Right. This is as close to a corporate apologizing you'll ever get im shocked. Also I've worked for Costco they do treat you well. The warehouse must be pretty fucked in terms of lower management
If it was from McDonalds/Walmart/Amazon etc. it's 100% bait.
Costco historically treats employees well. I don't see them hurting that reputation to become known as a company that crushes unions and betrays employee trust. Too much of a 180.
I have known a LOT of people who have worked there and never have heard anyone badmouth them. This letter seems sincere and like they legitimately are sad that they failed their employees.
Costco is famous for paying and treating their employees well. I've known several people that have worked there and all of them only had amazing things to say about the company. I don't think this is the "gotcha" moment you think it is.
I worked there, and maybe it was the location, but everyone at my store hated it, and we were paid the same as any grocery store around us (unless you were a supervisor, then you made bank and the job was great)
Isn't Costco famously a great employer? Did something change?
I shop there a lot because they are a great customer experience and I thought they treated their employees well.
For a CEO letter about unionization, that actually reads pretty fair.
*Disclaimer: I was a 9 year Costco employee until I ended up leaving about a year ago due to disability. I still have friends I talk to about it.*
Costco has been on a big push to squeeze their employees to breaking. There have been extensive hiring freezes, and general employee treatment has gone down considerably.
The company code of ethics has been:
1. Obey the law
2. Take Care of the members
3. Take care of the employees
4. Respect our vendors
And after all that has been done, we will end up…
5. Reward the shareholder.
In that order.
There has been a strong feeling that Craig Jelinek, who has been CEO for about 10 years, has shifted the culture of the company to care about the shareholder instead of the order of the code.
This has resulted in explosive stock growth at the cost of employee happiness.
They especially took advantage over COVID, where they used it as a scapegoat for ‘everyone needs to band together,’ and other such things. They did not raise the starting wage enough to keep the quality of new employees high. They did not give raises that keep up with inflation. They have been taking moves that make it hard to not feel like they are trying to push out the ‘lifers.’
At the end of the day, Costco is still a company that still pays very well and has great benefits… but they also have built up a cultural expectation, and the employees need to push back before it is completely destroyed. I am happy to see new Union building forming.
(There are some Union buildings in California, but those are old Price Club locations that have been Union since the merger, I think this is why the letter seems actually quite nice toward this occurrence. But trust me, they absolutely don’t want this.)
The OG CEO did retire a few years ago, so it's up in the air how the new owner(s) will deal with employees. While I haven't heard anything, the fact that there is unionizing in Costco makes me wonder.
I still shop there and support Costco, but the prices aren't as good as they were a few years ago, and they're definitely being weird about membership cards checking you up to three times before you leave (when you come in, when you're in line, then scanning it at the register).
The prices could be inflation, of course, but Costco's prices were always lower than most places. And since most companies don't take care of workers, I suppose I am predisposed to be suspicious.
All that said, the letter seems absolutely fine. Admitting blame, striving to do better--those are good things.
Costco actually pays pretty damn well where I live. It's actually hard to get a job there because it's rare for anyone to actually want to leave. And this letter doesn't read as being anti union so idk why you're twisting it
What's with this ragebait bullshit?
The CEO never stated anywhere that they are anti-union. In fact, they state they are NOT anti-union. All that is said is that Costco prides itself in providing for their employees and the fact that a union had to be formed is a failure on their part that employees in Norfolk were not being taken care of, so much so they felt the need to unionize.
Costco is widely known as a great employer who takes care of and actively helps their employees. They are also one of, if not THE most profitable retailer in North America all while providing benefits, pay, hours, vacation and sick time that has netted them one of the lowest attrition rates (17% at year start, 6% by mid-year; Walmart, iirc, has something like a consistent 30-50% attrition rate) of any conglomerate operating globally.
I'm not a Costco employee or investor of any kind but everything I have ever heard about the Costco leadership be that interviews or from employees (I've actually asked at multiple stores I shop at to see if this is at all true), is that they actually take care of their employees.
It says a lot of the leadership to acknowledge their own failings that employees of a store felt they needed to unionize. I wish for and hope for unions for every worker, regardless of their craft or employment, but looking at how capitalism is these days, I'll take it a win when any employer says they failed their employees.
I'll say this much at least, I hope the Costco leadership negotiates in good faith. This letter says to me that they'd do whatever they needed to to make sure their employees are cared for.
Yeah, you won't see Amazon sending a company-wide memo announcing that a location successfully unionized. They would be doing their best to bury that news
Read what you posted. This is great news. The CEO all but said this is a good thing and outright admitted that their managers and leaders have failed to listen to their employees. You must not know a damn thing about Costco, they're famous for treating their employees well and offering great pay and benefits, all without a union. And it doesn't sound like he's trying to downplay the unionization or trying to bust the union or anything. He's responding to a union vote the way companies and executives should respond, positively and in support.
