Retail chain cuts workers' hours rather than paying overtime: 'They are going to schedule all the full timers at 35 hours so that no one goes over 40'

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Brad Dickson • Managing Editor
Jun 18, 2024 10:00 AM EDT

Ahh, retail… a fine industry where middle manglement regularly tries to shove a dirt sandwich down your throat while whispering sweetly to you it's actually honey.

The story shared in this post is a tale as old as time in retail, where management will happily tell you with a smile that the company's official policy is that the customer comes first… but that the unofficial policy is that making sure staff never claim or report overtime also comes first. So, then, what happens when you're working late helping a customer after the store closes on a big sale that happened to run overly long? Well, go shove it—that's what.

Further, the reduction of staff hours and store hours to dodge full-time wage benefits is a specialty of big retailers. Are the managers trying to convince you to put them on a salary instead of a wage? Just cut the store hows down 30 minutes on each side so they don't qualify as full-time and blame a certain global event that cannot be named—then threaten them every time they try to charge overtime when the industry gets a boon thanks to those same global events.

Yeah, the story is no different here, where this poster shared how their spouse's "big retail" employer reduced the hours that workers were scheduled to avoid having to pay overtime when they were stuck helping customers after their scheduled shift was over. See their post below from this popular online workplace community.

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  • 01
    BAGGE MON U.S.LNAVY GAI DU
    via Clark Street Mercantile
  • 02
    No overtime allowed, so everyone now scheduled 35 hours instead of 40. Hubby has worked at a well known camping/fishing/hunting company for a couple years now, always 40 hours scheduled. Occasionally he and other full time employees would end up getting a bit of overtime when helping customers (its not like they can say "Whoops sorry I just hit 40 hours, let me find another employee to finish helping you!")
    via u/AdMysterious7891
  • 03
    They used to say that those employees would have to leave x- number-of-minutes early at the end of the week to avoid the overtime. At their morning meeting they just announced that they are going to schedule all the full timers at 35 hours so that no one goes over 40 and thus accrues overtime! This is asinine. I told him to try to keep track of his hours every week so that he can at least "try" to get as close to 40 by helping people past his scheduled lave time, without getting in trouble. Anyo
    via u/AdMysterious7891
  • 04
    Another_Random_Chap 13 hr. ago So they just effectively gave all their staff a 12.5% pay cut. Good luck retaining all your experienced workforce after a stunt like that.
    via u/AdMysterious7891
  • 05
    TheCrimsonSteel 13 hr. ago . Might that be eligible for some amount of unemployment? I know sometimes changes to schedule can still fall under unemployment, but I forget the specifics
    via u/AdMysterious7891
  • 06
    . Loofa_of_Doom 17 hr. ago. Work only 35 hours and not one moment more. Let them fail. They've just told you they are so focused on the short term they can't think of the long term. I wouldn't just quit, but I'd be using those 'extra' 5 hours to look for a new job. Don't abandon the job until you have a better one. I'm sure there are better ones than this crazy You = hubby.
    via u/AdMysterious7891
  • 07
    rakklle 16 hr. ago This isn't uncommon. I worked at one place that would schedule us for 35 hours because cashing in/cashing out weren't part of the official schedule. Another employer would have people clock out at the end of their Friday morning break to offset any OT accrued during the week. Then you can sit around in
    via u/AdMysterious7891
  • 08
    the breakroom for 15, 20 or whatever minutes. They didn't allow us to leave early because they didn't want it to become an incentive to work unexpected overtime.
    via u/AdMysterious7891
  • 09
    Mortimer452 16 hr. ago Spoiler alert: It's not stupidity from corporate, if it's a chain store, it's 100% the store's manager.
    via u/AdMysterious7891
  • 10
    Sad-Present8841 16 hr. ago At my work every few years they trot out this idea where all the junior-tier employees get put on a 6 day 6 hour schedule. It never works out but they're doing it again (fortunately it doesn't apply to me this time, but I've been there in the past)
    via u/AdMysterious7891
  • 11
    This time they're also forcing them to take off-the- clock lunch breaks in a 6 hour day, which is only required by law in an OVER 6h work day. So now these folks get to drive to work 6 times a week and they're down to a 33 hour paycheck!
    via u/AdMysterious7891
  • 12
    JazzyButternuts • 16 hr. ago Tell him to drop everything and leave exactly at the 35 hour mark. Let them suffer.
    via u/AdMysterious7891
  • 13
    TheGreater Tool 16 hr. ago • This has been the case in every retail job I've ever worked
    via u/AdMysterious7891

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customer support customer service workplace discussion employment issues antiwork workplace-stories talesfromretail jobs employment-discussion job retail karen-customer work customers karen-customers workplace Horrible Bosses tales-from-retail employment in the workplace
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