Thread by @aunty_willy, I have so much stories from working with a company that tested [...]

I have so much stories from working with a company that tested me on a whole new level. I was left broken. The things that took place there were not normal/healthy. I have contacted this company who have chosen to ignore me. I really want to talk out about it... a thread?

This is fully not easy to do. I realise how much resilience I had to even put up with half the shit thrown my way. I was SO excited to work for this company, when I started EVERYTHING was so lovely! All the staff were amazing, the boss was great, CEO called in. It was great!

I don’t know when it got shit, but it started happening when I realised I was there as a prop. Or potentially because it looked good to have someone with some clout on their books, the boss/ceo brought up the Olivier Awards more times than I did = 0. It was very strange

Then it got terrible REALLY QUICK. My line manager tried to protect me loads. She saw me getting frustrated as I kept explaining I really wanted to learn and do more. It was evident my white male manager had 0 respect for me, didn’t want me to grow but it got worse... A LOT WORSE

He started calling me things like a diva “Kim K has nothing on you”. When I had an opinion he would smirk & give me this shitty look. He took me into the office to actually tell me that everyone hated me. Who the fuck does that? He said they all come in here to complain about you

I truly believed my entire company hated me. One time he went on about wanting a performer to headline (perform was my love @lukebayer) I emailed him I have his number and could ask. My line manager was in the room with him when I emailed that I was happy to help

She asked me what I had said to him because he was furious. He threw his computer keyboard and was apparently saying “who doe she think she is, I have been in this industry longer than she has (insert more small dick syndrome rant)”. When I was told this I was so shocked I mean..

Why would anyone get angry for me offering to help. He made it clear I had no opinion. This wasn’t an assumption of mine he literally told me “you have 0 opinion here. Maybe pay your dues first”. Honestly, I went into work fucking shit scared. Feeling deflated, eventually

All I did was put my headphones on and type as I was made to believe all my white collegues hated me, I had 0 opinions and offering help/solution would resort in him literally throwing equipment. I was so new, I wasn’t sure why any of this shit was happen or why he hated me

Here’s where it gets juicy. Grab your cups, tea will be spilled. I take a holiday from work (a holiday I was entitled to but somehow he made hard for me to get). I came back from my holiday and EVERYTHING HAD CHANGED... HENNY THIS MAN HAD HIS OWN COMPANY WITHIN THE COMPANY

Eventually a meeting was called by this manager to discuss his second company. We asked him questions like why was this happening? Would we lose our jobs when the CEO found out? If it’s not a bad thing then why doesn’t the CEO of the company know? You know what he replied

...

“If you don’t trust me I guess you shouldn’t be working for me”. I’m no Einstein but that sounds a whole lot like “if you want your jobs shut the fuck up”. So we did. We all knew our jobs were on the line. Everything was toxic. I still believed everyone hated me, it was so shit

I’m off sick one day and I get a call from my line manager “we have been fired”. I thought she was joking and I didn’t understand the “we” part. No matter what I actively made sure I did nothing for this second business. She said yup the CEO knows and has fired me, PA, manager

I asked what about me? And she says she didn’t know. I email the CEO off my personal account because my work one had been removed. And then he eventually sent a letter firing me. (Imagine he FORGOT to fire me). I was shocked as fuck because I of course had nothing to do with it

Normally I was silent, I had become accustomed to keeping my mouth shut about certain things. But today they really fucked with the wrong person. I sent an email, telling them their options: Court or rehiring. But let’s go a little back before we move forward

The CEO of the company barely flew down to the UK but when he did the first thing he said was “Hello (insert other name)”. He had got me confused with the only other black girl working for his UK company. Those little things really set a precedent of how things move forward

I was fuming! So was my collegue. Benefit of the doubt would call this a mistake. But the next part has no benefits or no doubts. We were at a work party, karaoke machine, good vibes! My friend (who is white) raps some Dizze Rascal. The CEO proceeds to shout.. “

“ARE YOU GOING TO LET HER OUT-BLACK YOU”. I -

Anger isn’t even a word. The whole party was summarised by that one line for me. I was wondering how a grown arse man could have the NERVE to say this infront of me. Imagine what he says behind my back??

I had a chat in a lift with him where he spoke about this “beautiful black woman” (he couldn’t remember her name) who used to work in the office in the states. He said “she was handling all our black shows. Like The Colour Purple. She was great at handling all ethnic things”

There were MANY TIMES when race was at the forefront of why I couldn’t. Of why I had to shrink. Of why I had to jump through hoops. Say yes sir, no sir first to the narcissist manager (who for the record asked me and my line manager to STOP working so we could find him a BF)

I went to work to actually fucking learn & he told me I couldn’t work I had to find him A “TWINK!” We would be in the middle of working on projects & he would call us into his office to sit for hours as he spoke about what type of guy he wanted. The black girls were his BITCHES.

And then I get fired because he started a company I had no part in. I have no idea why I’m fired. After my email I get a call super late and the CEO from the states issues an apology. He says it was a mistake. How can you accidentally fire someone for reasons that weren’t true?

I had been so broken at this point my basic arse said okay fine took a day off and went back to work in an office where one of the only people I believed liked me had now been fired after being bullied, threatened and manipulated to join a company.

It wasn’t so bad, the energy and bullying then shifted to another collegue suprise suprise ANOTHER BLACK GIRL. This came from the CEO himself. She quit. She refused to be disrespected. I wish I left with her. And suddenly it was me, literally the only black one standing...

