything but "stuff" going on in their lives. One woman (my age, not a young girl) would fight with her unemployed husband ALL DAY at work. She was a really talented baker, and a hard worker IF you could get a day that she wasn't on the phone with family or fighting with her husband. They would text and then she was always taking bathroom breaks to call and argue with him. V*E*R*Y disruptive. What has happened to the rule "I'm at work and you only call if there is a real emergency-death and dismemberment-everything else can wait until I get off work"??

I feel for bosses with employee cell phone issues. What on earth do you do when you know the employee isn't going to the bathroom for a real reason, but to text/call on their phones all day??

Tami

loriemoms - I'm glad to see that you've found a solution and were able to work things out with your employees.

I just want to take a moment to address the overall assumption on here that 20-somethings don't have good work ethics. I think it's misleading as a whole. Yes, there are bad workers out there, but they exist in every generation. Every.single.generation has it's "gimme" people. These are the people that do the bare minimum work and expect the maximum benefits.

Unfortunately, where I work, it seems that the more incompetent you are, the bigger the title and paycheck you get. :/ I'm one of the lowest paid employees in my area yet when I was out on maternity leave, I had to manage my work email otherwise I would have come back to hundreds of inquiries.

I don't believe it's an overall assumption that 20-somethings don't have good work ethics.

In 16 yrs of business ownership it's been MY personal experience, since I've employed people from as young as 19 all the way up to 74.

And I wouldn't even say it's their lack of work ethic...it's more, they didn't even know how to act in a workplace environment...i.e. using their cellphones constantly.

I felt like a high school principal constantly threatening to take their phone away.
It's become such a huge part of their lives that they couldn't go an hour without checking it.

As I said this has been MY experience and because of it I tend to employ older people and I've had a lot less issues with them.

***Oh my favorite was one girl who constantly called in sick at the very last minute, yet on her FB page the evening before she'd write about being at nightclubs, drinking too much and "probably having to call in sick in the morning".

When I fired her because of it she denied it, but I quickly reminded her that we were "friends" on FB and I had read her posts. lol

She wasn't the brightest. lol

I'm sure there are plenty of hardworking 20 somethings, my own kids better be 2 of them....I've never been lucky enough to hire the good ones.

Hire a Manager, but before you do become a good boss, lol, What I mean is, if you have problems giving directions and were unclear, it is never too late to start, write down what you want to say, use index cards or notes, (If they notice, who cares, it's your business. I have been an Administrator for over 25 years, I made my mistakes, you can be friendly but not overly so, particularly in this age of lawsuits. One more thing, do not wait for the new manager to do your job, sit them down, write them a memo with your expectations, tell them that no snide remarks will be tolerated-they can do this at home. the new Manager can finish what you started. As a middle manager, I always resented being given bad employees" to fire. good luck to you.

So glad you were able to work things out!

Now that it is a little more peaceful around the bakery, you need to take a moment and figure out how this happened so it doesn't happen again. You've already admitted that you are too "nice." Etc, etc.

It sounds like not only are you too nice, but you are also too overworked. 18 hour days 6 days a week will not make you a good manager. When this squabbling started, you probably didn't even notice it until it was too late, because you were too busy doing everything else that needed doing. And even then, didn't just thinking about handling the situation make you exhausted to the point that you didn't want to actually handle it??

Maybe outsourcing some of the book keeping, hiring a part time person to do consults, someone to tackle paperwork.... you need to figure out how to get some of the monkeys off your back so you can manage your team and still have energy left to decorate!!!

And 8 hours a day is NOT that much work for ALL twentysomethings. Being just out of my twenties right now, I was ready for anything and any hours by the time I turned 18. Just depends on the personality and how much they want to be "good" at something. I'm pretty driven when I put my mind to it, and even if I were folding shirts for a living, I can tell you right now every dang shirt would be folded to the best of my ability. Some people are just wired that way.

Obviously it is just a job to them, and that's ok. I think you were more upset by the complaining than the being tired part anyway.

Working past 8 hours isn't a big deal (to me) as long as I know when I AM off work. If my schedule say's that I'm off at 3, I may be a peeved if someone says "no" when 3 o'clock comes around. If I know in advance when a 10 hour day is required, then I'm fine with that and I plan for it in my life and mentally when I start work. (and a memo is sent to my feet)

MANY years ago I worked for a very different Wicked Witch who owned one of the large grocery stores in town. It was a union store, but the union didn't have a problem with the employees being forced to work past their scheduled off time. I was told by the manager that I was NEVER to turn off my check-out line light. When they were ready to "let me" leave a member of management would shut down my line. There were days when I was scheduled for 5 hours, but I worked over 8. Funny thing, since I was only scheduled for 5 hours I was only allowed one 15 minute unpaid break. Yet the full time people who were scheduled for 8 hours took one unpaid 15 minute break, one unpaid 30 minute lunch, and one PAID 15 minute break. Hmmmm, I worked 8 hours, yet I never got more than a 15 minute break. When I brought it up with the union I was shot down and called a liar. The union guy for the store also didn't like the fact that I crossed the union's picket line of another local grocery store across town-non union store. And his wife was one of my managers as a check out girl.

So, the moral of my off-topic, ramble, soap box story is: If your employees are expected to put in more than 8 hours then they need to know about it up front and be okay with it. 8 hours on your feet and 12 hours on your feet make a big difference to your feet!!

Tami