Why Target refusing to raise a single cent above $15/hr ?

[NotCynicalYet]

Trust me when I say higher pay would help. The issue is when the higher pay still doesn't work, which means things are so bad, people don't want to be there even WITH the extra money..

If they pull the same crap again next year with keeping the January payroll cut philosophy through the first three quarters and don't give everyone a meaty raise, we're going to be eaten alive.

 

[flow4areasonuno]

If they pull the same crap again next year with keeping the January payroll cut philosophy through the first three quarters and don't give everyone a meaty raise, we're going to be eaten alive.

And they wonder why some of us are lazy...

Because we've seen what happens to people who break their necks and bust their asses for the job. Working hard will get you nothing but more work, and at most a 30 cent raise.

 

[Times Up]

And they wonder why some of us are lazy...

You're not lazy .. you've just quiet quit.

When Target was one of the first retailers to pay $15/hr, it was a coveted employer because it was $5 more than everyone else. Now employers pay at least that. Here Arby's, hospitals, insurance companies...all pay at least that. And I've noticed that the sign at Panda Express now shows team members earn $15 to $19. Target has lost its shine!

 

[animalcrossing]

I'm in a place where $15 an hour is still an "acceptable" living wage (albeit not great or comfortable living by any means) and considering I only made $9.30/hr at the most at my old job where I did much more work, I'm not exactly mad about the starting wage at Target at all. Although I do agree with others in saying that Target shouldn't consider itself vastly superior to other employers just because of that starting wage; $15/hr is starting to become commonplace in certain areas

 

[happygoth]

You're not lazy .. you've just quiet quit.

When Target was one of the first retailers to pay $15/hr, it was a coveted employer because it was $5 more than everyone else. Now employers pay at least that. Here Arby's, hospitals, insurance companies...all pay at least that. And I've noticed that the sign at Panda Express now shows team members earn $15 to $19. Target has lost its shine!

But it's good that other places are paying that much, right? That doesn't mean that Target has to now pay even more, it means other places have caught up to us. I'll take any money they want to give me, but I don't expect them to raise the starting pay constantly.

 

[YugTegrat]

But it's good that other places are paying that much, right? That doesn't mean that Target has to now pay even more, it means other places have caught up to us. I'll take any money they want to give me, but I don't expect them to raise the starting pay constantly.

Why wouldn't you expect them to increase pay when costs of living have increased? The $15 was good at the time, now it's not. The $15 we're earning now isn't worth as much as the $15 we were earning then.

The value of our work hasn't diminished, so we're getting less despite putting in the same amount of work as before. Why wouldn't that warrant the expectation of an increase?

 

[happygoth]

Why wouldn't you expect them to increase pay when costs of living have increased? The $15 was good at the time, now it's not. The $15 we're earning now isn't worth as much as the $15 we were earning then.

The value of our work hasn't diminished, so we're getting less despite putting in the same amount of work as before. Why wouldn't that warrant the expectation of an increase?

I get a raise every year based on my review. Starting pay in my store is more than $15 an hour. Considering the federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour and about half the states follow the federal, I think Target is doing ok.

 

[YugTegrat]

I get a raise every year based on my review. Starting pay in my store is more than $15 an hour. Considering the federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour and about half the states follow the federal, I think Target is doing ok.

Starting pay at many stores is still $15 an hour and raises haven't been restored since COVID, with DEO still only earning you 4% as opposed to the 5% it used to. The next cycle of raises won't even see increases for anyone receiving ION and off-cycle increases are far too rare for those who go above and beyond. The federal minimum is $7.25, sure, but that's because the minimum isn't a living wage -- it doesn't automatically increase with the cost of living or value of labor. In reality, it should be well above $20 an hour.
Keep in mind that we're in January as well, so payroll is getting slashed for the new schedules. $15 an hour, 20 hours a week is nowhere near livable.

All of that for people who were considered essential. It's kind of laughable.

