Chipotle supported the documentary Food, Inc. big time, right? So all of the millions of people that watched it like I did (being a KM in training) saw that Tyson Chicken is crap chicken to those that praise Food With Integrity. So why the hell did I walk into my cooler and see 10 cases of Tyson Chicken staring me in the face? If someone can clarify that for me I would love to hear it.
That's only the last straw. Seeing Tyson Chicken in a Chipotle walk-in was what really made me lose my faith in everything Chipotle preaches. I feel like I've been in a cult for the past 3 years of my life and I finally had my eyes ripped back open.
1. I started working for Chipotle in 2007. Three months later I got pregnant and had to transfer to a store in my hometown. The GM freaked out! Not because she would miss me but because she was losing her only night cook (the dad). An illegal Mexican that worked six days a week. After I told her that we were leaving her store she did everyhting she could to get him to stay including dragging me through the mud. All the managers hated me from that point on. Before we left we talked about my review and I was supposed to get a .20 raise. We ended up leaving right before the raise went into effect. But for some "unknown reason" I NEVER GOT THAT RAISE!
2. I got to my new store and started working with people that were well trained and that knew how to do their job well, and wanted to. The store ran very smoothly. Everyone knew that I was pregnant and they treated me great. before I went on maternity leave I talked about training to be a manager. Six weeks after having my daughter i was back and started working in the kitchen. Within 3 months I was a pretty adequate cook. By six months in the kitchen I was the best night cook we had (not my words, straight from the GM's mouth). I could explain to you why our food costs were one of the best in ths city. I could explain to you why our restaurant had some of the highest fax sales in the country. I could explain to you any procedure you wanted to know and why it was that way. I did my best to educate some of the newer employees the Chipotle way of thinking and working. Food With Integrity, The Pepper, anything you wanted to know I could tell you or I could research it and let you know. I ended up spending 9 months in the kitchen before I even had any contact with a manager higher up than my GM. Not his fault though. Attempts were made but no one had the time to come and see how I was doing.
3. During my training, I had to see both my GM and my Apprentice make their last trip into the office to collect their things and walk out the doors for the last time as Chipotle employees. These people were like my family. They invited me into their circle by training me to be a manager. So seeing them leave was like losing family. They ran the best Chipotle in the Greater Kansas City Area. Great food cost, super high fax sales, low labor, perfect P&L, growing sales. So why are they gone? A new Regional Manager that was jealous because he couldn't explain to you half of what my GM could about operations. After that I decided to quit my training. There was no point in wasting my time or energy.
4. The new replacement GM is an idiot!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Everyday I go to work dreading what I'm walking in to. The schedule for the next week isnt posted til Saturday usually. We transferred out all of our experienced cooks and hired 6 other idiots who could care less if the food is crappy, if the kitchen is dirty, if we dont have lettuce on the line, if the guacamole has huge chunks in it, if the rice is under or over cooked, and who cant manage to close by midnight (it should be 11 but thats completely impossible). Having trained to be a KM, I literally feel like my insides are twisted in knots when I walk through the kitchen. The kitchen is disgusting! No one has time to clean because they can barely get through the prep and dishes. Our new GM doesn't set expectations or standards for these guys. He's full of what we like to call WORD VOMIT! He spits out all of these Chipotle mantras and phrases but doesn't follow any of them. I'm tired of hearing him scream and cuss and the staff when everything falls apart but then does nothing to help them get better.
I'm now almost six months pregnant with my second child and am stuck on cash ( I hate cash). Everyday I walk in the door I have to muster up all of my greatest qualities in order to get through my shift without walking out. I tell myself that I have a little more than 2 months left before I go on maternity leave. Is that how someone should feel when going to work? Chipotle boasts so much about food quality, blah blah blah, happy employees, blah blah blah. All I know is i hate my job! My eyes have been ripped back open and I see reality now. Chipotle's no better than McDonalds or Taco Bell or anything else.