There is a sizable list that I could begin to delve into here, but suffice it to say that this was a hostile work environment. It was the kind of place that, no matter what you did, it wasn't correct. The owners are a married couple, but the wife is very difficult to deal with. Usually, family-run businesses are the best, but this is the exception to that rule. She told me not only that I needed to dress more feminine but that I should also wear make-up to work in order to convey that I 'care about my appearance.' I care about my skin, so I choose not to slather poisonous chemicals all over it. I wore light mascara and lip balm, but it wasn't enough. Moreover, she also tried to be my life coach, advising me to move back to the city (as I had just moved out to the country) and to leave my boyfriend to focus on working for her, in a dead-end position at a merchant services company. I have been told by former co-workers that, after my departure, she went on to require her employees to attend a prayer meeting, even though that is a direct violation of their rights. This is not surprising to me, as she commented profusely about my lack of religious affiliation. She made her political views very clear at company meetings, talking down to people who use the SNAP program (food assistance) and 'taking advantage of the government.' She also made a point to send out company-wide emails when she fired somebody to condescendingly explain who was fired and why, as a warning to all other employees. Not surprisingly, she fired me very soon after I put a tiny statue of a Hindu goddess on my desk and shared a pro-choice quote by Ruth Bader Ginsberg on my social media page. Because they paid up to the pay date, she made a point to let me go the day before a pay-day, so that I wouldn't get any further checks. She also refused to provide any employment verification, making the situation as difficult for me as possible.
There were many heartless aspects to the work, such as charging a $500 fee to business owners that just lost their company because they "didn't process any sales during the 30-day cancellation period." If they don't have any customers, they won't have any sales, and it's against VISA and MC regulations for the business owners to process a sale personally to avoid the $500 fine. What you were left with was either angry or weeping clients begging you not to fine them, but it's not your hammer to drop and nobody was very concerned about finding a solution for this common scenario. It seemed as if the processor and the merchant services companies (literally) banked on this, taking advantage of people who just lost everything.