Archived Target trying to wear me out to make me quit?

[Cooliobum]

hello all, this is my first new thread post though I've been lurking. So, I was hired as a cart attendant last year for seasonal and they kept me on. After 4 months they started training me at guest service to just get me over there while I'm doing carts, but ends up putting me behind on my cart duties. A couple months later, they decided to train me as a bike builder. another few months, and I'm on the sales floor 1-2 weeks, as they plan an moving me to electronics, yet keep me as the cart attendant trainer meaning I'll also be doing cart shifts often. Then they asked if i wanted to do ship from store as well. so basically I will scheduled each week from a group of 6 departments, and it is starting to wear me out. are they trying to get me to quit, or do they have bigger plans for me? i also applied for GSA recently and they said they were struggling between me and another team member(i mostly applied for GSA as an opportunity, would have loved it but i was not hurt after i didn't get it)

 

[Doglover89]

I get scheduled in about six or seven different departments. I understand your being worn out; I wear sooo many different hats in my store. I had one week with shifts in four different areas. I've decided it's a good thing though; I know I'd go crazy if I was only allowed to work one area. This gives you some variety, plus hours. I nearly always get 37-40 every week because I know so many work centers. I doubt they want you to leave; you're obviously a good worker and they want to teach you new things. I would talk with your ETL-GE or HR about what they have planned for you, especially if they decide to give GSA to the other tm.

P.S. Ship from store is one of my favorites. Might be a nice change from the front end for you.

 

[Him]

I don't think they're trying to "wear you out". Target term is being "global" and they can very well be a plan in place for you to move upward. Did you want to move up to a tl or only wanted to only be a gsa?

 

[Cooliobum]

I don't think they're trying to "wear you out". Target term is being "global" and they can very well be a plan in place for you to move upward. Did you want to move up to a tl or only wanted to only be a gsa?

i would have liked to be a GSA but my ETL-GE and one of my GSTLs said they'd be willing to put me in ANY leader position...just not GSA at the specific time. had the other person messed up a single question in their interview, i would have gotten it. thats how close it was. and yes. i'd be willing to be a TL so long as it isn't backroom. i like being part of the front team.

 

[Hardlinesmaster]

sometimes you have to work hard to get ahead. Learning other areas is a start to the right direction. Decide if you want 40 hours a week or 20 hours/less a week. There is a senior Vice President who had started as cart attendant... just saying.

 

[redeye58]

If TL is your goal, being global is a good lead-in.
It shows your willingness to learn a lot of areas (which, in turn, helps you decide what area you do best) & it's far better to be global BEFORE becoming a TL than trying to take in everything while learning to be a TL too.

 

[Xanatos]

Usually working multiple areas makes things better because it keeps it interesting. It can be a little stressful as you're learning them because you might not spend enough time in any one workcenter to really master it, but cross training is pretty much always a good thing. Especially if you want to get promoted (it helps you and makes you look better).

 

[Cooliobum]

Usually working multiple areas makes things better because it keeps it interesting. It can be a little stressful as you're learning them because you might not spend enough time in any one workcenter to really master it, but cross training is pretty much always a good thing. Especially if you want to get promoted (it helps you and makes you look better).

in all things I've done, i have never really mastered one thing. i have become good at a lot of different things, so this make sense and i figured they may have figured that out and are using it. i just question it too because i heard they would do this to people, then when they start slacking off they start getting on their case till a breaking point and they quit or get fired.

 

[Xanatos]

in all things I've done, i have never really mastered one thing. i have become good at a lot of different things, so this make sense and i figured they may have figured that out and are using it. i just question it too because i heard they would do this to people, then when they start slacking off they start getting on their case till a breaking point and they quit or get fired.

In my experience, we keep someone in the same workcenter if we aren't sure about their performance. For one, we don't want them to screw up too many workcenters. But more importantly, we give them a fair chance to get good at that one thing. If they can't do the thing that they have been doing for months, then at least we know that we have had the chance to set the expectations and train them, so we can justify writing them up. Although, there is something to be said about moving someone to a different workcenter that they might be better at.

