This past week I had my first Black Friday as a retail worker. I have never gone shopping on this infamous day; I hate crowds, lines and I am extremely impatient, all of which Black Friday encompasses. I am a seasonal employee at LUSH Cosmetics, aka my dream job, but I was still very nervous about working Black Friday.
I was fortunate and got an afternoon shift so I didn’t have to deal with the brunt of the madness, but I was busy my entire shift nonetheless, and loved every minute of it. My fellow employees were always willing to help me out with a sale or if I wasn’t sure about a certain ingredient in one of the products, and my manager gave me a lot of encouragement and feedback and made sure I wasn’t in over my head, while also making sure I had plenty to do. I had an awesome time and would gladly work another Black Friday shift at LUSH.
Most of my other friends who work in retail, or pretty much anyone who works in retail, would probably think I’m crazy for saying this, but there were two factors that made my experience doable, even enjoyable. One, the threat of working on Thanksgiving was not hanging over my head; our shop opened at midnight and did not require any employee to give up their holiday plans. As a college student, Thanksgiving is a sacred holiday for me; I get to spend time with my extended family after months of not seeing each other and gorge myself with endless amounts of turkey, mashed potatoes, and stuffing. I know many retail workers who did not have this luxury, and were required to work at 5 p.m. Thanksgiving Day, robbing them of celebrating Thanksgiving.
The second factor that helped me survive Black Friday is the respect I received from my employer. Most of my customers were extremely nice and easy to assist, but if I had to work with a difficult shopper I received plenty of support from my fellow employees or my manager. We all did our part to make things go as smoothly as possible, and none of us were scheduled for a long shift so we didn’t get too burnt out. LUSH really respects its employees, and that respect saved me from the Black Friday hell many other retail workers have to go through.
*On the other hand, I talked to a high school senior who had a much different experience working at a different store. Her shift started at 5:00 P.M on Thanksgiving. Since she is a minor, she only worked until 10 P.M, but then came in again at 6:00 A.M for a day shift during Black Friday as well as a 7:30 A.M shift on Saturday to clean up and restock from the aftermath of the epic sale.
The early morning shifts were not what bothered her. It was the fact that she had to miss Thanksgiving with her family, including her brother who had come home from college and she barely sees. “Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays because I get to catch up with family. I didn’t get to do that this year and it really was a shame. I don’t think that it is fair to ask people to work on a traditional holiday that has been celebrated for hundreds of years,” she stated.
It is also ironic that people rush away from their families to try to score deals on a day that is supposed to be honoring and being grateful for what you already have. This is the reason why many protested Black Friday all together this year.
Although her experience at work was fine, the most frustrating thing was being asked if she got to celebrate Thanksgiving or “have some turkey” by shoppers there at 6 P.M on the holiday and then getting symphathetic responses when she said no. “They are the reason we can’t celebrate the holiday,” she says.
Black Friday can be a hectic time for retail workers. However, if you work in a good environment and love your job, it is manageable. However, the extremes that have been taken in recent years by starting the sales before Thanksgiving ends can be deemed as unethical. It is not fair to force people who may need their retail job to leave their families and come in to work on a holiday that emphasizes appreciating what you already have. Let them have a few hours of peace before the craziness commences. It will probably keep employee sentiment around the stressful holiday season higher.
*The Lush part of the article is Lindsay’s opinion. The latter part of the article is Morgan’s.