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Target workers fight back against having to go in Thanksgiving night

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  • #46
    My company never used to have any Black Friday specials; we got extra traffic just because everyone was already out. This year they are doing a special edition ereader at a special price, plus special BF coupons and stuff. Glad I don't work in the stores anymore.
    I don't go in for ancient wisdom
    I don't believe just 'cause ideas are tenacious
    It means that they're worthy - Tim Minchin, "White Wine in the Sun"

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    • #47
      If I didn't have to work Black Friday, I'd spend it curled in a comfortable armchair with a cuddly cat, a cup of tea and a good book or movie. Maybe make some cookies. Forget shopping until things calm down.
      I don't have an attitude problem. You have a perception problem.
      My LiveJournal
      A page we can all agree with!

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      • #48
        Quoth firecat88 View Post
        I have never done Black Friday shopping. Nor do I plan to do so ever. I like my sleep and I hate crowds.
        I'm usually working early on Black Friday (scheduled tomorrow 7-3:30) so it's another reason for me NOT to shop that day.

        Luckily, I work in a grocery store and that day is probably the slowest we have all year.

        Aside from the fact that the mere thought of crowds aggravates my "anger management" issue.
        Human Resources - the adult version of "I'm telling Mom." - Agent Anthony "Tony" DiNozzo (NCIS)

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        • #49
          well i'm awake now. bf and i had a small thanksgiving. forgot to make some of the things i like such as sweet potatoes with marshmallows and stuffing. but we don't have much room in the fridge as it is so maybe that's not so bad.

          had dinner, watched nemo with him (just keep swimming just keep swimming!) and then we napped on the giant beanbag couch. set my alarm for 8 but woke up at 745. dont have to be out the door for a couple of hours though so i can rest a little, get some water and coffee.... water because of the ham and coffee because I'm going to be up all night.

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          • #50
            I've seen (forget where) the manager's response to this: "Employee told us that due to commitments at their other job, they weren't available for midnight opening. They were never scheduled to open at midnight", and I call B.S. on that.

            What a retail manager would tell the employee in such a case is "WE are your primary employer - your other employer needs to fit in around your schedule HERE. You need to decide what your priorities are." Never mind that the other employer pays more per hour, gives more hours per week, and has benefits.
            Any fool can piss on the floor. It takes a talented SC to shit on the ceiling.

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            • #51
              I just moved back to the U.S. after several years of living abroad, and this is my first Thanksgiving in five years. I cannot believe how much has changed! Black Friday used to be just a term for the busy shopping day following Thanksgiving. Now it's threatening to take over Thanksgiving and no one seems to care.

              Yesterday my brother was talking about all the great sales he was going to hit that night as he scrolled through his kids wish list (Toys R Us actually has a gift registry). You'd think he was going to a rock concert by the excitement in his voice. When I told him he was crazy, he said the prices were too amazing to pass up. Well, guess what? It's now Friday night, and I'm seeing commercials for Toys R Us, Target, etc, and they're offer those same "amazing prices" THROUGH SATURDAY.

              There is absolutely NO reason these stores have to cut into everyone's holiday, no matter what B.S. the retailers or the media try to feed you. What appalls me most of all is everyone's attitude; they either see nothing wrong with it, or shrug their shoulders and say that's just the way it is. Again, I call bullshit.

              As you can tell, I feel pretty strongly about this. So much so I that I actually wrote a rant on Craigslist, which I've also posted below. Warning: I drop a few f-bombs, but I've kept it pretty civil overall. If you agree with what you read, please pass it on. Let's take back Thanksgiving!


              What the FUCK Happened to Thanksgiving??

              I just moved back to the U.S.A. after several years of living in Japan, and will be home for Thanksgiving for the first time in five years. In case you’re wondering the Japanese don’t celebrate Thanksgiving, and as near as I can tell, neither do Americans anymore. History has taught us that nothing that begins with the word “black” can possibly be good, and just like a certain plague that killed half of Europe, Black Friday is killing Thanksgiving.

              Seriously, what the FUCK happened? Retailers are opening at 12am, 10pm, or 9pm on Thanksgiving night. A few stores are open all day on Thanksgiving. For weeks we’ve been fed an endless stream of Black Friday advertisements, radio spots, and TV commercials featuring some blonde moron having spontaneous orgasms over a sales flyer, all telling us that we’re invited to the biggest most awesome party of the year as soon as we get that annoying family thing out of the way. Black Friday has been taken to such high levels of crazy that it’s practically replaced Thanksgiving as a national holiday, and if this trend continues they’ll be nothing “practically” about it.

