Shout Out To America's Retail Workers

[JFN1]

How about a shout out for the normally disregarded retail worker?

The men and women who stock the shelves, ring up the purchases, put up with customer rudeness, anger, etc., and work ungodly hours and days, are so often unappreciated, and for certain, underpaid.

Hours on their feet, little or no health care, stessed, working holidays, nights, weekends - these folks deserve so much more than they receive from their employers and customers, considering what they put up with, especially this time of year.

How about a little DU love for America's retail workers?

THANK YOU!!!

[Arctic Dave]

1. K&R

Overworked and under appreciated.

[safeinOhio]

4. over worked and underpaid, but my

customers love me. Well, at least about 9 out of 10. I work from 10 at night until 6 in the morning. Of the 10 people that walk in with a frown, 9 of them leave with a smile. The store across the street sell the exact same thing and their lot is always empty and mine is always busy. I don't like the pay, but love the people.
Now, if I could just get a union in there.

[Arctic Dave]

13. Ask your customers to put a bug in managements ear.

Pay you more or they will stop shopping there. ;)

[DRoseDARs]

29. It's always been my experience that the nightowls are nicer people...

Now whether that's due to their midnight sunny disposition or just their lack of wanting social interaction so late at night, I'll leave that to others to answer for themselves.

[Name removed]

20. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Skittles]

2. a critical part of the 99%

YES INDEED

[AnnieBW]

3. Hell yeah!

Remember, be kind to retail workers this Holiday season.

[lonestarnot]

5. K & R!

[snacker]

6. Yes!!!!

Thank you.

[treestar]

7. K&R

[CBHagman]

8. Yes, yes, yes.

Thank you to the retail workers, especially those who really know the meaning of customer service, to those who keep their tempers in check in the face of people who treat the merchandise like their personal property when they've no intention of paying for it, to those who perform exhausting work and are taken for granted.

:loveya:

[abq e streeter]

9. Absolutely....K&R

[OhioChick]

10. Rec n/t

[nevergiveup]

11. Amen to that.....K&R

[Marie Marie]

12. And, an especially big shout out to those who had no choice

but to give up their Thanksgiving holiday with their families for the benefit of the Big Box Hustlers. Really, theses stores couldn't have held their massive sales 1 day later?

[Patiod]

16. Conservative "family values" in action (nt)

[sce56]

26. +100

[Warpy]

14. Been there, done that and always go out of my way to be extra nice to them

because the general public mostly sucks and the jobs pay shit wages.

[Pacifist Patriot]

19. Same here

Eight years of it. I still have nightmares on occasion that I am back to working in a store.

[tilsammans]

39. You too?

I also occasionally have nightmares about working in retail again, after 30+ years. :scared:

I would not want to work in today's retail environment. I dealt with my share of nasty people back in the day, but now nastiness seems to be the New Normal.

[Sherman A1]

15. Thank You Kindly

as a 38 year veteran of Retail Grocery (and just survived yet another Thanksgiving) your thoughts are much appreciated. :hi:

[unapatriciated]

30. Same here- Retail Grocery twenty years.

I used to work all holidays when I was at Safeway. My new employer closes on Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years Day.
The holiday season is very stressful for retail workers, long hours and unhappy customers.

[Sherman A1]

41. Yes, it's a tough time of year in grocery

but we made it through. My world (the backroom) gets better from this point forward (just need to wade through the endless number of shippers & hopefully Pepsi will get under control by the end of next week). Once Thanksgiving (THE major food holiday of the year) it slowly starts to improve and we start to see daylight. However, with the do more and more with less and less mantra I suspect it will take longer than it has in the past.

Hat's off to a fellow Grocery Worker!!!!!


:hi: :woohoo: :applause: :donut: (I just like the donut thing)

[harmonicon]

17. I used to carry around candy-canes to hand to cashiers...

at this time of year. I suggest it for good spirits and good fun. It's nice to be nice.

[Pacifist Patriot]

18. That's a really nice gesture.

[coalition_unwilling]

22. That is a cool suggestion. I'm going to implement immediately. Thanks - n/t

[BrendaBrick]

32. Me too.

Great idea. A little simple kindness and understanding gesture still go a long way even though its not something you'll ever hear about in the "Hard-Hitting" local news....it STILL MATTERS ALL THE SAME!!!!!

