Current fundraising drive

[snugglegirl05]

For 2 weeks the Kroger I work at is doing a fundraising for a back to school fundraising drive.

Last Saturday one of the assistant managers at work coached us one on one as to how Kroger wants us to get our customers to donate. This following is what that manager said...

• get every customer to donate $1.00
• there is a specific goal that our location has to meet every day
• the cashiers need to do this
• for every donation any cashier gets, you have to 1) ring the bell that is at your register, 2) announce it out-loud like you are on a cheering squad, 3) clap loudly to be heard and 4) and cheer for the other cashiers who get donations

Ugh...

I am not like this. I just want to do my job and get my donations. I feel like I am being boxed in. From talking to some of my co-workers, I am not the only one who feels this way. It got to the point that I had to let store management, front-end management, and the front-end supervisors know this. I also had a customer tell that she would donate as long as there was no fanfare about it. I left a note in my till regarding that.

Our weekly work schedule is posted on-line. I looked at it today, and I noticed that for next week, I am currently scheduled to work 15.25 hours. I hope I get more.

Is upper management punishing us for not doing everything they want us to do even though we do get donations for our customers who choose to donate? Every customer does not want to donate. Why can't upper management "get" this?

What do you do about this problem?

[KuariKaydrith]

As a customer I would be completely turned off of this nonsense that your upper management wants you to do - they would likely lose me as a customer, at least until they stop pushing the fundraiser, but more likely permanently. I go in to shop, not be publicly praised for donating so much as a dollar to something, regardless of how worthy the cause is.

As an employee I'd likely continue on the way you are - getting the donations without any of the fanfare, and if you're asked about it you can make it clear that the customers simply do not want attention drawn to them like that. Making a huge deal out of it is counter-productive, if anything, because all that extra crap they want you to do eats into your scanning time and getting customers through your line and out the door. I'd be asking what is more important - the stupid fanfare or keeping up with your cashiering metrics.

[snugglegirl05]

I'd be asking what is more important - the stupid fanfare or keeping up with your cashiering metrics.

Thank you for this reply.

You bring up some very good points.

I can make my feelings known if I get a survey on the receipt I get when I go shopping after work since I will be doing that this week. The front-end coordinator does read the survey results, and then sends them to the store where the customer shopped at.

[Pixelated]

What KuariKaydrith said.

Jeez, and I thought our management had some stupid ideas. What on earth makes the paper-pushers at the top think people want to be singled out like that?? I would be emailing them with the information that, thanks to their ridiculous ideas of how to run a fundraiser, I won't be donating a cent.

As a worker, I'd likely tell customers to "Please email the company and let them know your feelings." I've done that with my company on occasion, because while I'm not sure they listen to employees, they are far more likely to listen to irritated customers.

[Teysa]

I'd find all that fanfare more than a little annoying. I don't think the Krogers back home does anything like that with their fund raising drives, fortunately.

[EricKei]

They sound just like the higher-ups back at GameStore...They wanted us to sell those pre-orders and warranties and discount cards/subscriptions, badly; years after I left, store credit cards with extortionate interest. They honestly did not seem capable of comprehending the concept that a customer might NOT want one of these add-ons. They really did seem to think that, if we could not get every customer to get one of them on each transaction, that the reason (read: fault) was entirely with us. In other words, that we were just that f***ing "lazy." Going more than one shift without any at all was grounds for a "sit down meeting" with the store manager (even when it was clear that the SM didn't care about those metrics nearly as much as Corporate and the Kool-Aid-swilling district guys did).

...And yes, they absolutely did fiddle with our schedules based on who got the most of these per hour, and overall. It's probably happening to you, too.

I'd be asking what is more important - the stupid fanfare or keeping up with your cashiering metrics.

In my experience...? BOTH. "Work smarter, not harder! I'm sure you can do it if you just try!" (translation: "Just do it, you lazy piece of worker.")

[Dreamstalker]

Occasionally GameStore will hassle me for one of the credit cards...yeah I kinda like/use the reward points, but not for that price (APR). My existing cards are lower. The last time I was asked at the pinpad in-store, the "NO" option had wording that led me to believe I would not get asked ever again...now I get it in email.

When my old store was doing their stupid fundraisers, I think they used to play with cashier scheduling like that. The "problem" they ran into with me was SCO needed someone babysitting no matter what and manglement knew I was the onlymost competent part timer they had for that so couldn't mess with my schedule there...asking for donations on SCO--yes, they wanted me to ask every customer that I went over to help--was stupid so I never did it.

[MadMike]

Why can't upper management "get" this?

Because if they could "get" anything, they'd be too smart for upper management.

[Victorian Christmas Tree]

I worked at King Soopers and we had barrels for school supplies and information at the registers and we did not have to force the customers to donate. Our store manager was the one that told us don't force the customer into donating.

[Pixelated]

"I'm sure you can do it if you just try!"

That's definitely implied at my store, with whatever loopy "push" upper management is currently pushing ("Gadget Bundle" is THE prime example of that). Store manager does acknowledge that we are doing all we can and that just MAAAYBE upper management's expectations are unrealistic ... but of course we are still stuck with it.

Because if they could "get" anything, they'd be too smart for upper management.

You got that right!

I worked at King Soopers and we had barrels for school supplies and information at the registers and we did not have to force the customers to donate. Our store manager was the one that told us don't force the customer into donating.

That is absolutely the best way to collect money or anything. And I love your screen name.

[Arcus]

If I saw the checkers doing this every time, there is no way I would donate. I don't like people making a big deal out of my donation. That's a very personal thing and I don't want people looking at me for doing it.

Thanks for the warning they are doing this. I wont be going there until after they stop doing it.

[greek_jester]

Thanks for the warning they are doing this. I wont be going there until after they stop doing it.

Write to head office and let you know exactly why you're shopping elsewhere. It may bring this insanity to an early close if they get enough complaints.

[Dreamstalker]

One of the shift managers at my old store went rogue and did a BTS supply donation thing....without getting approval from or telling anyone. This was while we were running the summer cancer foundation fundraiser...never are two such events scheduled at the same time.

She just had baskets at each register with an assortment of semi-random snacks and stuff from our office-supply aisle, and wanted us to ask customers if they wanted to buy an item and donate it to "local schools". There was no central collection bin like there always is for food drives, etc. and she didn't explain what cashiers were to do with the items once 'purchased' (no way to keep track of anything). I think it lasted a week before either SM or ASM shut it down on my information--neither of them knew what she was doing--and that was when she started getting catty, playing with my schedule even though she has no scheduling powers, etc. I took that as confirmation of guilt--she was up to something and got mad that I put the brakes on it.

[Trixie]

For our last fund raising effort in May they gave us cow bells (yes, cow bells) to ring every time a customer bought a charity thing. It wasn't as annoying as it could've been since we only had three and mostly left it up to the customer if they wanted to do it. I didn't push it because I hate pushing anything but I really didn't support the cause because it seemed as if most of the money wasn't even going to charity. That's all I'll say before I go off on a rant.

[Teefies2]

For our last fund raising effort in May they gave us cow bells (yes, cow bells) to ring every time a customer bought a charity thing. It wasn't as annoying as it could've been since we only had three and mostly left it up to the customer if they wanted to do it. I didn't push it because I hate pushing anything but I really didn't support the cause because it seemed as if most of the money wasn't even going to charity. That's all I'll say before I go off on a rant.

Amen Trixie, Amen! We work for the same company