Malaysians who work behind the counter are frequently looked down upon.
It doesn't matter if it's in a grocery shop or a clothes store, that's the reality of it despite some of them being college graduates.
Recently, an individual known by the name of Sofea revealed her experience on social media about how many of her customers frequently condemn her for her line of work and are surprised that she is happy with it.
She went on to say that, only this month, she came across five customers who had asked if she was working part-time while awaiting her final exams. So by putting her head up high, she responded to them by telling them that she had finished her studies a while ago and was now working full-time.
Most people would judge her after hearing that by saying to her directly, "You went to university, yet you ended up working here?
This made her wonder, what is so wrong with working as a retail employee?
She gave an explanation of how her having a Halal employment allows her to live a comfortable life and it makes no sense how this interferes with the lives of others.
"If everyone wanted to become a doctor, who would be there to entertain you when you go into a store and can't find what you're searching for?"
Sofea said that the majority of those who made those comments to her were parents of young children, so she is anticipating the day when their children would grow up and go through similar experiences to hers, including having a hard time finding a job and dealing with inflation.
Sofea also mentioned the several perks her employer offers her.
Though she is unsure if it is the same as other retail stores, over at hers she is able to take two days off a week. And whenever she comes home from work, she isn't stressed out as many people out there, in which she has the free mind to watch Netflix, go to concerts, and it's also easy to apply for AL whenever she needs to.
Despite not having the same work-life balance as some people, she said that she is okay with it.
"I've worked at an office job that earned RM 5,000 per month in the past, but I opted to work in retail because of the flexibility it gave me, the absence of needless stress, and not having to go to work on my days off."
As for the majority of the people that approached her with their "concern", it was all men.
In terms of her monthly salary, she indicated that in addition to working a full-time job, she uses her three years of customer service experience, three years of retail experience, and degree education she is able to make some side income each month, which, with any luck, would allow her to eat whatever she wanted without being picky.
Hina ke kerja retail?
— coffea (@sofearozaidi_) April 9, 2023
Bulan ni je dah 5 orang customer perlekeh. Dorang tanya kerja part time ke, tunggu result Uni ke. Aku cakap jelah full time saya dah lama habis U, dah tua dah
Pastu mostly akan cakap masuk U last last kerja macam ni
Apa maksud kerja macam ni??
She disclosed that she doesn't worry about money at the end of the month and that she has been happy with her life thus far.
No matter how little her pay is in comparison to others, it doesn't matter since she can still support her family and help others who are in need, which makes her happy.
