Starbucks Baristas: The daily grind
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There’s no way our manager can do this.. anyone have a copy or link to the employee handbook 🙃 (i.redd.it)
submitted by [deleted]
[deleted]
canidieyet_ 184 points 1y ago
this sounds a lot like my manager who will schedule you 6 8hour shifts a week (so just one day off!!) and then tell you to “work it or change your availability” if you complain. like, we all need more than 12 hours to survive. but we need more than 1 day off 🙄
anxiouspeony -20 points 1y ago
Be glad you have any hours at all, not a single barista or shift is getting more than 24 at my location.
canidieyet_ 72 points 1y ago
where one barista is getting no hours, there’s another barista getting overworked. i’m grateful for the hours but my body needs a break & nobody is willing to pick up a shift, nor do i want to call off and screw my team over. there’s always 2 sides to the coin.
TheOnesLeftBehind 5 points 1y ago
Then your store manager has to cover as you, as that is their job, or you just open later. Take time for yourself.
anxiouspeony 15 points 1y ago
The funniest side to that coin is when the same baristas complaining about no hours never pick up any offered shifts 😭 I wish you luck, this company is in the biggest toilet
asinceremelody 11 points 1y ago
l i get that but personally i plan my days according to the days i work. it’s very annoying to get scheduled for only two days, talk about how you need more hours, continue to get scheduled for one-two days, and then get called every day because they’re understaffed. i’m not waiting around to get a call because i’m not on call. i have my do but disturb on during the night so i can get a good rest, which means if i get called for an opening shift i’m not gonna see it until way later
anxiouspeony 5 points 1y ago
was called every morning for 3 days in a row when I was on my Easter break. I should be compensated per call 🙄
Distinct-Apartment39 1 points 1y ago
Also from past experience at the bux, 90% of the shifts you get called in for are gonna be opening shifts and if I did not plan to wake up at 6am I am not waking up at 6am. You’ll have a miserable, half asleep barista all day who’s pissed they only got 4 hours of sleep
Electrical_Metal_106 68 points 1y ago
The app makes it really easy for people to swap shifts within the system. As someone who used to make the employee schedule at my old job, I do understand the frustration your manager is feeling. Most managers (not the one I have now) are thoughtful of who they are putting on what shift. They are pairing strong partners with weaker partners so there is a balance. I am assuming that this is the reason for the text messages from your manager.
That being said, yes, there are absolutely reasons why you cannot always make your assigned shift and it is very appreciated that you get coverage in advance and communicate it. But, keep in mind, that when you get a replacement for yourself, try to get a partner with similar strengths and experience.
That being said, yes, there are absolutely reasons why you cannot always make your assigned shift and it is very appreciated that you get coverage in advance and communicate it. But, keep in mind, that when you get a replacement for yourself, try to get a partner with similar strengths and experience.
overturned23 43 points 1y ago
lmao not the crew app
jazzysoranio 35 points 1y ago
What really SHOULD be happening is that if you know in advance that a shift is being swapped you just request it in partner hub and your manager can confirm or deny it. Of course though, it is an extra step and it’s a little harder to do from home. And of course it doesn’t really help much when it’s the day of and you’re sick and need someone to cover. So yeah, complicated.
friendlySkeletor 18 points 1y ago
Also it needs to be put in 3 weeks ahead and you don't always know that far ahead. And sometimes it doesn't get approved but its too important to miss or just something planned pretty far ahead. Or you just really need a fucking break.
jazzysoranio 8 points 1y ago
Well, that’s for submitting availability. You can actually swap shifts or cover shifts that are already scheduled in the partner hub. But no one does it because more than likely you’re at home when you arrange all this and everyone knows accessing this stuff from home is unpredictably easy or extremely difficult, you never know when it will let you login or not. It’s easier to just ask someone and have them show up unexpected to a shift. And if you do it the day of or the day before your manager may not see it in time to approve it. And some managers just won’t approve it out of spite for no good reason. The POINY was supposed to be that the manager can look at your proposed switch or sub to make sure that they aren’t going to go over forty hours, don’t have scheduled training they’re supposed to do, are qualified to cover your shift, etc, before they approve it.
sheep_heavenly 11 points 1y ago
If my manager ever denied a shift swap I made I'd quit on the spot. My obligation was to be a body for the specified hours, I made sure that obligation would still be filled without me there.
