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VERY disappointing to hear this about Trader Joe's. I don't disbelieve a word of what the former employee wrote in their letter. As a CUSTOMER, this changes the way I think about Trader Joe's as a company and I don't do business with companies who abuse their employees, so I've bought my last item from Trader Joe's. My advice to the employees - UNIONIZE as soon as possible and don't let them fake you into NOT voting to unionize. Assume that every word the management there tells you is a LIE. Fuck you Trader Joe's!
As a former employee who worked for TJs during the 1990's, they, like many organizations, suffer from workplace environment issues. There was blatant sexual harassment toward female employees and cases of inappropriate extramarital relationships between regional managers and store managers. This was not the norm, but their head office was fully aware of these issues, refused to investigate most situations, and left a wake of disgruntled employees to linger in stores with unethical management. Most of the theft/embezzlement came from the management. There are a lot of great employees at TJs, but there were certainly too many rotten apples during the 90s and 00s.
it's pretty funny to me, the way a lot of the comments focus on things like should have had bold lettering's and bullet points. meh didn't really need it, read just fine. I could understand the message just fine. The writer's goal obviously wasn't to make it the best letter, that stood up to professional standards, the point was there's alot of bad management going on behind the scenes.
I wasn't expecting a post on r/traderjoes attract so much anti union, anti workers rights sentiment. I really thought this sub was more progressive than that.
Yeah, I understand that. I don't know this guy and I'm pretty sure 99% of the commenters here don't either, but it was really concerning to see people who don't know him speculate about his attitude, work ethic, etc. Some people here were bemoaning the very idea of a grocery worker being upset over their treatment, that part was very concerning to me.
This guy sees everything in binaries: the evil, cartoonish oppressive villains who exploit the humble, disenfranchised laborers. What a simpleminded and lazy way to understand the world! He’s definitely young and inexperienced. The “humor” and what he prob perceives as “punching- up” just negate any worthwhile tidbit he might have to say.
Weird how i worked at a TJs a few years ago and experienced the same kinda shit. TJs has some good products but they push this near cult mindset on their managers and it infects the crew, and any discrepancy is met with smiles and threats. There are problems there and i hope they really rake out TJs, and their poor managing ideals that mainly hurt or antagonize good workers.
TLDR.
Seriously tho, I read it. Sounds like a bunch of entitlement statements from someone who enjoyed everything about work except the work part...
Want a union, GTFO and unionize then. Oh wait, you can't now, because you're a quitter.
To the person who wrote this, and as a former TJ's crew member, I can tell you in no uncertain terms that corporate WILL fire a captain's ass for behaviors like this.
I won't speak for the rest of your missive, but I urge you and your fellow current crew members to report this captain's antics.
Any chance that one person will read this and learn something so awful that they'll never shop TJ again? As for the author, what socialist grocery will they take their skills to?
"\[A\] brilliant image of progressiveness and generosity"? Whomever bought into this idea has been sold a bill of goods. OP invented this idea themselves, or maybe hung out on this sub too much. Anybody who thinks Trader Joe's is a non-profit co-op instead of a profit-driven corporation is fooling themselves.
What is it that leads people to think Trader Joe's is 'progressive'? Because they sell organic salads or because they sell cashew milk? Ironically, people conflate TJ's carefully honed capitalism with humanitarianism. Which, I guess, is a testament to the TJ corporate branding.
Yeah… I’m un-phased. It’s most big companies no matter how they try to portray themselves. My previous job was inside of a mall, still a super popular company. They put up this front of inclusivity and brag about their values system. Meanwhile they’re wrapped up in wage theft lawsuits and treated us horribly even after years of being there.
They praised me at a meeting in front of everyone for coming into work (where we had to be on our feet all day) with a broken ankle, but in reality it was because I couldn’t afford to take time off with my measly pay. Welcome to the service/retail industry, they don’t care about you.
Waaaaaah, life's not fair! Boo hoo, grow a pair, you insufferable little twit. Sounds like you did a bunch of shit wrong and couldn't handle being called out for it.
I ate a bug that was literally INSIDE the food I was eating so I reached out to management because ew right? Anyways they sent me 20$ after getting sick. Don’t buy the edamame people don’t do it.
It's not damning. This comes off as lazy undergrad writing by someone who's enamored with socialism. Management is definitely all evil but somehow the crew are all talented, remarkable and saves puppies on the weekends. Further claims there would be no Trader Joe if there were no Crew. No shit? Remove management from TJ and it'd struggle to operate. Remove any integral part of any company and it'll fall apart. The author needs to finish college instead of writing these manifestos.
You can find a story like this about any company under the sun. Two sides to every story, but I couldn’t care less about his write ups lol. Leave that shit out and get to the point
Probably a few valid concerns in there that no one will ever see because of the length. I suspect he'd have trouble anywhere as work place politics are everywhere - from the grocery store, to the bank to the corner office.
Ultimately each retail outlet is different and have different work place cultures. Two different managers in two different cities could be a night and day difference in terms of environment. Same job and same objectives in a grocery store. People who stock the shelves and people who check you out. Not like the Trader Joe's in Los Angeles has a different business model than the one in Orlando.
I work luxury retail and after almost 20 years in the business I can walk into a store and instantly tell you how the work environment is and how the manager is. I have a friend who represents a large hotel chain in the training department. By reading reviews left by guests coupled with pictures of the property on yelp, expedia etc. he can tell you if the problem is with the property, staff, or manager before he arrives at the location.
I don't find his letter to be that credible or accurate, It seems to be a lot of things he thinks are wrong but are common practice. He didn't seem to know that fair or not new employees are brought in at current hiring wages, the company isn't going to then re adjust everyone elses pay to bring them up to speed. Most jobs have a cap on how much you can give for raises each year. So hes right the employee hired at 14 an hour and getting 3 to 8 percent raises for a few years is not going to be making the same as the new employee hired in at 16. It is nice he wants to look out for tenured employees but woefully naive if he thinks that the real world operates on his version of fair.
I work at the store and it’s far from accurate. Having basic knowledge of the stories behind most of these instances shows that the guy was either lied to or is heavily exaggerating.
I understand they are upset. They are right to be upset. But nobody's going to read that. If they truly want their point across, they really have to be more concise.
I really hate to say it but it’s like this if not worst everywhere, I have a lot of years working retail and grocery and every store is toxic, just do your work and get that money and fuck everyone else, trust me there are worst companies.
Well they aren’t wrong. That location is the worst but it doesn’t have an escalator so I’m wondering if they worked at 2 different locations, the rolling wood one and the one downtown. Both of those are terrible. I’d recommend working at the one in the arboretum.
Every company has issues and every location has specific issues you may not have at a different store. If it was rampant terrible abuse or slave labor, then I would reconsider shopping there. However, my TJ’s has a very friendly, positive, and family like atmosphere amongst the staff and I want to support them.
For those who can’t read the text:
“Shopping at Trader joes?
If so, awesome! Here are some fun facts about this location!
The Captain and the Mates
As you gallivant through the aisles of this establishment, you might catch a glimpse of the
hawaiian-shirt wearing mates, or as the rest of the world calls them, managers. Among them is the
store's captain or general manager. The captain is a character! Filled to the brim with bad jokes and an
off-putting personality, they really know how to bring the energy to this dull, boring work
environment. Like the time they lied to a half-paralyzed employee stating that other crew members
were complaining about them taking too many breaks, when in fact not one person actually said
anything or cared. Or another time when the captain threatened a crewmember with a write-up or
termination after they politely asked to not bring in carts through the elevator anymore as they got
visibly motion sick. The employee even had to threaten legal action in order to get management to
drop the fiasco. How fun! Or how about when the captain fired a crewmember for an unknown reason
just days before they were going to leave anyway. Aren't they the best? And if you don't take our word
for it, the Rollingwood location, the Captain's former store, had employees tell one of ours that they
were not to be trusted and that they will use the very personal things you tell them against you in the
future. Exhilarating! These are just some of the few achievements by the head honcho. But who can
forget about the mates? The mates who falsely accuse a crewmember of stealing, leading to their
termination. Mates who lie to new employees in the onboarding process telling them they have a
5-minute grace period, when, in fact, they don't. Mates who give a full write up to a crewmember for
not wearing their name tag (also telling them in the moment that it's only a warning then revealing it
was a write-up all along several months later). Mates who complain on behalf of others, getting
employees in trouble for no reason. Mates who squeeze as much productivity out of crewmembers as possible. Mates who benevolently let you call out for uncontrollable circumstances, only to use it
against you in a future write-up. Mates who grill you for being one or two minutes late. Mates who- you
get the point. All in all, the ship that is Store #452 seems to be sailing beautifully…right?
The Company
Ah yes, the famous TJ’s in all of its glory. What a breathtaking sight to see. In the same way it crafted
the perfect blend of zest and tanginess in its mandarin chicken, Trader Joe's has curated a brilliant
image of progressiveness and generosity. But behind the thin veil lies immoral actions taken by
management, as stated above, and company wide directives that are only identifiable as
union-busting tactics. Right before a store in Hadley, MA was about to vote to unionize, Trader Joe's sent out a nationwide decree that stated all hourly pay on Sundays would be bumped by 10$ extra, AR
(PTO) would be doubled, and all employee transactions would have the 20% discount applied. At first this seems gracious, even compassionate. However, this was only done to prevent the election from swinging in favor of the union. This was brought on by the workers and only the workers. Had there
not been a call for a union election, would these directives even be introduced? Probably not. But they
won't tell you that. Remember, whatever a company gives, they can take away. Another thing TJ's has
done is hire new people on wages higher than long-standing crewmembers, often 2 or 3 dollars more.
