Alright so in my previous post i was asking about changing my permanent availability, so i did what you guys suggested and went to my schedule writer since it wont let me change it from my house. So when giving my new availability my schedule writer told me that she won't change it because she doesn't like it and that krogers is not a monday through friday 9 to 5 type of business and that i cant have a schedule like this. I also tried to request off a friday and saturday next week and she told me that i can't request off especially since its a weekend and that krogers needs people on weekends.
My availability is
monday: 9:00- 8:00
tuesday: 9:00-8:00
wednesday: 9:00- 8:00
thursday 9:00-10:00
friday 9:00- 8:00
saturday: 9:00 - 5:00
sunday: 9:00 - 5:00
my question is can she not accept my new availability because im a part-timer? Im past the 60 day probation period and im in texas too. can you only change your availability if your full time? I just cant work the hours ive been getting lately because im home life is suffering from it.
Some clarification is much appreciated in this matter.
* Also my schedule writer isn't my lead but shes the manager over our department. My lead does write the schedules but she gives them to the schedule writer instead.
-- Edited by a38463846 on Sunday 8th of December 2013 12:37:20 PM
-- Edited by a38463846 on Sunday 8th of December 2013 12:39:53 PM
I'm pretty sure she can't outright deny your availability. If she has no hours that match your availability she just wouldn't give you a shift. But to outright say no to you is wrong and I'm pretty sure it's against policy. I would talk with another manager or file a complaint. And yeah, if you put that you are not available for weekends, you won't get a lot of hours because that's primarily when they work the part timers. But again, she shouldn't be able to deny you. You're available when you're available. You can't help that.
__________________
I thought people were joking when they said working for Kroger sucks...
You might need to get the union involved, BUT, I must warn you, if you try and take this further, it's possible you could get NO hours because of your limited availability. Be prepared to hear the famous phrase "needs of the business." The union might be able to help prove your schedule writer is just being lazy/mean so it is actually possible for you to change your availability, but, that might not do much good if you don't get any hours because of it. It's your choice. Tread carefully.
As for requesting days off, if someone below you in seniority requests the day off and you have seniority, you can bump them for that day off.
Do you know for sure if its against kroger policy to not accept any new availability's at all? I am available for weekends its just that my hours for saturday and sunday are shorter than the hours i would work on the week days. I did request off for that particular friday and saturday because im doing some things and i wont be back intill the following sunday. I work in a dept where there's only 5 people including my self and the lead. But it only takes 2 people to get even the monotonous of tasks completed in a day. Also im also asking this because we have a new person that just started 4 days ago but she can only work closing shifts. She gave the schedule writer her availability and the schedule writer accepted it. Shes also new to krogers. I just want to be sure that im not getting black balled in any form.
You might need to get the union involved, BUT, I must warn you, if you try and take this further, it's possible you could get NO hours because of your limited availability. Be prepared to hear the famous phrase "needs of the business." The union might be able to help prove your schedule writer is just being lazy/mean so it is actually possible for you to change your availability, but, that might not do much good if you don't get any hours because of it. It's your choice. Tread carefully.
As for requesting days off, if someone below you in seniority requests the day off and you have seniority, you can bump them for that day off.
when you say "no" hours do you mean "zero" hours because it says on the packet you get from orientaiton that if your a general clerk they cant give you less than 16 hours a week.
-- Edited by a38463846 on Sunday 8th of December 2013 12:55:34 PM
Do you know for sure if its against kroger policy to not accept any new availability's at all? I am available for weekends its just that my hours for saturday and sunday are shorter than the hours i would work on the week days. I did request off for that particular friday and saturday because im doing some things and i wont be back intill the following sunday. I work in a dept where there's only 5 people including my self and the lead. But it only takes 2 people to get even the monotonous of tasks completed in a day. Also im also asking this because we have a new person that just started 4 days ago but she can only work closing shifts. She gave the schedule writer her availability and the schedule writer accepted it. Shes also new to krogers. I just want to be sure that im not getting black balled in any form.
Look, "needs of the business" can only used as an excuse if it's actually for the needs of the business. All to often, schedule writers just use it as an excuse instead of a legitimate reason to do their job. If you just got a new hire in as well, you can use that as yet another reason for it not really being a "need of the business."
But, to directly answer your question, NO, availability/req days off are to be considered no matter what based on seniority. It doesn't mean it'll be accepted by the schedule writer, but, they better be able to prove they can't honor the request due to legitimate needs of the business.
EDIT:
Regarding number of hours worked, once again, "needs of the business." Remember, that reasoning supersedes everything else. Think about it for a second: What if someone were to limit themselves to only one day in an entire week? It's an extreme example, but my point is Kroger only has to work with you as long as they see it as "reasonable." Sometimes, it helps to have a third party (the union) to help make sense of what is "reasonable."