It's all well and good to be content with what you have and where you are, but the people making the decisions regarding how much you're worth do not feel the same as you do. Corporate greed is why minimum wages have not increased with the value of labor and why the wage gap between workers at the bottom and executives at the top has grown exponentially.

 

[flow4areasonuno]

The next cycle of raises won't even see increases for anyone receiving ION

So this is why the TLs have been giving me shit over the dumbest things. I keep getting loaded down with jobs that really ought to be for the janitors or cart people (emptying trash I don't mind, it's cleaning up shit and wiping up under the register trash cans and mats I go ??? on). I would think it was just me but they apparently do this to everyone. I have great coworkers...the management make things a living hell. I have to see which managers are working before I know how stressful the day is

I know I'm never going to get DEO, and what would that really be anyway? Barely worth the ink for the papers the review is written with.

 

[jackandcat]

This is a really tough topic. Your district needs to make a wage survey of local competitors and submit it to Corporate.

We have had a lot of TM turnover, and more importantly are losing our best TLs and ETLs. Other than health benefits premiums which are very expensive for grade 35 TMs, the benefits offered are good. (FYI Higher-paid Target staff might be just fine with the health premiums pricing). I can only guess, but my perception is that the many TLs, closing TLs and ETLs who are quitting are frustrated with the performance goals/metrics which they must satisfy but without adequate staffing hours, broken or malfunctioning equipment, and frequent "moving the goalposts" changes interfering with the getting their job duties done right and on time. Anyone here care to chime in?

 

[nevermind]

My district will never do a wage survey because the SDs will never push for it. My SD will roll over and bark when District comes to visit. She's fricking worthless, and toxic, and our store shows it.

This is a really tough topic. Your district needs to make a wage survey of local competitors and submit it to Corporate.

We have had a lot of TM turnover, and more importantly are losing our best TLs and ETLs. Other than health benefits premiums which are very expensive for grade 35 TMs, the benefits offered are good. (FYI Higher-paid Target staff might be just fine with the health premiums pricing). I can only guess, but my perception is that the many TLs, closing TLs and ETLs who are quitting are frustrated with the performance goals/metrics which they must satisfy but without adequate staffing hours, broken or malfunctioning equipment, and frequent "moving the goalposts" changes interfering with the getting their job duties done right and on time. Anyone here care to chime in?

 

[nevermind]

Trust me when I say higher pay would help. The issue is when the higher pay still doesn't work, which means things are so bad, people don't want to be there even WITH the extra money..

In my small town with the only Target for 70 miles, HR has gone through every single reasonable worker who applies. Our labor pool is very small. As ETLs and TLs and TMs leave, our SD is getting a terrible reputation as a toxic bitch. It's too bad really. The Walmart across the street is always fully staffed and zoned really well. Between Corp greed and spineless toxic SD, my store is pretty fucked and only getting worse. 🎯🎯

 

[Anelmi]

You think the health insurance is expensive? I work 30+ hours a week at Target on top of my other full time job just bc the benefits through Target are so much cheaper. Same exact coverage, same provider, same everything is $600 less per paycheck than my other job.

 

[Ashfromoldsite]

You think the health insurance is expensive? I work 30+ hours a week at Target on top of my other full time job just bc the benefits through Target are so much cheaper. Same exact coverage, same provider, same everything is $600 less per paycheck than my other job.

Agreed. Target insurance is tons cheaper than any of the jobs my husband has had.

 

[flow4areasonuno]

In my small town with the only Target for 70 miles, HR has gone through every single reasonable worker who applies. Our labor pool is very small. As ETLs and TLs and TMs leave, our SD is getting a terrible reputation as a toxic bitch. It's too bad really. The Walmart across the street is always fully staffed and zoned really well. Between Corp greed and spineless toxic SD, my store is pretty fucked and only getting worse. 🎯🎯

We have a similar issue with our head of HR. I've heard it slip that they're a problem child passed around various stores. No one who works under her ever lasts more than a few months. They usually find better jobs or leave.

