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    RedWriterKelly Faircloth
    11/25/13 1:16pm

    I work in a restaurant by a shopping center and people will come and and (enthusiastically) tell me that they just spent all their money getting great deals on Christmas presents so they can't leave a tip. And then they'll promptly order a $25 steak.

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      girladywomanRedWriter
      11/25/13 1:20pm

      People are so, so very shitty. Seems more like the perfect time of year to leave a double or even triple tip.

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      RedWritergirladywoman
      11/25/13 1:23pm

      We do get people that do that, the very small population that are not so, so very shitty and remember what the season is about. But audacity of someone to say that?! It happens more often than not.

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    jewell84Kelly Faircloth
    11/25/13 7:27pm

    So I work in a hotel and will actually be working on Thanksgiving. And I've been trying to explain to my friends why I don't feel as outraged as everyone else about retail workers having to work Thanksgiving since hotel, restaurant, hospital, emergency workers will be on. They have used the those workers are essential excuse, but really we all have to be away from our families that day. If it's not fair for one group it's not fair for all. And frankly if people plan it the right way they will be fine. I'm dining with family after work, I know people who will do the same or beforehand. Plus I get time and a half for working that day. And as much as I love my family it sometimes they can be overwhelming so I don't have to spend too much time with them before I want to kill someone.

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      rainbowdashcrashjewell84
      11/25/13 9:00pm

      Retail is a different beast.

      When I worked in a veterinary hospital, I showed up on every holiday, because the dogs and cats needed to be cared for. But I worked a normal schedule (9-6) and then came home and we just had a later thanksgiving.

      One of my friends this year is working most of thanksgiving day (something insane, like 7p.m- 3 a.m.) and then because of Black Friday madness has to come back and work another full day. These aren't normal days either. These are literally the worst days of the year for retail. Non stop madness, no breaks, no lunches, and some of the meanest and most horrible people you'll ever see.

      Imagine showing up to a hospital knowing you were going to work a twenty hour shift without a break and every single person was going to be bleeding to death while screaming and their relatives were all trying to sue at the same time. That's clearly an exaggeration (and I've never worked in a hospital), but you get the drift. It's not a normal day, there is no 'after work' where they can come home and have a meal. They are trapped.

      Many of them sleeping in their cars in between shifts. With their only option being to live like this or try to find a new job.

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      jewell84rainbowdashcrash
      11/25/13 10:13pm

      I know. I've worked retail. I've literally left work and hopped on a bus to go home on Christmas eve, then gone back first thing the day after Christmas because I had to work holiday sales. My point is that it's not fair for anyone to be away from their family for Thanksgiving. Essential or not. But being as things are what they are people need to make it work.

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    otterpantslessnessKelly Faircloth
    11/25/13 1:45pm

    Fuck this shit. I'm taking my cats and moving to Canada.

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      digital_ruseotterpantslessness
      11/25/13 2:06pm

      We've got boxing day though, which also sucks. I worked retail all through university, and pretty much never got to go visit my family at Christmas time because of it this (unless I flew back on Christmas day.)

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      otterpantslessnessdigital_ruse
      11/25/13 2:23pm

      True, But the more I live in the US, the more appealing Canada seems.

      1. All of the Canadians I know are awesome people.
      2. HEALTHCARE (although I suspect it is not all kittens pooping sparkles, it has to be better than this shitshow)
      3. Crack Smoking Toronto mayor = ENDLESS jokes.
      4. French Canadian accents make me want to dry hump anything dry hump-able within a .5 kilometer radius.
      5. DID I MENTION CRACK-SMOKING MAYOR JOKES?

      If you could just remove all records of Drake being Canadian, so it's like he was never a citizen. I will start shoving my cats into their carriers.

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    SchweepsKelly Faircloth
    11/25/13 1:24pm

    It's okay to morally judge people who go shopping on Thursday, forcing underpaid hourly workers to miss Thanksgiving merriment with their families, right? Shoppers on Thursday are just bad people, period.

