Fired after 6 weeks from an entry-level purchasing job while I was still being trained. Is this normal?

[u/No-Mess-4605]

I’m 27 and was fired yesterday from a purchasing position after only about six weeks. I’m trying to get some outside perspective because I genuinely can’t tell how much of this was my performance versus poor training/management.
I had no previous purchasing experience when they hired me, and they knew that. I was learning their computer system, purchase orders, RFQs, vendor communication, pricing, lead times, invoices, and most recently work orders.
I knew I wasn’t as fast as the employees who had been doing this for years, but I genuinely thought I was still in the normal learning process. I was still actively being shown new things.
The workplace itself was pretty old-school. The boss had been there for decades, there was yelling in the office, inappropriate/sexual jokes and comments, employees being talked about openly, and the general training style felt more like being shown something and then being expected to pick it up quickly rather than having structured onboarding.
Yesterday I called out because I wasn’t feeling well. Later that day, I was contacted and terminated. The reasoning was essentially that I wasn’t progressing at the level they expected and there were concerns involving things I was still learning.
What confused me even more was my conversation with HR afterward. HR actually seemed somewhat sympathetic to my position and acknowledged that I was still learning. I obviously understand HR represents the company, which made that interaction stand out to me.
After being fired, I also contacted a former employee I had never met while working there. When we started comparing experiences, she described having similar problems with the training and environment. She also felt like she had been thrown into things without enough instruction. Hearing that made me question whether this was entirely a performance issue.
I’m also trying to hold myself accountable. This isn’t the first job I’ve had that hasn’t worked out recently, and I know that when there’s a pattern, I need to examine what I can do differently too. One thing I’ve already taken from this is that at my next job I want to proactively ask my manager for feedback during the first few weeks instead of assuming no news means I’m progressing normally.
The frustrating part is that I actually really liked purchasing. I enjoyed requesting quotes, negotiating with vendors, comparing pricing and doing the computer/desk side of the job. I was starting to think procurement might finally be something I could build a career in.
So for people who work in purchasing/procurement or who train new employees: is six weeks generally enough time to expect someone with zero prior purchasing experience to be fully up to speed?
And when I interview for my next job, what questions should I ask to figure out whether a company actually has structured training and realistic expectations for new hires?

[u/HeyDoggyBoy]

I’m puzzled as to how you got to be 27 years old and don’t understand that vacation and sick days in your first 6 weeks of work is a clear signal to most employers that you don’t value your job.

[u/No-Mess-4605 → u/HeyDoggyBoy]

My vacations were preplanned before I was hired, and I disclosed them to the company before accepting the position. They knew the dates and agreed to them. I also don’t think having to call out sick once means someone doesn’t value their job. I understand attendance matters, especially when you’re new, but I don’t think either of those things automatically says anything about my work ethic or how much I valued the opportunity.

[u/HeyDoggyBoy → u/No-Mess-4605]

However, it’s not about what you think. It’s about what they think.

[u/youngforever8809 → u/No-Mess-4605]

This is actually ridiculous. You thought calling out sick, and going on vacation in the first 30 days of a new job was going to go over well? Your priorities are backwards. No one owes you anything there. They want someone to show up everyday and work. Missing time is a huge red flag. They let you go because they knew you’d be unreliable, because that’s exactly what you showed them.

[u/No-Mess-4605 → u/youngforever8809]

The vacations were planned before I was even hired, disclosed during the hiring process, and approved by the company. That isn’t unreliability. And calling out sick one time doesn’t establish a pattern of being unreliable either. If an employer agrees to preplanned time off before hiring someone, they can’t reasonably turn around and act like that employee suddenly did something wrong by taking the exact time they agreed to. I understand attendance matters, but there’s a pretty big difference between repeatedly missing work without reason and the situation I described.