Im so tired of the bad managers. Im tired of the toxic workplace. Im tired of my coworkers dropping like flies/ calling off and coming in on my days off. Ive been here for a few years and I've spent more days at work than at home. I think I've only had about 100 days off where I didn't come in. I dont want to be the only reliable one anymore. Im working my 20s away.

Unfortunately you are experiencing the reality of corporate America and the absolute gospel of retail. I wish I had good news for you, but at 54, I have seen a lot; and I’m sorry to tell you that it will only get worse. I get 7 weeks paid vacation a year, and it’s nowhere near enough. The only thing I will tell you is not to go above and beyond. They will abuse you and take advantage of you and they won’t stop! Do what is expected and if you are told to do more than what is in your job description, tell them not without a raise.
Working a full time job is a prison. Plain and simple. You are not free. You spend way more time at work than you do at home. The majority of time spent at home working 40 hours a week is spent sleeping. Freedom in America is not freedom as we believe. We are all slaves to the clock.
We work ourselves to death and leave everything we worked for to someone who will sell it to the highest bidder. This is our life. Your 20s will go by fast. But your 30’s and 40’s will go by much faster. Unfortunately, you are getting a dose of adult reality. It’s nothing like you thought it would be. Just learn from your mistakes and keep chipping away. Best of luck to you!

The retail environment has gotten toxic. Corporate, owner & CEO greed are the main causes of this toxicity. They cut hours, cut staff, threaten your livelihood when you fall behind due to the issues they created. Then expect you to happily give all your time and let's face it your life for them. While they are raking in millions of dollars off the everyday workers blood sweat & tears, who by the way, aren't making a livable wage and most have to work 2 jobs to get by.
Work your scheduled shift to the best of your ability and go home. No OT.
Let them learn for themselves the results of treating employees with no respect, no livable wage, a negative work environment and threats. If all workers would stop allowing themselves to be over used and abused this treatment would cease.
Good luck I hope you treat yourself with the respect you deserve.

Same, I work at a dealership and the amount of people that continue to go in and out of that place is insane. And I don’t blame them, I’m about to be one of them soon

That's life. Some of us are adults, some of us can't handle it. Be proud that you're taking their money. When I cover for someone, I thank them for their donation! 😂 Being the one that covers has taken me from two shifts a week, to the bartender that calls the shot on the schedule. Little things like praising a coworker that makes work workable can encourage morale and support. Let your manager know who you depend on. If they don't recognize it, get rid of the manager, or BECOME the manager. Smile the whole time. Owners don't respond well to negative comments.

Apply elsewhere and leverage your opportunities, you will unfortunately work most of your 20s but your 30s will be much more enjoyable with 10 years of experience, especially in leadership roles. Work from home remote jobs become available, consulting, as you gain knowledge, you gain power and how you use it, determines your professional success.

Make it your quest to find something your good at and can do on your own. The reality is even with that you'll still answer to others, but at least you'll own your time and notably in many cases the pay is much better and you own the outcomes as far as your schedule and customer care.
i've been on my own for 20 years now, and I put my customers first and my schedule varies and the money is good. Initially I had to pay the piper at some agency, and they exploited me for $13 an hour now I make 10 times that but i had to learn and pay my dues to get the experience to know better.

Just ask yourself, is there something I am good at and want to do and pays adequately, will it provide for myself and potentially a family and the life I want? Not an easy question I know but do your best and then go after it with the fire that all you 20-year-olds need to get on with it.
i've worked with hundreds of young men in your position,
Some are built for the corporate life and some are not, and if you're not best to get on with it now and don't be afraid to take some chances, save your money as if your future depends on it and that little bit of sacrifice of time you put into the next step will help you break off from the corporate dilemma.
Keep in mind, these corporations are devaluing across-the-board human labor..

I really feel for people these days as the corporations are clearly exploiting and taking advantage of everyone, there are some outliers, but for the most part people are really getting screwed. 

 I really want you to be hopeful, and don't let anybody steer you away from something that you want to do and can be good at.
If you're asking yourself, why am I still in this position, then it's time to change the narrative.

Define your work-life boundaries now,hon. If you grind yourself down in your twenties, it'll only make the rest of your life harder. (Take it from someone who's been there.)
Keep your sale-able skill set growing and your resume current. Keep scanning the job boards for something closer to your dream job. If you keep growing and keep looking, you could be dramatically more comfortable in ten years.
If you get too comfortable where you are in your twenties...you end up being taken for granted and further behind when it's time to go. Know your worth!

I barely had enough hours to run my last store. With those 120 hours, 40 of which were mine, I was expected to get out 60-100 orders a day. 3-20 boxes of shipment , do a complete floor set every two weeks, all while helping the customer, building sales and get credit cards. And also most of the time I was by myself and the company is fine with that. Then you can’t hire anyone because they don’t pay a livable wage

Start to set your boundries with. yourself and coworkers.You going to burnout !

Same and it is never ending unfortunately. I’m looking to leave the industry

I worked at my job for almost 7 years before nearly being forced from a lack of stable income to find a part time job elsewhere. Never took off longer than 2 weeks in the entirety of my employment there. I wasn’t going to quit, just pick up more work. After getting management to agree with my scheduling, while I finish training at the new place, they refused to let me come back. It was a true slap in the face really. Extremely dependable employee, not even to be greedy but simply because I needed more money to survive, not live, survive. All my managers still texting me every other week, one of them referring to themselves as my mom. It’s really upsetting, being punished for just trying to get by, but then still being pretend cared for. I don’t even know what to do anymore. I feel like I cannot get ahead no matter what I try. Looking at all of these jobs where people went to school for 4 years or more and their entry salary is still 50k-70k a year. Fucking horrific numbers. Really considering moving out of the country, I think it might be the only way to survive unless you do p*rn lol. But I know every place has its own hurdles. I come from generations of “poor”, but I really do not want to live my life like this. I’ve worked 2 jobs since I was 17 pretty much, and I feel like I hardly have anything to show for it.

I know the feeling. It’ll be five years for me in August at the job that I’m at. But, I’ve been trying to leave as well. So many people have been hired and so many people have quit in the last few months. I don’t like any of our managers that we have, but I can tolerate at least one of them. The main reason why people leave my job is because of the management is really bad. When I first started I thought it was a decent job, not anymore.

Try exploring other avenues. My trade is in Nursing and after 15 yr I decided to take a chance to work in fields other than Healthcare. It was a challenge at first but it all depends on where you’re working and for whom. Let them see that you are valued and you could be somewhere else, that you’re not limited.. Speak up for yourself or start negotiating to be paid extra for every cover that you take on.. Good Luck!

Fun times in Hospitality it’s an eye opener on what I’ve seen over 4 Years after working at few Hotels.

Keep striving and look for opportunities to move up so you can be the change you want to see in management.

There are grants for entrepreneurship where you can start your own business
if you get a business plan and build credit (easier than it sounds, just takes time) you can get a loan and start your own business