Filed under D for Duh - Target workers can't make ends meet after min wage raised to $15 and hours cut

October 16, 2019, 02:52 PM

Ronin101

quote:
Originally posted by HRK:
If Target raised the min wage they pay to $15 and as a result planned to cut hours in order to meet the budgeted total payroll costs as a scheme to look "Woke" to their customers, then it's a dick move and not the result of basic corporate economics happening.

Which sounds like is Ronin's argument, they didn't have to give $15 legally everywhere, they did in order to gain publicity.

The result is Target cut peoples hours in order to keep total payroll in line for budget and making peoples total hours fall under the minimum requirement for benefits.

Since the whole country doesn't have a $15 wage minimum it appears as a Virtue signalling move when you combine the trans toilet decision it fits the corporate narrative.

Agree in it's purest economic form, raising wages, regardless of the level or job requires funds to be reallocated from another area, either profit, others wages, price increases or decreased hours.

If Target couldn't make the $15 hour work for its employees it should have kept wages where they were wherever law permits.

The economics lessons are a bit much, considering that, as surmised the reality is Target virtue signaled the world to look woke and in the process actually reduced pay on employees by raising hourly rates.

Or Target could be signalling to the min wage pushers, this is what you get when you mess with minimum wages to an extreme position. We'll raise the wages but hours and benefits are going to be cut...

Yes...if the employees knew that they were going to make them all part time or reduce benefits they wouldn't have been for it.

When Seattle went to 15.00 dollars an hour most workers demanded part time so that they could make the same money and not lose any welfare benes!!!

October 16, 2019, 02:58 PM

Woodman

quote:
Originally posted by PASig:
These workers are flipping burgers and pouring coffee; it's NOT a $15/hour skill.

True. But doing it through two busy shifts a day, on your feet, sweaty, greasy, slippery floor, loud buzzers, always a demand for speed, it cannot be an easy job. We cannot find dependable laborers at double that rate.

I stop at one particular McD's on Saturday evenings a few times a year. It is off the beaten path; not a "neighborhood hangout". The burgers are outstanding, searing grease dripping onto my shirt every time. The fries are always super fresh.

Finally I had to call the manager and comment what a well-run franchise they have, and the Saturday night crew in particular. And she already knew it.

But for the grace of God it could be me coming home every night, sore, beat, and smelling of a deep fryer ...

October 16, 2019, 03:09 PM

BamaJeepster

quote:
Originally posted by Woodman:
quote:
Originally posted by PASig:
These workers are flipping burgers and pouring coffee; it's NOT a $15/hour skill.

True. But doing it through two busy shifts a day, on your feet, sweaty, greasy, slippery floor, loud buzzers, always a demand for speed, it cannot be an easy job. We cannot find dependable laborers at double that rate.

I stop at one particular McD's on Saturday evenings a few times a year. It is off the beaten path; not a "neighborhood hangout". The burgers are outstanding, searing grease dripping onto my shirt every time. The fries are always super fresh.

Finally I had to call the manager and comment what a well-run franchise they have, and the Saturday night crew in particular. And she already knew it.

But for the grace of God it could be me coming home every night, sore, beat, and smelling of a deep fryer ...

I just want to post again to make absolutely clear that the intent of this thread was in no way to bash anyone, at any level, who is going in and working every day. I have been there and done that and have the utmost respect for anyone who is out there hustling for a dollar rather than sitting on the government dole.

The intent of this thread was to point out the economic reality that arbitrarily raising unskilled labor wages above what the market will bear has 100% predictable outcomes. This is known stuff that has been repeated over and over and over again in the real world and the consequences don't change, it is just economic reality.

October 16, 2019, 03:34 PM

lyman

quote:
Originally posted by BamaJeepster:
quote:
Originally posted by Ronin101:
Bama..what do you do? IT? If you got a hired for 30 bucks an hour and did a great job. would it be ok for your company to take benefits from you even though they were making record profits? Or cut your hours so that didn't have to provide you health care so they can make more profit.

Amazons average worker makes more than 15.00 an hour

Would I like it? Hell no, obviously not. However that is kinda the point. IT is a field where there is competition for skilled labor, so companies can't do that and stay in business for long.

Target has 350,000 employees. How much do you think it is costing them to move from $11 per hour to $15 per hour?

Just a rough cut - $11 per hour x 40 hours per week x 52 weeks per year = $22,880

$15 per hour = $31,200

$8320 difference x 350,000 = $2,912,000,000.

How do those financials look if you subtract 2.9 billion from them?

And that's not the total cost by a mile - an increase in salary means increases in taxes and benefits - the rough hourly calculation is just to get an idea.

like I said it is all about percentages,

Target like most work off of either Sales Per Labor Hour, or Payroll %, or something similar,,

those goals are set by corporate, to control the most controllable expense in retail,,,,

labor,,,

each store has it's own goal, the District has a goal, the region (or however they are broke down) has its combined goal,

SPLH,, as in the goal is for every $100 or $1000 in sales, you can used X number of hours,

last store I managed for one company in the grocery business I was set at 5.9% labor, and that included my Store Manager wages, and a RX,,
was lucky to use 1200 hrs a week,
this was a change, since before we used SPLH and I could use 1800 hrs or so, (including 150 hrs allotment for salaried managers (me, comanager, rx))

the company I left a few years ago used a similar system that required ~5% labor dollars, ($800K a week, +/-, and used 4-4300 hrs labor)

my avg hourly rate was around $11,

if that company agreed to pay everyone $15 and up, then hours would have been cut down to about 2700 or so +/-, total store,

that is a ton of time to be cut out of a retail business,,,

question is, is Target still maintaining store conditions? in stock position good? enough help on the front end?

October 16, 2019, 03:36 PM

HRK

quote:
Originally posted by BamaJeepster:
The intent of this thread was to point out the economic reality that arbitrarily raising unskilled labor wages above what the market will bear has 100% predictable outcomes. This is known stuff that has been repeated over and over and over again in the real world and the consequences don't change, it is just economic reality.

Doubt many here have a problem with that basic economic concept, Target isn't a victim of out of control local wage laws since the majority of the stores are not in areas with forced $15 wage minimums.

This was done to either virtue signal to progressive customers, and/or to signal to governments, you force us into this, and this is what happens, since politicians pander to voters they really don't care about the consequences of their decisions, unless it hurts their voter numbers.

Its how it plays, Target could simply be signalling politicians...