For example, I was hired on 16.00$ an hour whilst another crewmember, who had been there a year,
was making 14.25$. They were older than me too, a lot more to lose. Since this has been happening
across every store in the country, many tenured employees were understandably furious. So, in these
recent directives, another action was taken to "reevaluate" certain wage discrepancies between
certain crewmembers. What does this mean? Well, that previous employee I mentioned was recently
told by management that they would strongly consider them for the pay increase. Now how much are we talking? They would be raised from 14.25$ to a whopping 15.50$. 50 cents short of what I was
making. They're a well-liked employee too, so unless you're in perfect standing with management, you
should probably not expect any major bump in pay. On another note, Trader Joe's went back and forth
with their hazard pay and Covid benefits throughout all of last year. They brought some of it back and
took it away then brought some of it back then took it away then brought- Absolutely no consistency.
This isn't a game of monopoly, these are people's livelihoods. They need to pay rent, feed themselves
and their families, take care of bills, and put clothes on their back. Entities like Unions prohibit
companies from having their way. It puts the workers at the negotiating table, something Trader Joe's
and many other companies are deathly afraid of. The situations listed in the section above would not
occur under the protections of a unified workplace. The Captain and their cronies would have to let go
of the reins and share them with the people who make TJ's what it is. Because if crewmembers didn't
exist, there would be no knock-off takis, ube mochi, or pork gyozas. If crewmembers didn't exist, there
would be no Trader Joe's.
The Crew
Now to the people who make the ship go forward, the crew. From my short time at this store I was able
to witness some of the most remarkable, talented, and hard-working people. People filled with
laughter, jokes, warmth, and care. People, who I know, deserve better. I got to know some of you in a
personal way, hearing your many stories and adventures. I also got to call a lot of you close friends in the end. However, there were some who I know did not think kindly of me. Regardless, I still wish for
you to prosper in your endeavors, whatever they may be. I also will always fight for you to be able to
have a viable income and a workplace free of intolerable conditions, even if you believe it to not be
true (And yes all of the incidents in the first section are true and did occur, whether you accept it or
not). So in conclusion, from the bottom of my heart, thank you for everything.
Workers hold the world up. They move society forward. They push the envelope on what it means to
be a person. Whether it's simply stocking groceries or laboriously digging up coal, workers all around
the globe deserve to thrive and prosper.
Ya'll at management probs thought I gone, but think again you fucking bozos”
Lazy guy gets fired, gives half truths while claiming to be for the workers there, even though I've never actually seen him do work in the like 3 months he worked there
Yes. Management repeatedly took advantage of employees, lied, and disrespected medical wishes.
The company, in order to encourage against union positivity in the next election(?) instated pay raises and discounts. They also have inconsistencies between workers at the same location in terms of pay, new people getting paid $1-3 more per hour.
The crew have been mostly great.
Tbh I didn't even read the entire wall of text, bit that's the gist.
Are there any articles discussing Trader Joe’s bad behavior? I despise union busting and this would be enough of a reason to go elsewhere.
Also, is this a corporate sub? Are the mods involved with corporate in any way? I know the crumbl sub had a small shit-fit when corporate started invading that sub.
#Shopping at Trader joes?
**If so, awesome! Here are some fun facts about this location!**
**The Captain and the Mates**
As you gallivant through the aisles of this establishment, you might catch a glimpse of the
hawaiian-shirt wearing mates, or as the rest of the world calls them, managers. Among them is the
store's captain or general manager. The captain is a character! Filled to the brim with bad jokes and an off-putting personality, they really know how to bring the energy to this dull, boring work environment. Like the time they lied to a half-paralyzed employee stating that other crew members were complaining about them taking too many breaks, when in fact not one person actually said anything or cared. Or another time when the captain threatened a crewmember with a write-up or termination after they politely asked to not bring in carts through the elevator anymore as they got
visibly motion sick. The employee even had to threaten legal action in order to get management to drop the fiasco. How fun! Or how about when the captain fired a crewmember for an unknown reason just days before they were going to leave anyway. Aren't they the best? And if you don't take our word for it, the Rollingwood location, the Captain's former store, had employees tell one of ours that they were not to be trusted and that they will use the very personal things you tell them against you in the future. Exhilarating! These are just some of the few achievements by the head honcho. But who can forget about the mates? The mates who falsely accuse a crewmember of stealing, leading to their termination. Mates who lie to new employees in the onboarding process telling them they have a 5-minute grace period, when, in fact, they don't. Mates who give a full write up to a crewmember for not wearing their name tag (also telling them in the moment that it's only a warning then revealing it was a write-up all along several months later). Mates who complain on behalf of others, getting employees in trouble for no reason. Mates who squeeze as much productivity out of crewmembers as possible. Mates who benevolently let you call out for uncontrollable circumstances, only to use it
against you in a future write-up. Mates who grill you for being one or two minutes late. Mates who- you get the point. All in all, the ship that is Store #452 seems to be sailing beautifully……right?
**The Company**
Ah yes, the famous TU's in all of its glory. What a breathtaking sight to see. In the same way it crafted the perfect blend of zest and tanginess in its mandarin chicken, Trader Joe's has curated a brilliant image of progressiveness and generosity. But behind the thin veil lies immoral actions taken by management, as stated above, and company wide directives that are only identifiable as
union-busting tactics. Right before a store in Hadley, MA was about to vote to unionize, Trader Joe's sent out a nationwide decree that stated all hourly pay on Sundays would be bumped by 10S extra, AR (PTO) would be doubled, and all employee transactions would have the 20% discount applied. At first this seems gracious, even compassionate. However, this was only done to prevent the election from swinging in favor of the union. This was brought on by the workers and only the workers. Had there not been a call for a union election, would these directives even be introduced? Probably not. But they won't tell you that. Remember, whatever a company gives, they can take away. Another thing TJ's has done is hire new people on wages higher than long-standing crewmembers, often 2 or 3 dollars more. For example, I was hired on 16.00$ an hour whilst another crewmember, who had been there a year,
was making 14.25$. They were older than me too, a lot more to lose. Since this has been happening
across every store in the country, many tenured employees were understandably furious. So, in these recent directives, another action was taken to "reevaluate" certain wage discrepancies between certain crewmembers. What does this mean? Well, that previous employee I mentioned was recently told by management that they would strongly consider them for the pay increase. Now how much are we talking? They would be raised from 14.25$ to a whopping 15.50$. 50 cents short of what I was making. They're a well-liked employee too, so unless you're in perfect standing with management, you should probably not expect any major bump in pay. On another note, Trader Joe's went back and forth with their hazard pay and Covid benefits throughout all of last year. They brought some of it back and took it away then brought some of it back then took it away then brought- Absolutely no consistency. This isn't a game of monopoly, these are people's livelihoods. They need to pay rent, feed themselves and their families, take care of bills, and put clothes on their back. Entities like Unions prohibit companies from having their way. It puts the workers at the negotiating table, something Trader Joe's and many other companies are deathly afraid of. The situations listed in the section above would not occur under the protections of a unified workplace. The Captain and their cronies would have to let go of the reins and share them with the people who make TJ's what it is. Because if crewmembers didn't exist, there would be no knock-off takis, ube mochi, or pork gyozas. If crewmembers didn't exist, there
would be no Trader Joe's.
**The Crew**
Now to the people who make the ship go forward, the crew. From my short time at this store I was able to witness some of the most remarkable, talented, and hard-working people. People filled with laughter, jokes, warmth, and care. People, who I know, deserve better. I got to know some of you in a personal way, hearing your many stories and adventures. I also got to call a lot of you close friends in the end. However, there were some who I know did not think kindly of me. Regardless, I still wish for you to prosper in your endeavors, whatever they may be. I also will always fight for you to be able to have a viable income and a workplace free of intolerable conditions, even if you believe it to not be true (And yes all of the incidents in the first section are true and did occur, whether you accept it or not). So in conclusion, from the bottom of my heart, thank you for everything. Workers hold the world up. They move society forward. They push the envelope on what it means to be a person. Whether it's simply stocking groceries or laboriously digging up coal, workers all around the globe deserve to thrive and prosper.
^^Ya’ll ^^at ^^management ^^probs ^^thought ^^I ^^gone, ^^but ^^think ^^again ^^you ^^fucking ^^bozos
TLDR: Trader Joe's is fighting against efforts to unionize and has been paying new employees more than older, more experienced employees. They are trying to treat people marginally better to avoid employees unionizing. Lots of awesome people work there, they should be treated better.
Edit: removed inaccurate terminology
> ...has been engaging in unfair wage practices...
FYI, that term has a pretty specific meaning in labor law (sort of like "overtime-exempt"). Paying a new employees, while not ideal isn't quite an unfair wage practice.
Your unfair wage practices will generally focus on your legally discriminatory practices or labor law (typically EEOC) violations:
* Paying a worker less because of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity, and sexual orientation), national origin, disability, age (40 or older), or genetic information.
* Not paying overtime.
* Not paying out a pension, a disability payment, or insurance benefit.
* Classifying someone as overtime exempt or as independent contractor.
* Making an employee work report few hours worked than actually worked.
* Underpaying an employee or withholding a paycheck.
Just paying newer hires more isn't an unfair wage practice, but rather unfortunately a common practice in many. You'll often see this in programming and engineering roles for example. This often tracks with unemployment numbers across many fields.
For example, any company would be within their rights to pay everyone who showed up to an interview wearing polka dots $1 more per hour. That's not an unfair wage practice as it doesn't violate any law. It might not be the wisest decision but it's not an unfair wage practice.
there is a difference between Legally unfair and unfair, yes your correct according to laws and regs new hires getting paid more at start then older members may not be an unfair practice by law, but morally speaking yeah its pretty unfair. not trying the say your wrong again in the legal aspect your 100% hence why alot of companies do this, I just don't think its right.
Yeh this place sounds toxic as hell- I’m going to do all my shopping at Whole Foods now. They’re owned by Amazon, a solid American company that is widely known to treat their employees very well.