 

[jackandcat]

You think the health insurance is expensive? I work 30+ hours a week at Target on top of my other full time job just bc the benefits through Target are so much cheaper. Same exact coverage, same provider, same everything is $600 less per paycheck than my other job.

Good to know. I haven't worked at another company for awhile, and for a couple of years since Obamacare came into effect we were on our state's medicaid, though keeping hours worked below the amount where we'd be bumped. Target's plan is pretty good. The standard HSA (not the one with the ultra-high deductible) costs $223 for myself and my spouse per 2-week paycheck cycle. As there are 26 pay cycles per year, this is about $5,798 per year. At least this is paid as pre-tax income so your tax level is reduced by what you pay out for health premiums (which in my case is somewhere over 10% of yearly earnings).

It is better to have health coverage than not, and Target's plan is far from the worst. There are some really nice services included. The real problem is my spouse used to have a job with a plan where our combined premiums were about half of what I'm paying now, and it's a reminder that the American system of paying for health is really steep.

 

[dannyy315]

You think the health insurance is expensive? I work 30+ hours a week at Target on top of my other full time job just bc the benefits through Target are so much cheaper. Same exact coverage, same provider, same everything is $600 less per paycheck than my other job.

$57/month premium with prescriptions covered without needing to reach the deductible is a steal. Also comes with eye coverage.

 

[Zxy123456]

So this is why the TLs have been giving me shit over the dumbest things. I keep getting loaded down with jobs that really ought to be for the janitors or cart people (emptying trash I don't mind, it's cleaning up shit and wiping up under the register trash cans and mats I go ??? on). I would think it was just me but they apparently do this to everyone. I have great coworkers...the management make things a living hell. I have to see which managers are working before I know how stressful the day is

I know I'm never going to get DEO, and what would that really be anyway? Barely worth the ink for the papers the review is written with.

After Christmas is considered bounce back. Everything gets a deep cleaning. All cashiers to a deep cleaning of the registers and check lane’s. I’ve done this many times.

 

[flow4areasonuno]

After Christmas is considered bounce back. Everything gets a deep cleaning. All cashiers to a deep cleaning of the registers and check lane’s. I’ve done this many times.

Some notice would really have been appreciated tho

 

[jackandcat]

$57/month premium with prescriptions covered without needing to reach the deductible is a steal. Also comes with eye coverage.

It's not $57/month, it's $57 per pay period. There are 26 pay periods per year. That's $123.50 per month, or $1482. Again, maybe your region has a much cheaper health care cost than where I'm at (Washington State), but my impression is that Target's health premiums are pretty much the same nationwide as it's a nationwide plan.

My plan does not include eye coverage, I don't know if your region has a different benefit offering than my region. You must have the HSRA plan with the higher $5000 deductible, the HRA plan in my region is $70 per pay period and it has the $2500 deductible.

I double-checked my math so I'm calculating correctly, and excluding the dental and vision premiums. My own medical is $70 per pay period. My spouse is $141.11 per pay period. Both of us add up to$211.11 per pay period - $5,488.86 or $457.41 per month. That is a bit over 15% of my gross pay going to medical - not including the actual co-payments and deductibles for actually getting health care. That doesn't include dental or vision. Since my spouse is currently between jobs for health reasons, this is a burden. So maybe now you understand why I think it's expensive - and not "a steal"??

 

[dannyy315]

My mistake. $1,500 for insurance for the entire year, with prescription coverage, is still very good comparatively for insurance. If you go on the marketplace, you'll have a hard time finding a similar plan for less than $500/month. And the deductible would be a lot higher too.

And I have an HRA plan. The deductible is only $1150.

Speaking the HRA, I really like it. I just signed up for the plan at the beginning of the year because I was dropped off my parents' family plan, and I had $200 in my HRA just for signing up. You can earn up to $500, and use that to pay for medical expenses. And it all contributes towards your deductible. So the HRA could pay for almost have of my deductible, which is pretty cool.

