Meijer Unfair to employees, lousy pay, expensive benefits ripoff Walker Michigan

I'm an anthropologist conducting research about the changing status of retail work in Michigan, and I am very interested in your information about wages in the 1980s.  

I just wanted to say that I have been employed with Meijer for 8 years and I'm pretty sure none of our Team Leaders ever went to college. In fact I'm very close to most of the people there and a good 75% of employees didn't even graduate high school. Most of the team leaders at our store work really hard to keep the employees happy so we stay and so we keep the guests happy as well. Don't get me wrong I've filed my share of grievances and left work really ticked off MANY times for one reason or another. It seems like maybe some of you are working for the wrong Meijer stores and I'm sorry your experiences were that awful and some of you were lied to. It doesn't pay very much that's true (also why I choose to live in a mobile home) but until I graduate I think I'll stay there. Also keep in mind when you are working for a major retailer you are working for a company that cares mainly about being #1. One of Meijer's virtues is competitiveness and they tell you that when you're hired. Having said that I will say they will go through most ANY measures to compete against not only other retailers but other stores in the market and company wide. It's almost like being the fat person on a cheer leading squad sometimes. Just never feel like anything is good enough for the guys up north. Just wanted to put my 2 cents in. Have a good day!

    You are a Meijer employee in Michigan, this entitles you to certain rights and privileges.  One of these is to go to you First Assistant and/or Union rep. Yes, corporations treat people badly at times, BUT there are options for you other than ranting to people who may be ignorant as to what those options are.  I have been with Meijer for 8 years as a team member, and the union contracts treat other team members differently that have been here longer than me.  Legally this is called a "Grandfather" clause, this means that conditions for the team member hired in under one contract is entitled to rights guaranteed by that contract, no matter how things change. 
    Personally, I am in charge of a GREAT deal of things involving my department that would make most people cringe at having to perform at my level and be paid at a topped out rate without additional compensation.  I train new team members/leaders, order department supplies, distribute department specific information, write off waste(not just count it, actually update the company as to the amount of materials destroyed), handle technical issues, and contact customers at home addressing orders.  All these things I do, and I get paid as much as someone folding cloths that has worked the same amount of time as I have. 
    My point is, that all of these things that I do is MINISCULE compared to what a team leader does.  If you really think that at an entry level position after 90 days, you are prepared to handle the duties of a team leader... 
1) you overestimated your skills
2) you were misinformed
3) you misinterpreted what you were told
4) you don't know what your resources are.
    Maybe you are competent enough to run a department and I'm just over reacting... but it seems to me that a person that can't work within the system that they are given to get ahead, has serious limitations to their leadership skills.

"I have been employed with Meijer Inc. for over a year. When I began employment at a low rate it was basically promised that I would be eligible for a promotion to management when my initial ninety day period was completed."

Sure you were "eligible", but do they have to give it too you. NO. What also makes you think that after 90 days working for a company and a management spot opens up that you are going to be the best person for that spot. Nevermind the people that have been working there longer than you. I work for Meijer and I think the wage is fair for the work. Of course the wage is low. You are doing a job that does not require any higher education or experience. I was hired by Meijer as a cashier, I had never any experience in retail before.

"Meijer employees other than the greeters and management are all union members"

I work in Systems at Meijer and I am not union. Also, I believe LP is not a union job either.

"I have been employed with Meijer Inc. for over a year. When I began employment at a low rate it was basically promised that I would be eligible for a promotion to management when my initial ninety day period was completed."

Sure you were "eligible", but do they have to give it too you. NO. What also makes you think that after 90 days working for a company and a management spot opens up that you are going to be the best person for that spot. Nevermind the people that have been working there longer than you. I work for Meijer and I think the wage is fair for the work. Of course the wage is low. You are doing a job that does not require any higher education or experience. I was hired by Meijer as a cashier, I had never any experience in retail before.

"Meijer employees other than the greeters and management are all union members"

I work in Systems at Meijer and I am not union. Also, I believe LP is not a union job either.

"I have been employed with Meijer Inc. for over a year. When I began employment at a low rate it was basically promised that I would be eligible for a promotion to management when my initial ninety day period was completed."

