Who's Going Shopping On Black Thursday?- Page 2

[Reginald Tresilian]

Posted: 11/12/13 at 2:27pm

On the other hand:

In the small southern town I grew up in, the downtown stores were open 9 to 5 Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. They closed at noon on Wednesday and Saturday, and of course weren't open on Sunday. Which meant that working people essentially had three hours a week to do their shopping. Naturally the small-business owners were outraged when customers took their business out of town on weekends, as malls began to open in larger cities.

All of which is to say, I think commerce works best when the needs of business owners, customers, and employees are balanced.

[tazber]

Posted: 11/12/13 at 2:32pm

I do feel badly for people who really don't want to work and have to.

But there are a lot of jobs that require workers 24/7/365.

Hotels
Hospitals
Law Enforcement
Etc.

And then there are the restaurants that serve T-day menus.

I mean it sucks, but it's part of the deal I guess.

For what it's worth when I worked in hotels in NY I always had to work the holidays. I also did it as a favor to my co-workers so they could stay home with their families.

[SonofMammaMiaSam]

Posted: 11/12/13 at 2:38pm

I worked in retail management when the North Carolina "blue laws" were rescinded. We opened on Sundays from noon to five. In the beginning all we got were people who had just finished a meal at the K&W, S&W or Picadilly Cafeteria's. We'd find toothpicks on top of the fixtures for two days after.

Updated On: 11/12/13 at 02:38 PM

[JerseyGirl2]

Posted: 11/12/13 at 3:14pm

My understanding is that each employee of those stores is required to work one shift during Thanksgiving/Black Friday.

[SonofMammaMiaSam]

Posted: 11/12/13 at 3:17pm

My niece used to be a manager for Old Navy and she used to have to report at midnight to set up for Black Friday. She's now at Apple and still had to be there at 3 a.m. last year.

[Jungle Red]

Posted: 11/12/13 at 3:33pm

I used to work for Bath and Body Works. Black Friday is *the* biggest day (besides the sale periods, which is a whole other topic). We would set up on Wednesday, have Thursday off, and then be at the store at about 4AM to get all the smaller stuff done. Doors opened at 6AM and it never stopped.

Question for you, Jordan, and everyone else really.

Do you see movies on Thanksgiving and Christmas? Those people are probably not getting holiday pay. Those people are making minimum wage.

What's the difference between Black Friday and seeing movies?

[tazber]

Posted: 11/12/13 at 3:35pm

Why do you think that movie theater employees don't get holiday pay?

[Reginald Tresilian]

Posted: 11/12/13 at 3:40pm

I'd like to think this all works out to everyone's advantage--that shifts are balanced so that those who want to can see their families; that holiday workers get a little extra pay; that consumers can shop at a time convenient to them; and that the economy gets a boost from holiday shopping.

It's clearly a complicated issue.

[Jungle Red]

Posted: 11/12/13 at 3:40pm

I used to work for Century, which is owned by Cinemark. If I remember correctly (this was over 5 years ago), Thanksgiving night and Christmas morning shifts received time and a half. If you worked Thanksgiving day or Christmas night, you received regular pay.

That's why I said "probably not".

[suestorm]

Posted: 11/12/13 at 3:53pm

with unemployment so high, im sure they could find plenty of people grateful to work those days

[Jungle Red]

Posted: 11/12/13 at 4:13pm

I don't want to agree with it, but I do, kind of.

I started as a seasonal employee at Bath and Body Works and became a core member afterwards. There was about thirty of us. A year later, when they started hiring season employees, they practically hired anyone who applied and accepted the job. Between Black Friday and the end of the first annual sale, there would be anywhere from 25 to 40 sales people on the floor. That's not counting the worker bees whose job it is to stock the shelves.

The movie theater didn't hire near as many, but they did hire for the holidays.

[ClumsyDude15]

Posted: 11/12/13 at 4:20pm

I've worked many a Thanksgiving both in retail and grocery stores, and it really sucks, but I am not ungrateful at all for having done so. I think my fondest memory of working on Thanksgiving was the year I worked seasonal at the Disney Store, and despite it being a mad house in Times Square, it wasn't quite a big a chore as other previous Thanksgiving shifts had been.

I currently work in another Disney Store in a mall, and it's up in the air whether we'll have to come in earlier than anticipated. I'd much prefer coming in later on (post-dinner/parade, etc) in the evening than having to work during the morning-mid-afternoon during which all of that is occurring.

Most holidays (as someone above pointed out) are the time and half variety, so those who do work get paid more for their time. So, it's sort of a suck it up and it's worth it type of thing, especially (as someone mentioned) with unemployment as high as it is.

