Shayna, you've said a lot here which deserves to be held with care. Thank you. I will sit with this, and if anything else unfolds over the course of time, I will share it with you.
The accessibility conversation is really interesting the context of class- by no accident- being left out, especially over the course of neoliberalism. When I was working the desk at this same spa, I earned $12.50 per hour part time. No sick or vacation pay. I frequently went in to work while still sick because I couldn’t afford to stay home. On busy nights when I closed up alone, I was sometimes there until as late as 1am doing the cash register, cleaning and rearranging the entire spa to be ready for the following morning. One day a woman checked in and I knew that the standard size robe was going to be too small for her. So discreetly, as I guided her in, I swapped the robe out for a larger size. To my mind, this was being welcoming. Just taking care of the need, so she wouldn’t have to come back out to the front desk to ask for a proper sized robe. Instead, this woman came back later and said I had embarrassed her. That I was a thin young woman judging her body. To her mind, in that moment, I was the privileged one exerting some sort of power over her. In reality, I was a service worker who didn’t make enough to buy the services she just bought, simply using my best judgment in the moment, with positive intent, to give her the best possible experience. I have observed that they changed things up recently at the spa so that you go into the locker room and pick out your own robe. I think that’s much better for both clients and staff.
I remember this time! Yes, I think that change of having the robes already in the locker room was positive. Thank you for sharing your experiences there. The base pay for the desk also shifted, as far as I know. It does suck to go through a job and find out later that the rates were raised for the next person in. That's happened to me for sure. When I held a position for years and pleaded for higher wages, only to see the next person start at the wages I was appealing for and lobbying for (in this case, the person happened to be male and white). The net positive is that the fight wasn't for nothing.
And I'm sorry to hear about those late nights and working while still sick. We all deserve lifestyles and work (and governments, and systems of care...) that acknowledge our full humanity.
Shayna, you've said a lot here which deserves to be held with care. Thank you. I will sit with this, and if anything else unfolds over the course of time, I will share it with you.
The accessibility conversation is really interesting the context of class- by no accident- being left out, especially over the course of neoliberalism. When I was working the desk at this same spa, I earned $12.50 per hour part time. No sick or vacation pay. I frequently went in to work while still sick because I couldn’t afford to stay home. On busy nights when I closed up alone, I was sometimes there until as late as 1am doing the cash register, cleaning and rearranging the entire spa to be ready for the following morning. One day a woman checked in and I knew that the standard size robe was going to be too small for her. So discreetly, as I guided her in, I swapped the robe out for a larger size. To my mind, this was being welcoming. Just taking care of the need, so she wouldn’t have to come back out to the front desk to ask for a proper sized robe. Instead, this woman came back later and said I had embarrassed her. That I was a thin young woman judging her body. To her mind, in that moment, I was the privileged one exerting some sort of power over her. In reality, I was a service worker who didn’t make enough to buy the services she just bought, simply using my best judgment in the moment, with positive intent, to give her the best possible experience. I have observed that they changed things up recently at the spa so that you go into the locker room and pick out your own robe. I think that’s much better for both clients and staff.
I remember this time! Yes, I think that change of having the robes already in the locker room was positive. Thank you for sharing your experiences there. The base pay for the desk also shifted, as far as I know. It does suck to go through a job and find out later that the rates were raised for the next person in. That's happened to me for sure. When I held a position for years and pleaded for higher wages, only to see the next person start at the wages I was appealing for and lobbying for (in this case, the person happened to be male and white). The net positive is that the fight wasn't for nothing.
And I'm sorry to hear about those late nights and working while still sick. We all deserve lifestyles and work (and governments, and systems of care...) that acknowledge our full humanity.
Thanks for holding space for this, Florence. It's a lot to take in. Appreciating. I'll keep sitting with it too!