Sure you were "eligible", but do they have to give it too you. NO. What also makes you think that after 90 days working for a company and a management spot opens up that you are going to be the best person for that spot. Nevermind the people that have been working there longer than you. I work for Meijer and I think the wage is fair for the work. Of course the wage is low. You are doing a job that does not require any higher education or experience. I was hired by Meijer as a cashier, I had never any experience in retail before.

"Meijer employees other than the greeters and management are all union members"

I work in Systems at Meijer and I am not union. Also, I believe LP is not a union job either.

I stumbled upon this complaint against Meijer and I can't let this go without responding. As a Meijer manager of ten years I can see a few of your points to some degree, but for the most part I think you are being harsh, unrealistic, and blaming the company for things you may have partially caused.

Let me start where I agree with you: Resetting the 'hour meter' whenever there is an across-the-board raise for a team members is horrible. Here in Cincinnati our contract generally contains an automatic raise around October of each year, which resets everyones' hours . . .

However, this is an issue that is part of the contract. And don't roll your eyes when I advise you to communicate with your union. If your store is like every other one I have been in, go look at the bulliten board in your break room. Odds are that there are multiple postings from your union trying to get you to attend meetings and social functions. Very few team members go to these get-togethers. If you went to a meeting, you would have an easy time getting the full attention of your union rep and voicing your concerns.

One thing I have noticed is that each local area negotiates their own contract. There is no single mega-contract for all Meijer; each local generally negotiates there own. Chances are, the guy that your meet at the union picnic is likely to be the same guy who sits down with the company and hammers out your next contract. The point is, it this hour-reset issue bothers you, and you can get a few of your co-workers to approach the union with you, there is a realistic chance it will get addressed when they redo your contract.

As far as the pay rate goes, you need a little perspective. We exist in a Wal-Mart world. We have to compete with Wal-Mart, or die. And the fact is, we pay our team members more than Wal-Mart.

I know you have only been around a year or so, but you have probably heard about the transformation our company went through. The transformation began late in 2003 or early 2004. It began with hundreds of jobs being lost in our home office in Grand Rapids. A month or so later, each store lost a significant number of managers . . I don't recall the exact number but I believe it was about 10-12 per store. These, and other, changes allowed us to get our overhead down into the same ballpark as Wal-Mart.

It is amazing to me that we have achieved a similar overhead to Wal-Mart, even though we pay our team members substantially more (especially when you include benefits.) I suspect the advantage we have over them is that we are a relatively small company operating in five states, while they are like the galactic empire with a enormous corporate infrastructure supporting their global reach.

Quoting from your opening paragraph: "it was basically promised that I would be eligible for a promotion to management when my initial ninety day period was completed." - there is so much wrong with this I hardly know where to begin.

#1. If you have management background, you should have applied as a manager. If during the interview process, your interviewer realized that you were qualified to be a manager, he should have referred you to the store director for a management interview.

#2. If you don't bring management credentials with you, but hope to work hard and get promoted from within, that is possible, but - A) it has absolutely nothing to do with your ninety-day probationary period, B) I have never seen it happen within 90 days, even the candidates generally need to work as a TM at least a year or so before being considered for a mgr trainee slot. Again, this assumes no prior management experience.

#3. The issue of college degrees is a tricky one. You heard that your 'district manager' mandated this as a requirement at some point, but I suspect it was company-wide. It reared it's ugly head down here in the south a while back, perhaps about the same time you describe. The company's desire for college graduates is like a pendulum that swings back and forth between point A) the desire for more 'quality people' (which is what we hope we will get with degreed individuals); and B) the realization that when we insist on college degrees at the pay-rate we offer new management trainees, we are scraping the bottom of the barrel and getting people with useless college degrees and no other redeeming value.

To anyone who is serious about getting promoted at Meijer, and you run into this road-block, two pieces of advice: 1) wait it out. Like I said, this degree mania comes and goes. 2) If you are like a lot of people who have some college but didn't graduate, ask yourself if it is possible to finish. Even a two-year degree helps, and it is good for you in so many ways that have nothing to do with Meijer.

#4. It sounds like your team leader may have been guilty of setting you up with false expectations. It's difficult to understand why he/she would, since we have never had a shortage of applications, even when times were better. There is simply no need to dangle a carrot of false hope to woo applicants.

