Okay, so this is going to be a bit long and I apologize for that. I'm not really sure what to do at this point.
I technically work for Kroger since my store is owned by the Kroger company. I've been at my store for a years now, coming up on three. I've always had issues with the scheduling at my store but it was never that bad. Like one week I'd have 3 hour less or something than someone I had seniority over but three hours isn't a huge deal so I let go. Back in December, schedules were posted were I was given 20-24 hours and a newer employee was given 40 hours weekly. I asked about that and was told "well talk to the food manager" so I did. When I asked him about it the conversation was basically this:
Me: I'm sorry to bother you but I'd like to talk to you about the upcoming schedules. When would be a good time to do so?
Manager: What did you need?
Me: Well, I've talked to you a couple times now about the schedules and how the newer employee is getting more hours and you've fixed it in the past, thank you. But it's still happening. And not by 3 or so hours but by double the hours in many cases.
Manager: Well he's the assistant manager now, so there's that.
Me: Um, since when? I didn't see a posting for it...
Manager: Well it's technically just a title so we don't have to post for it and I decided to give it to him.
Me: Okay, but if it's an actual position and only title then their shouldn't be any reason to ignore my seniority then.
Manager: Well, he's the assistant now. And that's it.
It was very clear the discussion was closed so I finished what I was doing, went on lunch and called my union directly. They agreed that what was said was BS and told me to file a grievance, especially after I'd said that I'd had to previously talk to him about the schedules and how he had also said that he actually wasn't doing the schedules himself and hadn't been looking at them. I filed the grievance paperwork which actually said on it that the store director should be contacting me for a grievance meeting. No meeting was ever made. No one talked to me, but suddenly my hours started going up. For a couple weeks, both the other employee and I had 40 hours and everything seemed to be ... okay.
Fast forward to February. I was scheduled 8 days straight with only one day off and 44 hours for the week of Valentin'es day, which I understood and hey, 4 hours of overtime, I'm cool with that. The week before that, I was scheduled a day off. The day before my day off the same food manager comes up to me and tells me that I'm now on the safety committee (nobody asked me and I didn't ask to be on it) and that I had to go to the meeting the next day. I said that I was scheduled off and he said "You need to come in anyway, it's not an option and you get paid for it." I did even though that meant that I'd now be working 12 days in a row. I was exhausted and angry because I discovered that even though I was at work for 12 days in a row, because one day was for a meeting, it fell under a different code and I wasn't allowed to get the overtime for working so many days in a row. And to top that all off, the schedule for the week after had come out, giving me yet another 6 day week. Basically, in 21 days I had only three days off, worked the entire Valentine's Weekend and took over ordering priorities for the "assistant manager" because he had his normal 6 days off. I ended up getting sick on Sunday. Fever, throwing up and called out since I work with food. I was told I should come in anyway an I said I physically can't and that I was calling out. Monday I went back to work. No longer feverish and no longer throwing up but was still weak. The entire day upper management and my direct manager treated me like I was invisible. They ignored me flat out if I asked a question. They would come up behind me and acknowledge me only to say "move faster, you're so slow" and my store director even went so far as to hint that maybe it was time we hired someone else if I couldn't complete my tasks on time. They have done similar things to me whenever I have been sick. They don't do it to my co-workers. Only me. Even my co-workers have noticed it and talked to me about it so it's not me being paranoid.
I called my union rep and have received no response. Which isn't unusual for him. He almost never responds. The only reason I got a response before is because he was on vacation and I was talking to someone filling in for him. At this point, I don't know what to do. This is just the latest. This type of BS has been going on for years an I honestly feel like they are trying to get rid of me. But, I've never been written up, I am always on-time and always complete my work so they can't actually fire me. The store director is a racist ass who, if we ever burn anything says "it looks like a suntanned Mexican." He repeatedly tells the women that we don't know what we're doing and that we're too "emotional" when we're calmly answering a question and a cake decorator was demoted to a "floater position" by the food manager because he didn't like that she wanted to work mornings instead of nights. So he forced her to work nights and hired a new cake decorator without even telling us. The funny thing is the new decorator just quit and the one he demoted is transferring to a different store and now he's trying to sabotage her position there. It's so out of hand.
I know this has been stupidly long. My whole point of posting this is, what do I do know? Is there a way to go over a union rep's head? Or should I call the tip line and hope and pray they help? Any advice at this point would be appreciated.
Okay, so this is going to be a bit long and I apologize for that. I'm not really sure what to do at this point.
I technically work for Kroger since my store is owned by the Kroger company. I've been at my store for a years now, coming up on three. I've always had issues with the scheduling at my store but it was never that bad. Like one week I'd have 3 hour less or something than someone I had seniority over but three hours isn't a huge deal so I let go. Back in December, schedules were posted were I was given 20-24 hours and a newer employee was given 40 hours weekly. I asked about that and was told "well talk to the food manager" so I did. When I asked him about it the conversation was basically this:
Me: I'm sorry to bother you but I'd like to talk to you about the upcoming schedules. When would be a good time to do so?