5AV1OR 8 points 1y ago
You have that right just as much as they have the right to deny the change I believe most of the time they should accept shift swaps but there are situations where I feel it’s fair to deny them.
jazzysoranio 7 points 1y ago
True. Some managers are just spiteful and deny everything for no reason. They’re only hurting themselves though because then they earn NO barista loyalty and then wonder why no one is ready of willing to help out.
permanently_anxious 35 points 1y ago
To be honest as somebody who used to work at Starbucks as a shift supervisor I wanted to be full-time and obviously at Starbucks nobody except for the manager can be guaranteed full-time and it would really piss me off when people would say their availability was one thing but then they wouldn't show up because people like me would get jipped hours. Leaving us to fend for ourselves and pick up for other people when they called off which is fine but not only does it piss the manager off because they have to go in and fix it in the system but it also pisses us off because we don't plan on working we want to work but we don't plan on working and then we wind up picking up shifts an hour before we're supposed to be there.
SaevioAvis 29 points 1y ago
This is me today, yes. And then I get coached on well you keep saying you want more hours, why can’t you come in today? Because I made plans 2 weeks ago when I got the schedule. I don’t live on call for work.
vodkitten- 27 points 1y ago
This is true though because sometimes partners trying to pick up hours are new or you might be a stronger partner that can handle on the floor while others are being trained, But also you trying to help giveaway hours should let the manager know that they should be scheduling the other partners for more hours as well
Complex_Imagination9 20 points 1y ago
I agree with the comment that I’ve never seen so many shifts given away/swapped in all my years working retail. Help us help you. Create a feasible availability and we will schedule you as best we can to meet those needs. Believe me, as an ASM I don’t like making extra work for myself trying to cover shifts last minute because it is out of their availability. We also understand emergencies happen out of nowhere, but the constant messaging of who wants a shift, who can take my shift, etc is not an emergency.
sheep_heavenly 13 points 1y ago
As it stands it makes complete sense, corporate has been systematically driving out long term workers in favor of short term younger baristas. They want you staffed with young, cheap, revolving labor. Turns out a solid dependable worker usually also needs the income to survive, not as pocket change they can toss away on a whim.
djdementia 0 points 1y ago
> Create a feasible availability and we will schedule you as best we can to meet those needs. Believe me, as an ASM I don’t like making extra work for myself trying to cover shifts last minute because it is out of their availability
I have multiple times tried to submit that I'm not available Saturdays and it just gets denied. So any shift I'm scheduled for then I'm going to offer up.
I have multiple times tried to submit that I'm not available Saturdays and it just gets denied. So any shift I'm scheduled for then I'm going to offer up.
Complex_Imagination9 4 points 1y ago
That’s poor business planning on your SM/ASM. If I know a partner will no call/show I will not schedule them. Why create chaos unnecessarily? Another thing to consider is how many partners are also requiring Saturday off? How many partners are at your store? Ours has 48+
djdementia 1 points 1y ago
> How many partners are at your store? Ours has 48
Too many to count, probably more like 75-85...
Too many to count, probably more like 75-85...
Complex_Imagination9 2 points 1y ago
I would request to connect with your SM, respectfully remind them you don’t have availability on Saturday. If it gets denied move up to your DM. In a store with over 75 partners there’s more than a few willing to work saturdays
HydingSuspence 18 points 1y ago
My manager has done nothing but encourage us to take advantage of switching shifts with the app due to all of the labor shortages
5AV1OR 17 points 1y ago
I’m confused with what’s wrong with what this manager is asking? It’s not like she said no more swapping shifts, she is just saying to try to avoid doing it unless you have to? Which is a fair ask I feel like?
sheep_heavenly 10 points 1y ago
"unless you have to" isn't always defined the same way for each person. A lot of what people define as "have to" reasons are actually situations where the employee is no longer required to find their own coverage, like using sick time for yourself or a family emergency.
5AV1OR 9 points 1y ago
That is a fair point but even with that interpretation I don’t think she is out of line to request you try not to switch shifts. She isn’t saying you can’t she didn’t even say you have to confirm with her before you do (my store manager has made us confirm with her for every change and I didn’t think it was unfair) from how she phrased it I feel like she is having a common issue most managers have where the schedule a floor with a mix of strong and weak partners to allow a balanced floor and then people are switching it up to where a floor might only have weak partners or new partners. This would happen at my store all the time, a 4 year closer would ask a green bean who’s never closed before to cover their close and then that shift would be screwed up because they are basically a person down. Now my manager doesn’t allow anyone to ask a green bean to cover a shift unless they approve it through her.
sheep_heavenly 3 points 1y ago
Hot take: if someone is so bad at their job that it's a detriment to have them vs someone else, that means skeleton staffing isn't able to support business and should be ended.