#5. You are not going to get promoted if you get a reputation as a complainer . . your concerns should generally be vented to your first assistant and no one else.

So much depends on your team leader, whose duty to you begins with total, honest communication.

I am saddened that you found your time with Meijer frustrating, but I hope I gave some insight into your issues.

Okay. I work for Meijer as well, here in Kentucky. Let me just say that, yes, we are overworked and underpaid. I would love nothing more than to buy a house at the end of the year, but bringing home only 150 dollars a week is not going to make it for me. It takes me 4 weeks to make 600 bucks. Most people make that in a week or two. I made less than 13,000.00 last year. I am a 24 year old going to college. I have 2 cats that need to be taken to the vet. I need a better running car. Honestly? I can go to Burger King and make more money over there than at Meijer. As for Team Leaders not caring about pepole, this may be true, but it really depends on who it is. Some of our team leaders are a-holes. Mine is nice. But I just wanted to say how unfair it is for me and everyone else who's worked there for almost 2 years. If I got paid ATLEAST 9 bucks an hour, I'd be happy. I make 45 cents over minimum wage. And for the people out there who will tell me to suck it up, piss off. You do not know what it is like to work 8+ hours a day, with no help, and people constantly calling off or not showing up for work. Seriously. If I made atleast 3 dollars more an hour, I'd be happy to buy a house and be able to save my money. But no, I can't do that whatsoever.

I have worked for meijer for what will soon be 17 years. Yes, the company has changed a lot since Fred and his family have stepped back and let others become involved with the running the company. Meijers has made cuts like many other companies have. To save money and keep the company running. Do I agree with all the changes? No. Some were necessary, some not. I have been a union steward, in fact I am ready to become one again. A union is only as strong as its people. We are not the same union as GM. Don't complain unless you are willing to really study your contract and become involved. I don't agree with Meijer hiring an outside company (that I believe is the same one Walmart uses, my own opinion) to come in and tell Meijer how to make cuts.

I believe someone who has never worked in retail, especially during these times, shouldn't be telling Meijer how to run it. My biggest problem is that corporate tries to promote good customer service, while at the same time making such big cuts in schedules, hours and having one person work several depts and stock the floor too is impossible. You can't expect someone to be able help the customer and do all this too. I would like to see the higher up people (district managers, some managers in the store, store directors and people high up in corporate) come in and work the floor or cashier for one week. See how stressful it has become and frustrating to us that care about our jobs. I put my heart into my work, I am a hard worker. I enjoy working with the public. By the way, I am a cashier. I started out in receiving and layaway, moved up to a cashier and was working in the cash office. I stepped down to a cashier even though I enjoyed working in cash office. It became very stressful in there because they cut it down to one person. Didn't communicate changes well. 25 cents an hour more for the work and knowledge you need in the cash office, wasn't worth the stress. Not anyone can just walk into that job. I am required to ask people if they want curbside service. I don't have a problem with that, especially when it is an elderly person who needs assistance.

My problem is that we are so underscheduled most of the time. Some days we have 11 cashiers scheduled for the whole day. That is part time and full time mixed. So when you offer this service, most of the time the guest has to wait until you find someone who can do it. Because if it is a busy day, everyone is working. If no one is scheduled to be the runner/carry out person and the s/c who usually takes on this job is already helping someone or running a lane. You look like a fool for even offering the service. A lot of time the person just says they will do it themselves. Don't get me wrong, I do like my job. It is about attitude, I do the best I can because I am not going to change corporate. I believe I make pretty good wages for working in retail. Your complaint about not getting a raise because of minimum wage going up. What if minimum wage hadn't gone up? You would have gotten your raise and it would have been less than minimum wage. Is it tough out there for everyone? Yes. How do you think I feel making the same wage after working 17 years and having someone making the same amount after only working half the time I have. Life isn't always fair. I am thankful I have a pretty secure job. A lot of people have lost theirs along with their homes. Work for a non union company or for GM if you don't like Meijers. You can always get out. Times are tough everywhere. You can choose to look at the positive things or look for the negative and be miserable. It's your choice, no one elses. I personally choose to be happy and content with what I have.