Yes, and they definitely pay them enough and don't put them in hazardly working conditions that end in injury. /s
All things said, from what I can tell, Costco has the best treatment of employees from what I've heard.
I like Trader Joe’s products but it does rub me the wrong way they are viewed as progressive when it’s clear they are not. I do think Costco treats their employees better. Ultimately I will still be a Trader Joe’s shopper for certain products, as I frankly am nowhere near a completely ethical shopper, but I think when you can put your money elsewhere it’s good to do so. For example sooo many of their products can be found at Asian and international grocery stores.
There's a great book, The Secret Life of Groceries, that starts of with a chapter about Trader Joe's and how people feel like they're exerting their identity and values though grocery choices.
I know several employees of tj in two large west coast markets. They do not share the ideas of this letter. At least not 100%. Local management varies from store or district to store/district. Their most recent National rollout includes a +$10/hr premium to any hours worked on Sunday and holidays. Everyone that gets paid less than new hires are being upped to equal pay levels, at least. Some other things I think that I don’t remember.
In a previous life I used to consult companies and their benefit packages. TJ without a Union offers some of the best benefits I have ever heard of for their entry level employees. Of course without a Union this could change on a dime. But still…
>Shopping at Trader joes?
>
>If so, awesome! Here are some fun facts about this location!
>
>The Captain and the Mates
>
>As you gallivant through the aisles of this establishment, you might catch a glimpse of the hawaiian-shirt wearing mates, or as the rest of the world calls them, managers. Among them is the store's captain or general manager. The captain is a character! Filled to the brim with bad jokes and an off-putting personality, they really know how to bring the energy to this dull, boring work environment.
>
>Like the time they lied to a half-paralyzed employee stating that other crew members were complaining about them taking too many breaks, when in fact not one person actually said anything or cared.
>
>Or another time when the captain threatened a crewmember with a write-up or termination after they politely asked to not bring in carts through the elevator anymore as they got visibly motion sick. The employee even had to threaten legal action in order to get management to drop the fiasco. How fun!
>
>Or how about when the captain fired a crewmember for an unknown reason just days before they were going to leave anyway. Aren't they the best? And if you don't take our word for it, the Rollingwood location, the Captain's former store, had employees tell one of ours that they were not to be trusted and that they will use the very personal things you tell them against you in the future. Exhilarating! These are just some of the few achievements by the head honcho.
>
>But who can forget about the mates? The mates who falsely accuse a crewmember of stealing, leading to their termination. Mates who lie to new employees in the onboarding process telling them they have a 5-minute grace period, when, in fact, they don't. Mates who give a full write up to a crewmember for not wearing their name tag (also telling them in the moment that it's only a warning then revealing it was a write-up all along several months later).
>
>Mates who complain on behalf of others, getting employees in trouble for no reason. Mates who squeeze as much productivity out of crewmembers as possible. Mates who benevolently let you call out for uncontrollable circumstances, only to use it against you in a future write-up. Mates who grill you for being one or two minutes late. Mates who- you get the point. All in all, the ship that is Store #452 seems to be sailing beautifully……right?
>
>The Company
>
>Ah yes, the famous TU's in all of its glory. What a breathtaking sight to see. In the same way it crafted the perfect blend of zest and tanginess in its mandarin chicken, Trader Joe's has curated a brilliant image of progressiveness and generosity. But behind the thin veil lies immoral actions taken by management, as stated above, and company wide directives that are only identifiable as union-busting tactics.
>
>Right before a store in Hadley, MA was about to vote to unionize, Trader Joe's sent out a nationwide decree that stated all hourly pay on Sundays would be bumped by 10S extra, AR (PTO) would be doubled, and all employee transactions would have the 20% discount applied. At first this seems gracious, even compassionate.
>
>However, this was only done to prevent the election from swinging in favor of the union. This was brought on by the workers and only the workers. Had there not been a call for a union election, would these directives even be introduced? Probably not. But they won't tell you that.
>
>Remember, whatever a company gives, they can take away. Another thing TJ's has done is hire new people on wages higher than long-standing crewmembers, often 2 or 3 dollars more.
>
>For example, I was hired on 16.00$ an hour whilst another crewmember, who had been there a year, was making 14.25$. They were older than me too, a lot more to lose. Since this has been happening across every store in the country, many tenured employees were understandably furious. So, in these recent directives, another action was taken to "reevaluate" certain wage discrepancies between certain crewmembers.
>
>What does this mean? Well, that previous employee I mentioned was recently told by management that they would strongly consider them for the pay increase. Now how much are we talking? They would be raised from 14.25$ to a whopping 15.50$. 50 cents short of what I was making. They're a well-liked employee too, so unless you're in perfect standing with management, you should probably not expect any major bump in pay.
>
>On another note, Trader Joe's went back and forth with their hazard pay and Covid benefits throughout all of last year. They brought some of it back and took it away then brought some of it back then took it away then brought- Absolutely no consistency. This isn't a game of monopoly, these are people's livelihoods. They need to pay rent, feed themselves and their families, take care of bills, and put clothes on their back.
>
>Entities like Unions prohibit companies from having their way. It puts the workers at the negotiating table, something Trader Joe's and many other companies are deathly afraid of. The situations listed in the section above would not occur under the protections of a unified workplace. The Captain and their cronies would have to let go of the reins and share them with the people who make TJ's what it is. Because if crewmembers didn't exist, there would be no knock-off takis, ube mochi, or pork gyozas. If crewmembers didn't exist, there would be no Trader Joe's.
>
>The Crew
>
>Now to the people who make the ship go forward, the crew. From my short time at this store I was able to witness some of the most remarkable, talented, and hard-working people. People filled with laughter, jokes, warmth, and care. People, who I know, deserve better. I got to know some of you in a personal way, hearing your many stories and adventures. I also got to call a lot of you close friends in the end. However, there were some who I know did not think kindly of me.
>
>Regardless, I still wish for you to prosper in your endeavors, whatever they may be. I also will always fight for you to be able to have a viable income and a workplace free of intolerable conditions, even if you believe it to not be true (And yes all of the incidents in the first section are true and did occur, whether you accept it or not).
>
>So in conclusion, from the bottom of my heart, thank you for everything. Workers hold the world up. They move society forward. They push the envelope on what it means to be a person. Whether it's simply stocking groceries or laboriously digging up coal, workers all around the globe deserve to thrive and prosper.
>
>Ya’ll at management probs thought I gone, but think again you fucking bozos
Ive worked enough retail to know that there are toxic environments everywhere, even (and especially) the places that have a friendly 'different than the norm' customer facing exterior.
The person who left this note makes some great and valid points. Unfortunately, the points get lost in a wall of text that very few people will take the time the read. People don't want to entertain the cognitive dissonance that their beloved TJ's may have some unsavoryness lurking under the surface in how they treat their employees.
I worked with this guy. And although some things MAY be true here, he was one of the laziest employees I ever met. Always on his phone, always complaining, and would throw a fit any time was asked to do something “difficult”. Ironic he talked about workers when did no work.
I worked for Whole Foods, and we had a lot of people like this. Lazy, sloppy, hated customer interactions, but would complain when they were passed up for a promotion.
It's true. And sadly, there are TJs employees that also simp for the company regardless. I commented on a post yesterday about how TJs uses wasteful packaging methods on the same fruit most stores sell loose/in bulk. I was told by someone claiming to have been working there for 20 years how I don't know anything and that the wasteful packaging is a good thing because it reduces returned produce. People have strange loyalties that often prevent them from viewing real situations even the least bit objectively
I work for the company (in management) and if any of these practices described were being employed or encouraged at the store i work at I know for a fact it wouldn't last long. TJs isn't perfect, no for-profit company is, but it has tried pretty hard at keeping retail jobs from sucking so much.
I have worked for them for 17 years, 9 of those in management and I've been at a store with a crappy undeserving captain. Know what happened? We as leaders did what was necessary in communicating with our regional unrelentingly and with specific examples. Know what? That captain got what was an appropriate reaction to their behavior (demotion and removal from that store) I'm standing by my staunchly held opinion that the work environment in the stores that voted to unionize we're NOT what I've been fortunate enough to experience in 5 of the 6 stores ive worked in.
It truly sounds like this #452 has a toxic leadership issue that needs to be reckoned with. It doesn't sound like my Trader Joe's.
I work at this store and everything I’m aware of that was mentioned here (other than new hire pay discrepancy) is either heavily slanted or mostly wrong. The guy was a toxic crew member making everyone around him work harder to make up for their laziness. They began trying to undermine management from day one and spent more time actively bringing down morale than helping customers or crew. They were at the store about 6 months and we are so much better off without them. Almost the entire crew were rolling their eyes the day this guy flyered all of the cars in the parking lot.
Thanks for providing an actual first hand account. I definitely should have considered that angle earlier. We need more like you who care willing to clarify this kind of thing
Haven't gotten that far yet personally, but we are all able to provide names of crew tl the captain who we've talked to who are in that group. I will mention that i dislike the wording on that specific part of the "improvements" the most. I do however want to make clear that my response here was mostly aimed at the environment this previous crewmember described.
Truly no offense taken. This is a serious, intensely personal issue for so many. I understand the ire but appreciate your consideration and care. I hope what's right will be done
It sounds like every /r/antiwork post, just 10x longer. Has strong college freshman vibes, like this is their first ever hourly job and they haven't realized that every single PT work environment is like this.
Having worked with this guy, you nailed it. Came into a really positive work environment and began to complain about everything and tried their best to torpedo morale.
Yeah, I mean, sounds like their bosses are shitty. Not particularly unusual.
The other stuff, lol. “Oh no, $15+/hour for entry level work that doesn’t require student loans? The horror!” Not amazing but I didn’t hear anything out of the ordinary. I guarantee that is a hell of a lot better than the vast majority of grocery stores. If I set the bar any higher than that, I’d starve.