Updated On: 11/12/13 at 04:20 PM

[NYadgal]

Posted: 11/12/13 at 5:19pm

To answer the question in the title: I will not be going shopping on Black Thursday.

I will be cooking and eating and relaxing.

Working on a holiday is a complicated issue, but I tend to think in terms of 'essential' (medical, police, hotel, service) and 'non-essential'.
In my mind, shopping has always fallen into the non-essential category.
However, I also acknowledge that given our economy, it has become more and more essential for the retailers to participate in this important pre-holiday shopping season with as many hours as possible. And, it's also possible that a holiday is the only time some consumers get 'free time' to go shopping. So, it's not as clear-cut as we'd like it to be.

But, I won't be among the shoppers.

Updated On: 11/12/13 at 05:19 PM

[Reginald Tresilian]

Posted: 11/12/13 at 8:12pm

This is good to hear

[Eris0303]

Posted: 11/12/13 at 10:27pm

Someone made an interesting comment to me today. The people who are camped out in front of the TV watching football aren't spending time with their families either. So if we're vilifying the stores why aren't we picking on the movie theatres or NFL? It made me chuckle because it made a bit of sense. We need to BEG my brother to just come to dinner and as soon as he's done eating he's back in front of the TV. So, what's the difference if I run out and buy a few gifts?

I tend not to shop on Black Friday because I worked retail for far too long. I may run out to grab the last piece in Hallmark's Disney Wireless Band - which is released on Black Friday. But, thanks to Etsy I'm pretty much done my shopping.

As for holiday pay in my experience it's fairly rare.

My retail history:

Warner Brothers Store - time & a half but they were phasing it out
Gymboree - none
Waldenbooks/Border's Express - none
Disney Store - none

[Marianne2]

Posted: 11/12/13 at 11:52pm

I guess my biggest pet peeve about Black Friday shopping is the fights people get into over stuff or stampedes into the stores. I mean, people have gotten killed that way. It's scary. I mean, is that a good way to spend a day that you are supposed to reflect on what you are thankful for?

[romantico]

Posted: 11/13/13 at 1:11am

I have not gone out on Black Friday in years. Actually,since I got my computer. I get great deals online before and after Black Friday.No stress. No crowds. It may not be for everybody but it works just fine for me. I get some great deals.

Then usually around the first week of December I take a week day off and hit the malls early in the morning and get the bigger stuff then. I'm usually finished by around 1 or 2 in the afternoon and the crowds are no where near the size they would be on Black Friday.

[bobs3]

Posted: 11/13/13 at 4:25am

I am a Jew so I don't do Christmas shopping but research has proven that the best days to get those great deals on electronics and such is not Black Thursday or Friday but rather the weekend before Christmas when stores mark any unsold merchandise down to the bare minimum.

[themysteriousgrowl]

Posted: 11/13/13 at 7:50am

I've volunteered to work every Thanksgiving for the past 10 years, but they pay us double time and a half and bring in a truckload of turkey and stuffing and mashed potatoes, etc.

[JerseyGirl2]

Posted: 11/13/13 at 8:25am

I used to volunteer to work on Thanksgiving when I waited tables. It might as well have been double pay. We had a special menu and people were generous.

Updated On: 11/13/13 at 08:25 AM

[artscallion]

Posted: 11/13/13 at 9:28am

I do all my Xmas shopping online. I have Amazon Prime, so even the big stuff can be ordered free two-day shipping.

As far as people having to work Thanksgiving, I see it as part of the deal when you work retail. I work in theatre and there are many holidays that I have to work. Every year my mother gives me a sour look when I tell her I have to work Mothers' Day Sunday, a day that most people get off. I also work late on Christmas and New Years Eve. It's just part of the business.

[Liza's Headband]

Posted: 11/13/13 at 12:46pm

I love the Onion.

[tazber]

Posted: 11/13/13 at 1:03pm

That made me LOL Liza. I love the Sears perk.

[ACL2006]

Posted: 11/13/13 at 1:54pm

I have a friend who worked for Best Buy for years and always got stuck working Thanksgiving night through Black Friday(12 hour shift). The one bright side is that they get a % off any of the deals for that weekend and get paid double time(for him I think it was around $20/hour last year).

[Marianne2]

Posted: 11/29/13 at 1:48am

Hope everyone who is out or planning to go out has fun. Just remember to keep it classy and don't end up like these people:
http://www.buzzfeed.com/jordanzakarin/17-black-friday-stories-that-will-make-you-lose-faith-in-hum

And I heard on the news tonight that someone in NJ did get arrested outside of a Walmart for fighting.