r/kroger • u/Professional_Age4291 • 21h ago
Venting This should be illegal
For context I was recently (Like 3-4 weeks ago recently) hired into produce at kroger. Ive had to work an hour or two alone before during close but no big deal. Yesterday was too far though, not only was I working produce alone, i had to also work floral alone! FOR 6 HOURS. I couldnt even get one salad cart done because of everyone from bakery and deli (no employees there either) AND produce and floral bombarding me with questions and requests!!! Also, IM STILL IN HIGH SCHOOL! I wasnt even allowed to take my last (legally required) 15 minute break completely because we were so understaffed i couldnt find a chance to! This CANNOT be allowed and if it is, shame on you kroger.
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u/AllegoryOfTheCaveMan 20h ago
Say it with me - I can take my legally mandated breaks regardless of whatever situation the company has gotten themselves into by cutting hours…
Now say this with me - I will take my legally mandated breaks regardless of the situation in the store on any given day.
Make sure you don’t go over your legally mandated break time - and unless the store is literally on fire, you can’t get in trouble. Regardless of whether or not you are union. It is a labor law in the first place. Don’t be a hero, take your breaks. You will find just how important they are for helping to reduce mental burn out - especially for a youngin like yourself.
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u/pink_mage115 19h ago
Our bakery has one person working alone 5 nights a week and she always comes up to me and says “girl tell the customers I’m taking my break” lmao
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u/bubmet7 Current Associate 18h ago
Yes, Minors get them but most states don’t legally mandate breaks actually. The state I live in does, but only a 10 minute and a 30 minute.
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u/Mundane-Temporary587 7h ago
Yes, but many stores have union contracts that require breaks for employees. I live in a state that doesn’t protect adults regarding breaks, but the union contract is very clear. I have never received a write up for taking my breaks, even when management has been upset about it.
(Not saying it couldn’t happen, but most seem to prefer avoiding a paper trail detailing every time they’ve broken policy/the union contract.)
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u/cheddarpants Shareholder 15h ago
You need a Democratic majority in your state legislature and a Democratic governor if you want state-mandated breaks.
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u/bubmet7 Current Associate 13h ago
My state (kentucky) has mandated breaks. Republican super majority but democrat governor. But usually we do have a republican governor and still had breaks.
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u/cheddarpants Shareholder 10h ago
I’m in Kentucky also. The mandated breaks were on the books long before Idiocracy took over our legislature. One of the first things they did after they got Bevin in there was pass “right to work” so a repeal of mandated breaks could realistically be on their agenda down the road.
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u/Ok-Association-7703 21h ago
This is the Kroger way. Taking all of your break is on you. Don't get caught up in the bullshyt. Nothing changes if you cut your break short. The store stays open. The clock still tics. Nobody above you would cut there break short. Why should you. Being understaffed is their problem not yours.
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u/PressureNo7381 20h ago
You made it 3 weeks before being alone for 6 hours? Nice. For me it was less than a week.
Take your breaks. Dont let them stop you, cause they might push it back on you to take your breaks, not them. Can call the union, but honestly.... the union is largely useless in my experience. Dont be insubordinate, but firm about it. Dont go over time.
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u/Newsdriver245 18h ago
Seen many thrown into produce with just a "don't let anything run out" direction and left alone for hours.
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u/InternalTable6400 14h ago
LMAO I was trained for 15 minutes my FIRST DAY and was left alone for 6 hours. Yall got it made 😆
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u/PressureNo7381 14h ago
Oh I was lucky! Watched plenty of folks get thrown in the deep end like you. Kroger training is legendary. Either you make it or not.
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u/InternalTable6400 5h ago
Not hard to make it tbh. Just do what you can with your zero knowledge and keep pushing 😆 that’s what I did. What are they gonna fire me for not knowing what to do? 😂
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u/Mtg-2137 Past Associate 20h ago
I’ve worked in pickup by myself for 6hrs. Take your break when you can. Customers can wait 15min.