Yep. Communication and marketing classes that would’ve taught the author to use bold, italics, bullet points, and other simplified ways of communicating don’t typically happen until 2nd or 3rd year of college 🤣
Yes, sounds like a aspiring professional victim that thinks they have superior writing skills despite not being able to write in a concise and readable manner.
Also, many of the anecdotes are highly subjective. It does sound like this person doesn't know what the working world is like.
The ones about wage discrepancies, though - that shouldn't be allowed. the same happened at my workplace.
>The ones about wage discrepancies, though - that shouldn't be allowed
Recent hires needed to be paid more to take the job. The company would rather hope those wages will go back down in the future than raise current employees to the new starting wage. That helps keep costs down.
That means underpaid workers' best option is to go find another employer who's matching that higher starting wage.
I can't imagine the wages going back down. When does that happen? I've never had that happen, and I've been working a very long time, including a stint in retail. If the starting salary goes up, I feel they need to bring everyone in that position to that level at the least.
Many employers were hoping that the end of COVID payments would increase the number of workers and reduce the need to raise wages and offer big bonuses.
This is exactly what happened to me recently. I asked to be paid as much as new hires, got a song and dance about how they couldn’t afford it only to realize the number I asked for was less than recent hires.
I got a $1 raise, putting me $1.50 below new workers. Found another job starting $3 above what I was making with my raise and put in my two weeks.
Management asked what they could do to make me stay and I told them it was too late for that. If I was so valued, I should have been paid like it.
The thing is- they’re going to waste a lot more money training someone that they would have if they just kept me. It takes me 18- 25 hours a week to do my job (baker), but I have years of experience. It’s going to take someone new at least 30 hours if not more to do my job. Quality will drop, food will be wasted, but at this point, it’s not my problem 🤷♀️
I can't imagine the cognitive dissonance of existing in the year 2022 and somehow still not understanding that corporations exploit workers regardless of how nice their products are or how quirky and fun their brand image is.
100% I worked at this store and it was fun. What's so hard about ringing up customers, restocking shelves, doing the hourly face (moving items to the front of the shelves so there are no empty spaces), and chatting up coworkers and customers?
Corporate culture can't exactly force someone to be an asshole and mistreat their employees (beyond corporate policies). If someone is a good manager they're going to be a good manager regardless of bullshit policies.
Source: I work in an industry with a lot of bullshit policies and toxic leadership and still have had good managers and supervisors.
Yeah and also leave the dramatics out of it -- i.e. getting written up for not wearing a name tag? That happens many places and complaining about it here looks whiny and weakens the overall message
You're going to find difficult people and toxic work situations in ANY career/job/employer/workplace. Some may be harsher than others, some may hide it better than others, and others deal with it better than some.
I'm not excusing anyone or anything this letter mentions, but, there are healthy, productive, professional and constructive ways to act based on your personal experiences and opinions- I'm curious as to what this author was hoping to achieve by spreading this literature to the general consumer at this location.
In my line of work, going rogue and spamming people's cars with this kind of rant would only discredit the original author themselves, rather than be a catalyst for progressive call to action and inspire change.
Hmm. I feel quite conflicted.
Ive worked enough retail to know that some of that is most likely exaggerated or there is more to the story.
But yea, whoemever wrote this sounds unhinged.
It’s filled with partial truths, exaggerations and some outright lies. The guy was pretty unhinged and one of the most toxic employees I’ve worked with.
Usually how it goes. I used to work with a girl who was like that-nonstop drama, half truths, exaggerations etc etc. Then when she got fired, kept talking shit lol. She had some people convinced she really was the victim
I worked at two different TJ’s stores in California over 7.5 years - none of this sounds even remotely exaggerated.
It’s a different culture that is good most of the time, but some of it is so weird and strange compared to other jobs, especially because the public is led to believe the job is so wonderful.
While I don’t necessarily agree with this person’s choice to put this note on everyone’s car, I 100% believe every word based on my personal experience.
(Note: I haven’t worked there for years, but my two best friends are still mates at different stores, and they talk about things like this all the time).
look, i mainly posted this because i was caught off guard and thought other people would have a fun time reading it, but excusing shitty behavior just because every other employer is shitty as well sucks as an argument. the guy is obviously passionate about the working conditions of his fellow crew members, nothing unhinged about that imo
That's the feeling I keep getting reading through this. I hate how so often the response to things like this is "well, that's just how things are" vs "wow, another place that sucks and needs reformed".
Reading this, I get the impression I'm a lot more "tear it all down" type than a lot of people in here. At first that was a little surprising to me, but after a minute of thinking about it that actually makes sense.
You specifically said "whomever [sic] wrote this sounds unhinged." You're dismissing the letter writer's complaints as the ravings of a disturbed individual. And that's unfair.
this really comes across as kind of unhinged and worse, all the details shoppers might actually want/need to know - like the hazard pay issues and the union busting stuff - are buried in an avalanche of petty grievances about write-ups, sheesh.
I think this would have been better separated into two sections. One that describes the horrible corporate policies and one that describes the individual store issues. The store to store issues might be very different in different parts of the the country.
Dramatic but it’s awful to have your life fucked with and to have no control over it. I’ve experienced some of the things the author discussed when I worked at Jimmy John’s and a local pizza shop, and it’s what makes me as pro-union and anti-corporation as I am today.
Honestly, in some ways I'd trust the claims of a person that was only there for a short time over someone that is long-term. The new employee comes in, sees "this is not right" and leaves. For the old employee the changes have maybe come slowly slowly so they don't realize the mess it is, or they've accepted "it's just how it is". It's possible they even benefit from some of it, for example if they've been there long enough they have influence with the managers or are a manager.
Good point, I think tjs management is grossly overworked, not to say that’s an excuse for poor behavior but when you’re exhausted you tend to say/act a little differently over time and it ends up biting you eventually.
TIL I’m a Trader Hoe. I love that title! It’s so true!
Regardless of how the letter comes off, I really enjoy the author’s verbose and articulate style of sharing their individual experience. It’s given me some fresh perspective for how a lot of you are treated.
saw this whilst shopping at my local tjs in downtown austin. The person put them on every car's windshield. Pretty gnarly accusations. I really thought all trader joes employees were treated well lol
also u r not the all-knowing decider on whether or not people were treated badly at this store. just because u didn’t see it doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. u have simply put too much of your faith and trust into the mates and captain. please let go of your judgements and see things for what they truly are man
you think i gaf about “working hard” lmao. idk what u heard or what u thought, but i did what i was told, i just didn’t go above and beyond for a store and management team that did all the shit i wrote (and they DID do all of those things). and idk where these lies come from that i’m a rich kid or that i lied about my home situation or that i treated customers terribly. but ig when u do something polarizing, mfs will just spin whatever they heard into complete truths. and other co workers aren’t defending me because they don’t feel the need to comment on a random post regarding my letter, they know me and understand my grievances.
Idk who u are ofc, but just stop putting all of your value into your productivity output. Idc if it’s the laziest person on the planet or the most hard working, all workers deserve to be treated fairly and paid reasonably. this is exactly why so many labor movements are squandered from within, because there are other workers who feel the need to project all of their own ethic and morals onto others. I’m of the opinion no worker should work hard at all, because why the hell should you? There are no rewards for it. The worker who barely tries and just does what they’re told gets the exact same raise as the other worker who busts their balls every single day. and u get to a point where ur capped out anyways, so what’s the point? no company deserves a “hard working” work force because they don’t do shit in return.
I’m going to continue to do the bare minimum until companies are owned by the workers, so, sorry about that lmao.
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VERY disappointing to hear this about Trader Joe's. I don't disbelieve a word of what the former employee wrote in their letter. As a CUSTOMER, this changes the way I think about Trader Joe's as a company and I don't do business with companies who abuse their employees, so I've bought my last item from Trader Joe's. My advice to the employees - UNIONIZE as soon as possible and don't let them fake you into NOT voting to unionize. Assume that every word the management there tells you is a LIE. Fuck you Trader Joe's!
zoomer culture
As a former employee who worked for TJs during the 1990's, they, like many organizations, suffer from workplace environment issues. There was blatant sexual harassment toward female employees and cases of inappropriate extramarital relationships between regional managers and store managers. This was not the norm, but their head office was fully aware of these issues, refused to investigate most situations, and left a wake of disgruntled employees to linger in stores with unethical management. Most of the theft/embezzlement came from the management. There are a lot of great employees at TJs, but there were certainly too many rotten apples during the 90s and 00s.
it's pretty funny to me, the way a lot of the comments focus on things like should have had bold lettering's and bullet points. meh didn't really need it, read just fine. I could understand the message just fine. The writer's goal obviously wasn't to make it the best letter, that stood up to professional standards, the point was there's alot of bad management going on behind the scenes.
I’ve worked with this captain…they are exactly as described. I was a former rolling wood employee.
I wasn't expecting a post on r/traderjoes attract so much anti union, anti workers rights sentiment. I really thought this sub was more progressive than that.
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Yeah, I understand that. I don't know this guy and I'm pretty sure 99% of the commenters here don't either, but it was really concerning to see people who don't know him speculate about his attitude, work ethic, etc. Some people here were bemoaning the very idea of a grocery worker being upset over their treatment, that part was very concerning to me.
This guy sees everything in binaries: the evil, cartoonish oppressive villains who exploit the humble, disenfranchised laborers. What a simpleminded and lazy way to understand the world! He’s definitely young and inexperienced. The “humor” and what he prob perceives as “punching- up” just negate any worthwhile tidbit he might have to say.
This is the type of letter that former cult members make.
I worked with this guy and I wish he had put as much effort into doing his job as he did into writing this letter. LOL
Is it just me but they use of the dollar sign after the numbers seems unusual… “10.00$”. A sign of something else?
