Derita Trainee

By Anna - August 01, 2013


Ceritanya sih saya iseng buka-buka file lama dan mau saya beres-beresin filenya. Gak sengaja, saya banyak nemu file curhatan ngasal yang asal tulis. Sengaja saya tidak merubah tata bahasa, karena saat itu, bahasa Inggris saya masih campur aduk. Biarlah. Inilah proses. Dari yang campur aduk, karena terbiasa berkomunikasi dengan banyak bahasa lama-lama terbiasa juga. Satu hal lagi yang saya sadari adalah, ternyata dulunya saya suka ngeluh. Dan inilah keluhan-keluhan saya...
Actually I don’t want to grumble, but somehow sometime I need to share what happened ‘inside’ my job training. What do make me stress sometimes, and always makes me feel ‘tired’.
·         When I was at GSO section. Almost all staff are too lazy. Their break time are almost 2hours (normally only 1 hour). They walk so slow. One of  their job assignment is to deliver honeymooner’s gift, long stay guest’s gift, incoming guest’s fax, departure and arrival letters for VIP guests. Sounds so simple, right? But it will be complicated if these job assignments are belong to them. In fact, the trainee who always do that job. It is not included fruit basket, flower bouquet, special gift from travel agent, and so on, and so on. If I had to deliver only 4 envelopes, for example, i need to walk around 20 acres. Each envelope’s room number is so far away each other. Only deliver these things???? Ha! That’s too easy! The receptionists are almost everyday make a  mistake by issuing wrong expiration key. And, once more, trainee is being a target to deliver the new key to the room (they have to choose two choices: the first one is walking for more than 5minutes to go to the lobby to ask the new key and grumble to the reception or... just rang the reception to issue the new key and wait for more than 10 minutes in front of the door- like a stupid guy- and when the trainee come with new key, so it’s the time to be angry!!! The unfair thing is, because almost of the guests choose the second one. Hwa...! and the annoying thing is, there are more than 10 keys in trouble per day! Unbelievable!  Another thing I don’t like is, that they are tip hunters. Another GSO staff’s job assignment is to escort the guests to their room. The unkind thing is, almost staffs choose the guests who look potential to give them a tip. If they find their guest target, then they will be very kind and smily, offering over-help to their guest. Usually, they choose Japanese and local guests (Indonesian guests are almost all giving tip), another reason why they choose the guests from the two countries above to be escorted is because they are friendly and not so difficult to handle. Otherwise the trouble-maker guests like Indian and Russian are always being handled by the trainee. One time, when I had to deliver so many things to the room (I had already carried huge plastic bag on left hand and some letters on the right hand), at the same time the trouble maker guests were ready to escort. There was Pak Aria at GSO counter, I thought he wanted to escort the guest, but in fact he asked me to escort the guests. I said to them it was Ok, but please help me to deliver the letter, he said yes, but when I came back to the counter, the letter and bag were still there!!! Huh. So now you know how long I walk everyday and why my feet hurted. At the first time someone told me about the trouble maker, i didn’t believe. Everyone are the same things, I thought at that time. But when i experienced by  myself, I just believe that what she told me was right. Indian and Russian are almost complicated. Too much demand. Too much complaint. they are unfriendly. They threat staffs so bad. It seems like they are the kings and we are their servants have to take care of them anytime. Fortunately, sometimes they are very kind also. I got 20 dollars from Russian guest when I escorted  them to their room. They impressed at me just because I said “dobre vyecer” (good evening) and selayu karasyo adehnut (Good night) just a moment when I want to leave them and closed their door. Old- Indian male guest (70 years old) wrote my name so big on his satisfaction letter just because when I escorted him i unseriously said ”syukriya (Thank you) for choosing Grand Beach Bali for your stay...”