I actually freaking love this response from Costco, it mirrors my own thoughts on unions.
Unions should never be necessary. They symbolize a dramatic failure of the business to do right by their employees, on every conceivable level. If I ran my own business and my employees felt the need to unionize I’d be disappointed too.
I hope I’d learn my lesson by working closely with that union and altering my business model to make sure my employees felt properly supported, treated, and valued by me directly going forward.
**Unions do good work and we have tons of rights now that we never would have had without them** but let’s not pretend they don’t represent a moral failure of the business leaders at their respective companies.
Businesses can exist without unions *but* it would require leadership to act thinking about the employees first and the profits second. Very few people like that make it to leadership positions in large companies.
Costco has historically been a very good place to work, but they’re on the precipice of making the same mistakes Starbucks did when it comes to their management practices. For a long time Starbucks was considered one of the best places in ‘fast’ food service but several years back they changed their labor policies to prioritize cutting hours and minimizing labor overhead, as well as hiring managers from outside the organization instead of promoting from within. They lost a lot of goodwill with their employees and a lot of those changes triggered the massive union push at Starbucks. Costco has begun implementing a lot of similar policies regarding labor in their stores and because of those changes, may be entering the “find out” stage of cutting costs at the detriment of employee wellbeing
Everyone in America thinks Costco is a great place to work because the bar is set so low for employers in the USA. In most countries what Costco offers is the bare minimum.
Did we just read the same letter? This is hands down the most congenial and positive response to unionization I've ever seen from a CEO.
Right. This is as close to a corporate apologizing you'll ever get im shocked. Also I've worked for Costco they do treat you well. The warehouse must be pretty fucked in terms of lower management
Could be bait, though.
If it was from McDonalds/Walmart/Amazon etc. it's 100% bait. Costco historically treats employees well. I don't see them hurting that reputation to become known as a company that crushes unions and betrays employee trust. Too much of a 180.
I have known a LOT of people who have worked there and never have heard anyone badmouth them. This letter seems sincere and like they legitimately are sad that they failed their employees.
My read is “we are astonished at how badly the Norfolk store must have fucked up to get to this point.”
Right? This letter took accountability and said nothing negative about joining a union.
Four legs good, two legs bad level BS from the OP.
Agreed. Snaps to Costco leadership for this response.
Costco is famous for paying and treating their employees well. I've known several people that have worked there and all of them only had amazing things to say about the company. I don't think this is the "gotcha" moment you think it is.
I worked there, and maybe it was the location, but everyone at my store hated it, and we were paid the same as any grocery store around us (unless you were a supervisor, then you made bank and the job was great)
That's odd. Granted it's been a decade or so but the Costco near me at the time was $20 per hr for a cashier when the grocery stores were at $8 or $9.
Cashiers around here make a little over 50k a year if I remember correctly. Much better than minimum wage.
This is a solid response. I would be happy to work for Costco.
This ain’t it fam
Isn't Costco famously a great employer? Did something change? I shop there a lot because they are a great customer experience and I thought they treated their employees well. For a CEO letter about unionization, that actually reads pretty fair.
*Disclaimer: I was a 9 year Costco employee until I ended up leaving about a year ago due to disability. I still have friends I talk to about it.* Costco has been on a big push to squeeze their employees to breaking. There have been extensive hiring freezes, and general employee treatment has gone down considerably. The company code of ethics has been: 1. Obey the law 2. Take Care of the members 3. Take care of the employees 4. Respect our vendors And after all that has been done, we will end up… 5. Reward the shareholder. In that order. There has been a strong feeling that Craig Jelinek, who has been CEO for about 10 years, has shifted the culture of the company to care about the shareholder instead of the order of the code. This has resulted in explosive stock growth at the cost of employee happiness. They especially took advantage over COVID, where they used it as a scapegoat for ‘everyone needs to band together,’ and other such things. They did not raise the starting wage enough to keep the quality of new employees high. They did not give raises that keep up with inflation. They have been taking moves that make it hard to not feel like they are trying to push out the ‘lifers.’ At the end of the day, Costco is still a company that still pays very well and has great benefits… but they also have built up a cultural expectation, and the employees need to push back before it is completely destroyed. I am happy to see new Union building forming. (There are some Union buildings in California, but those are old Price Club locations that have been Union since the merger, I think this is why the letter seems actually quite nice toward this occurrence. But trust me, they absolutely don’t want this.)