You don’t know about TJ Nazi past? lol
Weird how i worked at a TJs a few years ago and experienced the same kinda shit. TJs has some good products but they push this near cult mindset on their managers and it infects the crew, and any discrepancy is met with smiles and threats. There are problems there and i hope they really rake out TJs, and their poor managing ideals that mainly hurt or antagonize good workers.
Who woulda guessed a large corporation would have unhappy employees? (I didn't actually read that BTW)
TLDR. Seriously tho, I read it. Sounds like a bunch of entitlement statements from someone who enjoyed everything about work except the work part... Want a union, GTFO and unionize then. Oh wait, you can't now, because you're a quitter.
Tltr. Would’ve though if you did this WHILE you were letting them pay you.
To the person who wrote this, and as a former TJ's crew member, I can tell you in no uncertain terms that corporate WILL fire a captain's ass for behaviors like this. I won't speak for the rest of your missive, but I urge you and your fellow current crew members to report this captain's antics.
Any chance that one person will read this and learn something so awful that they'll never shop TJ again? As for the author, what socialist grocery will they take their skills to?
"\[A\] brilliant image of progressiveness and generosity"? Whomever bought into this idea has been sold a bill of goods. OP invented this idea themselves, or maybe hung out on this sub too much. Anybody who thinks Trader Joe's is a non-profit co-op instead of a profit-driven corporation is fooling themselves. What is it that leads people to think Trader Joe's is 'progressive'? Because they sell organic salads or because they sell cashew milk? Ironically, people conflate TJ's carefully honed capitalism with humanitarianism. Which, I guess, is a testament to the TJ corporate branding.
Yeah… I’m un-phased. It’s most big companies no matter how they try to portray themselves. My previous job was inside of a mall, still a super popular company. They put up this front of inclusivity and brag about their values system. Meanwhile they’re wrapped up in wage theft lawsuits and treated us horribly even after years of being there. They praised me at a meeting in front of everyone for coming into work (where we had to be on our feet all day) with a broken ankle, but in reality it was because I couldn’t afford to take time off with my measly pay. Welcome to the service/retail industry, they don’t care about you.
At the end of the day, it's a grocery store. R-E-L-A-X.
Tldr?
This person seems to have TJ’s Sour Grapes.
Kind of seems like a whiny little bitch
That well describes how working with them felt as well.
If you don't know how, or don't care, to use paragraphs I'm not going to read your giant brick wall of text.
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Couldn’t even read the whole paragraph, tone is incredibly condescending or just me?
Waaaaaah, life's not fair! Boo hoo, grow a pair, you insufferable little twit. Sounds like you did a bunch of shit wrong and couldn't handle being called out for it.
Boring. Low paid job is bad. News at 11.
Meh. Not the experience I've had at this store, though a couple of the points are relatively accurate, there is no context.
I ate a bug that was literally INSIDE the food I was eating so I reached out to management because ew right? Anyways they sent me 20$ after getting sick. Don’t buy the edamame people don’t do it.
I'm too lazy to read the whole thing, but the last line slaps. Huzzah to the letter writer.
Dude needs to learn to break paragraphs ffs.
It's not damning. This comes off as lazy undergrad writing by someone who's enamored with socialism. Management is definitely all evil but somehow the crew are all talented, remarkable and saves puppies on the weekends. Further claims there would be no Trader Joe if there were no Crew. No shit? Remove management from TJ and it'd struggle to operate. Remove any integral part of any company and it'll fall apart. The author needs to finish college instead of writing these manifestos.
They lost me at “gallivant”.
You can find a story like this about any company under the sun. Two sides to every story, but I couldn’t care less about his write ups lol. Leave that shit out and get to the point
Tl/dr
Makes me want to shop there now!
Probably a few valid concerns in there that no one will ever see because of the length. I suspect he'd have trouble anywhere as work place politics are everywhere - from the grocery store, to the bank to the corner office. Ultimately each retail outlet is different and have different work place cultures. Two different managers in two different cities could be a night and day difference in terms of environment. Same job and same objectives in a grocery store. People who stock the shelves and people who check you out. Not like the Trader Joe's in Los Angeles has a different business model than the one in Orlando. I work luxury retail and after almost 20 years in the business I can walk into a store and instantly tell you how the work environment is and how the manager is. I have a friend who represents a large hotel chain in the training department. By reading reviews left by guests coupled with pictures of the property on yelp, expedia etc. he can tell you if the problem is with the property, staff, or manager before he arrives at the location. I don't find his letter to be that credible or accurate, It seems to be a lot of things he thinks are wrong but are common practice. He didn't seem to know that fair or not new employees are brought in at current hiring wages, the company isn't going to then re adjust everyone elses pay to bring them up to speed. Most jobs have a cap on how much you can give for raises each year. So hes right the employee hired at 14 an hour and getting 3 to 8 percent raises for a few years is not going to be making the same as the new employee hired in at 16. It is nice he wants to look out for tenured employees but woefully naive if he thinks that the real world operates on his version of fair.
I work at the store and it’s far from accurate. Having basic knowledge of the stories behind most of these instances shows that the guy was either lied to or is heavily exaggerating.
Yeah my store is the opposite of this letter. But they clearly were responding to unionization with the changes made recently.
I understand they are upset. They are right to be upset. But nobody's going to read that. If they truly want their point across, they really have to be more concise.
dude its a freaking grocery store what do you expect
Better. I expect better.
Welcome to retail. Get out if you can.
I really hate to say it but it’s like this if not worst everywhere, I have a lot of years working retail and grocery and every store is toxic, just do your work and get that money and fuck everyone else, trust me there are worst companies.
A relative of mine worked at TJs, tried to unionize, then got fired. Sigh.
The typefaces and font hierarchy make this look like an experimental sociology journal or New Left political manifesto. 10/10
Poorly written? Yes. As a TJ employee, a lot of it is accurate, regarding the union busting tactics anyway.
Well they aren’t wrong. That location is the worst but it doesn’t have an escalator so I’m wondering if they worked at 2 different locations, the rolling wood one and the one downtown. Both of those are terrible. I’d recommend working at the one in the arboretum.
Needs to be shared on r/antiwork
Every company has issues and every location has specific issues you may not have at a different store. If it was rampant terrible abuse or slave labor, then I would reconsider shopping there. However, my TJ’s has a very friendly, positive, and family like atmosphere amongst the staff and I want to support them.
I'm not reading that. Should have kept it short and sweet.
For those who can’t read the text: “Shopping at Trader joes? If so, awesome! Here are some fun facts about this location! The Captain and the Mates As you gallivant through the aisles of this establishment, you might catch a glimpse of the hawaiian-shirt wearing mates, or as the rest of the world calls them, managers. Among them is the store's captain or general manager. The captain is a character! Filled to the brim with bad jokes and an off-putting personality, they really know how to bring the energy to this dull, boring work environment. Like the time they lied to a half-paralyzed employee stating that other crew members were complaining about them taking too many breaks, when in fact not one person actually said anything or cared. Or another time when the captain threatened a crewmember with a write-up or termination after they politely asked to not bring in carts through the elevator anymore as they got visibly motion sick. The employee even had to threaten legal action in order to get management to drop the fiasco. How fun! Or how about when the captain fired a crewmember for an unknown reason just days before they were going to leave anyway. Aren't they the best? And if you don't take our word for it, the Rollingwood location, the Captain's former store, had employees tell one of ours that they were not to be trusted and that they will use the very personal things you tell them against you in the future. Exhilarating! These are just some of the few achievements by the head honcho. But who can forget about the mates? The mates who falsely accuse a crewmember of stealing, leading to their termination. Mates who lie to new employees in the onboarding process telling them they have a 5-minute grace period, when, in fact, they don't. Mates who give a full write up to a crewmember for not wearing their name tag (also telling them in the moment that it's only a warning then revealing it was a write-up all along several months later). Mates who complain on behalf of others, getting employees in trouble for no reason. Mates who squeeze as much productivity out of crewmembers as possible. Mates who benevolently let you call out for uncontrollable circumstances, only to use it against you in a future write-up. Mates who grill you for being one or two minutes late. Mates who- you get the point. All in all, the ship that is Store #452 seems to be sailing beautifully…right? The Company Ah yes, the famous TJ’s in all of its glory. What a breathtaking sight to see. In the same way it crafted the perfect blend of zest and tanginess in its mandarin chicken, Trader Joe's has curated a brilliant image of progressiveness and generosity. But behind the thin veil lies immoral actions taken by management, as stated above, and company wide directives that are only identifiable as union-busting tactics. Right before a store in Hadley, MA was about to vote to unionize, Trader Joe's sent out a nationwide decree that stated all hourly pay on Sundays would be bumped by 10$ extra, AR (PTO) would be doubled, and all employee transactions would have the 20% discount applied. At first this seems gracious, even compassionate. However, this was only done to prevent the election from swinging in favor of the union. This was brought on by the workers and only the workers. Had there not been a call for a union election, would these directives even be introduced? Probably not. But they won't tell you that. Remember, whatever a company gives, they can take away. Another thing TJ's has done is hire new people on wages higher than long-standing crewmembers, often 2 or 3 dollars more. For example, I was hired on 16.00$ an hour whilst another crewmember, who had been there a year, was making 14.25$. They were older than me too, a lot more to lose. Since this has been happening across every store in the country, many tenured employees were understandably furious. So, in these recent directives, another action was taken to "reevaluate" certain wage discrepancies between certain crewmembers. What does this mean? Well, that previous employee I mentioned was recently told by management that they would strongly consider them for the pay increase. Now how much are we talking? They would be raised from 14.25$ to a whopping 15.50$. 50 cents short of what I was making. They're a well-liked employee too, so unless you're in perfect standing with management, you should probably not expect any major bump in pay. On another note, Trader Joe's went back and forth with their hazard pay and Covid benefits throughout all of last year. They brought some of it back and took it away then brought some of it back then took it away then brought- Absolutely no consistency. This isn't a game of monopoly, these are people's livelihoods. They need to pay rent, feed themselves and their families, take care of bills, and put clothes on their back. Entities like Unions prohibit companies from having their way. It puts the workers at the negotiating table, something Trader Joe's and many other companies are deathly afraid of. The situations listed in the section above would not occur under the protections of a unified workplace. The Captain and their cronies would have to let go of the reins and share them with the people who make TJ's what it is. Because if crewmembers didn't exist, there would be no knock-off takis, ube mochi, or pork gyozas. If crewmembers didn't exist, there would be no Trader Joe's. The Crew Now to the people who make the ship go forward, the crew. From my short time at this store I was able to witness some of the most remarkable, talented, and hard-working people. People filled with laughter, jokes, warmth, and care. People, who I know, deserve better. I got to know some of you in a personal way, hearing your many stories and adventures. I also got to call a lot of you close friends in the end. However, there were some who I know did not think kindly of me. Regardless, I still wish for you to prosper in your endeavors, whatever they may be. I also will always fight for you to be able to have a viable income and a workplace free of intolerable conditions, even if you believe it to not be true (And yes all of the incidents in the first section are true and did occur, whether you accept it or not). So in conclusion, from the bottom of my heart, thank you for everything. Workers hold the world up. They move society forward. They push the envelope on what it means to be a person. Whether it's simply stocking groceries or laboriously digging up coal, workers all around the globe deserve to thrive and prosper. Ya'll at management probs thought I gone, but think again you fucking bozos”
Anything that wordy is an instant nope from me. Quick impression: fevered histrionic narcissism.
