Whilst Nadya still has Baby Q - her best friend and also cousin - around, I suppose I could use this time to blog.

Just after only a month, I've tendered my resignation. At the beginning, I was glad to have found a place where the environment was somewhat pleasant. I am the kind of person where I'd either talk or I don't. The issue is not me, it's the other person. If anyone knows me well enough, they'd know I cannot shut up. So if the other person gives me strange vibes, I would keep my distance and I wouldn't say a word except for what is work related.

There was someone there who I felt had something personal with me. It wasn't a good feeling.

I remember telling Zul about how I felt. I don't need praises from colleagues if I do great things and I definitely do not need snide remarks. At the risk of sounding incredibly arrogant I know what I was doing the entire time. I do not need some nobody telling me what or how to do something so simple like cupcakes. Urgggghh!

And since that place isn't a rank and file organization, there was no one I needed to kowtow to, therefore I expected treatment from everyone to be equal and there was someone who I found to be rude towards me and it ticked me off. I don't know what it is that I've done or said. How is it possible to have someone dislike me within the first few days?

Things started to turn into a nightmare when I signed to their contract.

They were simple terms, figures, since they're a small company unlike the most recent job I took where there were five pages of font size 10, no double spacing, Terms of Contract.

I've listed the main reasons why I am unhappy, they are as follow:

1) I worked overtime almost every day, they were not recorded

2) Overtime are not recorded, therefore, overtime are taken as (forced) volunteer work 

3) I worked on three public holidays, I am given no 1.5 times or off-in-lieu, except for one half day (OIL)

Have they no clue how MOM works? It was my entitled half-day, therefore, despite me working for half-day on a public holiday, I should be entitled for a whole day off-in-lieu. They still owe me 2.5 days of off-in-lieu or 1.5 times.

4) My medical leave (ML) for conjunctivitis was replaced with an off day giving me no off day that week

5) Since one of my ML was placed as an off day, that one day of ML should not be deducted from my salary, but it was still taken off from my salary

6) I took 5 days ML but since they changed one of the day to an off day, it should have been 4 days, but 6 ML days were deducted from my salary

I should complain but it's alright, God knows what's best. It's a lesson for me. Never cheat. Yes they own a business, everything in that brain of theirs is money, but if you don't treat the staff right, you'll suffer a constant high turnover which for a business is very troublesome.

7) I received a pay slip that explained nothing about where the deduction came about

8) In the contract, it was not stated that I will not be entitled to medical leave during probation therefore I was poorly informed 

Although I knew because I've read the MOM's webpage and memorized it, nevertheless, what if I had not known?

9) I could not take any lunch breaks because if I did, I would have to work extra hours to finish things up and would not paid for it

10) Lunch breaks were at 30 mins (they've broken yet another MOM regulation)

I told one of the manager that MOM's regulation states that after a person has worked for 6 consecutive hours, a break should be no less than 45 minutes. That manager I spoke to was willing to listen and gave the staff she asked to go for a break a 45 minutes break.

The more personal things that aren't trivial matters but also partly the reason why I wanted out of the hell hole:

11) Manager would ask everyone for their off day, giving them their choice of off day, but when it comes to my choice of off day, I don't get it

It happened twice. Why pretend and ask when I'm not getting it in the end. But one particular week, I had requested for my off a week in advanced because I had an exam to take. The exam took 2 months to book, and the manager told me to change it to some other day. ARE YOU CRAZZZZZZY!

12) Eid month, I am always made to work till late every weekends 

I've got 30 aunts and uncles, you cannot imagine how many cousins, think just the two days of Eid would have sufficed?

13) Rude sarcasm are not welcomed

Simple advice. When you and someone aren't buddy-buddy, save the sarcastic remarks, for your real buddies.

14) One of the main ingredient in their products is not Halal but the owners are Muslims and the staff would inform that (the owners are Muslim) to customers making them misinformed

Being a Muslim myself, I did not want to be part of any of that. It made me uncomfortable that faith has been misused. I'm not a saint, but what I can avoid, I try.

I never thought a day would come where I had to stand in line at Ministry of Manpower (MOM) to seek advise. They gave me two choices: solve the matter myself or report the case and MOM will take further action but at the risk of turning any relationship I have with the company/boss sour.

I was not all that comfortable with the latter since I had to serve a month notice. A month being at work as the one who complained to the ministry wasn't something I wanted. The thoughts of having to go through an entire month itself was hell. I didn't need to add more stress to myself.

I have had enough sleepless nights dreading for the night to pass too quickly.

A week after serving my notice, it was bad. I asked Zul time and again if there was a way for me to get out of this mess quickly. It was to a point that I was willing to risk getting fired. But I decided to ask the boss if I could bring the date of my resignation forward, and she replied to return my uniform, my keys and badge (I don't know what badge coz I ain't got no badge). With this, it's a mutual agreement that my employer has agreed to let me leave.

I swear I did a happy dance when I received the message. I WAS FREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

I couldn't tolerate it. This was the worst experience for me. But it also served as a lesson. If I had not been the one to experience this first hand, I might not have known it myself. Now I do. I would know what I should and should not do when I start a company.

For starters, I should always be present, if possible, at my shop to make sure I am the one to overlook all matters.

And always, ALWAYS,  read up and make sure to know all of the rules, be fair and the staff are an important part of what makes the company prosper, take care of them well.