Improve the partners who are "weak", don't lean on other partners to make it work. Nobody gets paid extra to do extra work when another employee isn't able to keep up with skeleton staffing
Improve the partners who are "weak", don't lean on other partners to make it work. Nobody gets paid extra to do extra work when another employee isn't able to keep up with skeleton staffing
5AV1OR 4 points 1y ago
Hot take: you don’t improve “weak” partners by having them thrown on a floor not designed to help them improve, I’m not saying there aren’t a thousand issues with Starbucks and it’s staffing right now. All I’m saying is it is completely within a managers right to request partners reduce how much they swap shifts, they aren’t even demanding it or saying that it has to be approved through them now (which technically is company standard) all they are asking in this screenshot is to reduce how much it’s happening because it is negatively impacting the work place.
geeg3131 0 points 1y ago
A lot of us get our hours by switching or picking up shifts. Our hours have been drastically cut, and giving our availability doesn’t do much to help us. I’m available to work Mon-Sat and struggle to get five shifts a week.
5AV1OR 6 points 1y ago
But you can still pick up shifts your manager isn’t telling you you can’t unless there is more to the story, from the screenshot you shared she just doesn’t want excessive shift swapping
Extreme_Musician_741 12 points 1y ago
I have never in all my years in many jobs, many positions, seen as many people trying to trade, give, switch shifts on a daily basis as when I spent 2 years at Starbucks. It is definitely out of hand. At my job now, and before, you worked your schedule, and if you needed a day of or a special time for the day you ask, ahead of time , period . It's called responsibility, and ownership.
friendlySkeletor 14 points 1y ago
You don't always know ahead of time. Especially when you're working for sbux level pay.
Shit comes up all the time. Sometimes people get screwed by life or they get fewer hours than they need or some shit and they need to trade or pick up extra. The higher the pay the more "responsibility and ownership" people should put in but for what most hourly workers in the US get, our first responsibility is ourselves and our needs. If we get our shifts covered then we've fulfilled the responsibility placed on us.
Shit comes up all the time. Sometimes people get screwed by life or they get fewer hours than they need or some shit and they need to trade or pick up extra. The higher the pay the more "responsibility and ownership" people should put in but for what most hourly workers in the US get, our first responsibility is ourselves and our needs. If we get our shifts covered then we've fulfilled the responsibility placed on us.
Puzzleheaded-Ice-882 4 points 1y ago
BRUH I LITERALLY ONLY WORK 2 DAYS FOR 4 HOURS AND I BEGGED FOR MORE HOURS AND SHE SAID “nOooOoo wE hAve A LaBoR shOrTage” GIRL STOP HIRING PEOPLE STORE MANAGERS ARE SUPPOSED TO CALCULATE PEOPLES HOURS I DONT MAKE ENOYGH MONEY FOR SHIT
Puzzleheaded-Ice-882 1 points 1y ago
Excuse my absolute sufferings but like jfc calculate the hours ffs. And jfc this is why I NEED to take peoples shifts
bambiszn 3 points 1y ago
isn’t switching shifts better than someone calling out?? i don’t see the problem
oooortcloud 3 points 1y ago
Being strict with scheduling is, in my opinion, a maladaptive strategy employed by managers who believe that control and power is a better strategy than flexibility and adaptation. “Messes up the floor balance”, give me a fucking break. Maybe this manager should be cross-training people so the efficiency of the store isn’t so heavily dependent on certain people being in certain places at certain times. Plus, this is a Starbucks. It isn’t an operating room. The drinks are supposed to be made the same way so it shouldn’t matter who’s making them.
persona-2 3 points 1y ago
I mean it does though. Super new partners can be doing great, but they can’t replace your 2+ year partner who can do drive bar in her sleep. If the floor already had new partners on it now it’s just stressful and weird feeling.
dazedinreverse 3 points 1y ago
Every barista should be able to do all positions so switching shifts shouldn't be a problem. How exactly does it make a shift unbalanced unless training as been put off 🤔
5AV1OR 8 points 1y ago
A 3 month partner should not be and almost never is as strong as a 3 year partner.
flynnnigan8 2 points 1y ago
Get the partner hours app and have your coworkers do the same. There’s a new section called marketplace where you can trade shifts and offer shifts up (aka give up shifts). This all happens without managers knowing and it’s a functionality the company provides, so it should be allowed.
FfierceLaw 1 points 1y ago
Within our store we can offer shifts and partners who are not already scheduled that day can accept them without approval. But yesterday a partner and I swapped shifts and it didn’t appear on the schedule until a manager approved
flynnnigan8 1 points 1y ago
If you did it through marketplace(which is on the app), thats not how it happens. If you did it through my partner hours website, that’s how it happens
no0dles130 0 points 1y ago
It also needs manager approval
ValueAffectionate287 2 points 1y ago
It doesn’t need manager approval though
flynnnigan8 1 points 1y ago
Managers don’t even have visibility of this, so it doesn’t need manager approval
Joranaxis 2 points 1y ago
I get why this is frustrating with hour cuts but I would be a little frustrated as a manager if I scheduled one of my fast baristas for a busy day/rush and a green bean picks up their shift so all the other baristas present have to pick up the slack. Or scheduled a trainer to be a point of leadership around a bunch of still learning baristas just for my lackadaisical “just here for a paycheck” baristas showed up instead.Like, I get it, ppl need hours and sometimes the hours needed and the time off needed don’t match up with the right people but more goes into scheduling than just getting bodies behind the counter. Ppl should get the hours/time off they need definitely, but I get the sm’s perspective as a former manager myself. And like others have pointed out, it wasn’t like switching shifts was banned, just a request for the amount to be reduced to pure necessity.