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      Ari Schwartz: Dark Lord of the SnarkSchweeps
      11/25/13 1:28pm

      Yes. It's okay to judge behavior that is actively harmful to others.

      But, just thinking about this, it occurs to me that for a lot of those workers the pay on Thanksgiving is a blessing because they might get 1.5 wages. :-/

      I hate where our society is going in regards to consumerism. I really do.

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      SchweepsAri Schwartz: Dark Lord of the Snark
      11/25/13 1:31pm

      I think the difference, though, is for some people, time-and-a-half isn't worth it for them to miss out on family togetherness. We can't just assume that an extra 4 dollars an hour is some amazing "blessing" that these shoppers are bestowing on people who likely don't get a lot of opportunities to spend with their families.

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    Ari Schwartz: Dark Lord of the SnarkKelly Faircloth
    11/25/13 1:23pm

    Simple answer here folks: if you go shopping for all the fantastic "deals" and make someone work that day, you are part of the problem.

    It's that simple.

    On this one I'm past any sense of decorum. I've told my own kin and friends that they're being assholes for shopping on Thanksgiving. I can't brook this behavior. I just won't.

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      Jan74Ari Schwartz: Dark Lord of the Snark
      11/25/13 1:33pm

      Also, have these people heard of the internet?

      It is this magical thing where a site can offer 300 cheap iPads or whatever until the deal is over, and you can buy them on this internet, and then the workers only have to worry about shipping your item after the holiday is over. Bonus points: if you need support from an online chat person or 1800, odds are that person is actually in India, where Thanksgiving is not a holiday!

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      RedWriterJan74
      11/25/13 1:41pm

      This!!
      Amazon! Overstock.com! Cyber Monday! There are insanely good deals online!

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    rainbowdashcrashKelly Faircloth
    11/25/13 1:13pm

    I'm surprised more people aren't totally disgusted by this. I already hated the "omg I have to buy shit" mentality of Black Friday, and now that it's preventing a ton of my loved ones from even being able to see their families or take a day off I fucking hate it.

    If you shop on Thanksgiving: Fuck you.

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      yaburnerrainbowdashcrash
      11/25/13 1:20pm

      i agree so much with you and yet I think we are a huge minority. It especially bugs me because Thanksgiving has always been my favorite major holiday (possibly because it wasn't so commercialized, but there taking care of that now by doing away with the holiday all together).

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      dforce2rainbowdashcrash
      11/25/13 1:22pm

      I cannot second your resounding "Fuck you" enough. Seriously, things like this make me count the days until I move back to Europe. It's fucking absurd.

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    maxflushKelly Faircloth
    11/25/13 1:32pm

    I've been thinking about this a lot lately because every news outlet is running their year rage-think-piece on the nature of Black Friday and whatnot.

    In high school and college I worked at grocery stores and restaurants and always volunteered to work Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve. Mainly because of the time and a half but in the case of Thanksgiving it provided me an opportunity to skip sitting around all day waiting for dinner with cousins I didn't like, so that was nice. But the thing is, I NEVER hear anyone complain about grocery stores being open on Thanksgiving, ever. Is it just because we deem our need to get some last minute supplies such a necessity that we don't have to feel bad about the people working? What about gas stations? Movie theaters? More and more it seems like the rage at these places being open is some kind of misplaced privilege guilt from people who don't work in jobs that don't shut down for holidays.

    Basically what I'm saying is this: the worst person at the holidays isn't the CEO making the decision to open early, it's the countless customers who would say to me at my register "I can't believe you guys are open!." Well then what the fuck are you doing here? WE'RE OPEN BECAUSE OF YOU.

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      rainbowdashcrashmaxflush
      11/25/13 1:44pm

      So, here's the thing.

      Grocery stores maintain their normal schedules for Thanksgiving.

      One of my friends in retail has to work from 7P.m- 3 a.m. on Thanksgiving and then from 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. on Black Friday.

      That's inhumane, and asking for medical problems. That entire time she'll be dealing with screaming people who want the door buster sale even though the time has passed, and probably won't be given a break.

