As told in the previous article, we knew for a while that it was impossible to return to live in Indonesia with our financial status, and aunt number 2, who was also in Indonesia, was also experiencing financial difficulties at that time. So my father started looking for a job, and so did I, because I had to have an income to pay for my school starting from Secondary grade 4 (the same as high school grade 1 in Indonesia).

My first job at the famous burger restaurant Yee Wo Street Causeway Bay branch

A few months after I returned from Indonesia, my first uncle's older cousin in Hong Kong had an acquaintance who was the manager of a well-known burger restaurant in Hong Kong. My cousin's brother told me to try working at one of the restaurant's branches located on Yee Wo Street, Causeway Bay. That's where I first entered the world of work when I was 16 years old.

I worked at the restaurant for 1 year in a position as a cashier at that time. I worked from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. with a salary of HK$15 per hour at that time. Work looks relaxing, but in fact we have to take turns mopping the entire restaurant area, including the kitchen, cashier, and dining area, 4 times a day.

At that time, the restaurant employed 2 disabled people as cleaning employees in the toilet area. If one of them doesn't come to work, then we also have to take turns cleaning the toilet in the restaurant, which is sometimes very dirty. Visitors to the restaurant sometimes defecate out of place.

The kind of uniform I wore when I worked at a burger restaurant in 1994. [Photo: McDonald's Commercial in 1992]

Most of the restaurant's visitors are school children and Japanese people

In the early 1990s, there were very few Indonesian domestic workers, and there were still many Japanese companies and shopping malls in Causeway Bay. On a typical day, most of the restaurant's visitors are school children and Japanese people who work in the Causeway Bay area. On Saturdays or Sundays, most visitors are locals shopping in Causeway Bay or Filipino domestic workers on vacation.

Have good co-workers and superiors

The Causeway Bay and North Point areas are known as one of the places where people of Hokkien descent from Mainland China live, so on school holidays, this restaurant employs a lot of school children who are on vacation, and most of them are children or descendants of Hokkien newcomers.

One of my bosses is a mother who was born in Indonesia, but she has lived in Mainland China and Hong Kong for a long time, so her Indonesian is also not fluent. Perhaps because I had lived in Indonesia and could speak Indonesian, he was very kind to me and patiently taught me in terms of work.

Evening continues for school

After work, I went back home to take a shower, then I went to a night school in the North Point area for 3 hours of lessons with the goal of taking general exams to continue my studies later in life. Many times I fall asleep in class because I am too tired after work.

Trying to find another job to gain new experience

After working for 1 year at the burger restaurant, I decided to leave and try to find a new job to get more work experience. When I applied for resignation, my manager offered me an education program at the company to be trained to be a restaurant manager. I turned it down. After all, if I went to the program, I wouldn't have time for school because my goal was to find a job in the office.

In the next article, I will tell you about the process of applying for jobs in various places.