              Way back in simpler times (the early 2000s) most stores were CLOSED on Thanksgiving, Black Friday began at 6am the next day, and everybody was just fine with that. But then one day in some executive boardroom where the monthly booze-and-hooker meeting was taking place, a bunch of executives hatched a plan…

              EXEC #1: Y’know guys, Black Friday is coming up. What if instead of opening at 6am, we open the doors at 12am?

              EXEC #2: Great idea! But why stop at 12am? Why not 6pm?

              CEO: 6pm Thursday night? Do you really think we can convince people to run out and shop right after they finish Thanksgiving dinner?

              EXEC #2: Sure we can! We’ll just have to build up to it. This year we announce that we’ll open at midnight, and bombard the public with a really loud, relentless campaign that convinces everyone that if they miss our amazing deals of a lifetime they’ll be stuck buying lousy gifts and their families will hate them and blame them for ruining Christmas. Then next year we’ll do the same thing, only we’ll open at 11pm. The year after that we move the opening to 10pm, and so on.

              CEO: Okay, but still…6pm? And won’t people start to notice that these “amazing deals of a lifetime” really aren’t any better than the sales we have all year round, and will continue to have up until Christmas?

              EXEC #2: They never have before, so I doubt they’ll start anytime soon. Besides, by the time we start opening at 6pm people will be so conditioned to shop on Thanksgiving Day that they’ll actually feel entitled to it, and raise holy hell if anyone tries to push it back to Friday.

              CEO: And you’re sure we’ll make lots of money?

              EXEC #1: Of course! It’s a simple equation. More hours equals more money! Besides, it’s not like we’ll be working that day.

              CEO: Let’s do it! Would you care for another scotch, Jim?

              EXEC #2: No thanks, I have to get going. I have to stop by the pet shop on the way home. Those puppies aren’t going to kick themselves.

              But as bad as Big Business is, what’s even worse is how willingly Americans buy into this whole line of bullshit. A man in Nebraska who works for a major retail chain realized just how fucking insane it was to start Black Friday the second Thanksgiving technically ended, so he’s petitioned the company to move the opening back to 5am. In the petition he states he has no problem with working a long shift on Black Friday; he just wants to be able to enjoy his Thanksgiving holiday like everyone else. All he and his fellow workers are asking for is five extra hours.

              I really admire the guy for speaking out; it was nice to see that some people can still separate Thanksgiving from Black Friday, and remember why it’s so important that we do. However, my faith in humanity was quickly soured again when I saw how many people attacked and belittled him. It’s been pissing me off for a few days now, to the point where I found myself muttering angrily in the supermarket, and I noticed a nervous mother steering her child away from me, so I figure I’d better get it off my chest.

              “Wah wahh, poor guy has to actually work for a living. If you don’t like it, quit! There are plenty of people out of work who’ll gladly take your job. Stop whining you loser! Wah wahhhh!! ” Since you seem to have to maturity of a ten year old, I’ll put this in terms a ten year old can understand. Say another kid offers you money to eat whatever he tells you to. At first he says, “Eat broccoli.” Then “eat dog food.” Then “eat bugs.” Then “eat my shit with a piss chaser.” You feel this has gone too far, but still offer to eat his shit minus the piss chaser, and he replies, “NO! You have to eat my shit AND drink my piss! I pay you so you have to do what I say!”

              Having a job doesn’t mean the people who pay you have the right to treat you however the fuck they want. If it did, you wouldn’t have such things like minimum wage and worker’s comp. There’s only so much shit you can eat before you have to draw the line, because if you drink that piss chaser, that other kid will realize that he owns your ass for life. From that point on all you have to look forward to is being slowly beaten down until you become so jaded that you don’t think you deserve anything apart from what is dumped on you, and resent those who do.

              “When you take a job in retail, you should expect to work on Thanksgiving." Got into a car accident? You should have expected that to happen when you decided to go driving. Your sister drowned? She should have expected that to happen when she went swimming. Little Johnny chocked on a peanut? He should have expected that to happen when he ate something. Retail workers can expect to work all kinds of crazy shifts, evenings and weekends all year round. This wouldn’t be an issue if Thanksgiving was just another day, but it’s not. It is not a privilege reserved for the people who can take a four-day weekend because they made the “right” choices in life. Thanksgiving is for ALL AMERICANS, regardless of race, religion, or income, to stop taking all the good things in their lives for granted and give thanks for them. And it’s just for one day. Why is that so much to ask?

