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What Situations Would You Have Handled Differently As A P.A. Employee?

posted 10 years ago by Rytman
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What instance would you have handles differently if you were a parking authority employee?

Mine would def. be the one where that ticketing supervisor Jeff was being given grief by the fat, short, overweight delivery guy. He kept swearing at Jeff, calling him an idiot, and said he was a mall cop. When Jeff gave him his ticket and flashed it in his face before putting it on his windshield and walking away, Mr. Toughguy said something to the effect of "Don't ever come in my face again" when Jeff was a good ways down the street.

Oh, how I would've handled that if I was Jeff;

First, when the guy started with his "you're a mall cop; You're just doing this cause your too stupid to be a real cop", I would've retorted with "Look at you; You're just driving around hauling in boxes because you're too stupid to pass The UPS drivers test." Then I'd add just to rub salt in the wounds "And this "mall cop" makes a lot more than you do. Don't take it out on me cause you have a dead end job, pal" If he would've done his Mr. Toughguy "Don't ever come in my face again" routine the way he did here, I would've stopped where I was and said "Or what? What are you going to do? These are public streets and you aren't going to threaten me from doing my job. I'll have the cops here in short order and haul you away, Mr. self-important." If he would come at me at that point, I'd bust his fat face wide open and then call the cops.

Yeah, I'd probably be written up/fired, but I don't care. In that type of job you can't show that your intimidated/a human punching bag or from experience,(at a similar job), it will just get worse with time. Word will get out on the street you're a pushover, and things will just escalate from there. That said if I was treated with respect, I would give that respect right back. But this fat loser was giving nothing but disrespect out just because he broke the law, so I'm going to give it right back to him/anyone like him. The "the customer is always right" B.S. shouldn't apply here.

[–] 10 years ago

[deleted]

[–] tlm557 8 years ago

you're, not your

[–] Rytman 8 years ago

Oh wow. Spelling error. I'm sure you never made any, ever.

[–] Syn84 8 years ago

With all due respect dude, you seem to be a hot head as much as the delivery guy was. Have you ever heard the expression "Never argue with an idiot. They will only bring you down to their level and beat you with experience"?

To answer your question, I wouldn't do anything. I would let the delivery guy run his mouth, then write him a ticket with a smile and wish him a nice day. That would upset him even more.

I don't know why these people waste their time arguing with idiots and trying to explain things to them when its clear that they're not even listening. I would probably tell them "the number to complain is on the back of the ticket, save your story for the judge".

===
When I die, I want to be buried face down. That way whoever doesn't like me can kiss my ass.

[–] Rytman 8 years ago

With all due respect dude, you seem like a pushover who lets people walk all over him all the time.

I wouldn't be "arguing" with the fat f-k. I would be giving him back what he is dishing out. I would write the ticket, then leave. I have not, and will not in the future, let people intimidate me from doing my job. Someone is not going to tell me to leave a public street, or imply that if I didn't I was going to get beat-up. As I said when he claimed, "yeah, you better leave", I would simply stop and say "Or what? What are you going to do?" 99/100, he'll just keep running his mouth, to which I'd reply "Yeah, that's what I thought." Not only does that call his little bluff and embarrass him in front of his buddies, he'll know you're not taking any sh-t from him in the future. Word will travel to other potential *beep* that they're not going to get one over on you. This is nearly exactly what Ponytail from Detroit did in a similar instance in an episode of Parking Wars. He wasn't being a "hothead", but he wasn't going to be bullied in his job.

People like you are scared to death of confrontation, others pick up on it, and the cycle continues on. I used to be afraid of confrontation myself as well, until I one day had enough. I've been better off ever since.

[–] Syn84 8 years ago

Confrontation with who? With some idiot that you saw on the street for 2 minutes and most likely will never see again in your life? If out-talking him matters that much in your life - go for it. 99 out of 100 times you might be successful (like that's some kind of accomplishment 😁). However, the remaining one time you will get either fired or arrested or beaten up, because you never know what that other person is ready to do.

