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‘I wake up ... from nightmares:’ Why Whole Foods workers are hating life
www.miamiherald.com ^ | February 05, 2018 12:16 PM | By Madeleine Marr

Posted on 02/05/2018 2:42:34 PM PST by Red Badger

You think your job is a grind?

Try working at Whole Foods, which is apparently a pretty tough place to clock in every day.

“I wake up in the middle of the night from nightmares,” an anonymous staffer told Business Insider, which spoke to 27 current and former workers. “The stress has created such a tense working environment. Seeing someone cry at work is becoming normal.”

Crying? There’s no crying in supermarkets!

Seriously: What’s the problem?

Seems the Austin, Texas-based chain, which was bought by Amazon last summer, has initiated a new inventory system called order to shelf (OTS) that is pretty hardcore — and breaking down morale. Amazon’s founder is Jeff Bezos, who went to high school in Miami-Dade.

Business Insider ✔ @businessinsider

'Seeing someone cry at work is becoming normal': Employees say@WholeFoods uses "scorecards" to punish employees for failing to comply with its inventory management system http://read.bi/2DT1Ob6

According to Supermarket News, OTS is when distributors and suppliers deliver small batches of product to retailers, which helps stores keep back-room inventory down and, of course, saves money.

When asked by the Miami Herald to comment on employee complaints, a spokeswoman did not specifically address the issue.

“Whole Foods is committed to providing the best selection of high quality products and in-stock for our customers,” Whole Foods’ Brooke Buchanan said Monday in an email.

To keep shelves fully stocked, staffers have to hustle more than ever. To add insult to injury, managers walk around conducting pop quizzes, doing spot checks and checking off scorecards to determine how quickly the shelves are replenished.

Kurt Eichenwald‏Verified account @kurteichenwald

After @Amazon took over @WholeFoods, my wife said the place seemed like a place of misery with frantic employees wrapped up in so much make-work that customer service was gone. Now we know why. We go to central market and regular grocery store now.

“Do all items on sales floor have accurate signage?” reads one of the myriad questions on the scorecard for a produce staffer.

“Are all displays that are not pulled down at night maintaining 75 percent holding power or greater throughout the day?”

Some shoppers at the Coral Gables Whole Foods reacted with surprise to hear the news that Amazon had acquired the popular grocery chain Friday, June 16, 2017. Shoppers all said how much they loved the shopping experience of Whole Foods, but some liked the idea of using Amazon online as a possible alternative to shopping and traffic. Miami Herald

A scorecard grade below 89.9 percent is considered failing and the employee may be subject to termination, not to mention humiliation.

“The fear of chastisement, punishment, and retribution is very real and pervasive,” another worker told the site, which adds that the harsh working environment has caused many people to quit.

Ironically, OTS may not even be helping the bottom line. Business Insider reports that many Whole Foods are experiencing food shortages because of it.



TOPICS: Agriculture; Business/Economy; Food; Gardening
KEYWORDS: districtofcolumbia; grocery; jeffbezos; washingtoncompost; washingtonpost; wholefoods
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To: Red Badger

And don’t forget the new cover sheets we are putting on the TPS reports!


21 posted on 02/05/2018 3:10:48 PM PST by Cecily
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To: faithhopecharity

Ding ding ding! We have a winner, no more calls...


22 posted on 02/05/2018 3:12:16 PM PST by tgusa (gun control: hitting center of mass)
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To: blueplum

We have a Whole Foods 365 in our neighborhood. Not sure what the difference is. Seems pretty laid back and calm in there. It’s tiny but clean and the employees seem sane and look pretty normal. I live in a very conservative area.


23 posted on 02/05/2018 3:14:48 PM PST by austinaero
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To: Red Badger

I have a libtard BIL who just quit his job at Ikea. Now, normally this would be a dream libtard job, what with their progressive crap and all. But, business is still business, and like every business in the 21st century, they have to constantly reinvent themselves and change, otherwise they go the way of Sears. He had some job in the warehouse he was OK with. Then they came along and told them everyone has to learn other jobs, and they would pay to train them to do it. So, what does he do? He quits. He doesn’t want to learn another job. He liked his old job and he wanted to keep doing just that one thing. I told him that from here on in, the only constant is change, and if he wants a job he has to be flexible, but that is just not in his DNA. I suspect this is what is going on at Whole Foods.


24 posted on 02/05/2018 3:14:59 PM PST by beef
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To: Paine in the Neck

Good point.


25 posted on 02/05/2018 3:15:45 PM PST by RushIsMyTeddyBear (Screw The NFL!!!!!! My family fought for the flag!)
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To: Vince Ferrer

Depends on your work ethic. Know a lady working in a Amazon warehouse on the floor here in Central Virginia. She does it all. She loves them and they love her. She’s driven and expects the same for those around her. She continues to get increases in pay and recognition.