              “Firefighters, nurses and police don’t get the holidays off, so why should you?” These are necessary services. Retail is not. It’s too bad that some nurses, firefighters, etc, have to work on Thanksgiving, but at least they can take some satisfaction in knowing that their presence could literally mean the difference between life and death. What does a retail worker take satisfaction in by giving up their holiday? Helping some stuck-up housewife find the perfect gift that says, “look what I got you, kids! Don’t you wish I was your mother instead of the bitch your father divorced to marry me?” Yeah, totally worth it.

              “Our troops overseas want to spend the holidays with their families too, but they’re not whining about it.” I’m sure our troops would be thrilled to know that they’re risking their lives so that people can go shopping instead spending time with their families on an American holiday that celebrates American values. Is attacking someone who wants a reasonable amount of time to observe this holiday instead of rushing through it because consumers just HAVE to have their Chinese-made crap in the middle of the night what passes for American values these days? Implying that the sacrifices of our troops are on the same level as the sacrifices of retail workers is an insult. It takes a special kind of prick to do this, so fuck you twice.

              “Big deal! I’ve worked in retail for years and I never get the holidays off. That’s just the way it is. STFU and do your job or quit!” I see you drank the piss chaser. I’m so sorry.

              I think people are angry with the Nebraska retail worker not because his request is unreasonable, but because he’s challenging the system. And it’s about damn time someone did. The system encourages greed and self-indulgence. It equates love and happiness with presents. It brainwashes people into thinking that the Black Friday is part of the “holiday experience” instead of a marketing gimmick while the day preceding it is becoming more and more irrelevant; things that should mean nothing now mean everything, and things that once meant something mean nothing.

              And the people who defend this system bitch about how Americans have no morals anymore. Unbelievable.

              People, the madness has got to stop, and we have to be the ones to stop it. I urge all of you who feel the way I do to boycott any store that opens earlier than 5am on Friday. And by boycott, I mean do not shop there for the ENTIRE day, since retailers will gage the success of their early opening based on how many people shop there from open to close; if we stop showing up at midnight, the stores will stop opening at midnight. Instead, use the time you were going to spend shopping to remind yourself what Thanksgiving is supposed to be about. Call a friend you haven’t talked to in awhile. Take the kids to the park. Bring some cookies to your local hospital or fire station and tell them how much you appreciate what they do. Write a Christmas card (or cards) to send to the servicemen overseas.

              Never forget, things can change if enough people take a stand.

              Finally, if you are one those clueless twats who simply have to run out and shop before the leftovers are even cold, let me offer you some advice: whatever you do, don’t tell the cashier how awful it is that they have to work on Thanksgiving. Remember that people like YOU are the reason people like THEM have to work. Go ahead and snap at them, cuss them out, and look at your watch and sigh impatiently while they are bagging your purchase, but don’t offer them any phony-baloney sympathy, or risk being beaten to death with the register drawer.

              To everyone else: HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

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              • #52
                Well back from my first Black Friday since 94....

                It was... I hate to say it but it wasn't entirely bad.


                I went to sleep after our simple dinner (ham, waldorf salad, julienne potatoes - forgot to make a lot of things I like but o well, there's always the rest of the month for that). I woke up at 745 PM and reset my alarm for 9pm but... ended up staying up. I rested a bit with my BF, had some coffee / hot chocolate and got ready.

                We left at 1045 (edit: 1015) and I was there by about quarter til 11. just before 11 they had me clock in and start prepping registers with gift cards, computer software, and stuff for various services we offer. They let the first customers in at about 1120 or so and they queued up for their stuff... and we were allowed to ring them up partially but couldn't hit "total" until the stroke of midnight.

                after that it was... busy. but i'd gotten good rest and was kinda excited. So when I had people come to my register - they had me ringing out a slower line since it was my first Black Friday in sooo long - I was chipper and bouncy when I greeted people with "Good morning!" and a smile.

                Time flowed fast and slow depending on the rush. When I had customers it went fast. When there was a lull and ... especially when it got closer to my first lunch... it was slower.