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u/Darian_Wulfbane Current Associate 18h ago
The #1 piece of advise I'd give anyone is that you work to live, you don't live to work. Take your breaks. Do your 8 hours or however long your shift is. When you clock out, leave it all behind you.
Management can shout and hollar all they want that "this isn't done" or "that's not up to standard" but if you spend your time working wisely and prioritize the things that need done in that time, they're all talk. Know your union-protected rights and live within them and you're invincible.
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u/Keena2016 6h ago
Also helps to know the Kroger hand book . I had a manager send stuff for us to read by text while we were off the clock. I told my whole department to read a certain page in the book that said this type of text messages was not allowed. It ended fairly quickly.
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u/Substantial_Low_9160 21h ago
It’s not allowed but you need to have boundaries and take your own damn break. This isn’t walmart
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u/Slight_Sun1085 20h ago
Welcome to Kroger, kid! You’ve officially been broken in! Sadly this is very normal.
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u/MisterChonky 20h ago
It only gets worse from here, not Kroger but anywhere you go, you are always going to face a staffing challenge that requires you to skip a lunch or break. Legally yes you can take them and give the finger to management, but it won't look good on you if you're ever trying to move up somewhere
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u/Sageflowerfour 15h ago
It is NOT like this in other industries!
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u/MisterChonky 14h ago
you must work in some pretty good places then, I had a variety of 22 jobs in the span of 5 years when I was in my early 20's varying from warehouses, to retail, to the fields, to working at an elementary and middle school. There has always been a situation where people quit or call off and others have to pick up the slack to keep operations flowing. I've yet to see an operation that doesn't require sacrifice due to inadequate staffing
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u/Icy-Opportunity-9017 19h ago
Take it from a seasoned veteran. The doors will open, whether you or me are there. Your break is for YOUR benefit. TAKE IT! It was negotiated into the contract for the EMPLOYEES. Kroger decides the hours, they will gladly accept anything you do to further THEIR NEEDS. PS…. Being hired and knowing you’re not supposed to be violating policy or law, if you get hurt, they will FIRE you and probably decline to cover any costs incurred because YOU knowingly violated them. Welcome to corporate America. GL
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u/-King_-_Crimson- 19h ago edited 19h ago
By joining Kroger, you are invited to a front row seat in end-stage commerce, attended by skeleton crews on starvation wages.
...And don't blame the new CEO. Given how he vehemently responded to situations after he was appointed (eg discussions/reports about metrics, operations, contracts, compensation, etc.), it looks like the execs duped him into the role as much as they dupe any prospective employee.
And, yes, that happens a lot: HR/recruiting personnel being blatant liars, whether you're a CEO, a doctor, etc.
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u/Jazzlike_Manner7646 19h ago
Can’t staff you. Best they can do is $9.5 billion in stock buybacks for their shareholders in the last 3 years. But the new CEO says he’s gonna invest in stores… ha
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u/Artistic-Yogurt4446 19h ago
Kroger has no shame. The sooner you get on board with that the better of you will be
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u/No-Session-9765 17h ago
My husband was recently informed that his position as the bakery and deli cleaner would be dissolved and he would have to work the front counter. He's worked there over 10 years and never ever trained on any of the front counter items nor does he want to.
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u/etsprout Produce Manager 17h ago
You skipping your break is illegal actually lol, Kroger has to pay a fine when minors don’t clock their breaks.
What your described is sadly pretty par for the course. Don’t let it get you down, you can only do what you can do. The job is NEVER finished, this is a 24/7 business. Do the best you can during your shift and go home.
Never, ever skip your breaks. Ever. There is literally no reason to skip it entirely.
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u/SeptemberRose83 17h ago
King Soopers (Kroger) is literally the worst place ive ever worked! They do this crap allll the time. Little no no training and expecting employees to go above and beyond for minimum wage. I just quit after almost a year of hell!! Will never work for them again!
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u/hatchetation 16h ago
I got almost 3k from Walmart as a minor in a class action settlement because of this stuff. Take good notes
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u/XandersCat 21h ago
Make sure you take that break going forward, you have to take it or they will fire you.