. he surprised and asked me how could I say that? So simple, I answered, when I was junior high, I liked to watch Indian movie. Testing me, he asked which movie I like, and I mentioned so many movies, like mohabbatein, chori2 chupke2, kuch2 hota hai, raaz, dil to pagal hai, kya kehna, veer zara, and so on and so on. He looked at me like crazy, and since that time, everytime he needed sometimes, he asked me to serve him. Like he needed a multiple plug, he rang operator and made a special request that they just wanted me to deliver it. Not another one. hehehe... he also said that if I want to go to India, he guaranteed me I could meet Shahrukh Khan (the most handsome bollywood actor- he is a bollywood king until this time- my idol when i was junior high). Back to the staff, Once more the annoying thing is they are “invisible” at certain time. They are nowhere! If I guessed that they deliver something to room, I was so sure that there was nothing to deliver at GSO desk. All were done. Escorting the guests? Don’t think so. I had been standing up since an hour ago but nobody check in. So where are the staffs??? GSO counter was empty. Nobody visible except me. Hwaaaaa.... that’s what I don’t like and sometimes wanna be invisible like them too, but because I’m  still studying here, it doesn’t matter,lah... I’ve told you that the staffs here could speak in 2 foreign languages. That’s true. Only, they can’t read or write. If I said they can speak Japanese, they only can speak. They can’t write or read. Don’t say about Japanese, lah... let me told you about their English first (it makes me laugh sometimes). At log book I found these sentences. “  rcvd flower from outside, please sent to the room.” Or, “ to all GSO, your new schedule keep inside the drawer.” Or, “Mr. Karporv order a beard (i know it supposed to be bread). Please informed Room service to delivered it at 12. Or “this letter is belong to pak jastin. Pls send to his desk.” (our EAM is Mr. Justin ). Hwaaaaa...!
Even sometimes it is annoyed and feels like I need to eat them one by one (hwahaha!), but I’m still lucky that Bu Sani (my supervisor) and bu Wully (asst. Manager) are very responsible to their job. They also share to me sometimes about their lazy staff. They think the same thing as me. However, I need to think positive. I have so many experiences here. Handling so many complicated people, teach me how to make them happy. Learn about character. Culture. Leadership. Hotel management. Relationship. Teamwork. And if I had a plenty of time, spent it with Pak mandra, the Japanese concierge who teach me a bit Japanese. Anyway, He borrowed my book (English textbook you  gave) and already copied them. Since I moved to grand club, we rarely meet. But when we met at canteen, at lobby, in the way to locker, he always raised his two thumbs up to me. “the books are very good”, he said.
·         Since June the 28th, I moved to executive floor. The concept is hotel within a hotel. Grand club guest is an executive guest. Grand club offers 3 benefits for their executive guest. 1/ separately check in and check out procedure over the club lounge. 2/ free softdrink, coffee, tea and snack on buffet all the day at club lounge, happy hour at 5-7pm. Breakfast also available at lounge, only for grand club guests  3/private swimming pool.   Hhhmmm... sounds so great! But what happen inside, ya??? Is that great also??? Something good outside are not always good inside. Here at Grand club, so many things I have to do everyday. Yea, not walking many miles a day anymore, but still very tired too. I said, here i’m not front officer but I’m a bartender, waitress, sometimes butler and sometimes steward assistance. If I have morning shift, my jobs are to prepare napkin (read: fold 3 kind of napkin; guest napkin, cocktail napkin, and face towel. For each napkin, I have to prepare for minimum 400 sheet (based on the occupancy, almost 90-95%, total room 210 rooms  is around 200 napkins everyday for each kind of napkin). once finish, then I prepare the plates and cutleries (read: wipe about 600 plates and cutleries). That’s why I said I’m being a steward assistance here. Next job, I have to make coffee, tea, and milk. Also prepare some juices (now I’m a bartender) until 11pm. Next, once the breakfast time finish, i have to clear up the table and set the afternoon set up. then, after the steward finish his job to wash all the plate and cutleries, I need to wipe them again (note: the washing machine is not so good. Normally after out from the machine, the plate will be clean and dry, but here it is still wet and sometimes still dirty too, that’s why they need to be wiped).