Manager: What did you need?
Me: Well, I've talked to you a couple times now about the schedules and how the newer employee is getting more hours and you've fixed it in the past, thank you. But it's still happening. And not by 3 or so hours but by double the hours in many cases.
Manager: Well he's the assistant manager now, so there's that.
Me: Um, since when? I didn't see a posting for it...
Manager: Well it's technically just a title so we don't have to post for it and I decided to give it to him.
Me: Okay, but if it's an actual position and only title then their shouldn't be any reason to ignore my seniority then.
Manager: Well, he's the assistant now. And that's it.
It was very clear the discussion was closed so I finished what I was doing, went on lunch and called my union directly. They agreed that what was said was BS and told me to file a grievance, especially after I'd said that I'd had to previously talk to him about the schedules and how he had also said that he actually wasn't doing the schedules himself and hadn't been looking at them. I filed the grievance paperwork which actually said on it that the store director should be contacting me for a grievance meeting. No meeting was ever made. No one talked to me, but suddenly my hours started going up. For a couple weeks, both the other employee and I had 40 hours and everything seemed to be ... okay.
Fast forward to February. I was scheduled 8 days straight with only one day off and 44 hours for the week of Valentin'es day, which I understood and hey, 4 hours of overtime, I'm cool with that. The week before that, I was scheduled a day off. The day before my day off the same food manager comes up to me and tells me that I'm now on the safety committee (nobody asked me and I didn't ask to be on it) and that I had to go to the meeting the next day. I said that I was scheduled off and he said "You need to come in anyway, it's not an option and you get paid for it." I did even though that meant that I'd now be working 12 days in a row. I was exhausted and angry because I discovered that even though I was at work for 12 days in a row, because one day was for a meeting, it fell under a different code and I wasn't allowed to get the overtime for working so many days in a row. And to top that all off, the schedule for the week after had come out, giving me yet another 6 day week. Basically, in 21 days I had only three days off, worked the entire Valentine's Weekend and took over ordering priorities for the "assistant manager" because he had his normal 6 days off. I ended up getting sick on Sunday. Fever, throwing up and called out since I work with food. I was told I should come in anyway an I said I physically can't and that I was calling out. Monday I went back to work. No longer feverish and no longer throwing up but was still weak. The entire day upper management and my direct manager treated me like I was invisible. They ignored me flat out if I asked a question. They would come up behind me and acknowledge me only to say "move faster, you're so slow" and my store director even went so far as to hint that maybe it was time we hired someone else if I couldn't complete my tasks on time. They have done similar things to me whenever I have been sick. They don't do it to my co-workers. Only me. Even my co-workers have noticed it and talked to me about it so it's not me being paranoid.
I called my union rep and have received no response. Which isn't unusual for him. He almost never responds. The only reason I got a response before is because he was on vacation and I was talking to someone filling in for him. At this point, I don't know what to do. This is just the latest. This type of BS has been going on for years an I honestly feel like they are trying to get rid of me. But, I've never been written up, I am always on-time and always complete my work so they can't actually fire me. The store director is a racist ass who, if we ever burn anything says "it looks like a suntanned Mexican." He repeatedly tells the women that we don't know what we're doing and that we're too "emotional" when we're calmly answering a question and a cake decorator was demoted to a "floater position" by the food manager because he didn't like that she wanted to work mornings instead of nights. So he forced her to work nights and hired a new cake decorator without even telling us. The funny thing is the new decorator just quit and the one he demoted is transferring to a different store and now he's trying to sabotage her position there. It's so out of hand.
I know this has been stupidly long. My whole point of posting this is, what do I do know? Is there a way to go over a union rep's head? Or should I call the tip line and hope and pray they help? Any advice at this point would be appreciated.
Document out and call the Union( if available). Otherwise it is a happenstance of management doing as they please.
It's a position by title only that the manager made up. It's not a position that is listed in your union contract so you have a right to those hours since you have seniority. They tried that BS with me when I was a cashier. The comanager liked this new girl so she gave her all the hours. I asked about it and they said she was an assistant floor supervisor or some dumb title. She made it up. Anyway, you can claim those hours, it's a bs postition they made up.
If your union rep isn't returning your calls go over his head. As far as the suntanned Mexican remark, I would definately report that one on the tip line. Sounds like the manager has in in for you so if he is trying to take you down you need to drag him down with you. I bet you win. Even better if you are part Mexican. Even a teeny bit.
If your union rep isn't returning your calls go over his head. As far as the suntanned Mexican remark, I would definately report that one on the tip line. Sounds like the manager has in in for you so if he is trying to take you down you need to drag him down with you. I bet you win. Even better if you are part Mexican. Even a teeny bit.
Even BETTER better if you got a 5 lb. chub. Thats the doomsday device NO BODY can beat!
