Target raised wages. But some workers say their hours were cut, leaving them struggling

[This_person]

They need to pay more just to get people to work there.

This is a good thing. It means there are so few workers out there (because EVERYONE has a job, a good job, record low sustained unemployment) that they have to jack wages up or go to high school kids (like when WE were in high school) to fill the jobs.

If anyone wants a job, there's at least one or two out there waiting. This is a GOOD thing.

But, Target shareholders would like to continue making money. So, they work the people they have a bit harder. That's not exactly a new thing.

 

[officeguy]

Now, if they offered, say, a discount of 2% - 5%, for people to use self-checkouts, that would be an appropriate level of compensation for one's time and work for essentially doing the work of the corporation for the limited time taken to self-checkout.

Profit margin of a grocery store is 1-3%. Giving 2-5% discount for self-checkout would be nuts.

Self checkout used to be a pain when they had the integrated scale and would refuse to handle half of the merchandise. The new target checkouts with the hands scanner save me a ton of time. All I do is take the items out of the cart, scan and drop into a bag. No need to deal with a nasty belt or the items the customer in front of you piled up.

 

[officeguy]

Sooner or later, there will be rfid chips in all the grocery labels. You wheel the cart through a portal and it charges your paypal account.

 

[limblips]

If I may ...


The benefit is not yours. The benefit, (reducing employee numbers, and associated costs), is solely for the corporation. Your use is an ancillary, propaganda infused, perceived benefit, from their installation. In essence, you are working for the corporation by ringing up, cashiering, and bagging your cart full of stuff. So while your "time has value", you are giving to the corporation your, precious time, for free. Now, if they offered, say, a discount of 2% - 5%, for people to use self-checkouts, that would be an appropriate level of compensation for one's time and work for essentially doing the work of the corporation for the limited time taken to self-checkout.

Wrong. If I get out of the store quicker by using self-checkout, I am saving my time. There is no benefit to the corporation by me leaving quicker. I have 2 choices. Wait in line for X minutes to get served or serve myself in X - Y minutes. Did the corporation pay me cash for checking myself out? Nope, but they didn't pay me for standing in line either.

Say my time is worth 50 cents/minute and I wait in line for 5 minutes that equals $2.50. Now what if I self-checkout in 3 minutes? That would be $1.50 in my time value. $2.50 minus $1.50 = $1.00.

You are also assuming that there is no savings passed on to the consumer by reduced labor costs for the store. Maybe, maybe not, but in the retail markets profit margin is small so most will stick very closely to the prevailing costs of their competitors. To beat their competitors it behooves them to lower the prices by a few pennies if they can make it up in reduced labor costs.

 

[RoseRed]

Easier to wait my turn at the kiosk and get the hell out of there.

I'm with you. I had to go to Target for 1 item and Lowe's for 2 on Saturday. I had to go back to Lowe's yesterday for 3 items. I do NOT want to wait in line for so few items. Self check-out is the way to go. If I have more, I will wait in line.

 

[limblips]

Sooner or later, there will be rfid chips in all the grocery labels. You wheel the cart through a portal and it charges your paypal account.

Sam's Club lets you scan things on your phone as you shop. It keeps a running total and when you are done you simply pay by your phone and off you go. No checkout needed.

 

[vraiblonde]

Ultimately, this will be the whole problem. When there are no more cashiers, there will still be lines. Only the line you used to get into to ring yourself up, will be like all the other lines with cashiers today. It's like everything else-slow and steady wins the game. In this case, their game of hiring and insuring fewer employees. It seems nice now, but when everybody else is in that line, it won't seem to nice then.

By the everything will be ordered online and delivered.

 

[Auntie Biache']

By the everything will be ordered online and delivered.

and you'll still be waiting for it.

 

[nutz]

I see the self-checkout as a huge customer service upgrade. You claim I am ringing up and bagging my purchases for free, not so because my time has value. I always use self-checkout when available because I save that time. There is also the added benefit of not having to put up with the many aggravating things that occur in checkout lines.

Here's a question for you. Do use a self-serve gas pump? There was a time when a lot of people made money pumping gas, washing windshields and checking oil.

I try my best to avoid large retail stores. I use the internet and my ups person whenever possible. My local hardware store does not have self-checkout.
Where I primarily get fuel, they do have an attendant. When I’m on the road, I usually have to pump my own because that service has primarily gone away. Just as hard finding a mechanic because the service station has been replaced by gas-n-go.
Your ideal of saving you time does not necessarily fit with everyone’s else’s ideal of what is worth spending time on.

 

[GURPS]

Don’t you think that may be part of the problem? What incentive does Target (or other retail) have to focus on customer service when you are happy to ring up and bag your own purchases for free?

NO who wants to deal with some ignorant min wage flunky, who doesn't really wan to be there

drone: n.
Ignorant sales or customer service personnel in computer or electronics superstores. Characterized by a lack of even superficial knowledge about the products they sell, yet possessed of the conviction that they are more competent than their hacker customers. Usage: “That video board probably sucks, it was recommended by a drone at Fry's” In the year 2000, their natural habitats include Fry's Electronics, Best Buy, and CompUSA.

 

[Hijinx]

Different strokes for different folks.
I go to the cashier.

 

[GWguy]

Say my time is worth 50 cents/minute and I wait in line for 5 minutes that equals $2.50. Now what if I self-checkout in 3 minutes? That would be $1.50 in my time value. $2.50 minus $1.50 = $1.00.