If you're getting moved around, there's a good chance that they like you. People who are cross trained in a lot of areas become very valuable. If we have a call off or maybe just a huge amount of work in a certain area of the store, we want to have people that we move around when the situation calls for it (even if it's something as simple as the softlines zone being worse than normal so we take a hardlines person and have them spend half of their day in softlines).

 

[NKG]

In my experience, we keep someone in the same workcenter if we aren't sure about their performance. For one, we don't want them to screw up too many workcenters. But more importantly, we give them a fair chance to get good at that one thing. If they can't do the thing that they have been doing for months, then at least we know that we have had the chance to set the expectations and train them, so we can justify writing them up. Although, there is something to be said about moving someone to a different workcenter that they might be better at.

If you're getting moved around, there's a good chance that they like you. People who are cross trained in a lot of areas become very valuable. If we have a call off or maybe just a huge amount of work in a certain area of the store, we want to have people that we move around when the situation calls for it (even if it's something as simple as the softlines zone being worse than normal so we take a hardlines person and have them spend half of their day in softlines).

Im crossed trained in several departments and I only work one work center. I pretty sure my performance isnt an issue so we are gonna file that in that asnts category. Im convinced that Im good at what I do and they cant afford to move me for the best of the store.

 

[BrohemianRapcity]

Everybody has already said what I was thinking. It doesn't seem that they're trying to wear you up but to "develop you." At first I was only cashier but fast forward almost a year and I've done service desk, GSTL, Hardlines, ESFS, instocks, electronics, and am currently learning more about Backroom. I was so close to learning how to be operator too but didn't get the shift because it was on my only day off that week :sigh:. (It's pretty funny now that I think about it because I didn't even ask leadership to train me somewhere else, I just asked different TMs from different depts. to show me how certain things were done. Then out of nowhere I was just scheduled in said depts.)

To be perfectly honest though, the fact that you didn't get GSA is actually for the best in my opinion. I'm not sure how other's stores do it but at mine, our GSAs are always really close to 35/40 hours so there wouldn't be much room to be scheduled somewhere else. At least you're still available to be moved around. I'm sure you already know that's the best when you just need a break from your usual work center.

 

[BackroomAlpha]

Thats target man. Be positive about the changes, take on new roles with an open mind and learn them well. You will go very far, this isn't a job where you are specific to one thing, eventually if you are worthy you shall know all things store level! Muhaha

 

[Xanatos]

Im crossed trained in several departments and I only work one work center. I pretty sure my performance isnt an issue so we are gonna file that in that asnts category. Im convinced that Im good at what I do and they cant afford to move me for the best of the store.

Yeah sorry I didn't mean to imply that. There are absolutely people at my store who are good at their jobs and either 1) they are cross trained but we like where they are or 2) they aren't cross trained and we don't want to share because they're too good to lose!

I should have worded it differently.

 

[HRZone]

Im crossed trained in several departments and I only work one work center. I pretty sure my performance isnt an issue so we are gonna file that in that asnts category. Im convinced that Im good at what I do and they cant afford to move me for the best of the store.

Xanatos point was that if you are cross trained it means they see potential in you. Lets be honest a cart attendant isnt hard to find (a good one yes) but most cart attendants who are successful and want to move on to better things.

You staying in one work center is different from a cart attendant staying in one work center.

The fact the OP is cross trained is a good sign. At my store they only cross train good TMs. Etls dont take others problem TMs.

 

[buliSBI]

If they want you to cover multiple areas in a single shift, I can understand. And you need to communicate to your leadership that you are getting pulled to too many areas and falling behind.

I used to cover carts/cashiering/SD/FA in a single shift. If my primary was carts for the day, everything else was secondary or my TL had backup help out.

 

[dave white]

i also applied for GSA recently

Good luck, and may God have mercy on your soul.

 

[Cooliobum]

Thanks all. I was also getting the hint that they are doing this because they want me to move up, but I had heard that they'd do this to get people to quit as well. Apperantly my stores oldest GSTL argued with our ETL that I should've gotten GSA, and my newest GSTL said that I was ranked #1 interview wise and that he wants me to be in a leadship position, just not GSA.