I contacted my local union rep at UFCW. when minimum wage went up again this year (715 to 740) I had been there almost a year. it was my first job after high school so I thought I was making okay money until I had bills to pay. when I spoke with our union rep she told me that meijer was taken to court over the wage increase issues and state sided with meijer over the union saying "it would loose the company millions" to give EVERY employee a small raise like that. now, since minimum wage went up and Im making 7.95- an employee who just hires in only has to be there for 90 days and get 700 hours in to get 7.65. yeah, okay cool a 30 cent difference whats the big deal?

well under meijers 'myinfo.meijer.com' the log in page for oracle- it gives all youe detailed employee information. just completing my one year a month ago I have worked 2044 hours total for the year. the reason this annoying is because when I got my first 700 hours (first 2 raises are 350hours each, then 700 for each raise after that)

I only made 7.40 AFTER all that time. so about half the time I worked there I was making the new minimum wage, so when the change went in to affect, I DIDNT GET MY RAISE. instead they made it my raise because it was the same month and had to make it 700 more hours to bairly make any money. its like I just STARTED with all the other people who dont work hard at all.

the union that represents meijer is not the uaw (united auto workers). belive it or not we are ufcw local 951 that stands for united food and commercial workers. i have no idea why you think you belong to an auto union.
for the sake of the employees who like their job and like meijer and the ufcw local951, get a life and get a new job if you have been there for a whole year and you still don't know who your union is i think you should retire. you're way to smart for the rest of us. oh my gosh he must be an 18 year old folks. belive me young man in another 5 years you will look back at this and wonder just what you were thinking. write again in 5 years. better yet write in 25 years when you have a kid as smart as you. lol
you need to check into that part about being FORCED to join the union. the union was there 30 years before you were and i happen to like it. if i didn't like it i would work for a non union store .......say wal mart. see how you get treated there. fred supports michigan and i support fred and fred supports me. it's just a vicious circle.
if you do your job as great as you think you do you would be much more knowledgeable.

i don't belive anyone would promise you a managers job after 90 days. that is ludicrous. and when the contract was signed between MEIJER and the UNION the government had not decided to raise minimum wage. there was no conspiracy to get you. you need to pay more attention and read more. get with the program. have you ever read your contract? if your hr person really said what you say she said then she has not read the contract either. don't blame the union. it is not a union contract it is an agreement between meijer and the union. i will say one thing. meijer management should be told to read the contract. and then before they become managers they should be quizzed to see if they know what the employer and the union agreed on. it would make everything run smoother. try another line of work. i bet about 50% of meijer employees are or will be rehires. it's not so great out there in the work world. as a whole meijer is pretty good to us. there are indivudual circumstances but............as a company they are good. you seem young. if you don't like retail , get out. you are not doing your customer or yourself any good. attitude is everything in retail. if you aren't there to help the customer then find a factory job. people who like factory work normally don't like people work.

I understand what was stated by other meijer employees, but I have to disagree a little. I'll agree the pay isn't very good, but consider the work we do. It is not a hard job at all. We are all very replaceable.

I think it mostly depends on who your immediate boss is. My first assistant is great. We get every day off we ask for, and he buys us lunch all the time. He is actually the nicest boss I've ever had. I am married with three kids and he understands that. I've worked there just under a year and have had to leave early or am late because of my home life.

thats all I wanted to say

I totally agree with Anon. I have only been working at Meijer for about 8 or 9 months now, not at the Walker Meijer, and the only raise that I have recieved was when the minimum wages increased. Which ws only 35 cents! Now working and going to College does not pay off the things that us College student needs. For instance, college students pay for school, books, supplies, insurance, sometimes rent, and even housing if they are living on campus. Now making under $10.00 that is not going to cover what us college students need to make it day to day!

One of my friends and I have been doing research on how much Meijer makes and how much they pay their employees! We found a VERY depressing wage from what we make now to what employees made back in the 1980's! I am not going to say how much it was but it was at least almost $10.00 difference, and thats MORE than what we make now!! We do not think that is fair at all. Back then they did not have as uch as expeneses as we do now. Another example, gas prices back then were around 93 cents a gallon, the prices now are well over $2.50 most of the time over $3.00! If you think about it 15 gallons would be about fourteen or fifteen dollars back in the 1980's, NOW to fill a 15 gallon tank of gas it would be give or take $50.00!