===
When I die, I want to be buried face down. That way whoever doesn't like me can kiss my ass.

[–] Rytman 8 years ago

Like I said, you are afraid of confrontation and live in your fears. That's obvious, but it's your call. Doesn't mean I have to as well.

How would I get fired considering the man would have to come at me swinging for me to physically defend myself, which I would. That is not a crime and if I would get fired for it my attorney and I would sue the city.

Again, wouldn't get arrested for defending myself. Besides, on this show they have stated that if anyone physically assaults a parking official enforcement officer, it is an automatic felony. His fatass would be going to jail, not mine

Getting beatup doesn't scare me like it obviously does you. I've been beaten up and I've dished out a lot more beatings in my time. So what?

What I can't live with is letting a person sh-t all over me and thinking I'm going to take it. I've worked 2 places in jobs similar to The P.A. and you know how many times I've gotten "fired, arrested, or beat-up?" NONE. In fact, I've received several citations for a job well done in both companies.

And you have no idea if you would never see that lowlife again. It seemed to me he was a local delivery slob who made his deliveries at the same place at the same time every week, every other week. Since those people were responsible for covering the same areas, there was a very good chance you'd run into him again. Except maybe the next time he takes a swipe at you because you didn't stand up for yourself last time. Bullies thrive on people who won't fight back, although I guarantee he wouldn't be doing it with me.

[–] Syn84 8 years ago

There's a difference between courage and stupidity. You might say that somebody (in this case me) is afraid of confrontation. I say I'm smart enough to walk away from them. You seem to think that winning an argument with a street lowlife is some type of accomplishment since you "increased your reputation". I see them a waste of time. I didn't graduate from two colleges to spend time arguing with lowlifes on the street.

You even say in your original comment on this subject that you would most likely get written up or fired (you later changed your story and said that you won't get fired). Imagine if this "bully" carries a gun (which is legal these days) ... He's having a bad day and here comes somebody who wants to fight him because he called you a bad name ...

By the way, mall cops don't make more money than trucks drivers.

And another thing ... "Word will get out on the street you're a pushover". Seriously? Word will get out on the street that a specific PA is a pushover and everybody will give him a hard time because of that?

===
When I die, I want to be buried face down. That way whoever doesn't like me can kiss my ass.

[–] Rytman 8 years ago

Except they aren't "mall cops" They are parking authority agents employed by the city, not some uneducated slob who makes delivery's for a living. The word "mall cop" was used by the dumbass lowlife here, which I would use to throw back in his ugly face.

The whole "he might be carrying a gun or a knife" is living in your fears B.S. that I don't subscribe to. So by that logic, why drive someplace because you COULD get into a car accident and die? Why go outside because you COULD get hit by a freak lighting bolt and killed? Nonsense.

And yes, word does get out at particular jobs like these who is a pushover and who isn't. At least 2 P.A. Agents have said it on the program. Do you watch the show? I experienced it at my 2 places of employment doing similar work. I rarely if ever had problems because I didn't put up with them, and the clients knew that. One even told a staff member the rest of the clients knew not to even try to get one over on me. Know who had the most problems? Staff with your kind of mentality.

And yes I changed my original argument over not getting fired,(MAYBE written up), because the law and facts would be on my side. I gave him a ticket, he threated me to leave a public street that is part of my job to cover. I stood my ground and said no, but did not physically go after him. Instead he went after me. The result, I beat his fat ass defending myself, and now he's doing time in jail. I have a college degree in Criminal Justice, so I know more about this than you do.

And lastly, you walking away and acting nice and, in your words, "making him more angry" doesn't guarantee he doesn't come after you either, sorry to say.

[–] Syn84 8 years ago

PA makes app. $27,000 per year, which is a starting salary, and it goes up depending on the experience. I guarantee you that a truck driver makes much more than that - which is why a CDL alone is app. $3,000.