For evening shift, don’t think that it won’t be busy. Yea, happy hour is just 2 hours, but.... hhhmmm... first I have to clear up all  the table, and exchange it with the cocktail set up with candle. Then, preparing the juices (watermelon, pineapple, banana, papaya, orange squeeze; I need to make them one by one using blender and peel the fruit one by one also). Then, prepared the garnish. Then, wipe the glasses. Sound simple, but complicated. If I have to count, then the glass are champagne glass, red wine glass, white wine glass, old fashioned glass, hiball glass, beer glass, coffee and tea cups. For each, I wipe about 120 pieces. Lucky me that we doesn’t have aperitif glass, cocktail glass, parfait glass, and so on and so on. Then at 5-7, I’m a bartender. Not so many alcoholic drink here. For wine, we just have white whine (chardonnay), red wine (shiraz), rose wine (rose), aromatized wine (campari), and sparkling wine (Jepun). Spirits, Grand club only has whiskey (JW red label for scotch whiskey and Jim beam for bourbon whiskey), rum (Bacardi), vodka (Smirnoff), and gin (Gordon gin). After happy hour, I need to clear up and (again) wipe all cutleries and plates. Clean up the buffet, set up table for breakfast the next day, and folding the napkin again. Hhhhh.... not escorting the guest at all. Never taking order (one of the staff is being a hostess almost everyday). just clear up. Set up. Prepare many things. That’s all. But still think positive, here, me the only one trainee who relied to be a bartender. Almost trainees doesn’t know alcoholic beverages, but I know. Just helping at the first time, but then I handle it by myself. One funny thing I’ll never forget is, when my friend asked me ” Anna, would you please help me? Senior asked me to set up the b&b plate on the buffet. Tell me which one is that?” or, “Anna, table A3 asked me to bring him double whiskey on the rock. What does it mean?” hahaha.
Here at Grand club, the staffs have secret ring code ( grand club kitchen has own phone). If it ring once, means Pak Justin (the EAM) is coming. Ring once and a little bit longer, means Pak Justin is coming with Pak Renada, the front office manager. Ring twice, means the GM is coming for eating something. Ring three times, means GM and family are coming. Why we needs a code? Yea, because sometimes GM, Pak Justin or Pak Renada enter to the kitchen to make an inspection. So many cakes and drinks at the kitchen, and the staffs almost eat and drink as much as they want here. At work, what they do are joking and laughing more than working. Their job are unfinish even only one. When suddenly GM come, all pretend to work. Pretend to be busy. And all of the job, like usual, must be done by trainee! Oh god!
More rings, means one of us have to pick up the phone because there is a drink order from the lounge. Another annoying thing here, that almost all the staffs are invisible at 9 and above. Just one apprentice and one trainee. me! Our job are still so many! But nobody here! Then suddenly the phone ring four times. One of the staff asked me to clear up the table. When I went to the front to clear up, I saw 6 staffs there, joking. And when I clear up the table, it was only 3 glasses! Huh! What did they do there???? And only for 3 glasses they rang?? Could’t they do it by theirselves? Did they know that I had to do many things at kitchen??? I just grumbled and when my friend grumbled at me for the same problem, I just smile.
Once more I don’t like here is, that we have to throw away the cakes and foods to the dustbin after happy hour or after breakfast (the breakfast is continental breakfast that the menu are breads, cakes and cereal). Everyday, after 11am, they will be thrown to the dustbin. I’m just thinking, why don’t they bring it to the canteen?? It will be very useful as so many staffs eating so much. Especially housekeeping. I asked to the chef, he said he also regretting about this but he can do nothing. The cakes and breads are belong to the guests, not for staff. That’s our GM’s policy. I heard in another hotel, after b’fast, the cakes and breads from buffet are moved to the canteen. Hhhmmm... my GM has never known how to feel famine.

Think again about what i had experienced, I somehow felt that I was right. Until one day.. I know the reason behind. Why did they throw cakes to the bin. Because, based on hygiene and sanitary standard, some kind of cakes contaminated with a kind of bacteria if they kept more than 6 hours. Now I realized, I was working in a very good quality hotel.
Pernah mengalami hal yang sama? Menjadi trainee itu memang menderita karena kita selalu ditindas. Tapi itulah proses pembelajaran. No pain, no gain pepatah asingnya. Yakinlah suatu saat pelajaran gak enak itu pasti ada manfaatnya.

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