Im looking to make the switch from a Union meat manager job to a Whole foods ATL position, possibly a Team Leader even, of a newly opening WFM. My current company(Haggen) was recently bought by Albertsons but will remain a Haggen (similar to Kroger and QFC).
Do I kick my 8 years seniority and join WFM? I have 12 years in the restaurant industry before cutting meat, so that is a consideration in that i like the Meat/seafood in house smoke house and also cater to "foodies"? Ive basically been offered the WFM job for ATL....
I am not really familiar with Whole Foods. If it were me I would make my decision based on what is happening in your current store. Are they downsizing, spreading you thin or going all or mostly case ready meat? I have heard that is what is happening in Kroger and you said your store is like Kroger. I hope someone with more knowledge will confirm how Whole Foods treats their meat cutters, but from my little knowledge, they like to have real meat cutters on duty and haven't gone case ready yet. If that is true, it would mean job security for you.
It seems like we are going to be a more upscale version of an albertsons, for what i can tell. Still maintaining a display case with meat & seadood as well as a fresh tray pack set. Everything is up in the air, since it will be alb. first venture in a higher end market. I feel my job is safe in the union, based on skills and abilities but there are a lot of unknowns. Im leaning toward making the switch. Fresh start, equal or more pay, new equipment(!!!)
My main concerns are about
Distribution of labor -who does what (can do) with no union to dictate these lines.
guarantee of hours as ATL. im guaranteed 40 now
The brand new WFM is opening across from a freddys and just down the street from where i presently work. but in a small college town on the canadian border with an expanding co-op market.
Phil- Yes i have a pension working and it is a pretty solid union im in. I have about 8 years with the company(seniority) and 4 years vested (different dept/union contracts).
Now that Albertsons owns us, we've got a pretty large corp over our heads where before we had 15-30 functional stores that Haggen was working with before the bankruptcy (ch 11).
long story short...Albertsons buys safeway. Too many stores, the must sell some.
(Nov '14) haggen buys 146 stores on the west coast from albersons. haggen goes from 15 stores to 161!!
That's very good to hear Benny. Boy there is a lot of fancy footwork going on out there between rival companies. The Anti Trust laws are complicated and I hope these companies don't get called in on the Federal carpet. The Feds always wait until all the smoke & mirrors are gone before they start to take things apart. Lets hope that the consumers are protected from any purposeful or accidental predatory business practices.
Hi Benny, I'm in and out a lot of Whole Food stores in the Big A, they are good people to work for from all I see and hear. We have one of their Meat DM as a member here, Roy Jensen. We have a few Whole food market managers here also.
The only company in Atlanta that is union is Kroger, All the rest got out when the Retails Clerks took overAmalgamated Meat Cutters and Butcher Workmen of North America in 1979. they were worthless and had loss all companies except Kroger by 1982
I will give WF credit they keep a well merchandise counter in these parts, Also they don't have much turn over in market help in this area.
If you come to the Big A let me know, I would like to meet you.
Where to begin!! Lots of questions but the bottom lines are as follows. Being from a family owned business initially and never being union I can't judge union association but pension and seniority is a definite consideration. Wfm is a good place to work, compared to other markets. Going from conventional market to wfm you might have a bit of culture shock, the structure in " leadership" is different. Team attitude encompass the whole Company not just your dept. I'm not familiar with your region , I'm on the east coast, but wfm is generally moving towards global coordination where it was regional so expect some things to happen that leaves you shaking your head. I don't think they will ever stop cutting red meat but poultry will be pre packed. Like all businesses these day whether it's grocery or trash pick up labor is an issue so don't expect a lot of help but you'll have more than food lion. Team leaders have a lot on there plate at wfm, you won't be cutting meat but going to meetings and scanning emails. With that being said, I'm happy after 20 years 3 months and 2 days and wouldn't change a thing. But I've had 20 years to adjust to the culture. If your young, you'll be fine. If your an old fart like me, stay where you are!! Hope this helps
I was a meatcutter at Whole Foods for seven years and eventually became an ATL. Whole Foods is a good company, they were always good to me. However, the customers are idiotic and demanding. After a couple years, I began to become bitter and hate most people. I dont know how much you make at your union job but if it is more than $25 an hour, don't bother switching. ATL make about $22 an hour and I believe Team Leaders max out at $27, depending on state and location. The hours are all over the place, if you work a 9 to 5, be prepared to work all different hours. The bonuses for sales are nice but are only significant amounts during the holidays (thanksgiving, christmas). Leadership for the most part puts down the knives and spends most of the time playing the political game with the suits at corporate. To make it brief, if you are truly unhappy at your current job, go for the change, otherwise, stick with the benefits of even being part of a union. Good luck. Hope This helped
-- Edited by Rifraf78 on Saturday 19th of March 2016 02:38:56 PM
The biggest perk at my present job is being able to write the schedule and guarantee myself 40 hours a week somewhere in the 8-5 range. I guess i need to put more weight on that. for sure. Pay would be about the same, maybe a little more at WFM. THeres just so many unknowns. Im your age Rifraf so I gotta be thinking about future plans and upward mobility too.