There's a difference between an accident and asking for trouble. Sure, you might beat up one, two, three, etc of them, but eventually you're gonna run into somebody who has nothing to lose ... You're gonna live your life by arguing/fighting with deadbeats that you most likely won't see every again? This ain't high-school that you see same people every day.

Yes, I watch the show and I see Ponytail being very stressful all the time because he argues with everybody. On the other hand, Danielle (the one who calls everybody "sweetie") usually walks away as soon as somebody raises a voice at her. Who do you think feels better at the end of the day - Ponytail or Danielle? I don't see Danielle ever upset, she's relaxed all the time. Ponytail is the one who seems very stressed out.

Its your life, do whatever makes you happy. You wanna argue/fight with people to protect your reputation - be my guest, it makes no difference to me.

===
When I die, I want to be buried face down. That way whoever doesn't like me can kiss my ass.

[–] Rytman 8 years ago

-That slob in that particular instance was a local delivery driver. If he made more than 10 bucks an hour, I'd be shocked.

-The analogy obviously flew over your head; Whether it's my job or an act of nature, I don't let my fears dictate how I live my life. And again, a lot of these people you WILL see frequently. They live and work in the city, same as The P.A. When they interview the citizens on the street, they all seem to know the agents and vice-versa. This is not about winning and argument or a fight; It's about being assertive and standing up for myself so I can do my job to the best of my ability. In professions like this it is a must.

And funny you mention Ponytail and Danielle; I've actually seen Danielle get more grief from idiots than I do Ponytail. It's not hard to figure out why.

[–] Syn84 8 years ago

- Even people who deliver pizzas make more than $10/hour. To operate a truck requires a Commercial Drivers License, which alone costs app. $3,000. You don't think that somebody would spend $3,000 on a license to later make $10/hour?

- The metro population of Philadelphia is 6 million so the chances that you will run into the same person more than once is slim to none.

- It has nothing to do with fear. Idiots want from you to get down on their level and be like them. Who cares what somebody that you see once in your lifetime for 2 minutes has to say? Take people from this show as an example. Will their job quality be any less if they ignore people than if they stand up to them?

- Danielle is smart enough to walk away. She writes a ticket, people start arguing with her and she leaves in a good mood. Ponytail writes a tickets, then spends 15-20 minutes arguing with people and then leaves all upset. And guess what - despite working on the same job for 20+ years and arguing with people on a daily basis, the same thing still waits for him the next day. How's that possible? According to your logic, bullies back down when you stand up to them; yet, Ponytail is still taking crap after 20+ years on the job.

===
When I die, I want to be buried face down. That way whoever doesn't like me can kiss my ass.

[–] Rytman 8 years ago

-Funny, then why I have I known several delivery drivers over the years, and all were in the "low income" class? I'm not talking truck drivers or UPS delivery drivers, but regular small business delivery drivers. That particular slob, from the way he was dressed to the way he spoke, was obviously low class in more ways than one. Also. P.A. are well taken care of in regards to benefits, 401K, and other perks. I'm doubting that lowlife has any of those at his place of employment.

-Again, these employees patrol the same streets on their shifts and frequently run into the same people. Both P.A. employees and citizens have said so in interviews. In at least 2 eps, 2 of the parking officials were threatened by people who were illegally parking their vehicles in front of their place of work. As a matter of fact it was to the same parking official who got into the confrontation with the lowlife delivery driver, except now he was a white shirt supervisor. In one instance he told a guy who was getting in his face and getting angry that he would have the cops out there in seconds to have him arrested. In the other the guy told him he best not put a ticket on his windshield, to which the supervisor replied "Sir, I don't need your threats." Guess what happened? Both guys not only backed down, but complied to what he originally told them they should be doing. Looks like somebody figured out as he got promoted that you get to a point where you can't be bullied on the job.

