Dear Prudence,
I’m a recent college grad, and last year was a super turbulent one for me. In 2017 I had four jobs and lived in two states. Now it’s time to start doing my taxes, and I’m still missing a W-2 form. Of course, the W-2 I’m missing is from the worst job I had ever had.
I was briefly a waitress in a tiny, crappy breakfast diner very early in the year. The hours and work were horrific, and the people were some of the worst I have ever known. My co-workers and bosses were immature (think: purposely ignoring my questions or refusing to train me if they saw I got a better tip), incompetent (think: losing my Social Security number twice while trying to set up my paychecks and making me write it on the back of receipts for them), and flat-out mean (think: my boss making fun of my art degree to my face after a hard shift until I cried). The idea of calling them to ask them to send my W-2 is so stressful I can’t breathe. But I don’t think they’ll send it unless I call. The restaurant is walking distance from my parents’ house, and my paystub seems to list a third-party accountant. What should I do?
—An Anxious Ex-Waitress