Hello.
I realize that this is a bit different from most of the posts on this board (and certainly this board's initial purpose) but I've been surfing the web and haven't found another message board that seems to be as helpful as this one may be.
Long story short, for all the tl;drs, I was recently hired at a business that is Scientologist-run and -operated and it's causing me a great deal of stress, trying to figure out whether I should run from the business or whether it's something that I will be able to deal with.
I recently moved to a new city and found a job online. I came in, took an aptitude/IQ/personality test, and they offered me a job position much higher than the one the ad was for. I took it, thinking that this would be a way to get my foot in the door, so to speak. I have no experience in the field the job position is for, but the tests, which I passed with flying colors, made my friends think that they were willing to give me a shot.
My job allows me insight into the financial aspect of the business and the way it's run. On my first day, I was shown one of the guys' offices, where L. Ron Hubbard books line every single bookshelf. I figured the guy whose office it was was a Scientologist, but didn't think much else of it.
Something has always felt "off" about this job. I don't like how they handle their finances, it isn't professional to me, and they treat some of their customers like absolute crap. I decided to give it a go, however.
The more I learned, the more I realized that it wasn't just the guy who was a Scientologist—it's the owner as well. They're running the business on Scientologist ethics which makes me worry a bit as I'm not a Scientologist and really feel like working for a business where a religion that is not my own is mixed with the business is not something I should be doing. I will never belong unless I convert, and if my timeline is correct, there are people who have moved up in the business—but after they're converted.
I've found out that new employees have "mandatory courses" although the S-word is never dropped, and sitting in on some staff meetings, the whole atmosphere is one soaked in Scientology. One guy took a newspaper away from a new trainee and told her it was "trash" and his life has been better once he stopped reading things like that. The owner, himself, has apparently achieved the "clear" level so it's obvious he's pretty serious about it.
All of the tests being administered are, you guessed it, the Oxford Capacity Analysis test and others. These are the sole tests being used to screen new employees. Resumes, in my experience, aren't even really looked at.
I'm new to the area, no family/few friends, and they've asked me enough personal questions to know that I did not grow up in a religious household, which seemed to visibly please the owner. On the "how likely are you to be recruited to a cult" scale (any cult, really, including religious groups that might not necessarily be cults but have some cultish tendencies), I'd be pretty high up on the list, considering I'm at a crossroads in my life.
Some of my friends keep telling me that I'm strong enough to work there without falling into the doctrine, but I'm not so sure. For one thing, I'm mentally unstable, looking to get back on psych meds, and if the anti-psychiatry bent is true, if they find out, they might shame me for it—which I really can't deal with. (They have already shamed me for various other things, like my diet, and made comments like, "Well, we'll get you eating better." They've also made comments about how the people I'm currently living with "don't really matter." Um, thanks?)
I've done some googling, and discovered a review of the place that claims their friend quit after they started pushing him to join Scientology. They're pushy, and a lot of people think that while the business might be legit, it is also a way for them to introduce the doctrine, get you interested, and then try to sell you on the religion. They are also extremely money-focused, to the point where they're constantly making comments about it, and it makes me uncomfortable.
I guess my mind is pretty made up to quit the job because it isn't sitting well with me, it's in an industry I don't care for, and it's causing me a lot of anxiety and depression.
Already, I feel too well-versed in Scientology just from a couple of weeks of working there to feel comfortable. Since I've been yay-saying the whole time, they've been pushing me, subtly, even further. Most of the people I've met are either related to the owner or close friends, or new. I don't feel comfortable asking anyone whether or not they're a Scientologist, and I don't know if any answer would make me feel more comfortable, since the business is being run based on Scientology, with an owner who is connected to the Church. I also know that people have been promoted once they convert. I know from reading some people's experiences that it starts out this way: very subtle things that are easily agreeable with (come on, I eat dictionaries for breakfast, so telling me about "misunderstood" words sits perfectly fine and logically with me) and then proceeds into the stickier stuff.
But I was wondering if anyone has any experience working with a Scientology-owned and -operated business and the level of proselytizing done at a certain point? Can I honestly expect to work here and not be preached to, or pressured into Scientology, or shamed for things? Is this something that I really should be wary of?
I know that most of you are those who have been in Scientology and then gotten out, or found the way it was run to be less than perfect, so I'm just looking for some advice from a variety of individuals. (And if you can't tell, I am really wary about painting everyone in any religion with too-wide of a brush. In my religion, one of my beloved teachers was murdered by a rebellious subsect. I'm fairly tolerant of personal beliefs and anti-cult and having lived in a very religious environment growing up, have had some friends "disconnect" with me because I wasn't Christian, which I would consider a dangerous thing to do in any group.)