                The worst of it was my last two hours really. Then I started counting down the minutes. i had been moved off the register - it was slow enough we didn't need them all manned up - and was prepping computers for sale, mainly trying to look busy. one of the guys left early even.

                me, at times i wasn't sure if the money was worth it but sometimes i just don't like quitting. even though my feet were aching by then.


                but on the positive side my bf drove me to work and picked me up. then we went and did a little bit of shopping since we were already out. even chatted with a couple of cashiers about how tired we were. one of them didn't think anything of the idea of me getting up at quarter to 8 since she was up at 4... until she realized I meant 745PM and had been working for 12 and a half hours.

                came home, soaked, napped, got back up when my feet were feeling odd and soaked them in hot water with lots of epsom salts added. my feet felt better after that and then i went to bed around 10ish. so now it's saturday and i slept in until 8 - had some weird dreams... some about shopping and some about some demons and arch angels - and now i'm refreshed and ready to head out. well as soon as i finish posting here and drinking my coffee.
                Last edited by PepperElf; 11-27-2011, 04:30 PM. Reason: Changed "1045" to "1015" ... meh.

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                • #53
                  Abandon hope, all ye who work Thanksgiving night...

                  http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/...7AO1UD20111126

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                  • #54
                    Quoth Misty View Post
                    And the people who defend this system bitch about how Americans have no morals anymore. Unbelievable.
                    Excellent post, Misty! I agree totally. I've said it before: there is something fundamentally wrong with a society that encourages and rewards this kind of bad behavior.

                    I hope I can find a good 9-5 job somewhere and get out of retail permanently. I can't handle Black Friday anymore; the last one nearly drove me out of my mind. And my store is one of the milder ones; I have total sympathy for folks who work at Walmart, Target, etc.

                    This insanity needs to stop.
                    I don't have an attitude problem. You have a perception problem.
                    My LiveJournal
                    A page we can all agree with!

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                    • #55
                      It does. It really, truly does.

                      I read that page, too. The comments sickened me. Now I understand why I hate consumers so deeply.
                      Customers should always be served . . . to the nearest great white.

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                      • #56
                        If you want some reason for hope: thanksgiving at the swamp this year was death. Didn't even make 20 grand in sales when we were forecast to do over $45,000.

                        Of course corporate will just blame that on the Packers playing in the early Thanksgiving Day football game.
                        Knowledge is power. Power corrupts. Study hard. Be evil.

                        "I never said I wasn't a horrible person."--Me, almost daily

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                        • #57
                          Quoth KellyHabersham View Post
                          whomever is in charge of our public transit system has apparently decided to consider it a holiday, so the buses (not sure about the light rail system) run on the "holiday schedule".
                          Sounds like UTA, with their almost classist schedule on black friday... the bus service that the workers use ran a Sunday schedule... the light rail that everyone was only going to use as a park and ride ran on a weekday plus schedule (they were running EXTRA trains)... because, you know, the shoppers and football game attendees should never be made to wait, but the people working, fuck em, they don't matter, they'll wait for the Sunday schedule and be damned grateful we pretend they exist long enough to provide even that... then there is New Years, where the transit union decided sense New Years day landed on a Sunday and the majority of workers have that day off anyway that they needed to cancel all service on January 2nd also to make it "fair" to the drivers who would have had Sunday off anyway because getting paid for a day you normally don't work anyway isn't enough, you now need to fuck over 7 counties of commuters?

                          Quoth Kanalah View Post
                          I have some socialite-type friends that actually plan out "battle plans" and camp out at the stores they "need" to hit first. *sigh* They think I'm crazy for staying home and not "enjoying the spirit of the holidays"
                          I have friends who don't understand me not doing black friday also... I did small business saturday, one place gave me 25% off , another gave me 50% off, and neither had lines out the door or customers trying to kill each other... then today what I couldn't get at small businesses I'm getting at cyber monday sales that involve me sitting comfortably with my laptop clicking buttons to have someone else (getting paid damn well as I understand it from the people I know who work at Amazon and UPS) do the work for me (and at least with Amazon, depending on the warehouse, "work" may be waiting for a robot to bring you all the items and dump it in a box, tape it up, and slap on a shipping label).
                          why on earth with those two options available to me would I ever want to be out in the cold (and yes, it gets really fucking cold here) at 4:30 in the morning to fight massive crowds to get stuff?
                          If you wish to find meaning, listen to the music not the song

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