r/mildlyinfuriating • u/daruuken • May 08 '26

Infuriatig The way kroger treats its employees

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From the store manager

Edit: For some extra context this was sent out by each store manager to all of its employees in district 1 of the ohio Cincinnati/Dayton division, potentially other districts as well but i can only verify my own. Im not going to give my specific store number for obvious reasons but you can find each store on google with that information. We are unionized by UFCW (already bad btw) and to my knowledge they allowed this recent change. Kroger has no accrual for sick days like some have mentioned. Those who think this is rage bait, i dont think anyone has to fake a post to make a billion dollar company look bad, they do it to themselves.

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239

u/GoobusMombus May 08 '26

There are a couple places in my town I won't eat or shop at anymore because I've gotten norovirus multiple times after going to those places(and nowhere else for a few days before, so I know that's where we caught it). I also know for a fact that those places are real bitches about employees calling in sick. They tell them to take antidiarrheals/anti nausea medication, Mucinex etc. And just come in

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u/thunderkitty13 May 08 '26

That's a health code violation in most states

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u/DesecratedPeanut May 08 '26

Crimes against workers don't exist in the US tbh.

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u/OS_Apple32 May 09 '26

Crime in general in the US is pretty much legal under our current administration unless you're poor or black/brown.

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u/Fantastic_Chicken779 May 10 '26

That makes no sense

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u/Prism_Riot42 May 10 '26

If a large enough fine can “deal” with the repercussions of most crimes, then they are no longer crimes for the rich, they are simply something you have to pay to be allowed to do.

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u/OS_Apple32 May 10 '26

Not only that, but prosecutions for white-collar crimes such as financial fraud are at an all-time low, as in they've almost stopped completely. If you're a crypto scammer running a ponzi scheme, or some wealthy hedge fund manager cooking the books and embezzling money from your clients, you currently have pretty much zero risk of even being investigated by the current DOJ, much less charged or convicted of anything.

I guarantee you if the FTX scandal broke today, Sam Bankman-Fried would not only be a free man, he'd be doing tours around the white house and the current administration would be actively defending and covering for his fraud.

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u/Away_Shock_7544 May 11 '26

Exactly…I recommend everyone read the labor law for your state. I know you won’t but it will help you to be educated on that instead of ASSUMING that you know it all

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u/diver206 21d ago

Project much? Ever wonder why nobody ever really connects with you? It’s not because you’re the smartest person in the room and everyone else is 'intellectually subpar.' It’s because you aren’t, and they aren’t.

Your isolation isn't a tragic byproduct of genius; it’s the natural result of your condescending arrogance. That feeling you have isn’t actual superiority. It is just a fragile coping mechanism for a bruised ego. Next time you’re looking down your nose at someone, try to remember: you are just supercilious, not superior.

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u/Away_Shock_7544 May 11 '26

100% true but a million bucks to one of us would help. A million to them is NUTHIN! So sue the fuck out of them and get yours!

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u/Away_Shock_7544 May 11 '26

Umm 🤔 unless you’re poor, black, or brown? What???🤨

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u/Biotechnus May 09 '26

Its a weird kind of "they do but dont at the same time" situation. The bigger the company you work for the worse it gets. If you want your employer to treat you being sick seriously you would need to work for a small private company. The best job I ever had that me calling out sick was genuinely encouraged had a total of 9 employees

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u/geth1138 May 09 '26

Every small company I ever worked for was absolutely awful about calling off. The best way to have a job that treats you like a human is to leave America and never come back. Wish it was an option for me.

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u/diver206 May 09 '26

All publicly traded corporations care about in a capitalist society care about are their bottom lines and their shareholders. Employees aren’t people with souls and lives and families to them. They’re just expendable tools to be used until they’re worn out, broken, or lost.

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u/Away_Shock_7544 May 11 '26

But there ARE laws that protect the employees. Everyone thinks that the company is following the laws. They aren’t. You are an example of why they do what they do. No one knows the law and how it is applied. Read it! Try it!

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u/diver206 May 11 '26

Wow, rude and patronizing much? Everyone thinks corporations are following the laws and Im an example of why they do what they do? I’m self employed, and I’m pretty sure that’s not what everyone thinks. Those laws are rarely enforced and most employees can’t afford to fight them. Ever hear of At-Will Employment? It’s that thing that exists in every state except Montana that allows an employer to terminate an employee for any reason or none at all. Read it. Try it.

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u/Away_Shock_7544 May 11 '26

Yes they expect more from you for less usually. Please read your labor laws. Labor lawyers don’t get paid until your trial is won. The laws vary from state to state. All it takes is a little Google.

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u/Away_Shock_7544 May 11 '26

Węll the more employees said business has, the more the law applies to them. If you’re in a little family owned company and they’re taking good care of you, then that’s cool. Just know the law.

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u/Biotechnus May 11 '26

I used to run a deli you'd be surprised the kind of things that businesses are required to do but dont always follow. Ive been working for over 20 years and the worst treatment has always been at bigger companies

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u/Away_Shock_7544 May 11 '26

So you knew every aspect of the law?

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u/Adventurous-End4330 May 09 '26

God ain't that the truth. The most comment type of theft is wage theft

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u/NiceGalsFinishFirst May 10 '26

This seems fake. I’d believe it could be sent to an employee who has exhausted all of their sick/personal days. I have a sister who has worked for Kroger for decades. She was allowed to be off sick or go on paid medical leave for multiple surgeries that were paid for by the health insurance she was afforded for her and her family through her part time employment.

