The amount of bruises on my arm and back from running into those things are actual proof that the suits have never worked a day on the floor in their entire life. Plus, with the labor cuts, how do they expect us to have two people on bar and two people on drive all at the same time? Someone has to constantly flex at my store because it’s so busy, but for some reason our labor metrics don’t match it at all. I’m getting so tired of it.

They are purely for the customers to see. They want the customers to think they're treating us well. They know it's annoying and makes it harder for us. They just don't care

I'm convinced that most "innovations" and new drinks, new policies and nee products are developed entirely within a boardroom, with virtually zero consideration for the actual practical application of the new stuff. Clearly most higher-ups have never worked in a store, but yet they get to set policy? Wild. 😑

it's actually ridiculous. the way ours is positioned is so if you're bar 2, you have to move to the other side of the shield to reach any of the syrups/sauces. not to mention theres no plexiglass between customers and our bars which makes customers think they can reach over and grab whatever they want. so counterintuitive.

And not every syrup is on each side in my store so sometimes we have to get even closer into our fellow bar partners space to get honey blend or some shit. Feels absolutely useless in terms of enforcing social distancing and only serves to get in our way

I don't understand why instead of using these to separate the bars and drive thru these plexiglass weren't used to separate us from the customers. I would much rather be protected from the hundred plus people still coming into the cafe rather than the same 5 people i work with 35+ hours a week

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They’re so dumb, at this point Starbucks is just virtue signaling to customers.

Ooh, have you guys gotten the one that goes between the DTO and DTR screens? Dumbest shit especially when you're short and you have to DTO/DTR walking around a fucking barrier 🙄🙄

Did a solo on bar today for 2+ hours in a pretty steady rush. My back has never hurt so bad, from reaching under and around. At my store it serves no purpose as we are never actually able to social distance between each other due to the size of our behind the bar areas.

We have a new rule of whoever runs into has to try an brake it so we can take it down. Or someone has to take one for the team and really hurt themselves so our manager can take it down.

I completely agree. If it was in DT that would be a completely different story. That makes sense.

Every store is different (staffing, labor, daypart peaks etc) and those in corporate don’t realize that you can’t effectively and efficiently bar with that.

My SM and all of my baristas agree that it’s pointless and would serve better in DT, at least.

Does anyone have a picture of them?

Retired barista living in a town with only Tarbucks, Frybucks, Safebucks and military base.

We rerouted stickers so all hot beverages and iced espresso drinks come out on the side with syrups and cold bev comes out on the other.

If it's slow enough, Hot bar stickers the cold bev cups and pumps syrups before sliding it under the Plexi. If it's too busy, cold bar slides it under and hot bar pumps the syrups when they have a second. It's not the best, but it's worked really well for us so far.

I agree though, the plexis were not a good move. We bump into each other more now trying to get around the damn thing, and they've informed us we're getting a "*bump guard*" between DTO and DTR. Right. So how will we solo DT?

My sm and a few others haven't put them up because they are agree how stupid it it

Ive gotta see a picture of these things, sounds like zero planning and just a cheap ploy to get hr brownie points

Well didn't you know, the people you know that cannot work while symptomatic and can be required to take testing as needed and that are guaranteed to be mask and likely care somewhat about your life and health are far more dangerous than random people screaming maskless about restrooms and mask policies!

We put ours together today and even the manager agreed we’ll put it up for our DM visit this week, and then take it down and never use it again. It goes more than halfway into the space behind the bar because we’re so small, that’s right where our frap station is.

My store manager wasn’t even going to put ours up because of the same reason. We just held up the shield and could tell it was going to be in the way, so it stayed in a corner for a while. Our DM bopped his way in one day, happy as a clam, and just installed it himself.

Of course they aren't happy. Because now it takes longer for a drink to be handed out, and that extra time could've been used to make another drink. You gotta remember we're not human beings to them.

I’m so thankful that my manager feels the same way. We put it up if we know our DM or a manager from another store is coming by, but otherwise it’s home is on the floor by our prep station. 😂

My manager received the bar plexi and just never put it up lmao. It's still sitting in our back room because it's so stupid

Security theater

if enough of us called corporate do you think they’d get rid of them 🥺

bruh i’ve ran into the thing so many times. we still didn’t get the new machines yet but y’all worrying about the espresso machine separators

I saw that and was like ok so when a car orders 5 pink drinks and a frappuccino what’s the point

It literally is making us social distance less. I have to step over the shield into the personal space of dt bar to pump any syrup. I’m literally bumping shoulders with them everytime I do. This is so pointless.

Agree. Whomever is responsible for rolling out the bar shield should be fired. We expected a shield between customers and bars and instead we get this thing that increases waste and labor to clean and stock two bar supplies. We have no place for lids AGAIN. It’s not intuitive at all. and do they think that Baristas don’t congregate next to each other in various locations other than the bar? We don’t even have the labor for double bar. One person on bar and other on CBS. The shield was sent for corporate kudos.

100% agree

They are infuriating

My manager tried to tell us the State would fine us if we did have it up - smh

We have a smaller bar space so we had ours for 3 days before my manager removed it and told our dm that we won't be using it. We kept running into it and there we dont have enough space to really double hot bar anyways. We all ran into it so many times

The mocha chai and white mocha are split up so we have to try and reach underneath or get in the way of the other person to get mocha

one of my shifts literally broke our shield with her face from running into it. nobody understands unless they’ve been on the floor throughout this chaos

Is every store getting this or something? Mine doesn’t have one between the machines. I can’t imagine how annoying that would be.

Ours is not put up yet! I’m not looking forward to it! 🥴

Posts like this remind me of *Better Off Ted*. It's on Hulu if you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it. It reminds me of the Efficiency Chair they came up with.

We have a tally on how many times each of us has absolutely smacked the shit out of it hahahah

the ONLY pro to having these...playing hangman with the person on the other side 🤷🏻‍♀️

I have walked into the shield on bar so many times, my manager refuses to move it to bar 2. So it's easier for us to use the cold bar syrups than hot bar. They are a waste of time and space.

My manager was like screw it we’re not using it. It’s stupid and doesn’t do anything. It’s all for show. Just makes our jobs even harder.

my first shift with one i walked straight into it while rushing back to my espresso bar from cold bar. and not the nice, “face pressed against a wall”, way. that thing smacked a line straight down the center of my face. i’m honestly shocked it didn’t bruise. that’s the last thing i needed during a busy understaffed rush.

I had a bruise on my head for a week cause of that thing.

Their only purpose is to comply with local emergency orders. There is no concern about practicality.