Kroger and the fallacy of zero sum economics

[Lanyap]

That media attention is coming from Kroger telling the media that the hazard pay requirement is the reason for the closures, and not because Kroger is getting their ass kicked by their competition in a highly affluent market.

The two under performing stores were already scheduled to be closed. The hazard pay increase accelerated the closures. Yes, it’s an ass move and Kroger/QFC is trying to make a point about the hazard pay. Hopefully they will allow the affected employees to transfer to other Kroger/QFC stores.

QFC employees seem to be making a decent salary for grocery clerks according to indeed.

Quality Food Centers (QFC) salaries in Seattle: How much does Quality Food Centers (QFC) pay? | Indeed.com

Average Quality Food Centers (QFC) hourly pay ranges from approximately $11.00 per hour for Sales to $35.98 per hour for Refrigeration Technician. The average Quality Food Centers (QFC) salary ranges from approximately $24,000 per year for Checker to $65,000 per year for E-commerce Manager.

www.indeed.com

 

[ivwshane]

The two under performing stores were already scheduled to be closed. The hazard pay increase accelerated the closures. Yes, it’s an ass move and Kroger/QFC is trying to make a point about the hazard pay. Hopefully they will allow the affected employees to transfer to other Kroger/QFC stores.

QFC employees seem to be making a decent salary for grocery clerks according to indeed.

Quality Food Centers (QFC) salaries in Seattle: How much does Quality Food Centers (QFC) pay? | Indeed.com

Average Quality Food Centers (QFC) hourly pay ranges from approximately $11.00 per hour for Sales to $35.98 per hour for Refrigeration Technician. The average Quality Food Centers (QFC) salary ranges from approximately $24,000 per year for Checker to $65,000 per year for E-commerce Manager.

www.indeed.com

Lol that’s not decent pay. Where the fuck did you get that idea from?

 

[Vic]

The two under performing stores were already scheduled to be closed. The hazard pay increase accelerated the closures. Yes, it’s an ass move and Kroger/QFC is trying to make a point about the hazard pay. Hopefully they will allow the affected employees to transfer to other Kroger/QFC stores.

QFC employees seem to be making a decent salary for grocery clerks according to indeed.

Quality Food Centers (QFC) salaries in Seattle: How much does Quality Food Centers (QFC) pay? | Indeed.com

Average Quality Food Centers (QFC) hourly pay ranges from approximately $11.00 per hour for Sales to $35.98 per hour for Refrigeration Technician. The average Quality Food Centers (QFC) salary ranges from approximately $24,000 per year for Checker to $65,000 per year for E-commerce Manager.

www.indeed.com

One of the points I'm trying to make here is that the reason Kroger is making the "ass move" of blaming the closures of these "underperforming" stores on the hazard pay is because their competitors' stores in the same markets aren't underperforming, with or without the hazard pay.

 

[NWRMidnight]

The two under performing stores were already scheduled to be closed. The hazard pay increase accelerated the closures. Yes, it’s an ass move and Kroger/QFC is trying to make a point about the hazard pay. Hopefully they will allow the affected employees to transfer to other Kroger/QFC stores.

QFC employees seem to be making a decent salary for grocery clerks according to indeed.

Quality Food Centers (QFC) salaries in Seattle: How much does Quality Food Centers (QFC) pay? | Indeed.com

Average Quality Food Centers (QFC) hourly pay ranges from approximately $11.00 per hour for Sales to $35.98 per hour for Refrigeration Technician. The average Quality Food Centers (QFC) salary ranges from approximately $24,000 per year for Checker to $65,000 per year for E-commerce Manager.

www.indeed.com

That's not accurate for Seattle, with Washington's Minimum wage at $13.69 an hour? ($13.50 last year). An a Associate manager is only making $17 an hour.. that's shit wages for management.

 

[Lanyap]

Lol that’s not decent pay. Where the fuck did you get that idea from?

I’m not familiar with the cost of living in that area. What would you consider a decent wage for someone who stocks the shelves and checks you out in a grocery store in that area?

 

[Vic]

I’m not familiar with the cost of living in that area. What would you consider a decent wage for someone who stocks the shelves and checks you out in a grocery store in that area?