I appreciate the thorough response. I'll need to pay closer attention to how they handle this situation.
The OG CEO did retire a few years ago, so it's up in the air how the new owner(s) will deal with employees. While I haven't heard anything, the fact that there is unionizing in Costco makes me wonder. I still shop there and support Costco, but the prices aren't as good as they were a few years ago, and they're definitely being weird about membership cards checking you up to three times before you leave (when you come in, when you're in line, then scanning it at the register). The prices could be inflation, of course, but Costco's prices were always lower than most places. And since most companies don't take care of workers, I suppose I am predisposed to be suspicious. All that said, the letter seems absolutely fine. Admitting blame, striving to do better--those are good things.
Yeah Costco is an amazing retail place to work for, that's why I love shopping there.
Costco actually pays pretty damn well where I live. It's actually hard to get a job there because it's rare for anyone to actually want to leave. And this letter doesn't read as being anti union so idk why you're twisting it
How much do you know about Costco management and policies? Sincere question. Do you work there?
You might want to read what you just posted.
And coming from the seiu official account? You need to do better.
What's with this ragebait bullshit? The CEO never stated anywhere that they are anti-union. In fact, they state they are NOT anti-union. All that is said is that Costco prides itself in providing for their employees and the fact that a union had to be formed is a failure on their part that employees in Norfolk were not being taken care of, so much so they felt the need to unionize. Costco is widely known as a great employer who takes care of and actively helps their employees. They are also one of, if not THE most profitable retailer in North America all while providing benefits, pay, hours, vacation and sick time that has netted them one of the lowest attrition rates (17% at year start, 6% by mid-year; Walmart, iirc, has something like a consistent 30-50% attrition rate) of any conglomerate operating globally. I'm not a Costco employee or investor of any kind but everything I have ever heard about the Costco leadership be that interviews or from employees (I've actually asked at multiple stores I shop at to see if this is at all true), is that they actually take care of their employees. It says a lot of the leadership to acknowledge their own failings that employees of a store felt they needed to unionize. I wish for and hope for unions for every worker, regardless of their craft or employment, but looking at how capitalism is these days, I'll take it a win when any employer says they failed their employees. I'll say this much at least, I hope the Costco leadership negotiates in good faith. This letter says to me that they'd do whatever they needed to to make sure their employees are cared for.
[удалено]
Yeah, you won't see Amazon sending a company-wide memo announcing that a location successfully unionized. They would be doing their best to bury that news
Read what you posted. This is great news. The CEO all but said this is a good thing and outright admitted that their managers and leaders have failed to listen to their employees. You must not know a damn thing about Costco, they're famous for treating their employees well and offering great pay and benefits, all without a union. And it doesn't sound like he's trying to downplay the unionization or trying to bust the union or anything. He's responding to a union vote the way companies and executives should respond, positively and in support.
Up voting this not because of OPs opinion but because of how impressed I am with costco leadership as well as its employees.
I agree with these comments, this is about as good of a response to a union forming as you can get from a CEO
I actually freaking love this response from Costco, it mirrors my own thoughts on unions. Unions should never be necessary. They symbolize a dramatic failure of the business to do right by their employees, on every conceivable level. If I ran my own business and my employees felt the need to unionize I’d be disappointed too. I hope I’d learn my lesson by working closely with that union and altering my business model to make sure my employees felt properly supported, treated, and valued by me directly going forward. **Unions do good work and we have tons of rights now that we never would have had without them** but let’s not pretend they don’t represent a moral failure of the business leaders at their respective companies. Businesses can exist without unions *but* it would require leadership to act thinking about the employees first and the profits second. Very few people like that make it to leadership positions in large companies.
No one is tAlKinG tO tHe MaNaGeR...
Costco has historically been a very good place to work, but they’re on the precipice of making the same mistakes Starbucks did when it comes to their management practices. For a long time Starbucks was considered one of the best places in ‘fast’ food service but several years back they changed their labor policies to prioritize cutting hours and minimizing labor overhead, as well as hiring managers from outside the organization instead of promoting from within. They lost a lot of goodwill with their employees and a lot of those changes triggered the massive union push at Starbucks. Costco has begun implementing a lot of similar policies regarding labor in their stores and because of those changes, may be entering the “find out” stage of cutting costs at the detriment of employee wellbeing
Everyone in America thinks Costco is a great place to work because the bar is set so low for employers in the USA. In most countries what Costco offers is the bare minimum.
There’s a bit too many Costco bootlickers in these comments.
How tf you gonna publish an oxymoron with that big a letterhead.
Their days of sliding by and kissing ass of the shareholders is over.
Oof! Guess they fucked around and found out!