To be sure ~

I so hate how these simple, little gestures never get the recognition that they so deserve almost relegating us to the point of...why bother?

shrug?

Right?

But here is the thing...they DO matter! These very simple acts. May not be plastered on the front page news...but it makes a difference none the less...and I guess and would reckon that this is really the most important thing to keep in mind! Collectively!!!!

Our seemingly simple random acts of kindness may not make the headlines but these actions take nothing away from the very important impact that it has on our fellow human beings.....

I for one resisted suicide one day from the simple act of a smile and fleeting direct eye contact a stranger decided to give me in the grocery store.

That simple, one act.

A fleeting 2 seconds, really. Gave me enough courage to not end my life.

Imagine THAT?????

We never know how just one simple act of kindness can affect/effect (I never can tell the difference?) someone. Some fellow human being. Yet. The fact remains. It does....and that it should in no way ever be minimized just because... ya can't see the results.

Random acts of kindness....TRULY MATTER!!!!!!

And Hey! Can you JUST IMAGINE ALL OF THIS GOOD STUFF HAPPENING ALL AROUND THE WORLD IN ANY GIVEN SECOND????

Yeah. Good stuff happening too. So like - it is really good to be really informed and cynical...practical even - but by the same token - never, EVER forget or dismiss all of the other GOOD STUFF that is actually taking place as well.

...is all I'm sayin' ~

[jwirr]

21. K&R

[NikolaC]

23. K&R

[Starry Messenger]

24. k&r

[wryter2000]

25. K&R

They're probably all working right now, but I hope they find this when the finally get home.

:yourock:

[yellerpup]

27. Lots of love coming your way!

:loveya:

[Enthusiast]

28. Kicked and recommended!

Hell yeah!

[sandyj999]

31. Yes congratulations are way overdue.

This is coming from someone that worked at Target for ten years and I understand all of it. Customers (or rather "guests") put pressure on themselves to get certain items and then take it out on the employee if they can't get it. Every rude customer should work one Black Friday to get a kinder, gentler attitude toward retail workers.

[offog]

34. Right on!

About ten years ago, when the economy was doing well in Canada, I read a disturbing article in my local business pages. (I like to read the business pages to keep up with what conservatives are thinking.)

In this article, retailers were complaining about their troubles with high staff turnover. Instead of deciding to treat and pay people better, they decided that the solution was to do a better job of screening job applicants - i.e. look for stable work histories. This bothered the hell out of me for two reasons. First, It's the implication that retail employees don't deserve better pay and treatment. Secondly, screening applicants for stable work history freezes out marginalized people who for whatever reason weren't able to build a stable work history, such as mothers, especially single mothers.

[totodeinhere]

33. Yes, they are working while the rest of us are enjoying a long holiday weekend. n/t

[UrbScotty]

35. I'm one of them. I got a seasonal job with a large retail chain.

It's certainly not my dream job, for the reasons you mentioned. But it's better than nothing.

[dballance]

36. YES! What a great idea. We love you retail workers!

I try to always be polite and I usually want to rip the face off assholes in line in front of me. I worked retail when I was in college so I know how it goes.

[susanthaney]

37. DU Love for America's retail workers

Thank you so much. I went out shopping early this morning (1:00 AM, my first Black Friday shopping trip EVER, like in my 49 year life!) in order to do my part to help support the struggling US economy (see www.occupyblackfriday.info for information on the organized Occupy campaign to encourage constructive activism through shopping on Black Friday). I was pleasantly surprised at how much fun I had, how much money I saved, and how much joyful spirit of community I encountered at this annual ritual that -- up until today -- I had always avoided due to the stories of crowds, greed, aggression, and mindless consumerism. As it turned out, I did most of my Christmas shopping and had a great time doing it. The retail workers were having fun too! Who knew? (Actually, my sister and her daughter knew, and when I called them at the mall in their city from the mall in my town to report my whereabouts, they chuckled knowingly). Anyhow, THANK YOU RETAIL WORKERS for hosting such a marvelous event year after year!

[Better Believe It]

38. You got it. And stop picking on and harassing working class shoppers who are trying to cut expenses.

The 1% don't shop at Target and Wal-Mart.

They don't sell yachts.

[The Straight Story]

40. I'll drink, err kick, to that!

:)