Well, last night at work was pretty bad. I got there at two and did orientation stuff (yes, still) with Scott, the fellow who was hired when I was. That lasted till about 4:30. At that time, Scott and I, went to the back to start getting ready to unload the truck. We have to clean up the back room. No problem.

With that done and Mike (who seems to be sort of in charge) and Dexter (who seems to have been there a while and knows his stuff) there, we start to unload the truck at about 6.

I’m inside the truck (really, the trailer) tonight, going as fast as I can go, grabbing boxes and putting them on “the line” (a metal conveyor with rollers) and sliding them outside the truck for the other three guys to sort.

Very few things on these trucks are on pallets. Most stuff is fairly randomly tossed into the truck. It was my job to basically play reverse-Tetrus/Jenga and avoid as many avalanches as possible.

Being 5′4″ish, this is probably not the best job in the world for me. There were many boxes that I couldn’t reach and needed help with.

The law states that after 5 hours of working, we have to clock out and take a 30 minute break. This did not happen. There was no time and while I’ve had lots of orientation, nobody has really told me how/when to take breaks.

So neither Scott nor I had taken a break. Also, we are told to unload the truck as quickly as possible. We are timed and compared to other stores. This is really a bad idea. Of course, the truck needs to be unloaded in a timely manner, but is it worth the injuries that could be caused by making it a race?

Around 8:30, as I was trying to dislodge some boxes from the pile inside the truck, Scott was on a step-stool next to me doing the same thing. An avalanche occurred. As I leaped out of the way, to avoid the boxes falling on top of me, one found my right hand and smashed my fifth finger of my right hand against the metal line. Wow, amazingly painful.

This, however, didn’t put an end to my night. The finger swelled up and I basically lost the use of my right hand because whenever I’d move it, it was incredibly painful.

So I helped sort the boxes I could carry with one hand. I should have reported the injury, but to who? Nobody mentioned reporting it until about a half hour later. Dexter said that I should report it to “Tony.” However, with the rush to unload the truck, there was no time.

I was moved to the “floater” position where I help out everybody. Mike shouted to Scott, who was now inside the truck, “Come on! Let’s go! Do you need a written invitation?” This was said pretty much in jest, but the object was clear – it was still a race.

About 15 minutes later, Scott and Mike were in the truck when I hear “look out!” I look into the truck and see Scott on the floor. He is unconscious. I run in and Mike is checking to see if he’s breathing. Thankfully, he is. I ask if I should call 911. But a manager shows up on the scene. I ask him if I should call 911. He asks someone else for another managers number. I ask again if someone is going to call 911. Finally, yes, someone is.

Scott regains consciousness after about three minutes. He remembers his name and where he is, but keeps asking how long he was out.

The paramedics and an ambulance come to check him out. They ask if there is more light that can be gotten into the truck. There is not. The dock has no lights that can shine into the truck and it’s really dark in there (which is stupidly unsafe). Someone comes up with a flashlight or two and that’s it. After about 45 minutes, they take him to the hospital.

I mention to Mike that it’s not going to look so good that Scott was knocked unconscious while working without a break. He calls the manager on duty and then reports back that the “time card issue isn’t a problem.” I’m not really sure what that means, but it doesn’t sound so good.

However, the truck still must be unloaded. I’m in quite a bit of pain, but at least I’m conscious. Mike jokingly says, “make sure to report your hurt pinky finger.” It’s true, my injury wasn’t nearly as serious as Scott’s, but I’m still pretty well out of commission.

It’s about 10pm, and none of us have gotten breaks. I have been on the clock for eight straight hours, while both Mike and Dexter have been on for five. At the end of the truck, there are appliances. This is the last thing to come off. Mike again calls the manager on duty and tells him (I assume) that none of us have gotten breaks and the only thing left on the truck are the appliances. The thought was that the night crew could get them.

The manager tells us to keep working. We unload the appliances (not an easy thing to do with one hand) and around 11:15, we clock out to go home.

We are standing by the door waiting to be let out. Dexter asks if my hand is ok. I tell him that I don’t believe it is. A zone manager (not the manager on duty) is there and asks about it. He tells me that if it’s still hurting tomorrow, we’ll make a report.

I go into work at 2pm today. There is no way that I can work in the back. At this point, it doesn’t feel any better, I can’t move it and it’s swollen. But, at least I’m conscious.

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ps- Will update on Scott’s condition when I find out. Hopefully today.