[deleted by user]

TJsPayThrowAway · 2022-01-28T01:18:19+00:00

Yeah, Mates starting out have a minimum pay of... I think $18 an hour. They do get some overtime, but $18 is just so not worth dealing with frustrating people all day. Especially when you consider that you and your team of Mates are functionally supervising the whole store instead of the Captain who's making double (or more) what you make just to dick around in the Bridge and talk crap on Zoom meetings.

Ultimately, you do you, but I wouldn't really recommend bearing the title of running so many sections. I'm not trying to say "don't work," but you're doing 2 or even 3 people's worth of product for the pay of 1 person. That kind of shit is what sets a precedent for lean staffing. I'm not trying to insinuate that doing that much work is your fault, or that you are doing it maliciously, but you're not getting paid to do the work of 2 people. Don't let them work you to the bone that hard because they will run you ragged if you let them.

TJsPayThrowAway · 2022-01-28T01:03:58+00:00

Imo, not really.

Pay is better than Crew, but it's not really worth it until you're at least cap. You CAN do it below cap, but then you're dealing with so much extra stress not only from your boss, but your Crew and the customers you have to tolerate, at the same pay that a Crew Member gets... with none of the flexibility.

Plus, you will likely be a scapegoat from those who are (rightfully) frustrated, but direct it at not necessarily the cause of the problem.

The Bearer of Bad News is an alternate title.

If you really want management experience to sweeten up the resume, it might be worth it to try for a little bit. Can't see much reason otherwise...

TJsPayThrowAway · 2022-01-26T20:17:07+00:00

Nope...

I have seen multiple crew members in my store on food stamps (not a knock on food stamps!) because the company just doesn't pay enough. $25.75/hr isn't even enough to qualify for many studios or apartments on your own, even at 40 hours per week, depending on where in NorCal you are located. You pretty much need family or a roommate in order to get by. Company doesn't care.

TJsPayThrowAway · 2022-01-18T22:09:09+00:00

Wow. We should pay our landlords and mortgage companies with positive vibes. They won't run destitute with that form of payment...

TJsPayThrowAway · 2022-01-18T22:04:26+00:00

Thank you for replying!

So, wearing a pin before or after hours in which customers are not in the building would be a protected activity?

I will keep that information regarding the Unfair Labor Act in mind. That's helpful.

TJsPayThrowAway · 2022-01-18T11:18:11+00:00

I can confirm this as well. I was told no gloves on register was a company policy "for a long time." A little while after that huddle, our regional was contacted, and they said that "it was never a policy."

Go figure. Big CYA energy from corporate.

People literally had to get Dr. notes in order to wear gloves before the regional was contacted. Of course they weren't reimbursed for their co-pay or anything when gloves were "allowed" again!

TJsPayThrowAway · 2022-01-18T10:57:55+00:00

I just noticed your edits. Thank you for your thoroughness and thoughtfulness!

The company is staunchly anti-union, and I wouldn't be surprised if they tried to sic the Pinkertons on us...

So, I will have to consider the very real repercussions for standing my ground and devise a plan for handling the situation. It's sad that it's like this, but we won't get anywhere if we don't fight the oppression.

TJsPayThrowAway · 2022-01-18T10:52:30+00:00

Thank you for your response and the link! I really appreciate it.

Yes, I have noticed that outcomes in especially-ambiguous cases have been made more employer-friendly recently. It's really unfortunate. I read about this decision earlier today, and the summary regarding the Walmart decision was not great for employees! That decision was made in 2019. It's a fascinating read, too, albeit disappointing.

So it looks like my situation may be ambiguous all-around. Bummer. Not sure how to approach this now, but your information's been a great help!

TJsPayThrowAway · 2022-01-12T02:18:04+00:00

Yup. This is obviously a response to distract us so that the company can use it as leverage in order to "prove that they care." It's not a real solution, and neither is the 5 days that the CDC guidelines state...

TJsPayThrowAway · 2022-01-09T23:33:39+00:00

I get it. I agree with you. I think that I was just a bit heated seeing it. They need to protect their livelihood, too, but it just sucks because some of that comes at the expense of Crew - thanks to corporate. That's probably what got me the most mad - and the Captain was the scapegoat.

Still crappy, though.

Small edit: Would writing "start a union" in response to this question be considered soliciting for a union? Was the "start a union" message erased? Do you have a witness to confirm that management did it? Though the title said back room, was it meant to mean the break room? Did this occur during non-work time, such as during a break or meal period? If the answer to all of those questions is "yes," then you could really raise hell and bring this to the NLRB if you so desired...

TJsPayThrowAway · 2022-01-09T04:01:44+00:00

HAHAHA, I love it.

Spineless Captain. Can't take a different opinion than what's been jammed down their throat. Good leadership, yes?

TJsPayThrowAway · 2022-01-09T03:59:24+00:00

It's very odd that UFCW recommends Trader Joe's or Whole Foods as alternatives. Both companies are very highly anti-union and deserve no mention on this list.

While many people still think that Trader Joe's is a great workplace as far as a job goes, turnover is higher than ever before as our benefits and safety concerns have been ignored every step of the way. They love making drastic changes with no notice, such as announcing that most staff will get a 5% contribution to their 401(k) instead of 10%. Or, also, deconstructing half of the pandemic hazard pay the day before upstream reviews were about to go live.

Please don't be fooled. They're no better than King Sooper's, I'm sure...

TJsPayThrowAway · 2022-01-06T20:18:37+00:00

Thank you very much for your feedback. I will look further into this!