Honestly, if it comes down to worrying about minuscule dollar amounts and justifying it as "wasted time", my gawd, stay the hell home, order online and use the delivery service.

I use self check not only because I get in and out faster, but I have a chance to realize when something doesn't ring up right. With a cashier, it's scanned and bagged before you can even review the monitor. If it's questionable, the cashier has to dig it out of the bag, make adjustment, rescan it, all while watching the look of disdain on their face. I also get to bag things the way I want, so the eggs never get packed underneath the 2 liter bottle of soda.

 

[frequentflier]

When you go to a locally owned store, the cashiers know their stuff and can answer questions and help you with your purchase. Home Depot and Lowes and a few others are still like that; Target and Walmart not so much. The cashier may know what aisle something's in, but if you ask them what you need for your dog's scratching or what else you need for your plumbing repair they are clueless.

I'ma plug Pepper's Pet Pantry as an example:

Every single person working in that store, from MB down to her new counter person, can help you and answer your questions. And if for some reason they can't, someone who can is right there next to them. No, "Hang on, let me get my manager..." (who takes forever to sludge themselves to the register and 9 times out of 10 doesn't know either). When I go into Pepper's and say, "Here's my problem..." I have gotten a great solution each and every time.

The ONLY thing Target cashiers know how to do is ring up your purchase, and I don't need them for that.

Thanks, DeeJay. I know we are not everyone's cup of tea and online shopping is winning out but we will keep doing our best until the day I close the doors for good.

 

[frequentflier]

Different strokes for different folks.
I go to the cashier.

I have not nor will I ever willingly do self check out.

 

[vraiblonde]

Thanks, DeeJay. I know we are not everyone's cup of tea and online shopping is winning out but we will keep doing our best until the day I close the doors for good.

Big tech is killing small businesses all over America. And people will be like, "Hey, what ever happened to (small local business)?" while they use some faceless internet company for their goods and services.

 

[GURPS]

Meh ... in the1950's A&P was the Wal-Mart if its time

 

[LightRoasted]

If I may ...

Profit margin of a grocery store is 1-3%. Giving 2-5% discount for self-checkout would be nuts.

Self checkout used to be a pain when they had the integrated scale and would refuse to handle half of the merchandise. The new target checkouts with the hands scanner save me a ton of time. All I do is take the items out of the cart, scan and drop into a bag. No need to deal with a nasty belt or the items the customer in front of you piled up.

Really? Are you serious? Margins of 1-3% in grocery stores? Even on Shark Tank, which must be believed because it's on television, shows us that many grocery items have at least a 25% margin on most items, if not more. If what you say is true, then what is the point of operating a grocery store if there is essentially no profit in the concern? One little blip in operations could spell bankruptcy, or shutter the operation forever completely. I call uninformed BS hyperbole on this one. However, if you want to be the buyer, and essentially seller, in a transaction by ringing up and, paying for, the merchandise, and not be paid for your effort, happy shopping.

 

[officeguy]

Even on Shark Tank, which must be believed because it's on television, shows us that many grocery items have at least a 25% margin on most items, if not more.

Single items may have that kind of margin. The store overall, after real estate personnel etc. is in the low single digits.

If what you say is true, then what is the point of operating a grocery store if there is essentially no profit in the concern? One little blip in operations could spell bankruptcy, or shutter the operation forever completely.

You may have noticed that indeed, a number of grocery and department store chains have gone out of business. Grocery works because it's a steady demand and a fairly predictable margin, but that margin is slim.

I call uninformed BS hyperbole on this one.

You may want to inform yourself before you spout off. Otherwise you may sound ignorant.

 

[nutz]

If I may ...


Really? Are you serious? Margins of 1-3% in grocery stores? Even on Shark Tank, which must be believed because it's on television, shows us that many grocery items have at least a 25% margin on most items, if not more. If what you say is true, then what is the point of operating a grocery store if there is essentially no profit in the concern? One little blip in operations could spell bankruptcy, or shutter the operation forever completely. I call uninformed BS hyperbole on this one. However, if you want to be the buyer, and essentially seller, in a transaction by ringing up and, paying for, the merchandise, and not be paid for your effort, happy shopping.

“Gross profit margin increased to 27.9% during fiscal 2018 compared to 27.3% during fiscal 2017.” https://www.globenewswire.com/news-...rts-Fourth-Quarter-and-Full-Year-Results.html

 

[limblips]

“Gross profit margin increased to 27.9% during fiscal 2018 compared to 27.3% during fiscal 2017.” https://www.globenewswire.com/news-...rts-Fourth-Quarter-and-Full-Year-Results.html

Your quote is for gross. I assume you know what that means? Big difference between gross and net. Do your taxes based on gross income and then do them based on adjusted net income to get a picture of gross vs net.

What Is the Profit Margin for a Supermarket?

Although Americans spend about 10 percent of their income on food, supermarkets and grocery stores don't make much off of each customer's bill. However, some items in a supermarket can have a huge margin. Overall, competition is so stiff that many supermarkets employ marketing gimmicks to...

smallbusiness.chron.com

A snip: Supermarkets are often cited as among the types of businesses with the lowest profit margins. It's true. Grocery store profit margins typically range from 1 percent to 3 percent, depending on the items. Grocery stores make their money on volume. They may not make much on any one item, but it's the rare shopper who only buys one item.