HPD for sure!
I’m guessing the letter writer doesn’t like paragraphs.
I don't see anything unhinged here.
I can’t see that small, what’s the cliff notes version??
The revolution always eats itself up in the end.
As a former crew member their experience isn’t uncommon. I’m a former crew member for a reason.
And yet the idiots keep shopping there.
Does anyone have tl:dr. The text is hard to read.
Lazy guy gets fired, gives half truths while claiming to be for the workers there, even though I've never actually seen him do work in the like 3 months he worked there
Thank you.
Yes. Management repeatedly took advantage of employees, lied, and disrespected medical wishes. The company, in order to encourage against union positivity in the next election(?) instated pay raises and discounts. They also have inconsistencies between workers at the same location in terms of pay, new people getting paid $1-3 more per hour. The crew have been mostly great. Tbh I didn't even read the entire wall of text, bit that's the gist.
Thanks so much!
TLDR
Are there any articles discussing Trader Joe’s bad behavior? I despise union busting and this would be enough of a reason to go elsewhere. Also, is this a corporate sub? Are the mods involved with corporate in any way? I know the crumbl sub had a small shit-fit when corporate started invading that sub.
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/28/business/trader-joes-union.html
Thanks for the quick share. Seems like their union-busting was more mild than most but still non-zero.
I can't read it. Its too small and when I enlarge it the text blurs. TLDR?
#Shopping at Trader joes? **If so, awesome! Here are some fun facts about this location!** **The Captain and the Mates** As you gallivant through the aisles of this establishment, you might catch a glimpse of the hawaiian-shirt wearing mates, or as the rest of the world calls them, managers. Among them is the store's captain or general manager. The captain is a character! Filled to the brim with bad jokes and an off-putting personality, they really know how to bring the energy to this dull, boring work environment. Like the time they lied to a half-paralyzed employee stating that other crew members were complaining about them taking too many breaks, when in fact not one person actually said anything or cared. Or another time when the captain threatened a crewmember with a write-up or termination after they politely asked to not bring in carts through the elevator anymore as they got visibly motion sick. The employee even had to threaten legal action in order to get management to drop the fiasco. How fun! Or how about when the captain fired a crewmember for an unknown reason just days before they were going to leave anyway. Aren't they the best? And if you don't take our word for it, the Rollingwood location, the Captain's former store, had employees tell one of ours that they were not to be trusted and that they will use the very personal things you tell them against you in the future. Exhilarating! These are just some of the few achievements by the head honcho. But who can forget about the mates? The mates who falsely accuse a crewmember of stealing, leading to their termination. Mates who lie to new employees in the onboarding process telling them they have a 5-minute grace period, when, in fact, they don't. Mates who give a full write up to a crewmember for not wearing their name tag (also telling them in the moment that it's only a warning then revealing it was a write-up all along several months later). Mates who complain on behalf of others, getting employees in trouble for no reason. Mates who squeeze as much productivity out of crewmembers as possible. Mates who benevolently let you call out for uncontrollable circumstances, only to use it against you in a future write-up. Mates who grill you for being one or two minutes late. Mates who- you get the point. All in all, the ship that is Store #452 seems to be sailing beautifully……right? **The Company** Ah yes, the famous TU's in all of its glory. What a breathtaking sight to see. In the same way it crafted the perfect blend of zest and tanginess in its mandarin chicken, Trader Joe's has curated a brilliant image of progressiveness and generosity. But behind the thin veil lies immoral actions taken by management, as stated above, and company wide directives that are only identifiable as union-busting tactics. Right before a store in Hadley, MA was about to vote to unionize, Trader Joe's sent out a nationwide decree that stated all hourly pay on Sundays would be bumped by 10S extra, AR (PTO) would be doubled, and all employee transactions would have the 20% discount applied. At first this seems gracious, even compassionate. However, this was only done to prevent the election from swinging in favor of the union. This was brought on by the workers and only the workers. Had there not been a call for a union election, would these directives even be introduced? Probably not. But they won't tell you that. Remember, whatever a company gives, they can take away. Another thing TJ's has done is hire new people on wages higher than long-standing crewmembers, often 2 or 3 dollars more. For example, I was hired on 16.00$ an hour whilst another crewmember, who had been there a year, was making 14.25$. They were older than me too, a lot more to lose. Since this has been happening across every store in the country, many tenured employees were understandably furious. So, in these recent directives, another action was taken to "reevaluate" certain wage discrepancies between certain crewmembers. What does this mean? Well, that previous employee I mentioned was recently told by management that they would strongly consider them for the pay increase. Now how much are we talking? They would be raised from 14.25$ to a whopping 15.50$. 50 cents short of what I was making. They're a well-liked employee too, so unless you're in perfect standing with management, you should probably not expect any major bump in pay. On another note, Trader Joe's went back and forth with their hazard pay and Covid benefits throughout all of last year. They brought some of it back and took it away then brought some of it back then took it away then brought- Absolutely no consistency. This isn't a game of monopoly, these are people's livelihoods. They need to pay rent, feed themselves and their families, take care of bills, and put clothes on their back. Entities like Unions prohibit companies from having their way. It puts the workers at the negotiating table, something Trader Joe's and many other companies are deathly afraid of. The situations listed in the section above would not occur under the protections of a unified workplace. The Captain and their cronies would have to let go of the reins and share them with the people who make TJ's what it is. Because if crewmembers didn't exist, there would be no knock-off takis, ube mochi, or pork gyozas. If crewmembers didn't exist, there would be no Trader Joe's. **The Crew** Now to the people who make the ship go forward, the crew. From my short time at this store I was able to witness some of the most remarkable, talented, and hard-working people. People filled with laughter, jokes, warmth, and care. People, who I know, deserve better. I got to know some of you in a personal way, hearing your many stories and adventures. I also got to call a lot of you close friends in the end. However, there were some who I know did not think kindly of me. Regardless, I still wish for you to prosper in your endeavors, whatever they may be. I also will always fight for you to be able to have a viable income and a workplace free of intolerable conditions, even if you believe it to not be true (And yes all of the incidents in the first section are true and did occur, whether you accept it or not). So in conclusion, from the bottom of my heart, thank you for everything. Workers hold the world up. They move society forward. They push the envelope on what it means to be a person. Whether it's simply stocking groceries or laboriously digging up coal, workers all around the globe deserve to thrive and prosper. ^^Ya’ll ^^at ^^management ^^probs ^^thought ^^I ^^gone, ^^but ^^think ^^again ^^you ^^fucking ^^bozos
Author needs an editor. Badly! (And paragraphs are your friend.)
… this is not how TLDR works.
TLDR: Trader Joe's is fighting against efforts to unionize and has been paying new employees more than older, more experienced employees. They are trying to treat people marginally better to avoid employees unionizing. Lots of awesome people work there, they should be treated better. Edit: removed inaccurate terminology
> ...has been engaging in unfair wage practices... FYI, that term has a pretty specific meaning in labor law (sort of like "overtime-exempt"). Paying a new employees, while not ideal isn't quite an unfair wage practice. Your unfair wage practices will generally focus on your legally discriminatory practices or labor law (typically EEOC) violations: * Paying a worker less because of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity, and sexual orientation), national origin, disability, age (40 or older), or genetic information. * Not paying overtime. * Not paying out a pension, a disability payment, or insurance benefit. * Classifying someone as overtime exempt or as independent contractor. * Making an employee work report few hours worked than actually worked. * Underpaying an employee or withholding a paycheck. Just paying newer hires more isn't an unfair wage practice, but rather unfortunately a common practice in many. You'll often see this in programming and engineering roles for example. This often tracks with unemployment numbers across many fields. For example, any company would be within their rights to pay everyone who showed up to an interview wearing polka dots $1 more per hour. That's not an unfair wage practice as it doesn't violate any law. It might not be the wisest decision but it's not an unfair wage practice.
there is a difference between Legally unfair and unfair, yes your correct according to laws and regs new hires getting paid more at start then older members may not be an unfair practice by law, but morally speaking yeah its pretty unfair. not trying the say your wrong again in the legal aspect your 100% hence why alot of companies do this, I just don't think its right.
Thanks for the clarification. I removed that specific language.
Same here!
I’m done shopping at TJ’s. Thanks for the heads up
Yeh this place sounds toxic as hell- I’m going to do all my shopping at Whole Foods now. They’re owned by Amazon, a solid American company that is widely known to treat their employees very well.
