WORKING VEGAN IN A NON-VEGAN JOB
I have worked in a local pizza shop for 7 years now. I am very committed to the owner of the shop and to my job. I have worked my way up from Pizza Drone, to Daytime Manager(which is very rarely to obtained). I became a vegan a few years ago and it has been increasingly difficult for me to separate my vegan values from work ethic. I LOVE my job so much, but every day it disgusts me more and more. How do I reconcile this? I can't quit a job that has been so good to me and that I am SO committed to(especially in this economy). I have a family to support and I am the sole "breadwinner" while my fiance busts his ass in med. school. This is a terrible dilemma and it makes my stomach turn most days. Any suggestions or more importantly some moral support??? I need it. :help!:
Sounds like your just going to have to stick it out for a while. I know its rough, I dont think I could go into a pizza joint for the smell. Stay strong, good luck!
;)bThanks. The smell sometimes makes me want to get sick. Or cry. Or both.
Some days are easier than others, but usually, it just wish I had chosen a different profession. Sucks when you have conflicting moral values.
You're not alone... my younger sister (who was the first in our fam to go veg, at the ripe old age of 7 or so, & never looked back!) has a ridiculously lucrative table-waiting gig right now at a German restaurant... their specialty? A bazillion types of log-shaped ground-up pig parts (AKA 'sausages')! They even put beef broth in their 'vegetarian' potato goulash... So whenever people say, "what do you recommend?" she has to bite back the obvious answer, "Are you freakin' kiddin' me, I wouldn't eat ANY of this crap!" But like you say, the economy isn't the best for job hunting, especially if you've got a family to look out for; sometimes the only way out is through.
Make sure your husband appreciates you for this! Demand foot-rubs excessively... It's the least he can do!
It is nice to know other people have had this problem. Thanks so much! (sometimes the only way out is through...I LOVE THAT!)
He's so good to me. My dream is to open a non-profit animal shelter with a dog-training program(when he's done with school, I'll be going!) so they can be rehabilitated and hopefully ensure they don't end up back in the shelter for "misbehavior". Then I can maybe ease my soul with that.A much more fitting profession for someone like me. ;)
I wouldn't be able to work at a place that conflicts with my values any longer than I absolutely needed to. But it sounds like you have a plan for when your fiance gets out of med school, so yeah just stick with it until then. Things could be worse; you could be working a low-paying job you hate. If you work at an independent pizza place, have you ever thought of suggesting vegan options for the menu?
You have our sympathies :) I hope you're eventually able to open that animal shelter.
Stick it out, you're doing it for good reasons. At least it's not a steak place, and maybe you could even get the owner to have a vegan pizza or two on the menu!
I totally know where you're coming from. I worked at a sandwich place for the last 3 years, and the summer before this past one I started doing all the food prep (aka, slicing up giant chunks of meat and cheese). That was gross as it was, so when I went veg before going back for this summer, it became a hundred times more disgusting. The only way I got through it was by cutting back my hours (probably not an option for you, I know) and having fun coworkers. And thinking about exactly how I was gonna spend my paycheck. But, I quit at the end of August, and even though I am now jobless and pretty poor, I would still never go back. So hang in there, because hopefully soon you can change things. ;)b
don't worry about it... this job doesn't define u as a person... all of us vegans would love to have some wonderful job where we got to interact and help animals everyday but it is not possible for all of us... i work at a grocery store and have to check out bloody carcass all day (getting blood all over my hands) it's disgusting but it doesn't make me any worse of a vegan
I have suggested a vegan option, but honestly, the owner is in his seventies and doesn't even really understand what that means. Also, there is a very low demand for even vegetarian options in my town. I really know very few people who don't stuff their faces with animals. :-[
You're doing what you need to do. You can reconcile it by focusing on the positive: you like your job, the people you work for, and it pays the bills. Not all of us are so blessed. Hang in there.
I truly do understand the pain. I find myself in a very similar dilemma and although I see salvation on the horizon, I am very much confused with what I do now. I have been working for the same restaurant for 6 years now, and I am merely sticking to it until I finish university. It is a steak house, and horribly enough they bring the raw carcasses to the table and prepare them in front of the customers. I truly get offended when I am in my bar and a chef comes and rests his tray of bloody, raw carcasses on my counter as he gets a drink. They do not understand how the sight and stench of their oppressive habits make me feel physically ill...
Only 6 more months to go, but I don't think that I can handle it for much longer...
Stay strong dear, you are not the only one...
I truly do understand the pain. I find myself in a very similar dilemma and although I see salvation on the horizon, I am very much confused with what I do now. I have been working for the same restaurant for 6 years now, and I am merely sticking to it until I finish university. It is a steak house, and horribly enough they bring the raw carcasses to the table and prepare them in front of the customers. I truly get offended when I am in my bar and a chef comes and rests his tray of bloody, raw carcasses on my counter as he gets a drink. They do not understand how the sight and stench of their oppressive habits make me feel physically ill...
Only 6 more months to go, but I don't think that I can handle it for much longer...
Stay strong dear, you are not the only one...
Oh my.
I feel really understood with all of your posts. Thanks so much!!!
Eribassist, you especially. This really hits home. 6 years is a long time, and it makes 6 months seem like no time, but I know it will be excruciating. At least there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Pardon the cliches. 8-)
Hang in there.
my worst job was when i worked at wendy's and they put me on the grill where you have to pick up the raw beef patties with your hands and you are NOT ALLOWED TO WEAR GLOVES!! i swear to god that they wouldn't let you wear gloves unless you had open soars or cuts on your hands, so i would just put bandaids on my hands everyday so that i could wear gloves. Needless to say, i only worked there for about 2 weeks. But i still work at Steak N' Shake now, which if you've never heard of it, it's pretty obvious from the name that it's not exactly vegan friendly haha.
But ya just gotta do what ya can i suppose. It's definitely not easy for me as i have a felony and so basically no place will hire me once the background check comes in. I also live in one of the biggest dying cities in the country, so the job market isn't exactly booming.
I work for a pharma company - I won't even go into the non-vegan aspects involved :-\, but suffice to say it doesn't go with my morals. I like to think of myself as being an opportunist for people to see me being healthy & vegan. As for the company, I quality control medical documents, so luckily I don't have to come close to what bothers me about it!!