LookPrestigious5495 2 points 1y ago
Sounds like a reasonable request to me
ShannyES 2 points 1y ago
Swapping shifts is a feature of the app.
annoyinglyuseless 2 points 1y ago
I don’t remember which weekly update it was, I think maybe 2 weeks back? But it said that the app/website for our schedule would fix problems like these. You’re able to swap shifts as soon as 2 days, offer next day’s shift, and also pick up other’s shifts (that they’ve offered) in the shift marketplace, kind of bypassing the manager, we do that at our store. But if you offer the next day’s shift, you are responsible for it being covered. As long as shifts are being covered, and you’re not going into overtime, there shouldn’t really be a problem. It’ll update the daily schedule automatically too, your shift would just have to print a new page. For requesting days off, that still needs to be done a month in advance, however.
Merced_x 1 points 1y ago
yeah...I'm a supervisor and well, this is BS.
jy_mee 1 points 1y ago
I think it's hard to say just from this exchange alone and even then every situation is different. There's a lot of hiring right now in my district so swapping shifts is not always approved. I've mentioned to some partners to try to be mindful, since we have a lot of in store training going on, of who they get to cover their shifts. If I have a whole team of just green beans because of shift swaps, it really messes with the shift because I can't be everywhere for everyone.
If swaps becomes a common occurrence of someone switching shifts on a particular day or day part then I agree maybe that person needs to adjust their availability.
I don't remember if there's a hard rule about it if that's what you're asking.
If swaps becomes a common occurrence of someone switching shifts on a particular day or day part then I agree maybe that person needs to adjust their availability.
I don't remember if there's a hard rule about it if that's what you're asking.
marigshu 1 points 1y ago
Despite the fact that shift marketplace allows this — *constant* shift swapping can be irregular attendance. The guide says this: “Some examples of failure to follow this policy include irregular attendance, one or more instances of failing to provide advance notice of an absence or late arrival, or one or more instances of tardiness.” The problem isn’t with shift swapping, it’s with the same partners switching shifts consistently. Your manager is not saying that they forbid you from switching shifts — but it should be reasonable. I’ve never denied someone a shift swap, but I do ask that partners try their best to work their scheduled shifts and plan ahead (when they can) for time off.
ObnoxiousR 1 points 1y ago
Partners in training shouldn't pick up shifts until they are comfortable with the floor but it isn't on the rules. They added the switch shift option for a reason. Take advantage.
thumbwound 1 points 1y ago
im almost certain managers arent supposed to be in group chats btw just sayin
Bitter_Strawberry853 1 points 1y ago
Is there even a way to adjust your “available hours” as far as a certain number of hours per week? When changing availability it looks like there is only a feature to input your available time slots. So, the manager’s request is thereby impossible to complete without such a feature. 🙃
[deleted] [OP] 1 points 1y ago
[removed]
SuggyArt 1 points 1y ago
Flexibility is one of the main points they use when trying to hire people
Emarie2200 1 points 1y ago
At my store if we want to trade shifts with someone, I’m pretty sure we do it without saying anything. Some people do ask for permission, but even I stopped asking. She almost always confirms that it is fine unless there’s a new inexperienced partner. But we’ll come in and see the DCR has scribbled names next to an assigned partner shift signaling that they’re picking that shift up (or trading).
vinylcollector24 1 points 1y ago
my manager doesn’t allow us to use the shift marketplace. she’s pretty good at letting us swap shifts if it’s a reliable person but i feel like there is no point in them making this app if their employees won’t be allowed to use this. at the same time i understand why she doesn’t let us… there are times when people switch with new partners and the floor would be really bad.
[deleted] [OP] 1 points 1y ago
[deleted]
philosopher_cat_lady 0 points 1y ago
I'm trying to figure out what this manager's problem is. Training is planned out, trainers and trainees aren't supposed to switch shifts. As for whatever "floor balance" means, sounds like they've got partners who don't have experience with every position like they should.
Drahgonfly 0 points 1y ago
I haven’t worked all month
hottcheetoess 0 points 1y ago
my manager when i worked at starbucks did the same thing 🙃 or tried to… it never worked. in my opinion just ignore it 🤷🏼♀️
Due-Data-3130 -6 points 1y ago
Ur shift is full of shit, fuck Starbucks.
[deleted] [OP] -4 points 1y ago
[deleted]
Shetlips420 -1 points 1y ago
your manager on stupid mode
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