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      Marlowe Gravesmaxflush
      11/25/13 2:00pm

      Thank you!

      Actually, most grocery stores close a few hours early on Thanksgiving, but the movie theater thing really gets me.

      It's stupid when people want to shop, but the tradition of going out to the movies on the big family event is okay because...? Yes, it is a tradition for many families to go to the movies ON Christmas day. That's why so many new releases come out then. And no, they're not usually any nicer to the staff at the theater just because it is Christmas.

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    GlenjaminKelly Faircloth
    11/25/13 1:21pm

    As someone who has waited tables before, I've worked in places that were open for Thanksgiving anyway. A lot of people like to go out to eat on Thanksgiving, especially couples and people who have to work that day (Not just retail. I work IT now and it's a 24 hour operation, so we have people who will be working that day). I just don't see the difference here.

    Black Friday is the worst, but this isn't really much to me. There's a ton of people who work on Thanksgiving: gas station attendants, convenience store people, etc. Where's the outcry for them?

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      SchweepsGlenjamin
      11/25/13 1:27pm

      Because things like hospitals, gas stations, etc. are 24/7 necessities. Shopping for a bargain price on a TV isn't.

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      MerMerSchweeps
      11/25/13 1:36pm

      A lot of non-essential places are open on Thanksgivings and other holidays, though, like bars, coffee shops, restaurants, etc. Getting Thanksgiving off (or getting time and a half on holidays) are privileges that 9-5 office workers get, not the service industry.

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    powerofcheeseKelly Faircloth
    11/26/13 12:01am

    As a retail store manager, I thoughtfully mapped out our schedule for the holiday, making sure to give everyone breaks and adequate rest periods between split shifts. Every person working on Thanksgiving was an enthusiastic volunteer and will be compensated well.

    Keep in mind that this is part of our jobs, and it is what we signed on for when we sought out this kind of work. No one is happy about the push to start Black Friday early, but just as 32 hour shifts are the norm for young medical interns, sometimes we have to work 15 hour days to fulfill our job requirements.

    Service workers are underappreciated and overworked, but so are many people in professional industries. Acting as though we are to be pitied and championed as a cause is ridiculous and demeaning. I appreciate your concern, but please stay the hell out of my store if you're going to pontificate.

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      rainbowdashcrashpowerofcheese
      11/26/13 12:30am

      You're a manager.

      No one is advocating for you...

      We're more interested in the people working all of those shifts for 9 dollars an hour. When I worked retail, I was thrilled by the people who cared enough to not shop on Black Friday. Now that I'm finally out of the retail hell, I'm more than happy to repeat what is said to me by my friends who are still on the inside. I'm not really championing them.

      Just saying what they can't for fear of being fired.

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      powerofcheeserainbowdashcrash
      11/26/13 12:50am

      What I'm saying is don't make snap judgements based on the situations at big box stores. The majority of mall stores are run by people like me, making about $30k a year, working 60+ hours a week. (About $9 an hour, btw.) The vast majority of retail managers work harder and longer than their employees, often for less compensation. That's a year round state of affairs, not just one month as most associates have to deal with.

      If your friends are working places where their voices can't be heard, they need to change companies. I can speak from years of experience as a sales associate at many companies that there are many good, responsible store managers that treat their employees well. There are also so many retail positions out there, especially this time of year. It's not exactly a competitive industry. Acting as though retail is some sort of prison is ridiculous. It's not easy, but no job is, and pretending like it's "hell" is hyperbole that does nothing to address the actual issues in the service industry.

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    quagmireKelly Faircloth
    11/25/13 1:40pm

    Auntie Anne's, not Aunt Annie's.

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      rollsniderollquagmire
      11/25/13 1:41pm

      The 18-year-old me who worked there was just about to point this out. ;) #corrections

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      quagmirerollsnideroll
      11/25/13 1:44pm

      I was like, "I haven't been saying this name wrong for all these years, have I?" I typed Auntie into the search bar, Google autofilled Anne's. Relief.

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