The cost of living in that area is very high. But if the wage increases aren't the cause of the closures, as we've determined, then why continue to talk about it?

 

[ivwshane]

I’m not familiar with the cost of living in that area. What would you consider a decent wage for someone who stocks the shelves and checks you out in a grocery store in that area?

If you aren’t familiar then how did you come to the conclusion that wages didn’t seem to bad?

 

[brycejones]

I’m not familiar with the cost of living in that area. What would you consider a decent wage for someone who stocks the shelves and checks you out in a grocery store in that area?

A living wage perhaps? And if we're asking some of the lowest paid people in our society to make themselves more vulnerable to a potentially deadly disease while their company makes record profits and uses that money to juice the stock price to benefit shareholders maybe we should do something about that.

 

[zinfamous]

They will close it because of ridiculous bureaucratic requirements that you attempt to jam down their throat as a means of demanding unskilled labor is worth x - even though it isn't actually worth that. You simply can't demand wage worth, the world of economics doesn't work that way sugar

to this day it amazes me that you seem to consider yourself a skilled worker.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

A living wage perhaps? And if we're asking some of the lowest paid people in our society to make themselves more vulnerable to a potentially deadly disease while their company makes record profits and uses that money to juice the stock price to benefit shareholders maybe we should do something about that.

Well said Bryce.

The fuck is wrong with some of you? FYI: it is a rhetorical question, you dimwits. It has been observed, I think correctly, that it comes down to a lack of empathy. You are a bunch of callous sociopaths. I suspect your ancestors were the cock suckers whipping the slaves at the salt mines.

You rail against "freeloaders on society getting handouts" but somehow when they work their asses off, you still do not support their having the right to a fair standard of living. So, you want them all to work, but not be able to enjoy any of the fruits of their hard labor. Because you have decided on an arbitrary set of rules for what qualifies as worthy of a living wage.

Billy Mays enters the chat: But wait, there's more! Even if they do get a degree, you will now further stratify the living wage standard. Now that they have learned a skill, you will say sorry, you chose the wrong one. If we pursue this line of thinking to its conclusion, then everyone gets "the right degrees". Do these fields have the capability of employing everyone? Of course the don't, which is why it is simply an excuse to be wantonly cruel to others. And that is completely disregarding the myriad of difficulties involved in obtaining that higher education in the U.S. for most of its citizens. And of course while they pursue that degree, most are forced to work those unskilled jobs, and you won't support paying them enough to meet all their needs. So now they end up saddled with huge debts with interest, and being for all practical purposes indentured servants for decades of their lives.

 

[hal2kilo]

Kroger has always been a 2nd class store to begin with. My Dad would shop at 2 different grocery stores (Giant and Safeway), he didn't trust my mom to use coupons. He never, ever shopped at Kroger. And I have never lived in an area since that I had to shop at one. Unfortunately, I just googled to see what other chains that they own. Ralph's and Lucky's those were down in SoCal, I think Food 4 Less also. I walked into a Food 4 Less once in Anaheim close to Disneyland and walked out. Fred Meyers stores probably have the best microbrew section of any of the store chains up here in the Northwest, they aren't a bad store though.
Of course with this meandering post, I forgot the original offender QFC, is actually a little better than the Safeway in Belfair, WA. I currently do the bulk of my shopping at Winco. Which has it's pluses and minuses. First plus, prices (employee owned), meats can be very resaonable also. Selection sucks, and the aisles are kind of narrow.

 

[blackangst1]

Other grocery chains such as Albertsons and Whole Foods, which is owned by Amazon (AMZN), also offered hazard pay in the early stages of the pandemic, but it has since expired.

 

[Gardener]

Fuck QFC/Kroger. No one wanted that store in Wedgwood, it is a small location and for 20 years that location was occupied by a locally owned Matthew's Red Apple market. QFC outbid them, and took the lease. That store was already slated for closure, they just timed the announcement to make it appear to coincide with the hazard pay resolution.

@Lanyap

Seattle's minimum wage is $16.39, it covers grocery store workers.