-And again, whether or not you see them everyday or once in your life for 2 minutes has little to do with it. If you want me to, I can list examples from my previous jobs or life in general to where someone was trying to intimidate/bully me, and would've escalated in physically attacking if I didn't show them I wasn't going to take their sh-t. As I said before, walking away with a smile on your face not only doesn't ensure you still won't get attacked, but might actually escalate the situation since your sending the message to them that your weak.(You even wrote in your original post this would make them more angry.) Even if you aren't, that's more than likely what they'll perceive. Then what would you do?

[–] Syn84 8 years ago

All those people bark, but none of them bite. They try to act tough and intimidate you, but they're only big on words. How many of them acted on their words?
You can bark back at them until either you or him lose your cool and throw a first punch. Or you can walk away and spend your free time on something more useful.

Look at Ponytail. Every single day he waste his time acting tough, getting upset, arguing with people and probably going home angry because of it. And the next day he does the same thing over and over again. And for what? What changed?

===
When I die, I want to be buried face down. That way whoever doesn't like me can kiss my ass.

[–] Rytman 8 years ago

O.K., now you are going back to your original post. You wrote something to the effect that because I would choose to stand my ground when people threatened me on the job that one day eventually I would get my ass kicked, or they might pull out a gun or knife. Now you're saying they are all bark and no bite. Which is it?

And you simply can't walk away in all scenarios. Part of their job is when questioned by the person they gave a citation to to explain why, as long as they don't become abusive. However, I have seen on here in the instances I have mentioned it going from 0 to 90 in a heartbeat, so there is little time to react.

Want another example? Did you ever see the ep with the parking enforcement officer in the suburbs of Detroit who wrote a guy a citation? He went to hand the citation back to the P.A. guy, who just stood there and said no. He went to go back in his house, then suddenly became irate and made a beeline for the P.A. guy. The P.A. guy did not flinch and simply and sternly stated "Don't come near me." The guy was still irate, but stopped in his tracks and didn't come near The P.A. guy until he choose to get in his vehicle and leave. The P.A. guy never became irate, but did stand his ground. There was no time in that scenario to walk away. Had he turned his back and went to get in his vehicle at that point, I'm betting he would've been shoved down or punched.

[–] Syn84 8 years ago

O.K., now you are going back to your original post. You wrote something to the effect that because I would choose to stand my ground when people threatened me on the job that one day eventually I would get my ass kicked, or they might pull out a gun or knife. Now you're saying they are all bark and no bite. Which is it?

If you ignore the barking dog, he will most likely bark for some time and then stop. If you walk up to him and start barking back, either you or him will lose your cool eventually.

And you simply can't walk away in all scenarios. Part of their job is when questioned by the person they gave a citation to to explain why

And that's fine, as long as they want to hear the explanation. If I started giving somebody an explanation and that person continues to yell - the conversation is over. And that is something that happens on this show a lot - people ask for explanation, but then don't shut up to hear it.

Want another example? Did you ever see the ep with the parking enforcement officer in the suburbs of Detroit who wrote a guy a citation? He went to hand the citation back to the P.A. guy, who just stood there and said no. He went to go back in his house, then suddenly became irate and made a beeline for the P.A. guy. The P.A. guy did not flinch and simply and sternly stated "Don't come near me." The guy was still irate, but stopped in his tracks and didn't come near The P.A. guy until he choose to get in his vehicle and leave. The P.A. guy never became irate, but did stand his ground. There was no time in that scenario to walk away. Had he turned his back and went to get in his vehicle at that point, I'm betting he would've been shoved down or punched.

That's a different story. The guy was about to become physically aggressive so he made it clear to him that he won't stand for that. That's not what your original post on this subject is. Your entire original post is an argument with somebody "if he said this to me then I would say this to him." There was no danger on physical aggression; just a lot of barking back and forth.

===
When I die, I want to be buried face down. That way whoever doesn't like me can kiss my ass.

[–] Rytman 8 years ago

No, dude; same thing.