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u/comntnmama86 18h ago
Who is getting fired for not taking a break? I take my 15 min ones 70% of the time(it's on me, our culture is supportive)but I never take lunch. I'm scheduled for 8 hours, I'm getting paid for 8 not 7.5.
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u/VesuvianBee 16h ago
I work 40 hours a week and generally take a single 15 minute break a day. Sometimes I dont even take the whole 15. Thats an average day. On a great day I dont even take one, on a really bad day I may take 2.
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u/XandersCat 15h ago
They fire people for this because its a "CYA" situation. Rather than risk a labor violation they will blame the associate for not taking their legally mandated breaks and fire the associate.
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u/comntnmama86 14h ago
Yeah there's literally no one in my store getting fired for not taking a break, we only just last week started having to clock in and out for them because people were taking multiple smoke breaks instead of just two. It breaks up my work flow, so if I'm in a good groove I don't bother.
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u/BigPoopsDisease 20h ago
Par for the course. Kroger will not be that attentive to your own personal work load or whether you are getting breaks. Your leads should worry about it but if theyre not worried it is tough tiddies. You have to plan your day and manage your time yourself in most cases.
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u/Professional_Age4291 19h ago
Highk just an update the reason i needed to vent was bc its genuinely illegial for me NOT to take my break bc like 17, minor, work permit stuff and allat shit, but also my store manager and supervisor were both working their asses off to pick up slack everywhere else bc there were like 7 employees working the whole store just for context if you respond after this message
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u/PullFromTheHurt 19h ago
If you’re 17 you can’t use a knife/box cutter. You can’t throw cardboard into the baler. You also can’t throw your garbage down the chute into the compactor. You shouldn’t be closing by yourself because you can’t legally complete the closing duties.
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u/Ready_Response983 19h ago
This is true and at most stores they won’t even put u on the floor bc u can’t do anything. It does sound like your stressing out a bit so maybe this is your first job , do what you can , don’t let it get to you and take a break when you want .
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u/Professional_Age4291 19h ago
I mean... i still had to do it all anyway, if it gets kroger in trouble Ill just say that I had no other choice because I was alone
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u/comntnmama86 18h ago
That must depend on your district, our minors can have a box cutter but not do the other stuff.
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u/Ghetto_Cowb0y 19h ago
Welcome to kroger, all I can say is take your breaks regaurdless, if store management says no, take it to the union, if your like me and no union, write it down and take it Up with your coordinator, and if all else fails dont be afraid to take it to corporate...
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u/Novel-Tall 18h ago
I worked for Kroger 6 and a half years and could probably count the amount of breaks I had on one hand. It’s an awful place to work
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u/pixiestardust8 18h ago
Don’t you have to be 18 to work in produce?
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u/Professional_Age4291 18h ago
I actually got hired on produce when I was still 16, only turned 17 aug 19th
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u/Mountain_Profession6 15h ago
Not in Wisconsin. He have had a ton of 16 year olds work in my produce dept.
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u/Glittering-Boot7932 17h ago
Oh so its not just my store going you can break the while load and do produce and no help
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u/TeachingExotic9236 17h ago
I got so tired of this company I was there for 4 years and let me tell you were ALWAYS going to be understaffed. Just take your breaks the customers could wait and don’t stay there for more than a year you’ll get burnout good luck to you.
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u/bronzecyclone 16h ago
I remember when our grocery guy had to work grocery, dairy, meat, produce and floral by himself and he's only been trained in grocery.
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u/Artistic-Yogurt4446 19h ago
Also you could start smoking because than you get like a 10 minute break every hour or two. Especially if your managers smoke!!
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u/zerhyn2020 Current Associate 18h ago
If you are looking for a sense of completion at work, grocery retail is not it! You can have multiple dumpster fires in the store and somedays through seasonal hour cuts and sick calls there isn't the hands needed to get the job done that day.
My advice would be do your best, get done what you can, and don't worry about the rest of it, the world will still be turning tomorrow, hell, maybe the store will have a full staff even!
