TikTok Has Nothing But Love For A Fed-Up Subway Employee

The U.S. is in the midst of a labor shortage, and it's affecting the restaurant industry. Since the end of 2021, food workers have been quitting their jobs in droves, Business Insider reports. Many of these employees have left their jobs in spectacular fashion, posting videos of their exits on social media that sometimes go viral. Such was the case in a recent TikTok that has nearly 6 million views and 1 million likes.

The video, shared by user @avathynne, shows a Subway worker calling up her boss and quitting — all while being filmed by a friend. Viewers can hear the employee's side of the conversation, which covered low pay and experiencing bullying at work. "I'd like you to understand that today's going to be my last day," "I'm getting literally, literally bullied," "I open your store every day, and then you treat me like this," and "We're not speaking about it tomorrow, I'm done," were just a few of the things the employee said to her boss on the other end of the line. Fellow TikTokers were ready to rally around her in support in the comments.

Based on some users' comments on the TikTok video, it seems like watching a jaded employee quit her job was a cathartic viewing experience. "Good on you for standing up for yourself!" said one person, while another posed a question: "Why do managers threaten to fire us and then beg us to stay when we try to quit? Make it make sense." Another replied, "Show this to everyone who says 'no one wants to work anymore.' No, we just don't want to be abused anymore."

However, some users were worried about the employee's take on wearing masks during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the video, the quitting employee, the person recording, and another employee are all seen without masks covering their noses and mouths, and the quitting employee cites an incident when a customer complained that she wasn't wearing a mask. "I'm on her side except the masks thing," commented one TikTok user, adding about the employee's boss, "it's not their fault you gotta wear a mask. It's a pandemic. You gotta wear a mask at all jobs right now." The whole video — along with the comments of support for the employee quitting and opinions about masks — really captures a unique moment in time where labor rights, supply chain issues, and a pandemic are combining to make life seem awfully complicated.