Did you ever see the original episode I was referring to? When he started in on the "mall cop" stuff, the P.A. dude had to wait there because the back of his plate was on the delivery truck's sliding door and it was up, so P.A. guy had to wait until it was down to write it up. P.A. just stood there basically taking his abuse until he wrote the citation, and didn't even say anything to him to prompt the "yeah, you better leave now" or whatever the lame threat was.

Like a typical bully punk, he escalated the matter because the P.A. guy was taking his abuse, which I wouldn't have. As stated, I would've simply given back the disrespect I was getting, much like I give respect back to people that give it. The slob driver made a motion that he was going to deck the P.A. guy had he not walked away. What if he had other vehicles on that block to write up and couldn't leave? Then what? That's why I said I would've stopped dead in my tracks and said "Or what? What are you going to do", and then add "you must be dying to go to jail."

You obviously have not been in a lot of fights, and/or have experience or worked with unsavory clients. I have. I have seen firsthand people with your exact mentality get assaulted far often than I have people who carry mine. Verbal abuse can be a precursor to physical assault. Bully punks will size you up based on your reactions,(or non-reactions), then go for the kill or back down depending on what you do.

[–] Syn84 8 years ago

I spent 8 years working as a social worker with people with mental and physical disabilities and with people with low incomes. Believe me, I have seen people who make the guy that you're referring to on this show the nicest guy in the world.

They might bark, the might make threats ... guess what? I always had the last laugh. And I would have a last laugh with the guy that you're referring to (I remember that episode, it aired recently).

p.s. No, I have not been in a lot of fights. Rarely any to be honest with you (mostly at soccer games; we take soccer pretty seriously here in eastern Europe). I consider that a positive thing. As I said before - I didn't graduate from two colleges in order to waste my time arguing/fighting with lowlifes on the street. I prefer to use my brain instead of my mouth and fists.

===
When I die, I want to be buried face down. That way whoever doesn't like me can kiss my ass.

[–] Rytman 8 years ago

That's cool. I have 15 years combined experience having worked with juvenile delinquents that were court ordered to serve their time in a residential facility, and later a homeless shelter, which basically served as a halfway house to guys just out of prison or jail, and/or a mental health facility. It was not pretty in either. Now in those jobs you had to be assertive and stand up for yourself, or you were more or less eaten alive.

I'm just saying back to your original post, I'm not a "hothead" Believe me, I've seen true blue "hotheads" at the aforementioned jobs I've worked at, and they were written up, and/or fired. The only citation I received at either was the positive kind.

[–] Syn84 8 years ago

I can see where you're coming from. Your situation was little more extreme since you were dealing with ex-cons. I was talking more about regular *beep* that we deal with on a daily basis.

===
When I die, I want to be buried face down. That way whoever doesn't like me can kiss my ass.

[–] deem_bastille 7 years ago

you in jail yet for pulling this shi7?

Oh God. Fortune vomits on my eiderdown once more.

[–] Rytman 7 years ago

What? Standing up for myself? No, and I have never been beat up, either.

I don't live my life in my fears afraid of what might/might not ever happen.

[–] deem_bastille 7 years ago

with people who are willing to throw punches over 30 dollar tickets, you don't know how worse it could get. they could have a knife or a gun.

come to the south Bronx and try that with the locals. sorry, I will not be lighting a candle in your memory.

Oh God. Fortune vomits on my eiderdown once more.

[–] Rytman 7 years ago

Again, you are speculating on things that may or may never happen. Assaulting a parking enforcement officer is a felony. If they want to go to jail for something minor, that's up to them.

Unlike you, I'm not afraid to do this kind of work. If I did, I would quit and go sell cars or something.

[–] deem_bastille 7 years ago

you really want to take that chance? you have bullet proof jackets and vests?

and lol about anyone going to jail over something minor in the south Bronx. the perps run off before anyone can get their cell phones out to record anything!