My white collegues are actually lovely. There was 4 of us left. Two of them I actually really liked and still call friends. I thought once the manager went I could get back to normal but there was a lot. I thought about it all and honestly I guess I was depressed

I fucking hated getting up to go work for the longest time. It was a chore. I was in my head. I had barely been trained for the job before the only person who had taught me was fired. Suddenly I was manager I was told I would be supported. YEAH FUCKING RIGHT.

I was on my own

That’s when I started to see how much of a DICKHEAD the CEO was. He would really destroy me at any opportunity. One time I scheduled a post to social media that had always been scheduled and was part of the U.K. catalogue... then he sent an email

The email that asked me what on earth I thought I was doing and how dare I make desicions about HIS MONEY. (I’m not lying dude really capitalised

). He was fuming, I was baffled. Like why you mad bruh? He literally went in I really wish I had it still NO HUMAN should be spoken

To like that. It’s mad he didn’t want me to have decisions but you guys I’m dying when THE COLOR PURPLE scandal broke out (religion/gay) he wanted me to sit in meetings. We all know why

. I remember people tweeting me angrily for not talking about the scandal...

Honey’s I was working for the company who owned the scandal, busy being broken, treated like shit, a token black person and literally NOT ALLOWED TO HAVE AN OPINION. But I was there in all the calls between all theatres, I got the message from the writers, I was involved.

Now many of you will certainly know what company this is now. My time here was good at times but mostly it taught me what it meant to be the only black person in a room. It taught me how fucking important it is to have diversity in ALL corporations.

My new line manager (white male) sat me down in the office and said I heard you wanted a promotion. That’s brave this business is ran by white men. And you know (ceo) doesn’t really know how to be around black people. He’s my friend and I’ve taken him places and he wants to leave

He openly told me the CEO had an issue with black people

this was his friend you know. I’m like lord save me!!! After he left for the day I told my white collegues and not a single one of them gave a shit. I have never forgiven that. And never will.

Everything changed from then. I knew from that moment I was going to have to leave. I hated work. My attitude changed. I started so passionate, so READY. So wanting to learn and grow. And I left realising the West End (behind scenes) is fucking racist too.

Did I leave straight away? Nope. My CEO flew us to NYC and I had no issue taking a free holiday. When I returned I wanted to find a new job and I genuinely believe I was lowkey depressed and so there was no motivation for anything. Work literally BROKE ME.

I only enjoyed NYC when I was alone. My work mates saw that too. I didn’t have the energy to pretend I was happy so I did my own thing. As much as I could I avoided all group trips. I had a great time alone though - walked around, met my brother and an old friend it was great!

When I return the CEO talks about budget cuts and people in my department get fired. I wasn’t fired but I am asked to document work. I thought are you crazy? I’m your marketing manager my work is in why your brand and social presence now exist

In all of this I never doubted how good I was at my job. I am not afraid to say I am a bloody great marketer. You hire me and I make it my mission to really nurture your company. So I know for facts this was just another mind game. Basically a “prove why you are here?”

Here is the biggest fuckery. You know who didn’t have to prove why they were there... a WHITE newbie on probabtion who got a job because I advertised it on MTAS. Apparently the budget cut was fine for her

Sounds about white. Someone who got the job because of me was fine

That’s when I realised I had been playing this game for way too long. I had many freelance companies paying me beautifully to even need to be associated with this company. I told the CEO, I wish him the best but I resign effective immediately. BITCHES SHE WAS FREEEEE

When this whole empowered speaking up saga came about I emailed my CEO. I took three hours, everything was worded kindly. Respectfully. I made a big deal out of keeping it nice. It mattered more to me that he would acknowledge and change then venting anger and... he ignored it

The company then put up a black box accompanied with some jargon about how black people are in their prayers. I was shaking. Black lives didn’t matter to them. It didn’t matter when my line manager was manipulated, bullied and found out AFTER that the person was embezzling

It didn’t matter when my manger told me everyone hated me to keep me quiet at work. Or when he told me I wasn’t even ALLOWED to work but must find him a fuck bud during the 9 hours I was in the office. Or when my CEO bullied me. OR

When my other black collegue was put in an email where everyone in fiance was thanked but her. When she was being mentally drained so was forced to quit. It didn’t matter when I emailed. So I’m not sure why it mattered online for their BLACK BOX PR STUNT. Want to know something

I was so fuming then I commented on their profile and they even ignored that. That’s why I didn’t give a Fuck about that black box. Black lives only matter to some companies when it looks good. But behind closed doors they’ll do everything to prove otherwise.

I didn’t want a reference from this company. That’s one thing I knew. They offered to give me more money as a “good will” gesture when I resigned. I think they thought it would buy my silence. Bitch it brought my ASOS jumpers. Silence isn’t being served here.

The CEO was a narcissistic racist. The MGR was a narcissistic thief he stole THOUSANDS. He even stole money from MadTrust

. I’ve been decent to the manager. Made small talk. I assumed that made me a nice person. But actually it made me an idiot.

Between them both they broke three BEAUTIFUL strong black women.

I won’t name the company but when theatre returns get your licenses from MTI

As my inboxes are flooding I am 100% fine! I was okay the moment I left. It was like breathing clean air for the first time in so long. I flew to the states for a month & had the time of my actual life. That company is finished

whereas I’m just getting started

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