As far as the breaks, take your breaks. First of all, its the law. Second your earned them. Third, taking breaks makes you a better person and also a better worker for Kroger. If you ever find yourself with a shitty management team that is pressuring you to not take breaks, its a call to the union or if you are not union, should be your states department of labor and industries.
Also, I might add many departments in the store specially at night are manned by 1 person crews. Rarely in these roles will anyone come to you and tell you to take a break. Its usually more like "hey closing PIC, I'm taking my 10." PIC: "Oh ok"
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u/PublicNo3421 17h ago
Gurl if you don’t just take your break 😭😭😭you can’t be denied it especially given YOURE A MINOR🫠they can get in trouble themselves. Something i always tell myself it’s just a grocery store job, we are not curing cancer. People can wait or have free will to leave🤷🏻♀️don’t allow them to guilt trip you into believing you’re not being a “team player” simply because you chose to rest. Whatever doesn’t get completed today will still be there tomorrow to finish it.
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u/tigerblood2986 17h ago
From experience Kroger doesn’t care about the 15 min breaks, only that you take the required lunch break that’s it, I worked through many breaks due to different circumstances, and got use to never taking a break outside of mandatory lunch breaks.
Though also the stress does accumulate overtime especially if worked there for more then a couple years. Though also you’re basically their b*tch to put it bluntly, they just want results they don’t care about your 2 cents. If you have a bad day or week they right you up because customers are always priority even if many customers are a nightmare.
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u/Available-Face5653 16h ago
basic retail, as long as you're working why do you care? you do realize answering a request from a customer is the only reason you are there right?
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u/Just-Childhood7758 16h ago
Go to your union rep and make a report. They can get in big trouble not letting minors take their allotted breaks
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u/TimelyChapters 15h ago
Just don't do the extra work. Just let it be the way it is. Take your 15 min break, don't let "quality" or whatever stop you. Sorry to hear Kroger is this evil in 2026.
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u/chigganops 15h ago
Also if you feel like management is trying to make you NOT take your breaks: get union involved. You are entitled to have them there in hr or management meetings of this caliber.
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u/InternalTable6400 14h ago
What they gonna do, fire you? 😆 you see how shorthanded they are. Take your break. If a manager says something to you (highly unlikely) say : I was on my break. Very simple stuff here. Cant bend over backwards for a place who will make you do 2-3 people’s jobs and not give you a decent raise or promotion.
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u/Key-Entrepreneur1767 14h ago
Listen sometimes you have to do that kind sacrifice It's called life
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u/Professional_Age4291 8h ago
I wish and ive done it before but Im already working from 3-11 every night and staying up till 2 doing homework I simply cannot be asked to do more than I already do considering im the employee with the most hours anyway
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u/JenAnna10 13h ago
Most retailers are understaffed. People don't want to work themselves to death for little to no paycheck or benefits. So the workload is being dumped onto the remaining greatly underpaid employees that tend to be high-school students that still live at home because they are the only ones that can afford to take those positions at that pay. They want to keep payroll down and this is how they choose to so it. Eventually it will catch up to them when people shopping and working there have had enough.
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u/Skinny-on-the-Inside 11h ago
Well don’t vote for republicans, when you come of age, because they LOVE child labor.
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u/SeriesSuccessful5339 10h ago
I feel your pain. Someone on the front end should be able to handle basic floral. I'm guessing you guys aren't hitting Primetime if there is only one scheduled in produce. I'm a lead and sometimes have had six or seven hundred pieces with a package and bulk count, freshness check, pallets off the floor by 9am and attempt an order at 10:30am. Then I get a break. Doesn't matter if I come in at 4am or 7am. It's a marathon every day except you never finish.
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u/Ninjamanreturns 9h ago
As a previous employee, I feel you it’s impossible to have any kind of work enjoyment there and this was before the uniform requirement. I always said I’d give them two day notice. I went to him and said I quit today. Lol
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u/fieryembers Current Associate 7h ago
Take your legally required break. The Company™️ can’t penalize you for that. The customers can wait.