I teach in the south Bronx. I have taught there for 15 years. it's not about fear but about being wise. you do that shi8 where I work, you will be toast. not might -- will.

and whooptiedoo on being a parking enforcement officer and having it be a felony to assault them... it is also better and wiser not to ENCOURAGE IT! people like this have no inner calm. you piss them off on anything and they will come out swinging.

Teachers have no such 'safety net' of it being a felony if we are assaulted. we are lucky if the person who assaulted us is a legal immigrant or works a legitimate job. we had a colleague murdered in her bathtub over her redirecting a student at a neighborhood store. he was being unsafe in the store and she happened to see. she redirected him. his father witnessed it and was all butthurt that she usurped her authority and followed her home with his brother and they both killed her in her bathtub. all because his son was being unsafe in a store.

Oh God. Fortune vomits on my eiderdown once more.

[–] Rytman 7 years ago

I work with ex-cons fresh out of prison, and people that have been institutionalized for severe mental illness. I have not changed the way I act since Day 1, and it has served me well on the job. I have not and will not walk on egg shells because of the fear of what may or may not happen. ANYTHING is possible, it doesn't mean it's PROBABLE.

And being passive or timid doesn't mean you'll escape harm in these situations. In fact in my experience, it only enhances it. I'll give you an example; A worker at my place of employment had to kick a guy out of the program because he failed a drug test. By policy that is an automatic expulsion, and the resident has to leave the homeless shelter immed. While the worker, who has a timid, push over personality, was in the dorm to see him pack and make sure he left the property, the loser dope-head began to get more aggressive and agitated, even though the staff was saying absolutely nothing to him. He started to make gestures that he was going to punch the staff, when 4 other residents actually came to the staff's rescue. They made it clear that if the dope-head hit the staff, they were going to beat his ass. Dope-head left shortly thereafter. That is something that was a rarity, and you can't count on residents helping you. If that was me from the first time he got agitated, I would've told him that if he's not out of there in 2 minutes, I am going to call the police. I only had to do this with 1 other resident since I've been there after he got mouthy with me for enforcing the rules, and not surprisingly he backed down instantly. Has nothing to do with being tough, and everything to do with being assertive and letting ass-holes know they aren't going to push you around.

And if I was in your situation where you lived and felt the way you felt, I would do 1 of 2 things; 1.) Move 2.) Get a new job

[–] deem_bastille 7 years ago

it must be very comfortable hiding behind that bullet proof vest and packing heat. I can't even have legally owned pepper spray!

Oh God. Fortune vomits on my eiderdown once more.

[–] Rytman 7 years ago

No bullet proof vest or firearm. And with the exception of a 10-15 minute overlap between shifts, I work alone.

[–] deem_bastille 7 years ago

I find that hard to believe. sorry. and your ass will be owned in the Bronx. they kill for looking at them weird.

Oh God. Fortune vomits on my eiderdown once more.

[–] Rytman 7 years ago

I really don't care what you believe, nor do I give a sht what goes on in New York.

And if it was as bad as you say it is, they wouldn't get people to do the jobs there but guess what? They still have parking enforcement officers handing out tickets to people. I know that's hard to comprehend to those that go through life avoiding confrontation at all costs because they are scared and easily intimidated, but that's how it is.

[–] deem_bastille 7 years ago

all I am saying is where we are: the law doesn't appreciate you stooping to their level. they really don't.

and I don't give a rat's ass if you think I am scared or easily intimidated or not, this mentality has kept me not only alive but also out of trouble for 17 years. it just isn't worth it to stoop to the thugs' level.

Oh God. Fortune vomits on my eiderdown once more.

[–] Rytman 7 years ago

I have an associates degree in criminal justice. There is no law against standing up for yourself, or physically defending yourself against an attack. Again, has nothing to do with "stooping to a thugs level."

You want to go through life walking on eggshells because it's always possible some lowlife will flip on you, you go right ahead. It's your life, afterall. However, I will remind you that you started this whole argument with me because I don't live my life according to your specifications. How you do things is not how we all should do them.