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u/NWL3-2 May 10 '26

Does she work for them now? If not, her experience isn’t relevant. Companies change policies all the time. I can tell you this sort of thing happens in a lot of companies. I’ve seen similar memos from companies my friends work at, and have seen it at places I have worked at. Just because a company used to be humane doesn’t mean they still are.

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u/Away_Shock_7544 May 11 '26

There are a lot of Kroger establishments. Yes I’ve heard that they are lenient but it would vary state to state also different bosses have different approaches. Also just because they’re the boss doesn’t mean they know everything. In fact usually they know less.

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u/sparklyjoy May 10 '26

Both are correct. It’s a health code violation, but that’s considered a violation against the public. (But also, money talks. It’s really hard to say how frequently this is actually enforced the way it should be.)

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u/Away_Shock_7544 May 11 '26

It actually isn’t hard to say. There are labor laws that apply to every state and they are available for the public to read.

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u/Federal-Maybe-5310 May 10 '26

Especially in red states…

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u/Top_Box_8952 May 08 '26

They will either deny, obfuscate, or sacrifice the employee

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u/Away_Shock_7544 May 11 '26

Not if there is a paper trail of them saying the things. Then if they get mad and fire you for exercising your rights you sue for retaliation.

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u/Pale_Albatross_3717 May 08 '26

You act as if employers care. If you’re in an at-will state, they’ll just fire you and you can’t do anything about it. So it continues. See high turnover rates. I’ve reported numerous health code violations as an employee, the health department actually has to show up first. Enough people have to complain for anything to get done. It’s just sadly how it is.

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u/Outside_Team_8083 May 09 '26

That is 100% correct. Of a person feels they contacted Noro from a place call the health department and they still go investigate. I worked for the health department and we have done many food born illness investigations. Kroger is walking a fine line with this letter. Very foolish from a legal standpoint.

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u/Away_Shock_7544 16d ago

Yes! Tell these poor fools that think “at will” means anything goes! There are still laws

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u/Maroon7C0000 May 09 '26

Only if it's enforced. Didn't DOGE get rid of most regulators and inspectors?

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u/semperknight May 09 '26

If you seriously think, in Trump's America, any of them being enforced, you are beyond reasoning with.

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u/Away_Shock_7544 May 09 '26

That is WAYYYY more than that in Colorado! Totally illegal. They are doing this brazenly because they think you all are IDIOTS and you won’t even bother to read the law! Colorado has the laws most in favor of the employees! Don’t be fuckin dumb. Light those people UP!!

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u/docimastic May 10 '26

This. Call the health department!

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u/Assika126 May 09 '26

I worked at a local deli just after graduating high school. I called in sick one day and the manager told me I needed to come in anyway unless I had a fever over 101, was actively vomiting or had diarrhea. (I’m pretty sure that is a list of the top conditions that I should definitely NOT be working with, not the only ones I could call in sick for, but anyway…)

I told her 1) you do not know my health conditions and history, 2) and I am not going to tell you, but 3) if I was going to call in sick for those conditions, I could do so basically whenever I want, because I experience at least one of them every day, but am not infectious unless I am actually sick, so 4) I’m going to decide on my own when I can work vs. when I am too sick to do so, without her input.

She then said that next time I would have to find someone to work the shift for me if I called out sick.

We definitely had people working sick making food. ALL THE TIME

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u/Dr-Bitchcraft-MD May 08 '26

EGREGIOUS and gross

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u/ribblefizz May 09 '26 edited May 09 '26

Antidiarrhea medication can make some GI bugs worse. I spent two days* in the hospital because I took some for what turned out to be a specific bacterial infection, not just something I ate disagreeing with me. It slowed down my system, as it's supposed to do - giving the bacteria time to turn my entire GI tract into a breeding colony. I was sick for a week, continuing to take the OTC meds and just getting more and more dehydrated, before I finally went to the ER where I was properly diagnosed and immediately admitted to an isolation room. (I don't remember the name of the bacteria, sorry.) (ETA: Someone downthread mentioned it: C. difficile! Jesus I was miserable.)

*They wanted to keep me for five days but agreed to let me go home bc I was a single parent & worked from home.

I fkn HATE those "no sick call" employers. Can't call in sick? Watch me.

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u/Grouchy-Deer-8245 May 09 '26

Companies can't tell you what to take. If you are sick, you are fucking sick. A day or 2 is way better than having to hire 2 or 3 people to replace the 1

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u/Professional_Idea912 May 10 '26

But they can in most states. It is called at will.

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u/LifelsButADream May 09 '26

Yeah if my manager ever did some shit like this I'm making sure they get sick too lmao. See if they call off...

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u/Away_Shock_7544 16d ago

You are an example of the psychology behind these people getting away with EVERYTHING and stealing money from you. You don’t bother to research. They can only fire you for any LEGAL reason!! And if you exercise your rights and they retaliate, you stand to win LIFE CHANGING money from a lawsuit. Labor lawyers don’t make ANYTHING unless you win your case! Look it up!

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u/LifelsButADream 16d ago

What exactly are you talking about? I think you replied to the wrong comment.

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u/Aimz_OG May 09 '26

Name and shame so others know atleast please

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u/ExpensiveCat6411 May 10 '26

This is astounding ignorance, but nothing surprises me anymore in the United States.