-- Edited by FU11307 on Sunday 8th of December 2013 01:03:14 PM
Look, "needs of the business" can only used as an excuse if it's actually for the needs of the business. All to often, schedule writers just use it as an excuse instead of a legitimate reason to do their job. If you just got a new hire in as well, you can use that as yet another reason for it not really being a "need of the business."
But, to directly answer your question, NO, availability/req days off are to be considered no matter what based on seniority. It doesn't mean it'll be accepted by the schedule writer, but, they better be able to prove they can't honor the request due to legitimate needs of the business.
EDIT:
Regarding number of hours worked, once again, "needs of the business." Remember, that reasoning supersedes everything else. Think about it for a second: What if someone were to limit themselves to only one day in an entire week? It's an extreme example, but my point is Kroger only has to work with you as long as they see it as "reasonable." Sometimes, it helps to have a third party (the union) to help make sense of what is "reasonable."
-- Edited by FU11307 on Sunday 8th of December 2013 01:03:14 PM
Oh okay that makes more sense, thanks for your input.
First of all, your schedule writer's frustration is understandable. To turn around and demand "banker's hours" immediately upon getting off probation is a pretty graceless move.
That being said, it's possible that she won't be able to flatly refuse the availability change...not really sure about that one. But as has been stated, you're unlikely to be left with much in the way of hours, and that has nothing to do with any willful retaliation on your schedule writer's part.
Retail schedules can indeed be tough on one's home life, but it's hardly fair to expect others to take up the slack you haven't yet earned. Perhaps it would be best for all concerned if you sought more suitable employment?
Alright so in my previous post i was asking about changing my permanent availability, so i did what you guys suggested and went to my schedule writer since it wont let me change it from my house. So when giving my new availability my schedule writer told me that she won't change it because she doesn't like it and that krogers is not a monday through friday 9 to 5 type of business and that i cant have a schedule like this. I also tried to request off a friday and saturday next week and she told me that i can't request off especially since its a weekend and that krogers needs people on weekends.
My availability is
monday: 9:00- 8:00
tuesday: 9:00-8:00
wednesday: 9:00- 8:00
thursday 9:00-10:00
friday 9:00- 8:00
saturday: 9:00 - 5:00
sunday: 9:00 - 5:00
my question is can she not accept my new availability because im a part-timer? Im past the 60 day probation period and im in texas too. can you only change your availability if your full time? I just cant work the hours ive been getting lately because im home life is suffering from it.
Some clarification is much appreciated in this matter.
* Also my schedule writer isn't my lead but shes the manager over our department. My lead does write the schedules but she gives them to the schedule writer instead.
-- Edited by a38463846 on Sunday 8th of December 2013 12:37:20 PM
-- Edited by a38463846 on Sunday 8th of December 2013 12:39:53 PM
I'm also a part-timer here in Texas and a college student. I've got stricter availability than that and yet I've managed to get the hours I've requested.
Try skipping the schedule writer and talk directly to your store manager. That's what I've always done. Be reasonable, do not try to sound like you're trying to command him, and explain your reasoning clearly. Bring up any "handicaps" you may have (important reasons/causes as to why you have to have that shift, like having to take care of kids in the evening, etc.).
If your manager is level headed and reasonable, he'll try to work with you. Though be ready for compromising. Getting half of your requested availability is better than getting nothing.
Anonymous wrote:Try skipping the schedule writer and talk directly to your store manager. That's what I've always done. Be reasonable, do not try to sound like you're trying to command him, and explain your reasoning clearly. Bring up any "handicaps" you may have (important reasons/causes as to why you have to have that shift, like having to take care of kids in the evening, etc.).
If your manager is level headed and reasonable, he'll try to work with you. Though be ready for compromising. Getting half of your requested availability is better than getting nothing.
I would disagree with this advice completely. OP, if you go over your dept mgr's head to store mgmt, you'll only end up making them actually resent you personally where right now you are just bugging them with an unreasonable availability.
Also, they most certainly can deny your availability request pretty much at their whim. This is the entire reason schedule writers have the ability to approve or deny these requests in our scheduling program. They are supposed to have a legit business reason, but retail is a complicated market; they can pretty much bs any decent reason they want and you have little/no recourse.
First of all, your schedule writer's frustration is understandable. To turn around and demand "banker's hours" immediately upon getting off probation is a pretty graceless move.
That being said, it's possible that she won't be able to flatly refuse the availability change...not really sure about that one. But as has been stated, you're unlikely to be left with much in the way of hours, and that has nothing to do with any willful retaliation on your schedule writer's part.
