Ang trabaho mo, gawin mo!

It is a very simple statement, but sadly, most of us cannot do what we are paid to do. When I was just a fresh graduate, I found work at one of the many call centers here in our country. I had fun, training was great, I found the job relatively easy, the pay was ok. I even got an award for being one of the best agents. I left in less than 6 months.

Why? 2 departments were not doing their job. The 1st one was the operations desk. My schedule got shuffled every week. I got very random schedules wherein I would get 4 days off and 10 straight working days on 3 different shifts in 2 weeks.

The 2nd department that pissed me off was the helpdesk or what they call level 2s. Most of these guys acted like they are gods, they crucify you for asking questions on matters that slip your mind. They are there to "help" the agents who are in contact with the customers, not to scold them. Pardon me for random lapses of memory at 3am. Ever wonder why it is called helpdesk? Ours was more like a confession room or spank-the-dog session.

To this day, I still see a lot of Filipinos who cannot do what they are getting paid for. From the highest ranking government official to the simple salesperson that you see around malls or supermarkets.

JT to Ace Hardware saleslady: Ate meron pa ba kayong Terro ant bait?
Saleslady: Ay hindi ko po alam sir, teka tanong ko lang.

I saw the ant baits when she left because she was actually leaning on it and was covering it. Maghapon na syang nakatayo dun hindi parin niya alam yung laman ng aisle?

Incompetence is also seen in restaurants, not just the sit-down restaurants where waiters always seem to mess up your order, but also fast food chains. I once went to Wham! burger at Edsa Shangrila with my son to get merienda (oo ganun kami katakaw, malaking burger ang merienda). It was 3pm, we were 2nd in queue, and we waited almost 10 minutes before we could order. Napakatulin nung cashier sobra!

Currently, we are in need of some tables and chairs for some upcoming events. I never thought that a very simple task of acquiring tables and chairs could be so stressful. If I had known, I would have set this timetable to 2 weeks instead of 2 days to complete.

JT to table and chair rental company: Mag iinquire po tungkol sa tables and chairs nyo, yung monobloc.
T&C co: 10 pesos isang upuan, 40 pesos isang mesa.
JT: Gano po kalaki yung mesa?
T&C co: Yung standard na monobloc.
JT: Standard? Ano sukat nun?
T&C co: Yung standard.
JT: Marami ho kasing sukat ang monobloc na mesa.
(syempre alam ko yun kasi nag research ako, check nyo to: http://www.uratex.com.ph/
T&C co (galit na): Basta yung standard!
JT: Ahhh ok, sige salamat nalang.
(hindi ko na nga naitanong kung anong klase yung upuan nila kasi napakabobo (at maangas pa) nung kausap ko)

Auto repair shops deliver your car in a much poorer condition if you do not stand there and watch their every move. Kahit casa madalas na pumalpak ngayon. Government employees always seem angry when they provide you the service that is due to you. Offices you call do not give an F about what you called them for. Rank and file employees spend most of the day chatting or doing stuff on Facebook. Police officers... do I even need to elaborate on police officers?

People here just want to get things over with, watch the clock, and go home. Well, not necessarily "home", its more like leave the office and have fun. No wonder our country is in such deep shit, everyone is just too lazy to function. Parents should probably teach their kids the value of hard work more often.