July 29, 2015 - tanya57
“The bottom 5”
About two months ago, I was hired as a cashier. I was really desperate to leave my old job at the time and target was in fact offering me slightly more money than my old job. Everything seemed great at first. I had five years of cashier experience under my belt and assumed it would be a fairly easy and enjoyable job. I was wrong. I had no idea about the red cards. I knew about them as a target shopper, but didn’t know how much they were really pushed. My first two weeks were great. I didn’t even know about selling red cards until my third or fourth shift when they finally told me to start asking people. Okay, I can do that. The impression I got was that I would just mention the card to every customer, not really push it or harass customers to get one like I later found out was what they really wanted me to do. By my sixth or seventh shift, an LOD came up to me and spewed the whole “give me your best red card pitch.” This was my first time being asked to give my prompt. Since I was still under the impression that I just had to casually ask if customers were interested I said “uhh.. I just ask if they would like the store credit or debit card.” Oh my god the look on the LOD’s face was kind of priceless. She snapped at me that that could not have been a weaker approach and that I needed to make a connection with the guest, basically make them feel like I genuinely cared about them, and then added something in about red cards and persist about it until they gave in. I was shocked. From every shift there on out, I was talked to about it by multiple LODs, TLs and just about everyone in management about my red card approach. I still hadn’t gotten ANYONE to sign up though I had been trying. This continued for weeks. I would get a red card here and there after awhile but not enough to please management. I was coached almost every shift and felt like I was always being spied on. This finally all came to a boil a week or so ago when me and two other cashiers were pulled aside for a huddle during a busy Saturday. Basically all of management that was on duty was at this huddle. It started out with “not everyone who we want to be at this huddle is working today so it will just be you guys we’re talking to.” We were all informed that we all had the worst transaction to red card percentage and we were in the bottom five in the whole store. We then spent literally fifteen minutes role playing and going through our pitches with each manager while we were yelled at and talked down to about every thing they didn’t like. One of the other cashiers even started to cry. We were then sent back out to the lanes. For the rest of the shift, we could all tell that us in the bottom five we’re being treated different than everyone else. When we were slow the other cashiers would stand around while us in the bottom five were told to collect baskets, do reshop and collect hangers. We were talked to with much more attitude by management than anyone else, to the point where it was obvious. I was still being spied on, asked every half an hour by someone for my red card pitch, and constantly asked if I had a red card yet. It got so bad that day that I excused myself to the bathroom during the middle of my shift (which the GSTL was pissed about) to calm myself down from a budding panic attack. I would desperately ask customers if they wanted red cards and feel absolutely defeated every time one refused. All of my shifts since this horrible day have been much like this, and all of us in the bottom five are treated with much less respect than the other cashiers One of us in the bottom five already quit and I’m hoping I’m the next one to go. I’d rather be broke than have panic attacks almost every time I work.
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All I can say is if you're being too stressed, another job may be the way to go. I used to cashier as well before they made me a full cart attendant (which I still hate) and I understand how you feel. That's all they care about is red cards. It is annoying and I understand the TLs and GSAs may get yelled at for not getting a certain amount, but they don't have to be So annoying about it. I want to say it'll get better, but at my Super Target I don't even cashier and I know they get annoyed still. Bottom line is if you must quit and find another job that's right for you, do So.
Omg....that's horrible! Seriously, I would leave. Look for another job as quick as possible!
I've told my GSTLs several times, I ask, they say well not good enough. I say well I've asked and most of the time they just say already got one, yeah I'd like to but I really don't want to slow down everyone behind me. Target, fuck target, they can fire me for all I care, I haven't asked for 6 months now. Fuck target, they are a piece of shit retail bullcrap. I even asked one day about so I get a red card applied for by someone and you or the manager of the store gets a big raise or bonus payment when I get a red card huh? I've been reading about it forever on the internet. They said huh, no, no one gets a bonus pay or anything. Please. Target, you are fake assholes. You don't tell what we here at ihatetarget know, and you won't listen to your cashiers really say based upon what real people say about getting a red card and what a hassle it is that you target is a communist non listening egotictical fucktard bullshit idiotic r****d establishment of retail.
Call the Hotline. Tell them you are being harassed. Don't let them tell you otherwise. If they retaliate then call again. Keep calling till you get them off your ass. Bring up the employee handbook. Where does is say that I have to get X amount of redcards. I am not listed as a salesman but a cashier. They think they are smarter than you. They come up with these "bully tactics" in their ETL meetings just so they can fool the DTL into thinking their store is FFF. Bullshit.......Call their bluff!
That is just criminal. Contests for who gets the most red cards in a week or whatever is fine but to harass people for not getting them is crap. I only backed up cashier during my 2 plus years with spot but if someone did that to me, I would have just walked out and said someone else can fold all the damn towels and straighten up C block but it isn't going to be this rented mule.
I still shop at target sometimes and I must say it is both sad but appeasing to never hear the RedCard ever get mentioned to me as a customer. As an employee, that was the single thing that they would focus on, but it seems like all of the cashiers don't even bother now and they all seem fine with it. All we can hope for is that eventually it won't be such an extreme factor into job security there.
I started in October. At black Friday I declared I will never ask a costumer if they want the red card. I have not had one in weeks. Before they were on me all the time and now not one word.