I was up until recently and the only reason I am not is because my department demands too much of my time and I can't afford to take a few minutes to go to the meetings.
Basically CC gets a budget for each month to do something good with. It can be in store for the employees or in the community. My store's CC sponsored a family for Christmas last year. I found a family from my grandma's church that had six kids that were in need of gifts. We shopped on the promo aisle and got them a bunch of goodies, then bought a bunch of stuff for a dinner and I donated an old DVD player and a DVD they asked for. We put each child's gifts in their own sled and put a decorative bag over it all, then took it to the church to present to the family.
For Mother's Day we took cakes and ice cream to the senior center and served them and hung out with them and talked to them.
The CC members were invited to represent Kroger at the BBQ festival that just started in my town this year. I went and helped set up the judging tables for the sauce competition and watched the kids events area.
We have had an ice cream cone sale to raise money for children with brain cancer too, where bluebell (i think?) donated all the ice cream and the cones were donated too, so the result was 100% profit that got donated.
When people started hanging out outside and around the store on breaks, we cleaned up the whole break room, mopped the floors, cleaned the tables and microwave and fridge and made it really nice to sit in.....but it still doesn't get used that much.
We started Spirit Day, which is the last saturday of every month and it is a theme day where you can dress up according to the theme.
We also created our own "employee of the month" with four different things, like Always In Uniform and Always Helpful To Customers (basically stuff you're supposed to do) and four people get it each month and they get a $5 Kroger gift card. Not a lot, but it's something, and it's what we can give.
I expect you'll do stuff like this, maybe differences here and there. If you end up doing something really cool, post it on here. I'd like some more ideas for our CC, even if I can't be at the meetings.
I was on it for the last 2 years and recently quit. Once a month the members hold a meeting for about and hour or two and discuss safety, issues, parties, employee of the month etc. When you're not in the meeting you're supposed to observe safty around the store and fill out notes when you do. You don't get paid any extra and everyone besides managment think it's silly. After being on it for over teo years and two different stores, all I can say is there are no redeeming qualities of being on the council. In some regards it seems like a way for Kroger to give hourly emoloyees tasks and responsibilities that should be reserved for managers.
Its unfortunate that the Culture Council gets such a bad rap. I read both post and obviously there is a complete contrast on how it is done. One is the correct way and the other is the incorrect way. Bakery Lady - I commend your store for how you handle the running of the CC. It is my understanding that we are given $100 a month to use for the CC (I might not have the exact amount). I bet a lot of stores do not use this! Can you imagine the things you can do with this money??? Take a look at what they are doing at Bakery Lady's store. That is a perfect example.
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I am no longer part of the oppressed, evil workforce of Kroger! Can you say "Hallelujah"
Yanno..I have been on the CC since they have introduced it. I am one of only three that are original members. And I had no idea we had a monthly fund set up for us. The only thing we really do is employee of the month. we are having a x-mas party this yr, but we are funding it with donations from stuff we have done in the store. (a dollar for street clothes, ect.) we suck. I am, however, stealing the ideas posted here. lol
How many members are in your CC? Are all of them in regular attendance? We usually only get like 5 or 6 people per meeting. And we read a few things about the $1/street clothes thing but I guess it wasn't THAT great to us, because we didn't use the idea. They brought me in as a "fresh, young" face with good ideas, but honestly, I think the stuff I'd do would be out of our budget. :(
I'm the store Council chair at a western Kroger KMA. I also served as my district Council chair in 2009-2011. We don't get budgeted any money, but still have completed the following store initiatives:
* Got a secondary smoking area approved that is under cover, so our associates can stay out of the weather.
* Added a LED sign to the break room that scrolls store news and information around the clock.
* Conducts Color Wars competitions, where departments face off by wearing same-colored clothing on Associate Appreciation Days, with the winner having the highest percentage of associates dressing in the appointed color.
* Requested and received carts and baskets that were added to entries of the store where customers had requested them.
* Erect a holiday Giving Tree where associates can donate gift cards or groceries to fellow associates in need.
* Asked for improvements to break room that were realized, including new chairs, new leather couches and a leather recliner, along with a fresh paint job.
* Conducted bake sales for funds donation to cancer charities and the local humane society.
* Recommend food and activity choices for the management team to carry out on Associate Appreciation Days and offer feedback on those events.
Company-wide changes based on proposals our store has initiated include:
* Secured bicylcle areas are built at stores in major metropolitan areas during the remodel process. The aim was to protect associates bicycles from theft during the workday and therefore promote increased bicycle commuting among associates.
* Cultural Councils nominate associates for store Associate of the Quarter and store Associate of the Year awards.
* Changing the company's coupon policy to link the UPC's of large batches of sale products to ease the checkout of our customers and make the cashier's job easier.
Admittedly, many forward-thinking ideas we've passed have not found approval due to cost to the company. Some of those proposals include the request for the addition of Automated Electronic Defibrillators (AED's) to stores for the purpose of reviving heart attack victims (customers and associates), the addition of stock rewards for associates attaining 20 years of service, and allowing associates to donate a limited amount of unused sick pay to fellow associates in need.
Our store Cultural Council has been driven by the goal of making the work life of our associates better and improving our customers' shopping experience. I write a detailed agenda that I share with Council members two weeks prior to each period's hour-long meeting so they can prepare for the upcoming discussions. Our vice-chair and secretary share in the burden of writing detailed meeting minutes and communicating meeting results with our management team and fellow associates.
At our store everyone opinion get answered. We have fun Fridays. We get free food. The store is a lot cleaner. He have went 6 months without an Incident.
I might be wrong but I swear that I read somewhere along the way that every month the store employee fund gets $100 or so through the CC. I think this is a simple accounting function putting this amount into some category on the ledger. It might not be widely known about because of course Kroger wishes no one to use this money so they can keep it for themselves. its like the training premium I mentioned a few weeks back.
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I am no longer part of the oppressed, evil workforce of Kroger! Can you say "Hallelujah"
I love all of those ideas, I'm totally going to bring some of those up, if you don't mind. I forgot that our CC also put a suggestion box in the break room, so those who can't make the meetings or don't want to be in the CC can still have a say, since the CC can be hard to reach otherwise.
Then ours sucks ,we got a toberlone candy bar aND 2 $1 instant tickets,this year we got the same candy bar and a Kroger sweat shirt. That is our thank you for our hard work through the year. o, and mayme a pto luck dinner .