26 posted on 02/05/2018 3:15:54 PM PST by Portcall24
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To: Red Badger

OTS is not a good system to employ into a regional and niche permeated market place. This isn’t Walmart/Target/normal local grocery chain.

Customers have different taste daily, especially with this specialty grocer.


27 posted on 02/05/2018 3:17:41 PM PST by rollo tomasi (Working hard to pay for deadbeats and corrupt politicians.)
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To: beef

I see some people are trashing Millennials. Just for the record, my BIL is 63. This is not just a Millennial problem.


28 posted on 02/05/2018 3:18:14 PM PST by beef
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To: Red Badger

The snowflake epidemic is obviously getting worse. ON NO!!!! Employees are expected to know and follow company policy? They are expected to do their job? ON NO!!!

Question - do they get paid to do their job? If so - then they need to shut up or find another job.


29 posted on 02/05/2018 3:19:08 PM PST by TheBattman (Voting for lesser evils still gets you evil...)
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To: albie

Re: liberals

The ones in Texas have both 30:06 and 30:07 signs posted; no open carry or conceal carry.

I told the manager that those signs made it a gun- free zone & it infringed on people’s 2nd amendment rights.

He said he felt safe even with ‘no guns allowed’.

I don’t shop there anymore.


30 posted on 02/05/2018 3:19:23 PM PST by WildHighlander57 ((WildHighlander57, returning after lurking since 2000)
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To: Vince Ferrer

A different article mentioned that the Order-to-shelf checklists were announced prior to the Amazon takeover. https://gizmodo.com/whole-foods-is-datafying-its-employees-to-death-1822636920


31 posted on 02/05/2018 3:22:37 PM PST by kaboom
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To: Joe 6-pack

“Snowflakes working for control freaks.
What could possibly go wrong?”

An employee union could solve the problem. Likely terminally...
Company of liberals eats self.


32 posted on 02/05/2018 3:30:59 PM PST by tcrlaf (They told me it could never happen in America. And then it did....)
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To: TheBattman

Whole Foods is not the same as your local grocer. They specialize in niche crap. Any sane customer would go to their local grocer and pay a lot less for everyday items, then go to Whole Foods to find items that are not available at your local grocer.

Inventory control for certain items (Especially produce) is essentially a nightmare with OTS in a company like Whole Foods because the demand for certain produce is highly volatile.

Hypocrite Benzos, Coimmunist by heart and for anybody else, “Capitalist” when it suits his carnal demands, should just stick with an A,B,C, analysis for a company like Whole Foods.

In before I work there...


33 posted on 02/05/2018 3:32:33 PM PST by rollo tomasi (Working hard to pay for deadbeats and corrupt politicians.)
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To: Red Badger
We used to drive through that very parking lot just to make fun of the pasty pale faced sickly looking long haired hippy customers.

A scorecard grade below 89.9 percent is considered failing

Wow, that's a big change from public school where even a 50 got them a passing grade because teachers aren't allowed to fail anyone. Ha, Amazon is making them work for their wages.

34 posted on 02/05/2018 3:34:03 PM PST by bgill (CDC site, "We don't know how people are infected with Ebola.")
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To: Vaquero

#8 Pop quiz: What does FDA stand for? : )


35 posted on 02/05/2018 3:37:21 PM PST by minnesota_bound
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To: Paine in the Neck

amazon now has brick and mortar bookstores ala Borders
wife and i are going to one in Chicago in a little bit


36 posted on 02/05/2018 3:38:01 PM PST by InvisibleChurch (https://thepurginglutheran.wordpress.com)
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To: killermosquito

You may have hated the job but you did it. You agreed to the terms of employment. Dollars paid for services rendered. When you had enough of it you did the normal thing. You left. I am sure that you are more learned and better off from the experience.


37 posted on 02/05/2018 3:38:28 PM PST by certrtwngnut (w)
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To: pinkandgreenmom

I find Whole Foods to be an Alternate Universe. Like a high priced Long Strange Trip.


38 posted on 02/05/2018 3:38:45 PM PST by Paladin2 (e)
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To: beef

He’s ahead of his time.


39 posted on 02/05/2018 3:39:52 PM PST by bgill (CDC site, "We don't know how people are infected with Ebola.")
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To: Red Badger

No wonder my Whole Foods is generally empty of fresh potatoes and garlic. The kids are too busy filling out forms.


40 posted on 02/05/2018 3:42:50 PM PST by miss marmelstein
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