Some say it’s the most wonderful time of the year. For myself, as well as countless others who (unfortunately) work in the retail industry, it is potentially the most nerve-wracking and unenjoyable month one will ever experience. While many of you bask in the glory of some serious markdowns and super sales of the Christmas/holiday season, others dread the masses of unappreciative snobs who wreak havoc on our stores.
The madness begins on ‘Black Friday,’ which just so happens to be the day after Thanksgiving. The name suits the day, whose origin has been traced back to the 1970s and the heavy traffic the date produced. The hell that Black Friday creates in shopping centers across the nation is enough to make your stomach turn. With customers wrapped in blankets hours before a store’s opening, rubbing up against complete strangers to keep warm, you would think these people were in line at a soup kitchen.
Our country seems to lose hold of the true meaning of the holidays a little more each year, focusing more on the superficial aspects the season brings around. This past year, the Woodbury Common factory outlet debated keeping the mall open on Thanksgiving, leaving little or no time for employees to spend time with their friends and relatives. It is nauseating how focused our country is on consumers’ interests.
Working conditions for employees in popular stores such as Coach, Timberland and The Gap are not so different from those that the laborers who make their products in second and third world nations. Sometimes forced to work more than a 12-hour shift, they are unable to eat, drink or even take a two-minute bathroom break if the store’s condition is too chaotic. My current manager, who once worked at Coach, was actually forced to leave the store after she vomited and nearly fainted from the stress the day created.
Not only does this time of year breed stress and sickness, it also engenders violence. It is almost guaranteed that someone will be crushed among the masses of bargain-hunters and be sent to the hospital in critical condition. At superstores like Wal-Mart, once the doors open everyone becomes a victim, including the employees. Workers get pinned up against shelves and fist-fights are more than common in the battle to leave the store with dozens of low-priced items.
As a retail worker that has worked in the mall environment for over five years, I can tell you that the sales are actually nothing to brag about. In many situations, the company will promote a specialty item, giving the impression that the store is fully stocked. However, this is simply a pretentious ploy to attract more customers. With customers traveling great distances, lined up outside designer stores at 2 a.m., they will buy simply because they feel it necessary. Next year, consider enjoying the true meaning of the holidays and learn to appreciate the things you can’t stand on line to buy.