This work-related microaggression involves an alleyway
(Plus, quotes from wildly oblivious HR and management)

Artist and musician, Joi Renee (she/they), recounts her resignation involving a very racist alley exchange.
Being a Black femme in the workplace surely comes with inevitable problems.
Especially when you’re the only, or one of the only (under 10 if it’s a larger staff), Black people on staff. Something unsavory has happened at every single job I’ve ever had, but sometimes I get pushed to push back. Especially when I can tell that somebody’s going to try and get in the way of me and getting the bag.
I have a Capricorn moon, I do not play those games.
Two things I absolutely adore are always having receipts, and a strongly worded email. So, when I'm lucky enough to combine the two, I can sing “A Brand New Day” from The Wiz at the top of my lungs.
I was having a conversation about this very topic recently, and started to reminisce about the times I’ve had to gather management on my way out.
I went ahead and dug up screenshots from a specific incident that I am absolutely delighted to share with y’all.
Let me provide some context: I was working at a cafe inside of a vegetarian restaurant in Downtown LA that gloated about their DEI standards and how “approachable and understanding” management was. It was absolute bullshit (obviously) and we all put up with the most unnecessarily gross behavior from them.
I was already planning to make a reasonable exit when I got "jokingly" physically threatened by a white male coworker of mine in front of managers. Then I got hung up on by my manager when I called out 8 hours before my shift because of my period a couple days after that. So I decided to exit loudly instead :)
(Actual email screenshot below…)
Read the text from the above email:
To whom it may concern,
I'm writing you this email, because I have found that trying to communicate face to face has resulted in me being shut down and dismissed. The thing that drew me to wanting to work at [redacted] was the fact that management has always encouraged us to be vocal about how things are going, and if they aren't operating in a way that makes us feel comfortable. It has been proven repeatedly that is not the case. I recently expressed to Heather that I felt unsupported, unappreciated, and was subsequently gaslit and written off as an angry black woman a few days later by Alyssa, when it was brought up that I was frustrated.
The frustration on my end was caused by the blatant nepotism that nobody feels comfortable speaking up about, because of the fear of retaliation from managers. Having Amber serve a private party during lunch, leaving me without support during the rush while the only managers working were her boyfriend and cousin, was a prime example of the nepotism I speak of. Then to be written off as "always" being "pissed off" was frankly a slap in the face.
There is a toxic stream in culture that always writes Black women off as being "angry" or "pissed off" that management would do well to stray from that line of thought. The lack of awareness with the language used has also been very startling. Being called "girl" repeatedly by Alyssa is deeply offensive, demeaning, and dehumanizing given the historical context of the term. The Black employees at [redacted] feel unsafe and unable to express how we feel in the workplace, because we know that our safety as the extreme minority (I don't know if you're counting, but there are only 6 of us) is not of any importance to upper management or the owner.
One of my coworkers was physically assaulted by a customer last weekend, and felt uncomfortable reporting it, because they knew their feelings of being violated wouldn't be supported or taken seriously by the managers that were present.
The fact that a good number of employees at [redacted] feel uncomfortable and unsupported, because management in unconcerned with treating everyone with the same respect and dignity that they give to the more favored employees is alarming, discouraging and indicative of the lack of it being a safe space.
Furthermore, it is unforgettable the way that management speaks to employees in a degrading and disrespectful way. When I was too ill to come to work this past week, I was hung up on when explaining to Heather that my menses is sometimes debilitating. I have a very painful cycle each month and have been afraid to call out of work because of it, for this very reason.
There are so many other offenses that occur within those walls that I don't have the energy to speak on, because this email would turn into a novel. The sexual harassment between employees, classist behavior from the owner, and emotional abuse from managers is just the tip of the iceberg.
I say all of this to let you know that I will not be returning to work at [redacted] because it is honestly detrimental to my mental health and not supportive of my physical health. Please let me know when I should come in to pick up my tips and final check.
Best,
Predictably, their response was absolute garbage:
Now, if I’m bringing up an incident that didn’t happen to me and the person it happened to wanted to remain anonymous, why would I say who it was?
There are ways to address sexual harassment and racism without witnesses/dates. Also, they were told about both, including the culprits, multiple times.
A non-Black coworker of mine kept saying n*gga and literally said it at me, and management’s response was to just not say anything??? Chile, don’t make me flip every table in the building. They had all of that on record already, so they literally brought out their clown noses and decided to play around. Also, notice they said they’d mail my final check instead of confirming a time for me to pick up my check.
I lived 10 minutes away from the restaurant. 10 minutes in LA time, at that. I was about to advise them to kiss the blackest part of my ass:
Why on EARTH would I just take a leave of absence if I already said that I was resigning unless they were going to pay me? I didn’t work there for funsies. I have bills to pay. Don’t play with me.
I hated the way they kept trying to prod me for information after I was very clear in what I was able and willing to give them. All I wanted was for them to just run me my money and leave me alone. I literally had TWO jobs lined up (one of which also had to get dragged in order for them to pay me and the entire staff what we were rightfully owed, but that’s another story for a different day) so this idea of an unpaid leave only made me laugh in the angriest way.
They didn’t respond to my final email and just direct deposited my final check on the next pay day. But here’s the kicker: My check was missing like $200 dollars :) :) :)
I immediately noticed and gave them a call, and offered to just swing by to pick up the money they owed me.
Instead of being normal, the HR lady treated me like I was a safety threat and made me meet her IN AN ALLEY behind a cafe by my apartment to give me my check.
The entire exchange was extra horrible because she was visibly scared and wouldn’t even get out of her car all the way to give me my check. She stood behind her open car door like I was going to beat her ass as if she wasn’t the one that made me meet her there?
When she gave me my check, I told her that what she was doing was extremely weird and racist and she stuttered out a half-assed apology and quickly left.
It still astounds me that the lil HR lady did me like that. I know that HR is not for the employee, but essentially a “fixer” for employers, but she should’ve at least held it together enough to not literally fumble over herself when she gave me my check. I’m literally a delicate little angel.
The way she acted in the end was a moldy cherry on top of a dookie sundae.
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lmmmmmmaaaaooo this is wild and unsurprising