I’ve been with Walmart long enough to say this without hesitation: it’s not the work that burns people out, it’s the lack of structure and respect. You can be physically tired and still keep going. But when you show up, do your job, pick up the slack for others, and still feel like no one notices—or worse, like you’re being taken advantage of—that's what breaks people.
Today was one of those days where I watched a great associate walk out mid-shift. She’d been asking for schedule consistency for weeks. All she wanted was her shifts to stop changing with no notice. Management said they’d work on it. They didn’t. She hit her limit and clocked out for good.
What’s wild is the store probably won’t even blink. They’ll fill the spot with someone new and keep moving like it’s normal. But it’s not. When good people leave and no one stops to ask why, that’s when the damage becomes permanent.
... read more