Archived Question about staying late (and holidays)

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Hi,

I've been at Target for about 1.5 months now, and so far it's mostly a decent job. However, I have noticed a particular trend lately. I normally am working the closing shift, and we are closed at 10 PM Monday-Sat. and 9 PM on SUnday and we are typically scheduled to 10:45/9:45. However, as of late we usually end up staying until around 11:30 on Monday-Sat and 10:30 or later on Sunday. Now I really don't mind staying late sometimes but it's becoming a regular thing and it's getting to be a bit irritating. Why not just schedule us until whenever they're REALLY going to let us go?

That leads me to my second point/question: A co-worker told me that sometimes in the holiday season, you might end up staying 3 or 4 hours after close until 1 or 2 AM. Has anyone else had this experience? My shifts already are seriously hurting my feet and back -- and I have some good shoes too -- , and I just can't stay up that late working. I'd really like to know if this is true, or if it's a regular thing to stay until 1 AM when you are scheduled to leave at 10:45 during the holiday season.
 
Eek. I guess it does depend on store volume, how late past close you stay. However, that's crazy regardless for them to have you staying hours past your scheduled time, on a regular basis.

At my store we're always out 30 minutes after close, with the exception of Saturdays, where we'll be scheduled until an hour after close. But that's when the show stops. If things are left unfinished, they're left unfinished. We do NOT stay longer than that no matter what. Granted, someone scheduled to leave at 9 might be asked to stay until 10, or something like that, but the latest time does NOT get later.

At a store down the road they're scheduled an hour after close on regular days, and 2 hours after on Saturdays. They're a little busier than us. They do the same as far as not pushing the latest time any later.
 
That sucks, I know that if I'm scheduled to a certain time it's hard to find out they are going to randomly keep you to whenever.
The least they could do is ask ahead of time like they do with flow team.
I had heard about the old days when ETLs who cared deeply about the zone would keep people for hours to make sure the store looked perfect but that was when hours weren't such a big thing.
I do know that the stores get WRECKED during the holidays and sometimes to get them even to a point where they can be shopped takes a fair amount of time.
I'm curious if they are scheduling you the right amount of breaks for all that extra time?
And keep in mind that after 4th quarter you will be fighting for hours.
 
Its retail...expect staying late.

Different volume stores close differently. Usually its been Target's practice to have the closing team only stay no more than an hour after closing. But its getting to that horrid Holiday time of year. Payroll is probably getting adjusted to get the zone done.

During the Holiday time (as Commie put it 'When ETLs cared deeply about the zone'), I can remember closing at 11pm Holiday hours and staying till past midnight till almost 1am. I remember staying till about 3am one Mothers Day Eve.

The only time you should watch out about closing is when you do not get scheduled a lunch. scheduled an opener the next day, or getting close to 40 hours.
 
I had heard about the old days when ETLs who cared deeply about the zone would keep people for hours to make sure the store looked perfect but that was when hours weren't such a big thing.

1-2am was a pretty standard thing back then. Many ETLs used to think that the zone needed to be absolutely perfect every night. I did support help at a nearby store when they opened and the STL would score the zone a red in the morning if it wasn't a complete wall.
 
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I had heard about the old days when ETLs who cared deeply about the zone would keep people for hours to make sure the store looked perfect but that was when hours weren't such a big thing.

1-2am was a pretty standard thing back then. Many ETLs used to think that the zone needed to be absolutely perfect every night. I did support help at a nearby store when they opened and the STL would score the zone a red in the morning if it wasn't a complete wall.
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Ha, that reminds me of one of our ETLs. He only works on the weekends because he has another job (and he was not there this weekend which was weird, I wonder if he quit or something) but he's super anal. He is always like "if you are spending more than 5 minutes on an isle you are taking WAY too long" but at the same time he gets on you if it's not perfect which sometimes can take longer than 5 minutes, to say the least.

If he's working you can pretty much forget about getting home on time, haha
 
Target is suppose to be hiring less seasonal people this year. So with less people I would expect you will be staying much much later just pick up the pieces.
 
We're a ULV that gets SLAMMED during the holidays. I remember leaving some nights and the store looked like a train crashed.
 
they can NOT make you stay later than your ending time...you can voluntarily stay BUT if it's your time to go, it's your time to go. We had 2 ETL's who consistently used to force us to stay and integrity was called on them because of it. Target policy was explained to the entire team and only one did it after that (mainly because they made us wait until everybody was in TSC to leave because they locked somebody in the store)
 
I absolutely dread closing shifts because I know that I'll rarely get to leave at the time I'm scheduled to leave (10:30 Sundays and 11:30 the rest of the week, for my store). It makes me feel trapped knowing that I don't have a set clock out time and can be forced to stay at the whims of whoever is in charge that night. Back to School is a major 'thing' at my store and there was one night during that season where my scheduled 6 hour shift became an 8 hour shift and they did not tell us what time it was (I only knew because I kept my phone on me and checked it after a while). And no, they did not give us the second 15 minute break we should have been given. (I think they probably had us clock out 5 minutes before we hit 8 hours, to avoid that, which I hate. If you want me to work 8 hours, schedule me 8 hours with the proper breaks, not 7 hours 55 minutes so you can squeeze out all the work possible without 'wasting time' on breaks.)

Now that we're in a 'normal' season we 'only' stay about 30 minutes past our scheduled time, but it still sucks. I'm not looking forward to the holidays.
 
Actually BLB shifts are offered if you are scheduled more than 7 or 7.5 hours.

From what I was told 'breaks' are not mandatory, and they are only offered by Target during operation hours. I have had shifts were TLs and ETLs account for closing and tell TMs to take a break anyway.

Then there were shifts where I would work a scheduled 4-10 + 2 hr closing (7.5 hours including lunch). I got my Lunch and Break, but I was never offered a 2nd break. And there shifts that I was scheduled exactly 6 hours 4pm-10pm, but I was never offered a lunch. In that case, I told the LOD at nearing 6 hours without a lunch, and clocked out right before close.

I would suggest asking the LOD or TL, if on a closing shift, if you need to take a 2nd break with added time with the closing zone.
 
From my understanding, if you hit your scheduled close time you're allowed to go to the LoD and ask to be let out. However, this can cause you to be viewed as not willing to work and put the extra effort in. My previous SrTL used to be anal about that from what I was told (I was signing so I don't really know how bad it was) but they actually called the hotline and it improved. Which is why people also became aware of the rule of being allowed to leave at scheduled time. Technically time after that is just voluntary to help the team get finished... Which sadly doesn't make you look better (maybe just minimally) as opposed to leaving early, that's going to be frowned upon most likely.. My wife who works for spot as Softlines they're typically scheduled 1 hour after close (which for them is midnight due to closing at 11)
 
Breaks are required at Target. If you are staying later and not getting the breaks that you have earned (the breakdown should be on the same board as your schedule at TSC, it varies by state) let your HR know. If it does;t change you call integrity. Keep track of all breaks that were not given to you but earned.
 
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