 

[jackandcat]

My mistake. $1,500 for insurance for the entire year, with prescription coverage, is still very good comparatively for insurance. If you go on the marketplace, you'll have a hard time finding a similar plan for less than $500/month. And the premium would be a lot higher too.

And I have an HRA plan. The deductible is only $1150.

Speaking the HRA, I really like it. I just signed up for the plan at the beginning of the year because I was dropped off my parents' family plan, and I had $200 in my HRA just for signing up. You can earn up to $500, and use that to pay for medical expenses. And it all contributes towards your deductible. Do the HRA could pay for almost have of my deductible, which is pretty cool.

Your region might have a somewhat lower premium than in Washington State, it may be linked to the local cost of health care. It is a really good plan overall, and you are correct that it's better than the Marketplace plans offered in my state, even with the subsidies for low-income users. The biggest frustration is the steep premium for adding a spouse or dependents.

 

[Planosss]

I was wondering why Target refusing to raise a single cent above $15/hr ? The minimum wage of the state I live at is $14.25/hr effective as of December 31, 2022, and the ETL and hiring manager tell us they are still not going to raise a single amount in 2023 if my state raise wages to $15/hr. Even if they are to raise wages they are likely gonna raise wages by 25 cents which is $15.25/hr, if majority of the team member threatens to quit. The Target department in my area has implemented a policy where they won't raise a cent above $15/hr, unless the minimum wage of the state is above 15. Like if the minimum wage of the state is 14.75/hr, Target will still only pay 15/hr. Another scenario TL explained me that if minimum wage is like $16.5/hr then Target have no choice but to pay $16.5 (still above Target's minimum wage) to comply with states federal law.

The stores like Walmart does not even pay that low even for janitorial positions let alone for entry-level sales associates. I spoke to Walmart departments store associates during pre-interview, and in fact they are willing to raise minimum wages to at least $16.5/hr given that our state minimum wages will be $14.25/hr, and also willing to pay tuition if I am enrolled in college, as well as would provide other benefits Target failed to provide. Even Wegmans is currently paying $17/hr and is willing to raise wages to $18/hr due to minimum wage increase.

I already spoke ETL, and gave him 2 weeks notice to before Christmas that I am quitting due to lack of pay, benefits, and accomodation, and planning to transfer to much nearest stores like Wegmans if getting hired. The ETL was understandable about it, and gave me until January 15 to make my decision whether to stay on Target or to quit Target for other companies that applied like Wegmans, and/or Kohl's.

Your ETL and SD don’t dictate hourly wages..

 

[Planosss]

My mistake. $1,500 for insurance for the entire year, with prescription coverage, is still very good comparatively for insurance. If you go on the marketplace, you'll have a hard time finding a similar plan for less than $500/month. And the premium would be a lot higher too.

And I have an HRA plan. The deductible is only $1150.

Speaking the HRA, I really like it. I just signed up for the plan at the beginning of the year because I was dropped off my parents' family plan, and I had $200 in my HRA just for signing up. You can earn up to $500, and use that to pay for medical expenses. And it all contributes towards your deductible. So the HRA could pay for almost have of my deductible, which is pretty cool.

“similar plan for less than $500/month. And the premium would be a lot higher too”

Huh?

 

[Tessa120]

Your region might have a somewhat lower premium than in Washington State, it may be linked to the local cost of health care. It is a really good plan overall, and you are correct that it's better than the Marketplace plans offered in my state, even with the subsidies for low-income users. The biggest frustration is the steep premium for adding a spouse or dependents.

Double check the marketplace. There are tax credits that lower the premium. I've got decent income, I still qualified for roughly $300 tax credits, bringing a high premium down to a little over $100 a month for a decent plan. I couldn't get them when married filing separately, but filing jointly does allow tax credits.