Walmart Worker Doesn’t Worry About Showing up Late Because His Store Is Understaffed

It's hard not to have a near full-blown panic attack whenever you find yourself running late to work, especially when you weren't able to give any prior notice to your manager or if you have a history of previous tardiness at your position.

Even if you aren't that fond of the job in question that you're running late to, not being able to stick to a schedule doesn't feel so great, and having to run in while attempting to save face isn't exactly the best feeling in the world to have.

But there are ways that folks make themselves feel better about not being able to beat the clock, like the one referenced in this one Walmart employee's clip that's currently going viral on TikTok.

In a video posted by user @linthakidd, the employee films himself in his car about to enter his shift at Walmart. He appears visibly nervous in the video because he's one hour late to his shift.

However, because he knows that the store is short-staffed, he feels a sense of job security and ends up breathing a sigh of relief upon remembering this fact.

He writes in a text overlay of the video: "Me showing up to work 1 hour late but ik they short workers so I'm good"

The TikToker also adds in a caption for the video: "Can't fire your only worker"

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are still 9.6 million unfilled job positions in the United States.

Figures posted by the US Chamber of Commerce in May of 2023 also appear to support this assessment as well.

The agency writes that the US workforce as of this writing is still smaller than the number of employed workers in the country prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Workforce participation remains below pre-pandemic levels. We have 1.97 million fewer Americans working today compared to February of 2020."

The US Chamber of Commerce also writes that citizens were able to privately save money as they weren't going out and spending as much during the pandemic, creating a massive economic shift.

Shortly after, inflation hits a 40-year-high, and property values reached unprecedented levels to the point where it was easier to buy a home in the great depression than it is for the average American to buy one today.

Viewers who saw @linthakidd's post remarked that they too could relate to his job being saved, in spite of tardiness, due to a labor shortage.

"Me with my 4.5 points and all," one person wrote.

Another penned, "My place just fired 2 people for overnight even tho we short staffed boutta transfer outta there they not finna overwork me"

However one TikTok user said that their job doesn't necessarily care if they have a dearth of workers and that management will not hesitate to terminate an employee if their performance is unsatisfactory: "my job don’t gaf they be firin ppl when they feel like it that’s why we don’t got no workers"

But someone else said that their job came up with creative solutions in order to ensure that they wouldn't have to fire them as an employee: "my Job took a month an a half to put my absence in cause they were worried id have too many points and would have to fire me"