What started as a simple call for people to apply as sandwich artists at Subway has turned into a fierce debate after a video asking for applications went viral on TikTok.
In a video with over 91,000 views, southwest Minnesota-based TikToker and Subway franchisee Amanda (@amarx76) raps off-beat (“Hey – I tried,” she writes in comments) over the instrumental for Nicki Minaj’s “Super Freaky Girl.”
The lyrics of her rap ask for more people to apply as sandwich artists before detailing how people can apply.
@amarx76 If you live in SW MN here is your sign✨ #subway #applynow #hiringcrisis #laborshortage #fyp #fypシ #sandwichartist #franchisee #HausLabsFoundation #minnesota #mn #swmn ♬ Super Freaky Girl – Instrumental – Finesse God
At first, some people shared their positive experiences working for Subway, with others saying that they were considering applying.
However, the mood soon turned. Quickly, users poured into the comments to detail their own negative experiences working for the store (though notably not any locations run by Amanda).
Many complained about low wages.
“They will give 16 hours per week and the pay is 8$ and then no one wants to work,” one user wrote.
“Tried that…. I was a supervisor a shift SUPERVISOR making $8 an hour,” another added. “didn’t stay long.”
“Working at subway was the worst moments of my life,” a third stated.
“Don’t do it,” concluded a fourth. “it’s so draining and not worth it.”
In response to some of these comments, Amanda noted that her stores pay more than $8 an hour.
While it’s unclear which stores Amanda actually runs, the minimum wage in Minnesota is currently $10.33 an hour for large employers, with small employers and other services required to pay a minimum of $8.42 hourly.
According to Indeed, Sandwich Artists in Minnesota earn an average of $13.30 per hour. Recent job postings in the area back this up, with many claiming to start at $14 an hour.
For her part, Amanda seems to genuinely enjoy working at Subway, posting videos of herself cleaning the store and decorating her location for Halloween.
Still, she admits that getting new employees is difficult at the moment.
“We all are silently struggling,” she writes in response to a comment under one of her videos. “the labor market is crazy.”
The Daily Dot reached out to Amanda and Subway via email.
