I've handed in my resignation letter, woop woop!

Anyone managed to guess which awful pharmacy chain I work for? Probably a lot of you have. You're smart people.

I certainly am. Well, smart enough at least to know when to get out of something while I can. Which is why I've handed in my resignation letter.

After four years, I've decided to walk away from my job at this pharmacy chain. My decision to resign has been a long time coming.

It may be convenient to blame it on pay, but there are more profound issues behind my decision. Being pressured to work without a proper lunch break for most days of the week, eating while working, working beyond closing time.  No amount of overtime could overcome the chronic understaffing, so each pharmacy I worked in at this chain was always falling behind. I would come home grumpy and too tired to enjoy anything.

I was placed on a performance improvement plan not too long after I started working for the chain. These reviews are nothing more than paper trails if employers need to justify getting rid of someone in the future.

After a period of making some genuine changes I was still receiving poor feedback. When I questioned what exactly was the problem, what I received was only vague and non specific. In some cases, simply unjustified. After conversing with some friends in the same chain, I realised others were having similar problems.

Furthermore, my employer and I had a dispute. The accusations were severe, I was accused of being verbally abusive to a patient and being unprofessional. They had created a case against me that questioned my competence as a professional.

Only after involving the PDA in my disciplinary meeting were the charges dropped, but it was clear what the future would hold for me if I didn't leave.

So be smart, my pharmacist friends out there. Make the right choice for yourself.

Oh, and I made the most of my staff discount. Bought myself a year's worth of toiletries. It's all about the toiletries.