Archived Unfair

[Doglover89]

So the new schedule I'm down for 5 nights closing. HR said I am needed and that is it. All these shifts are not in my primary workcenter. Therefore I guess I'm just given the shifts no one else can fill. Availability change request was denied. I don't know what else to do.

 

[Hardlinesmaster]

Talk to your etl.

 

[jadzia]

"Needs of the business."

 

[The Dude Abides]

Target isn't fair. Sounds to me like you pissed off your HR.

 

[Doglover89]

Talk to your etl.

I don't have one.

 

[Doglover89]

Target isn't fair. Sounds to me like you pissed off your HR.

She is new to our store and doesn't seem to have a problem with me- yet.

 

[Hardlinesmaster]

I don't have one.

Talk to your tl for help.

 

[Retail Girl]

When I had that problem, I started with my TL. He went to bat with for me and got me down to four nights a week. Seriously. Then, I casually mentioned the issue to my STL. He was horrified that that was happening to a TM with open availability who didn't want all those closings. It took a couple of weeks, but they finally started spreading the shifts around. Those used to all of the opening shifts weren't necessarily thrilled, but it was at least more equal.

 

[Apapaia]

Sounds like they are short staffed and are using you to fulfill the business needs. I'd say come up with a more reasonable availability change and discuss if there's any chance to train someone else so that not all the closings would fall on you. Try to be part of the solution by proposing to train whomever they would like to work in your place

 

[Kaitii]

How is literally everyone but me getting closing shifts out the ass I'm still incredibly jealous

 

[Firefox]

How is literally everyone but me getting closing shifts out the ass I'm still incredibly jealous

Why? Closing shifts are the worst.

Opening shifts go by faster, less guest interaction, less backup requests for the salesfloor team until the end of your shifts, don't have to stay until an ungodly hour, and you don't have to feel extremely pressured at the end of your shift to get everything done like you do on a closing shift.

 

[Kaitii]

Why? Closing shifts are the worst.

Opening shifts go by faster, less guest interaction, less backup requests for the salesfloor team until the end of your shifts, don't have to stay until an ungodly hour, and you don't have to feel extremely pressured at the end of your shift to get everything done like you do on a closing shift.

Au contraire, closing shifts are the best for me.

Opening shifts go by painfully slow for me. I am absolutely the worst kind of person in the morning, no matter how much sleep I get. Our mornings tend to be the busy time, parents stopping by to shop after taking their kids to school, old people who wake up at the asscrack of dawn, and just other weird morning people. Since I'm electronics now, backup requests aren't a concern for me now. They've asked me to come up but I can reject them because if that call button goes off, that's my responsibility. Ungodly hour? 11:30 is an absolutely perfect time for me to get out of work. I'm naturally active at night. I go to bed at 4-5am, later, if possible. Waking up at 1pm+ is the best thing for me. Also my gf is in Australia which means if I wanna talk to her ever at all, it'll be at night or her mornings and we're both absolutely not morning people so I ain't gonna do that to her. I've also never felt that pressure to get everything done. The other electronics guy feels that way about toys, but me? Zoning is my strongest point and I pretty much always finish.

tl;dr for me in particular, closing shifts work out the best

 

[redeye58]

Ah, so you're a creature of the night
My dh is the same whereas I'm up with the chickens.
Don't ask how we managed to have children.

 

[Kaitii]

Night time is just so refreshing :'3 It's a shame my parents don't share the same enthusiasm as me. They want me to clean my room. But apparently not at 3am when I feel like cleaning my room pffft

The stork brought your children, obviously!

 

[60SecondsRemaining]

So the new schedule I'm down for 5 nights closing. HR said I am needed and that is it. All these shifts are not in my primary workcenter. Therefore I guess I'm just given the shifts no one else can fill. Availability change request was denied. I don't know what else to do.

Are you available to close and trained in the workcenter you are scheduled?

If so, that isn't unfair. There are plenty of unfair things that happen at target (close your eyes and click a thread here) but this would not fall under that. I would have denied your availability change as well if it wasn't reasonable.

Granted they could have given you a heads up and not been shitty leaders, but that doesn't make it unfair. Would you prefer they schedule someone else who doesn't have closing availability and tell them they have to work it anyway? That seems unfair.

 

[Doglover89]

When I had that problem, I started with my TL. He went to bat with for me and got me down to four nights a week. Seriously. Then, I casually mentioned the issue to my STL. He was horrified that that was happening to a TM with open availability who didn't want all those closings.

I spoke to my TL who just kinda shrugged when I told her. My next step is to go to my STL if HR refuses to resolve this situation.

 

[Doglover89]

Sounds like they are short staffed and are using you to fulfill the business needs. I'd say come up with a more reasonable availability change and discuss if there's any chance to train someone else so that not all the closings would fall on you. Try to be part of the solution by proposing to train whomever they would like to work in your place

I thought my availability request was reasonable. Basically I'm willing to close 3 nights, 4 if necessary and I think that's good enough.. The idea of training someone doesn't thrill me, first I don't think it should be my job and and im just not good at teaching other people things but id do it if I had to. Problem is we're talking about operator shifts and management doesn't want just anyone doing that job.

 

[Doglover89]

, have to stay until an ungodly hour, and you don't have to feel extremely pressured at the end of your shift to get everything done like you do on a closing shift.

This. Being at the store as late as after 2am is difficult on me physically and on my family who work daytime jobs.

 

[Doglover89]

Granted they could have given you a heads up and not been shitty leaders, but that doesn't make it unfair. Would you prefer they schedule someone else who doesn't have closing availability and tell them they have to work it anyway? That seems unfair.

No, I'm not saying a person should be scheduled outside his/her availability. I'm saying all TMs who are available should share the closing shifts as equally as possible. And since I have been with my store longer than most people in this workcenter, a little courtesy from leadership is all I'm asking for.

 

[RedMan]

Ah, so you're a creature of the night
My dh is the same whereas I'm up with the chickens.
Don't ask how we managed to have children.

It only takes a minute or two.

 

[Coqui]

I'm probably the only TL that loves to close even if it's a busy night. Plus I like spreading myself into different shifts so I always see my TMs.

 

[Doglover89]

AGAIN I'm only being scheduled to close. I have OPEN availability. Everyone else gets a mix of shifts; 3 closes, 2 opens or 2 of each, etc. This isn't even my workcenter. I'm regretting ever getting cross-trained. HR will not let me go to back to what I got hired for. I tried to talk to the TL and she pretty much just smiled like "yeah that sucks." Most of my store is afraid of the ETL, and she intimidates the hell out of me but I figure my next step has to be to go to her. If she won't help, I'm considering just leaving at this point. Transferring isn't even an option cause it just isn't done in my district from what I've heard.

 

[Jemx]

I'm probably the only TL that loves to close even if it's a busy night. Plus I like spreading myself into different shifts so I always see my TMs.

I'm a TL and I close almost all the time by choice. I may have one opening shift every couple of months, and even that is too much for me. I don't like being there during the day - too many people from too many workcenters and inevitably people will ask me to do things I don't want to do. Also, I work at an ULV store and am either scheduled as LOD or as sales floor, so it's easier to get things accomplished at night when there are fewer leaders around.

 

[squirrely]

I love closing as well. Like @Jemx, I'm either LOD or salesfloor, but it's just nice to be there when there's less people.