Retail schedules can indeed be tough on one's home life, but it's hardly fair to expect others to take up the slack you haven't yet earned. Perhaps it would be best for all concerned if you sought more suitable employment?
I didn't demand it immediately after probation..... it was actually the availability i got hired on. The main problem was that it didn't go through e-schedule when i was hired and therefore was put as an open availability, i worked these past 4 months on a open availability and because so it has brought a lot of stress . When i brought this to my superior's attention the first time around they said they would "fix" it however that hasn't been done since they been so busy lately ( im at store that just opened for the first time). Second, someone who just been hired was able to get their availability the way they wanted before i did. I find that not completely fair especially since she doesn't go to school unlike me. I'm not trying to cause a lot of issues however with the amount of people in our department with their open availability, i cant really see any type of problem or rather any reason why she would completely deny my availability.
Anonymous wrote:Try skipping the schedule writer and talk directly to your store manager. That's what I've always done. Be reasonable, do not try to sound like you're trying to command him, and explain your reasoning clearly. Bring up any "handicaps" you may have (important reasons/causes as to why you have to have that shift, like having to take care of kids in the evening, etc.).
If your manager is level headed and reasonable, he'll try to work with you. Though be ready for compromising. Getting half of your requested availability is better than getting nothing.
I would disagree with this advice completely. OP, if you go over your dept mgr's head to store mgmt, you'll only end up making them actually resent you personally where right now you are just bugging them with an unreasonable availability.
Also, they most certainly can deny your availability request pretty much at their whim. This is the entire reason schedule writers have the ability to approve or deny these requests in our scheduling program. They are supposed to have a legit business reason, but retail is a complicated market; they can pretty much bs any decent reason they want and you have little/no recourse.
Oh yeah, sure. They resent me SO much they've always offered me 40 hours/week whenever I need to do so. They also hated me so much that they approved my request to go under 16 hours due to studies.
Anonymous wrote:Oh yeah, sure. They resent me SO much they've always offered me 40 hours/week whenever I need to do so. They also hated me so much that they approved my request to go under 16 hours due to studies.
Don't make me laugh. /eyeroll
Don't make the mistake of thinking that just because your mgmt is a bunch of people pleasers that everyone elses' are also pushovers.
Advising OP to burn their bridges with their dept's (already negatively opinionated toward OP) schedule writer is unwise. Even if store mgmt tells them to accept the availability, they will, at best, be unwilling to help OP in the future, and, at worst, might have a personal vendetta against OP for going over their head and may decide to make OP's life difficult (late shifts whenever possible, few hours, writeups for petty but correct minor technical procedure violations.) OP may win this battle but lose the war.
-- Edited by techelite on Sunday 8th of December 2013 11:20:55 PM
I didn't demand it immediately after probation..... it was actually the availability i got hired on. The main problem was that it didn't go through e-schedule when i was hired and therefore was put as an open availability,...
If this isn't a change in availability but assertion of your hiring availability that was ever respected, then go to the union. you should've gone to the union as soon as this wasn't 'fixed' when eschedule rolled out.
I didn't demand it immediately after probation..... it was actually the availability i got hired on. The main problem was that it didn't go through e-schedule when i was hired and therefore was put as an open availability,...
If this isn't a change in availability but assertion of your hiring availability that was ever respected, then go to the union. you should've gone to the union as soon as this wasn't 'fixed' when eschedule rolled out.
With an enormous emphasis on the IF, I would respond "right, indeed, and just so." However, I would still advise the OP to be prepared for a severe shortage of hours.
Regarding OP's Availability and School ("...since she doesn't go to school unlike me."):
It seems unlikely that one could attend school (be it evening or day classes) with the desired availability--unless we're talking about exclusively online courses. Something's not adding up here. Well, it sort of is actually, but I'm trying to be open-minded, diplomatic, and all that jazz. Perhaps instructors in that neck of the woods are willing to get started pretty darned early or late.
sounds like kroger is not the job for you. people that have more time than you also want to be off early on weekends, so why do you deserve the time off more than them? they have home lives as well. you knew what you were getting yourself into when you got hired.
as for your availability. if you want very many hours, and have an interest in moving upto full time than you need to open up your availability more. however if you cant open it up for personal reasons than expect less hours. as others have said the schedule writer has to accept what your availability is but they are not required to give you hours. many people would like to have the same hours that you want, and they have seniority over you. so if you are not open to work the leftover shifts that are on the schedule than you dont get scheduled.
it would be nice if everyone could go home early and have weekends off, but we dont get everything we want.