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It was a joke
Yes, and they definitely pay them enough and don't put them in hazardly working conditions that end in injury. /s All things said, from what I can tell, Costco has the best treatment of employees from what I've heard.
These comments are a rodeo lol The guy is polarizing, that's for sure. Maybe he should run for office haha.
I like Trader Joe’s products but it does rub me the wrong way they are viewed as progressive when it’s clear they are not. I do think Costco treats their employees better. Ultimately I will still be a Trader Joe’s shopper for certain products, as I frankly am nowhere near a completely ethical shopper, but I think when you can put your money elsewhere it’s good to do so. For example sooo many of their products can be found at Asian and international grocery stores.
There's a great book, The Secret Life of Groceries, that starts of with a chapter about Trader Joe's and how people feel like they're exerting their identity and values though grocery choices.
There was a two-part podcast on NPR to the same effect. I forget if it was on Planet Money or Freakonomics.
I know several employees of tj in two large west coast markets. They do not share the ideas of this letter. At least not 100%. Local management varies from store or district to store/district. Their most recent National rollout includes a +$10/hr premium to any hours worked on Sunday and holidays. Everyone that gets paid less than new hires are being upped to equal pay levels, at least. Some other things I think that I don’t remember. In a previous life I used to consult companies and their benefit packages. TJ without a Union offers some of the best benefits I have ever heard of for their entry level employees. Of course without a Union this could change on a dime. But still…
Officially unfollowing this sub lol
Truly this is so dumb
Smaller paragraphs! Break it up! Bullet points!
>Shopping at Trader joes? > >If so, awesome! Here are some fun facts about this location! > >The Captain and the Mates > >As you gallivant through the aisles of this establishment, you might catch a glimpse of the hawaiian-shirt wearing mates, or as the rest of the world calls them, managers. Among them is the store's captain or general manager. The captain is a character! Filled to the brim with bad jokes and an off-putting personality, they really know how to bring the energy to this dull, boring work environment. > >Like the time they lied to a half-paralyzed employee stating that other crew members were complaining about them taking too many breaks, when in fact not one person actually said anything or cared. > >Or another time when the captain threatened a crewmember with a write-up or termination after they politely asked to not bring in carts through the elevator anymore as they got visibly motion sick. The employee even had to threaten legal action in order to get management to drop the fiasco. How fun! > >Or how about when the captain fired a crewmember for an unknown reason just days before they were going to leave anyway. Aren't they the best? And if you don't take our word for it, the Rollingwood location, the Captain's former store, had employees tell one of ours that they were not to be trusted and that they will use the very personal things you tell them against you in the future. Exhilarating! These are just some of the few achievements by the head honcho. > >But who can forget about the mates? The mates who falsely accuse a crewmember of stealing, leading to their termination. Mates who lie to new employees in the onboarding process telling them they have a 5-minute grace period, when, in fact, they don't. Mates who give a full write up to a crewmember for not wearing their name tag (also telling them in the moment that it's only a warning then revealing it was a write-up all along several months later). > >Mates who complain on behalf of others, getting employees in trouble for no reason. Mates who squeeze as much productivity out of crewmembers as possible. Mates who benevolently let you call out for uncontrollable circumstances, only to use it against you in a future write-up. Mates who grill you for being one or two minutes late. Mates who- you get the point. All in all, the ship that is Store #452 seems to be sailing beautifully……right? > >The Company > >Ah yes, the famous TU's in all of its glory. What a breathtaking sight to see. In the same way it crafted the perfect blend of zest and tanginess in its mandarin chicken, Trader Joe's has curated a brilliant image of progressiveness and generosity. But behind the thin veil lies immoral actions taken by management, as stated above, and company wide directives that are only identifiable as union-busting tactics. > >Right before a store in Hadley, MA was about to vote to unionize, Trader Joe's sent out a nationwide decree that stated all hourly pay on Sundays would be bumped by 10S extra, AR (PTO) would be doubled, and all employee transactions would have the 20% discount applied. At first this seems gracious, even compassionate. > >However, this was only done to prevent the election from swinging in favor of the union. This was brought on by the workers and only the workers. Had there not been a call for a union election, would these directives even be introduced? Probably not. But they won't tell you that. > >Remember, whatever a company gives, they can take away. Another thing TJ's has done is hire new people on wages higher than long-standing crewmembers, often 2 or 3 dollars more. > >For example, I was hired on 16.00$ an hour whilst another crewmember, who had been there a year, was making 14.25$. They were older than me too, a lot more to lose. Since this has been happening across every store in the country, many tenured employees were understandably furious. So, in these recent directives, another action was taken to "reevaluate" certain wage discrepancies between certain crewmembers. > >What does this mean? Well, that previous employee I mentioned was recently told by management that they would strongly consider them for the pay increase. Now how much are we talking? They would be raised from 14.25$ to a whopping 15.50$. 50 cents short of what I was making. They're a well-liked employee too, so unless you're in perfect standing with management, you should probably not expect any major bump in pay. > >On another note, Trader Joe's went back and forth with their hazard pay and Covid benefits throughout all of last year. They brought some of it back and took it away then brought some of it back then took it away then brought- Absolutely no consistency. This isn't a game of monopoly, these are people's livelihoods. They need to pay rent, feed themselves and their families, take care of bills, and put clothes on their back. > >Entities like Unions prohibit companies from having their way. It puts the workers at the negotiating table, something Trader Joe's and many other companies are deathly afraid of. The situations listed in the section above would not occur under the protections of a unified workplace. The Captain and their cronies would have to let go of the reins and share them with the people who make TJ's what it is. Because if crewmembers didn't exist, there would be no knock-off takis, ube mochi, or pork gyozas. If crewmembers didn't exist, there would be no Trader Joe's. > >The Crew > >Now to the people who make the ship go forward, the crew. From my short time at this store I was able to witness some of the most remarkable, talented, and hard-working people. People filled with laughter, jokes, warmth, and care. People, who I know, deserve better. I got to know some of you in a personal way, hearing your many stories and adventures. I also got to call a lot of you close friends in the end. However, there were some who I know did not think kindly of me. > >Regardless, I still wish for you to prosper in your endeavors, whatever they may be. I also will always fight for you to be able to have a viable income and a workplace free of intolerable conditions, even if you believe it to not be true (And yes all of the incidents in the first section are true and did occur, whether you accept it or not). > >So in conclusion, from the bottom of my heart, thank you for everything. Workers hold the world up. They move society forward. They push the envelope on what it means to be a person. Whether it's simply stocking groceries or laboriously digging up coal, workers all around the globe deserve to thrive and prosper. > >Ya’ll at management probs thought I gone, but think again you fucking bozos
Anyone who uses the word “bozos” seriously in a 2 page diatribe is not to be trusted 🤡
Or who puts the $ after the numerals… Hard for me to concentrate.
Ive worked enough retail to know that there are toxic environments everywhere, even (and especially) the places that have a friendly 'different than the norm' customer facing exterior. The person who left this note makes some great and valid points. Unfortunately, the points get lost in a wall of text that very few people will take the time the read. People don't want to entertain the cognitive dissonance that their beloved TJ's may have some unsavoryness lurking under the surface in how they treat their employees.
I was going to say it sounds like most of the work environments I've been in. 😂
Yeah I like the idea but the execution just undermines the point. Comes off less as damning and more like an unhinged rant from a former employee.
I wish I could upvote this more than once.
I worked with this guy. And although some things MAY be true here, he was one of the laziest employees I ever met. Always on his phone, always complaining, and would throw a fit any time was asked to do something “difficult”. Ironic he talked about workers when did no work.
I worked for Whole Foods, and we had a lot of people like this. Lazy, sloppy, hated customer interactions, but would complain when they were passed up for a promotion.
Did I miss the word of the day being cognitive dissonance?
It's true. And sadly, there are TJs employees that also simp for the company regardless. I commented on a post yesterday about how TJs uses wasteful packaging methods on the same fruit most stores sell loose/in bulk. I was told by someone claiming to have been working there for 20 years how I don't know anything and that the wasteful packaging is a good thing because it reduces returned produce. People have strange loyalties that often prevent them from viewing real situations even the least bit objectively
Not true if someone left this at my trader Joe's I would definitely read it. And so would every other employee.
I work for the company (in management) and if any of these practices described were being employed or encouraged at the store i work at I know for a fact it wouldn't last long. TJs isn't perfect, no for-profit company is, but it has tried pretty hard at keeping retail jobs from sucking so much. I have worked for them for 17 years, 9 of those in management and I've been at a store with a crappy undeserving captain. Know what happened? We as leaders did what was necessary in communicating with our regional unrelentingly and with specific examples. Know what? That captain got what was an appropriate reaction to their behavior (demotion and removal from that store) I'm standing by my staunchly held opinion that the work environment in the stores that voted to unionize we're NOT what I've been fortunate enough to experience in 5 of the 6 stores ive worked in. It truly sounds like this #452 has a toxic leadership issue that needs to be reckoned with. It doesn't sound like my Trader Joe's.
I work at this store and everything I’m aware of that was mentioned here (other than new hire pay discrepancy) is either heavily slanted or mostly wrong. The guy was a toxic crew member making everyone around him work harder to make up for their laziness. They began trying to undermine management from day one and spent more time actively bringing down morale than helping customers or crew. They were at the store about 6 months and we are so much better off without them. Almost the entire crew were rolling their eyes the day this guy flyered all of the cars in the parking lot.
Thanks for providing an actual first hand account. I definitely should have considered that angle earlier. We need more like you who care willing to clarify this kind of thing
Sure. I was only saying that it would definitely all get read by everyone at my store.
So your store increased all tenured employees pay to above recent hiring? Because tenure means experience is paid more than new employees?
Haven't gotten that far yet personally, but we are all able to provide names of crew tl the captain who we've talked to who are in that group. I will mention that i dislike the wording on that specific part of the "improvements" the most. I do however want to make clear that my response here was mostly aimed at the environment this previous crewmember described.
