So last autumn when looking for a job I decided to apply to Waitrose. They called me and hired me on the 10th of November. Since my husband is a night security guard, I asked if I could work night replenishment. I also thought it would be safer since there wouldn't be customers in the store, and I figured we would all be wearing masks. It took forever for the branch I picked to get me in their system. I went in on the 12th of November with my ID, and apparently they didn't do a good job scanning it. They called me the next week asking me to take a picture of my BRP to send to them. I did so. I waited and finally at the end of November they asked me to come into the store AGAIN with my documents. I did so and waited again, checking my e-mail every day. Finally I got a fixed-term contract for 18/12-23/1. I arrived early for my shift on 18/12 and met one of the morning managers and the night manager. They trained me and all seemed well until I was informed that they don't require the night workers to wear masks, but that they "keep their distance." My coworkers were all not wearing masks or had their masks lowered. I tried to be optimistic and told myself it would be okay. As I worked though, I got nervous and worried about the other people I was working with. How did I know if they were following guidelines outside of work? One lady was even coughing at one point. The work was also more intense physically than I expected, as the stockroom, bathroom and breakroom were all upstairs. There was an elevator for putting the stock in that we weren't allowed to use. It was a lot of running up and down the stairs. Anyway, the next night I had planned to go in but heard on the radio that London was going into Tier 4 due to the new covid variant. I was also aching from the shift the night/morning before and had a headache from not sleeping well. I discussed the situation with my husband and some friends and decided I should quit the job. It was only going to be 15 hours a week for a little over a month and not worth the risk of getting covid (I have a history of asthma) and spreading it to my husband. I tried for hours to call the store and let them know I was quitting but no one picked up. I went back to bed and made sure to call the resourcing hub to let them know what happened. They said they would let the store know I wasn't coming back, but asked me to put it in writing. I did, and I saw they forwarded it to a manager. A week or so later a different manager e-mailed me saying they hadn't seen me since the 18/12 and asked if I'd already spoken to someone about quitting. I e-mailed back, explaining what happened.
The 26/1 rolled around and was supposed to be pay day. I received nothing. I gave it a few days, called the resourcing hub and was told I was listed as a "first day no show" and that's why I hadn't been paid! I explained what happened, and they said the info would have come from the branch. They said they would call the store. They later called me back and said the person they needed to speak to wasn't in, and that they'd sent an e-mail. It's been 2 weeks and I haven't heard back. I am going to try e-mailing the managers I have e-mail addresses for, but if they don't reply, is there anything else I can do?
TL;DR: I worked one nightshift at Waitrose and decided to quit because they don't require night workers to wear masks. I didn't show up for my second shift and gave my notice to the resourcing hub and a manager, but they never paid me for the one shift I did as they have me as a "first shift no show." I am wondering if there's anything I can do aside from e-mailing the store and calling the resourcing hub again, as they are very disorganized and unhelpful.