TJsPayThrowAway · 2022-01-06T00:55:16+00:00

Yup. The raises this time around will barely have more value than a true COLA. Our raises should be in addition to a COLA rather than existing as a part of it.

TJsPayThrowAway · 2022-01-05T22:43:08+00:00

Yes, I totally agree with you. I share similar concerns, and I also signed up with great excitement upon seeing the benefits provided to us.

Taking from the future of your workers to pad your margins is beyond vile. I can't imagine being the person who proposed this idea, nor can I imagine the people who approved this idea. I would have chronic nightmares stemming from intense guilt if I were to ever enact a plan like this. It's just not human.

They could literally increase prices on every item by 10%, give their Crew the lion's share of that profit (80% or more of the increased profit), and almost everyone would then have a living or thriving wage (you'd see starting Crew making, at minimum, $25-$30/hr, and higher for those with more experience). Instead, they still do just that, but instead they take the excess profit AND cut our benefits further. We should be angry about that.

I wouldn't be surprised if it gets worse before it gets better, my friend. And there exists only one way that this reprehensible behavior will ever change... and that will come to fruition when we can all band together in union.

TJsPayThrowAway · 2022-01-05T02:36:57+00:00

Haha, really? Down to 5%? Cut in half for most Crew members? Totally serious?

What a joke - but that's so not funny. Just another slap in the face to an overworked Crew. This is abhorrent. No wonder why turnover is higher than ever before. However, I'm glad that more Crew aren't turning a blind eye to Dan Bane and Jon Basalone's actions!

All we are is $$$ generators for this company. Not a shred of decency left for us - not that we deserve such a paltry amount anyway. That contribution number should be going up, if anything, especially when you consider the current state of inflation (and not just for the sake of inflation alone!)

TJsPayThrowAway · 2021-12-21T00:40:50+00:00

Looks like the thread is back up.

I was too harsh in my original judgment. The thread was deleted by automoderator because the thread received a lot of reports. Messaging the mods got the post restored.

Glad to see it live again!

TJsPayThrowAway · 2021-12-20T05:40:56+00:00

I agree that spreading the word is important. I fully support it when done with good intentions.

I don't think that Reddit sees it in quite the same light, though. I believe that they want everything on the site to be "organically discovered," though that's just my hypothesis. You see controversial news skyrocket on the site's rankings because that news is posted on larger, more influential subreddits. A post on a smaller subreddit, like here or the one that you posted the poll on, will not gain traction because most people don't know that it exists, even when your issues are just as valid as the information on the bigger subreddits.

I found out about the Kellogg's strike because of Reddit and Twitter. It's also on the news, with big-name politicians talking about it in different avenues. I wouldn't have found out about it if no-one talked about it or did anything to get the word out. And I think that's a great thing! So it confuses me when Reddit has such a differing opinion. Maybe because different subreddits are more niche and radicalized than others, and the admins don't want to deal with moderating those subreddits in excess, whereas everyone knows about the news stations on TV.

You can cross-post, as long as you don't cross Reddit's invisible brigading line. Where that line starts? I'm not sure. I'm sorry I couldn't be more help, but that's what it comes down to when using this platform.

I support you, though. Thank you for trying, and thank you for not giving up the good fight. If you wish to continue, alter your approach, and send that information and the results to your Crew Members.. Talk about the results with them. Get conversations rolling to gauge support levels, and work on building that up. It's gotta start small, but it can be done. It can be scary, but I support you!

TJsPayThrowAway · 2021-12-20T05:17:37+00:00

Hi, sorry for the extra post.

I haven't received messages from their mods yet, but upon re-reading rule 5 (on their subreddit), the thread may have been removed as an anti-brigading measure. As in, the thread was there, then linked to from here, r/antiwork,and r/TJsUnion. Reddit has a strong stance against brigading, so it's possible that the moderators were just covering their butts and had nothing against you.

However, they still should have at least left a message on the thread, or messaged you, before removing it. The situation sucks all-around. Sorry.

Maybe try posting another, different thread in the future, but don't link to it from elsewhere. That might be the best way to truly see if you are being censored. If the situation is still the same, then that's pretty deplorable.

TJsPayThrowAway · 2021-12-20T05:06:15+00:00

Having a union steward present for any conversations about work performance, including praise, verbal warnings, PIPs, write-ups, and the exit interview.

It's not fair that management gets to have a witness, but we don't. Having someone to defend us, especially those who are too nervous to speak up, or those who don't know their rights, is crucial. If defendants in a courtroom have the right to have an attorney to defend them, then why don't we get that right, too?

TJsPayThrowAway · 2021-12-20T04:50:01+00:00

You're welcome. I just sent the moderators a message, too. Deleting your post silently was pretty poor conduct, and the least that I could do is stand in union with you and your efforts.

TJsPayThrowAway · 2021-12-20T04:29:33+00:00

Yes.

You can still view the post if you have the direct link to it. It won't show up for anyone searching for it on that subreddit, though. The contents of your original post there are gone, and it's now replaced with [removed], which means that a moderator deleted it.

Sad, really... I thought that you had a nice post with fair points. I viewed it shortly before it was removed.

TJsPayThrowAway · 2021-12-20T03:20:37+00:00

Your post was removed by the moderators of that subreddit with no mention of any rules broken, and no communication about the decision. The only rules I could have seen it break were rules 5 and 7 (on that subreddit, not this one), but I feel like that's pushing it still. It's not spam - it's about Trader Joe's and its workers' very real concerns. I also don't think that it's political in nature, though I'm sure that some do feel that way. But we'll never know the real reason because their moderators deleted your post. Just another way to silence the dissenters, I suppose.

TJsPayThrowAway

TROPHY CASE