I honestly do not think that any college student can survive on a minimum wage of under $10.00! Estimate hours weekly, part time employee makes between $70.00-290.00 between a 13-39 hours a week, if the math is right then thats not a lot to help out in how much college students may have to pay for!

I am a college student myself as well as my friend, and we do not think that $150.00 will be enough to help out with school, gas, supplies, food, insurance etc. each week we get paid. More than half the time we get paid our checks are gone especially if Meijer were to cut our hours, which they are doing now, and so we have less than what I already put for a weekly salary!

Something needs to be done into helping out more people as they are hired into the working industry of meijer.

I completely agree with you on everything you've reported. A current co-worker and I plan on creating a petition to increase pay plus some other stipulations. If you are interested in getting envolved message me with you contact information.

Anon,

I just read your report and I found everything that you mentioned to be fair, accurate and very well written!

I would like to make the following comments and observations from a Meijer Customer's viewpoint:

First thing is the fact that my next door neighbor, Judy S. use to work for Meijer. It should be noted that she is so desperate for money and health benefits that she would say or do anything to get hired back at Meijer so she could supplement her SS income.

Anyway, She would spend hours talking about how poorly Management' and Supervisors' treated the employees. She liked working at Meijer, but she just didn't care for how Management treated the people they didn't like.

She would say that, If an opening was available and if they liked you well then, you could do no wrong and you would be promoted very quickly! She would also say that, "You learned to keep your mouth shut!"

Judy also talked about her frustration with the Union Anon, when I read your comments, it was as if I was listening to my neighbor!

Anyway, because of her comments I started paying attention to the interaction between Employees and Management. What I observed was not good and it was apparent that Managers did not respect the cashiers or employees out on the floor. This lack of respect was also apparent from some of the Supervisors.

If the Store Director is rude and unprofessional to employees, well then the Assistant Managers and Supervisors will be as well!

As a simple rule, people do not quit companies, they quit people and if employees are dealing with rude, unprofessional Managers who lie to new hires with false promises of future promotions, well then you're going to have a high employee attrition rate. The fact that Meijer's is always hiring should tell you something

Bad Managers create a lot of problems!

In addition to poor employee relations skills, Bad Managers' will also have very poor Customer Service skills!

Think about it for a moment Customer Service and Employee Relation/Management Skills are basically the same. If you have good Customer Service skills, then chances are that you will have excellent Employee Relation/Management skills and vice-versa!

To put it another way, if you have respect for yourself, if you have respect for your co-workers, employees and customers, if you have a good attitude, then there is also a good chance that you will have good customer service skills and good employee management skills.

It is all connected and it also filters down from the top!

In other words, it takes a serious commitment from the CEO and President of a company for this attitude to become part of the company's culture and belief system Meijer does not have this!

The Management Culture at Meijer leaves much to be desired!

Just consider that all of the complaints on the Rip-Off Report' about Meijer are just a reflection of what I am saying It is also a reflection of what you wrote about!

For example: During the summer of 2006, I took the time to fax in a three page customer service commentary. That was a big mistake!

The reason why it was a big mistake a Meijer Vice-President started calling my home two, four and up to six times a day for over a week in response to the letter I sent. He did this Monday through Saturday and ignored my requests to stop calling.

My caller ID Block service allows me to block off Six Phone Numbers this did not stop him from calling my home. He would just call from another Meijer store!

His attitude and conduct was rude and unprofessional and if a Meijer VP is this way towards a customer What do you think his attitude would be towards an employee who doesn't have a college degree? What do you think a Regional Director attitude would be towards a low level employee? What do you think a Meijer Store Directors attitude would be?

Anon, I think you did the right thing by leaving Meijer. They don't respect employees and they do not respect their customers!

Anon-

As an ex-Meijer employee myself, I agree with your statements and will be telling my own tale in a seperate report as per this website's policy. I just wanted to make a few points on your submission first:

-I'm not sure if it was UAW 951 or not, but one of the Meijer Unions had their contract posted on their website. I'm sure if you do some research you can find the information you're looking for.

-The college degree requirement was in place at my store as well, BUT they would promote employees without degrees all the time. It seemed to me they looked for people who didn't have a lot of career options and tried to lock them in.

Like I said, I'll be making my own report about my experiences with Meijer. Thank you for the insperation.