Here's an email from a Team Leader at an undisclosed Whole Foods store and what he had to say about the direction of the company. Let me know what you think and what can/could be done.
Greetings all,
I have watched a lot of changes in 2 years. I understand that with growth comes change, but we should never compromise our integrity. It is obvious that Team Member happiness is becoming less and less of a concern and I am sure that Selling the highest quality products will come next (Whole Kitchen vegetable teriyaki contains 2096mg of sodium). We are cutting corners right and left just to hit ludicrous growth targets that close the gap everyday between WFM operates and Wal-Mart operates. I have jumped through numerous hoops waving the banner that the more we expand the more people we can help, but now I feel sick with guilt for being so blind, to allow myself to be so used and for what I have allowed to be done to my Team Members.
Has anyone looked at the new Job Dialogue forms? Here’s the run down:
Standard Percentage Increase Annually as follows:
If someone scores “outstanding” (which we have been told NEVER to do) = 7%-10%
“Very good” = 6%-8%
“Good” = 5%-7%
Sounds good right? Your TM is making $10.00/hr. and scores very good, thus qualifying for a $0.70 raise. Nope, cut it in half, because this is a six month job dialogue based on Annual percentage. Your TM who has done everything you have ever asked of them, who is aspiring to move up in the company is only going to get a $0.35 increase. Can you look your TM in the eye and tell them that. Can they put food on the table? Did we vote on this? Do you feel like in your Team Leader meeting this second part of the calculation was gleaned over at best (if mentioned at all)? Basically a TM who kills themselves to go above and beyond qualifies for a $0.40 increase while another TM who does the minimum job requirements will get $0.30. Where is the motivation?
Regional attempts to justify this new system by saying that it rewards TM’s who stay with the company for a long period of time, because the percentage for a team member making a higher wage will result in a larger increase (from a wage they acquired from our former pay scale). The problem is that if we are not able to pay our TM’s enough to eat and pay the bills they are going to get another job to make ends meet. To do this they will need to cut back their hours to be available for the second job. They will never be able to put in enough time to become a buyer, supervisor or Team leader to receive a pay increase for promotion and will be unable to stay around long enough to benefit from this system. Furthermore, this exacerbates a problem we are facing: NOT ENOUGH LEADERSHIP. I worked in a Labor Union for 5 years and this policy is very reminiscent of what the Teamsters were proposing at that time. WFM has been very open with their disapproval of unions, but this policy is VERY UNION, and I would not be a bit surprised if more or our stores start to look at the union for a viable option when they feel the crunch from this new wage system.
In another attempt to defend this profit at the expense of our Team Members, regional sighted that this would eliminate problems that teams where having with their labor budgets. I have NEVER missed labor in any store that I have ever worked. I make it a point to make sure every facet of my team’s operation is running smoothly for one reason and one reason only: so my Team Members are paid a fair wage. I don’t ever want them to go through what I went through. I do not want them to have to work 5 jobs. I do not want them to live in a car. I do not want them to have to eat other people’s trash. For teams that are struggling in this area, the Annual Percentage is a great tool to get them back on point, and having freedom to assign fair wages once back on track is a great incentive to repair their labor budgets.
We used to ingrain “empowerment” into all of our Team Members and especially our Team Leaders; however, I have not heard that word in a long time. I rarely hear anything mentioned about Team Member Happiness. All I hear about is sales. And we have delivered. Our team members have delivered. They are not stupid. They have watched our sales climb from $975,000 to $1,000,000 to $1,100,000 because of their hard work. Now they are finding their wages cut in half. How can we motivate these team member’s to keep pouring their blood and sweat into this company when they can make the same wage working half as hard for Borders or Safeway? Turnover will increase tenfold and we will be unable to grow any new leaders.
I started with WFM at 7.50/hr. I worked as hard as I possibly could, and my first Job Dialogue brought me up to 10/hr. I was happy that a company finally recognized that I was a hard worker and rewarded me for being a good, honest person, something that was lacking from my former Union environment. I guess I have come full circle. Those days are over. I can still hear my Team Leader saying “I believe in paying people what they are worth” and I remember how much respect that I had for her at that moment. Now I have to tell my Team Members “I am sorry you worked so hard to grow our sales, but you are only worth .35.” It makes me sick and I can not defend the company anymore. I just don’t have the answers. Maybe it would have been better if I was offered 7.85 and I just walked. Then I wouldn’t have to be so God Damn disappointed and ashamed to work for Whole Foods Market.
Our Whole Foods is not weathering these changes. There is a huge disconnect in John Mackey’s vision and what Regions are rolling out with. The main ingredient that made Whole Foods Market so great was TEAM MEMBERS, plain and simple. If Team Leaders lose the tools to run their own Teams, if we no longer pay our Team Members a fair wage and we continue to turn our backs on them, everything we worked for will crumble and we will be no better than Wal-Mart, we will be no better than any other “profit before people” sweat shop (like our safety shoes are made in).
I am not complaining; I am just trying to find answers. I just don’t have answers for my Team Members anymore. I can not tell them why they should support WFM. I just don’t believe anymore and at one time I really did. Can anyone help me believe? I know attempts have been made in stores to stifle TMAG representation, but do we still have a voice? Will anyone step up? I hate to think that we have become what we hate so soon.
Thanks for reading.
Bless,
scott