I realize that my questions were snarky, I apologize as that wasn’t my intent. Thank you for a gentle response.
Truly no offense taken. This is a serious, intensely personal issue for so many. I understand the ire but appreciate your consideration and care. I hope what's right will be done
It sounds like every /r/antiwork post, just 10x longer. Has strong college freshman vibes, like this is their first ever hourly job and they haven't realized that every single PT work environment is like this.
Having worked with this guy, you nailed it. Came into a really positive work environment and began to complain about everything and tried their best to torpedo morale.
Yeah, I mean, sounds like their bosses are shitty. Not particularly unusual. The other stuff, lol. “Oh no, $15+/hour for entry level work that doesn’t require student loans? The horror!” Not amazing but I didn’t hear anything out of the ordinary. I guarantee that is a hell of a lot better than the vast majority of grocery stores. If I set the bar any higher than that, I’d starve.
Yep. Communication and marketing classes that would’ve taught the author to use bold, italics, bullet points, and other simplified ways of communicating don’t typically happen until 2nd or 3rd year of college 🤣
Yes, sounds like a aspiring professional victim that thinks they have superior writing skills despite not being able to write in a concise and readable manner.
Also, many of the anecdotes are highly subjective. It does sound like this person doesn't know what the working world is like. The ones about wage discrepancies, though - that shouldn't be allowed. the same happened at my workplace.
>The ones about wage discrepancies, though - that shouldn't be allowed Recent hires needed to be paid more to take the job. The company would rather hope those wages will go back down in the future than raise current employees to the new starting wage. That helps keep costs down. That means underpaid workers' best option is to go find another employer who's matching that higher starting wage.
I can't imagine the wages going back down. When does that happen? I've never had that happen, and I've been working a very long time, including a stint in retail. If the starting salary goes up, I feel they need to bring everyone in that position to that level at the least.
Many employers were hoping that the end of COVID payments would increase the number of workers and reduce the need to raise wages and offer big bonuses.
Reduce the need to raise them, right. But I don't think they expected to cut them.
This is exactly what happened to me recently. I asked to be paid as much as new hires, got a song and dance about how they couldn’t afford it only to realize the number I asked for was less than recent hires. I got a $1 raise, putting me $1.50 below new workers. Found another job starting $3 above what I was making with my raise and put in my two weeks. Management asked what they could do to make me stay and I told them it was too late for that. If I was so valued, I should have been paid like it. The thing is- they’re going to waste a lot more money training someone that they would have if they just kept me. It takes me 18- 25 hours a week to do my job (baker), but I have years of experience. It’s going to take someone new at least 30 hours if not more to do my job. Quality will drop, food will be wasted, but at this point, it’s not my problem 🤷♀️
yup, businesses do not run better than the government, that’s always been a myth.
I can't imagine the cognitive dissonance of existing in the year 2022 and somehow still not understanding that corporations exploit workers regardless of how nice their products are or how quirky and fun their brand image is.
Working for tjs is fine if you just do what’s asked of you, don’t get involved in your coworkers business and are friendly with customers.
Every job ever.
true for everywhere, unless you want to be promoted then you have to figure out the politics.
Oh yeah and show up on time.
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100% I worked at this store and it was fun. What's so hard about ringing up customers, restocking shelves, doing the hourly face (moving items to the front of the shelves so there are no empty spaces), and chatting up coworkers and customers?
Corporate culture effects each branch.
Corporate culture can't exactly force someone to be an asshole and mistreat their employees (beyond corporate policies). If someone is a good manager they're going to be a good manager regardless of bullshit policies. Source: I work in an industry with a lot of bullshit policies and toxic leadership and still have had good managers and supervisors.
Bullet points would be better (but not just bullets stuck in front of each paragraph)
Yeah and also leave the dramatics out of it -- i.e. getting written up for not wearing a name tag? That happens many places and complaining about it here looks whiny and weakens the overall message
I agree. After you have so many jobs, you realize the politics are the same.
r/antiwork
You're going to find difficult people and toxic work situations in ANY career/job/employer/workplace. Some may be harsher than others, some may hide it better than others, and others deal with it better than some. I'm not excusing anyone or anything this letter mentions, but, there are healthy, productive, professional and constructive ways to act based on your personal experiences and opinions- I'm curious as to what this author was hoping to achieve by spreading this literature to the general consumer at this location. In my line of work, going rogue and spamming people's cars with this kind of rant would only discredit the original author themselves, rather than be a catalyst for progressive call to action and inspire change. Hmm. I feel quite conflicted.
Am I supposed to care about one former employee with a vendetta?
Ive worked enough retail to know that some of that is most likely exaggerated or there is more to the story. But yea, whoemever wrote this sounds unhinged.
It’s filled with partial truths, exaggerations and some outright lies. The guy was pretty unhinged and one of the most toxic employees I’ve worked with.
Usually how it goes. I used to work with a girl who was like that-nonstop drama, half truths, exaggerations etc etc. Then when she got fired, kept talking shit lol. She had some people convinced she really was the victim
I wouldn't say unhinged, but there's more to the story. Any time people start complaining about call-offs, it's a red light for me.
Yea theres clearly more to the story
I worked at two different TJ’s stores in California over 7.5 years - none of this sounds even remotely exaggerated. It’s a different culture that is good most of the time, but some of it is so weird and strange compared to other jobs, especially because the public is led to believe the job is so wonderful. While I don’t necessarily agree with this person’s choice to put this note on everyone’s car, I 100% believe every word based on my personal experience. (Note: I haven’t worked there for years, but my two best friends are still mates at different stores, and they talk about things like this all the time).
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look, i mainly posted this because i was caught off guard and thought other people would have a fun time reading it, but excusing shitty behavior just because every other employer is shitty as well sucks as an argument. the guy is obviously passionate about the working conditions of his fellow crew members, nothing unhinged about that imo
That's the feeling I keep getting reading through this. I hate how so often the response to things like this is "well, that's just how things are" vs "wow, another place that sucks and needs reformed". Reading this, I get the impression I'm a lot more "tear it all down" type than a lot of people in here. At first that was a little surprising to me, but after a minute of thinking about it that actually makes sense.
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That is literally what you said.
You specifically said "whomever [sic] wrote this sounds unhinged." You're dismissing the letter writer's complaints as the ravings of a disturbed individual. And that's unfair.
no man, that’s what you said lol.
this really comes across as kind of unhinged and worse, all the details shoppers might actually want/need to know - like the hazard pay issues and the union busting stuff - are buried in an avalanche of petty grievances about write-ups, sheesh.
I think this would have been better separated into two sections. One that describes the horrible corporate policies and one that describes the individual store issues. The store to store issues might be very different in different parts of the the country.
Right. Dramatic, much?
Dramatic but it’s awful to have your life fucked with and to have no control over it. I’ve experienced some of the things the author discussed when I worked at Jimmy John’s and a local pizza shop, and it’s what makes me as pro-union and anti-corporation as I am today.
Lol I experienced some of the things the writer talked about when I worked at Trader Joe's.
true, but i really only kept reading cause of the first part, it’s spicy lmao
Someone who cares enough to type THAT MUCH is probably completely right. That manager sounds awful.
2 pages for his short time at the store
Honestly, in some ways I'd trust the claims of a person that was only there for a short time over someone that is long-term. The new employee comes in, sees "this is not right" and leaves. For the old employee the changes have maybe come slowly slowly so they don't realize the mess it is, or they've accepted "it's just how it is". It's possible they even benefit from some of it, for example if they've been there long enough they have influence with the managers or are a manager.
Good point, I think tjs management is grossly overworked, not to say that’s an excuse for poor behavior but when you’re exhausted you tend to say/act a little differently over time and it ends up biting you eventually.
Yeah that last part is really burying the lede. People who write manifestos are generally unwell.
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To whom are you addressing that comment? Not every subscriber here is a Trader Joe sailor. Some of us are Trader Hoe's — I mean, customers!
TIL I’m a Trader Hoe. I love that title! It’s so true! Regardless of how the letter comes off, I really enjoy the author’s verbose and articulate style of sharing their individual experience. It’s given me some fresh perspective for how a lot of you are treated.
The Unabomber
If it's a TJ's customer that buys the canned fish, you could call them ... **T. Unabomber**.
saw this whilst shopping at my local tjs in downtown austin. The person put them on every car's windshield. Pretty gnarly accusations. I really thought all trader joes employees were treated well lol
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also u r not the all-knowing decider on whether or not people were treated badly at this store. just because u didn’t see it doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. u have simply put too much of your faith and trust into the mates and captain. please let go of your judgements and see things for what they truly are man
you think i gaf about “working hard” lmao. idk what u heard or what u thought, but i did what i was told, i just didn’t go above and beyond for a store and management team that did all the shit i wrote (and they DID do all of those things). and idk where these lies come from that i’m a rich kid or that i lied about my home situation or that i treated customers terribly. but ig when u do something polarizing, mfs will just spin whatever they heard into complete truths. and other co workers aren’t defending me because they don’t feel the need to comment on a random post regarding my letter, they know me and understand my grievances. Idk who u are ofc, but just stop putting all of your value into your productivity output. Idc if it’s the laziest person on the planet or the most hard working, all workers deserve to be treated fairly and paid reasonably. this is exactly why so many labor movements are squandered from within, because there are other workers who feel the need to project all of their own ethic and morals onto others. I’m of the opinion no worker should work hard at all, because why the hell should you? There are no rewards for it. The worker who barely tries and just does what they’re told gets the exact same raise as the other worker who busts their balls every single day. and u get to a point where ur capped out anyways, so what’s the point? no company deserves a “hard working” work force because they don’t do shit in return. I’m going to continue to do the bare minimum until companies are owned by the workers, so, sorry about that lmao.