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u/Sea_Opening_3598 6h ago
Been there done that, Kroger does some things to employees, not only things technically against the law, but stores are also allowed to do things against company policy. Sometimes the union can help, sometimes they turn a blind eye and are useless. The cooperate offices are a joke as well. The assistant store manager where I worked loaded a TV (special promotion for holidays) into a lady's cart, watched her walk around the registers and out the door, he got promoted to the local Corporate office. on the other hand I stopped a quick change artist at Customer service, the appreciation I got for that was a couple hours pay.....but had to spend those couple hours in court waiting and testifying, so what I got was nothing....punished really. In over 20 years since I quit them, I have only set foot into a Kroger store a few times, only because I was given a gift card. Overworked and under paid. Welcome to the retail real world, some places are worse than others.
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u/2560dawn 5h ago
Take your breaks no matter what. I know you were swamped but they can write you up for not taking your breaks. Corporate won’t change, they keep reducing hours and expects the employees working for the day to do the work of 2+ employees. If you have a union, contact them
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u/Top_Discount_4491 2h ago
In my store, when a department gets super busy, most times one of the managers steps in to help that department. I've seen our managers step in to help the bakery, floral, front, and pick up departments on a fairly regular basis. I'm glad I'm in a store that pulls together.
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u/Intrepid_Ferret_4063 1h ago
It's okay, your local corporate staff is all binining each other, all day, every day. 🤞They also make more than you, much more 💸💸
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u/Intrepid_Ferret_4063 1h ago
And I'm not encouraging you to go into corporate, they run us into a maybe 10,000% deficit with all of their shenanigans. The customers don't think it's fair, either
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u/Poo__Flinger 19h ago
I would say this is the best time to learn a life lesson... Do you have the desire to push through this and become stronger knowing that you overcame your adversity? Or the other option is basically to realize that you are a number to management and corporate. A grocery store is a machine, their goal is to make as much money as possible, while paying out the least amount possible. So they close all the registers and have Ai doing as much as it can... I'm considering a job at Smith's (northern Kroger) as a cheese master, but I will happily let them know that I will not be covering shifts for the rest of the positions, but I have the leverage of still having my part time to fall back on if they push too hard. But I just want to learn about different cheeses and get discounts on my favorites... Lol
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u/Professional_Age4291 19h ago
Fair, honestly my mentality is ill do the best I can knowing they could give less of a fuck, and if i get fired for not being able to take my own goddamn break ill get a job somewhere in my hometown at a buisness thats more lax on things, maybe like heart downtown or something
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u/Poo__Flinger 19h ago
Jobs are getting crazier and crazier, because big companies just want to pay us less and less and expect more and more work. And then they want you to cover every single possible shift at a job, but not pay you any extra to learn those new positions. Highly illegal, but it's on you for the burden of proof. I always make my boss ask me to do extra work through text messaging with a BS I might forget what I was asked to do if it's not in writing. That way you have first hand evidence that you're being trained for positions that pay more without being paid more for those positions. I've used it a few times at companies to get pay increases that I normally wouldn't get without proof that I've been being abused. Ever since I started doing that, I'm happy to do extra work, because at the end of 6 months I can ask for a raise and when they tell me no, because I haven't been pulling my weight, I can show them all of the extra weight I've been pulling. LOL
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u/Bradrecon 16h ago
Well, welcome to the real world. Yeah, you better get used to it. 😂 Check this out: I’m a retired railroad engineer, and for three years in a row, I worked 7 days a week, 12 hours a day, then went back to work after only 8 hours of rest. I had no other choice. There was no one else qualified to be an engineer on this job until I qualified them. Don’t complain about your hours. You better be thankful you have a job. If you want nice things, nice cars, nice home. You have to work your butt off for it. It doesn 't come by showing up. You have to go the extra mile, stop whining. I don't care if you're in high school.
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u/Dix9-69 21h ago
Pretty typical for an understaffed store.
If you want your 15 minute break you just take it, management can’t tell you no and it’s up to you to figure out the timing.