Beware of the Not-So-Green Cleaning Crew

I don't like to complain about work too often, but boy did they get me fired up this week.

About every 4 weeks the cleaning crew empties the refrigerators and cleans them. All of the food is thrown out. I agree that this needs to be done. People leave exposed sushi sitting in containers for days. Weeks! Moldy raspberries. Dried out deli sandwiches from the cafeteria. It's gross!

I saw the sign on the refrigerator door last week warning everyone that the refrigerator was going to be cleaned over the weekend. I forgot and had gone out to lunch with some friends on Friday and left my canvas lunch bag in the refrigerator.

When I returned on Monday, the refrigerator was empty. Gone were the decomposed fruit and edible Frisbees. Also gone was my canvas lunch bag. $25!

I promptly emailed the person in charge of the cleaning crew and asked if it was the policy of the company to toss all containers and lunch bags when the refrigerator is cleaned. This person confirmed that this was the policy. Also gone, in addition to my $25 canvas lunch bag were several glass Pyrex containers. And we know those aren't free to middle class Americans. I then responded, "I agree that it is my responsibility to remove my containers promptly when the sign is posted, but the zero-tolerance policy of absolute destruction of all refrigerated property seems to run contradictory to American Amalgamated Corrugated Conglomerates of America's recent efforts to "go green" and to maintain a environment of sustainability." I got no response from that. Perhaps because they know I'm right. And they're wrong.

Are we really living in a green and sustainable environment when fairly new canvas lunch bags and glass Pyrex dishes are tossed into the trash and sent to the dump? This doesn't sound like a very green policy to me!

The next time American Amalgamated Corrugated Conglomerates of America puts out a "We are environmentally friendly" sign, I am going to write "Lunch bag!!!" on it. Bunch of hypocrites.

Huh???

You know how it is sometimes when work is really really busy and you're working a lot of overtime and you're really tired when you get home, but you still have a family to manage and by the time you get the kids to bed you're really tired, too tired to do anything, but think you can write a post for a blog, but then you fall asleep and think that you can write one at work, but work is so busy and the stock market being what it is and companies cutting back and you're afraid to slack the least bit at work for fear that they'll be searching for people to lay off and you can't afford for that to be you, so you continue to bust you butt, but feel like it's not really getting you anywhere because you know you're pay raise will only be about 3% but you're wife doesn't make much money and you can't afford to quit your job and be the low man on the totem poll at another company and risk not having health insurance so you keep chugging along and here you are?