Solidarity and diversity
April 24, 2020 3:48 PM Subscribe
Amazon-owned Whole Foods is quietly tracking its employees with a heat map tool that ranks which stores are most at risk of unionizing.(non-paywall link via MSN) The stores' individual risk scores are calculated from more than two dozen metrics, including employee "loyalty," turnover, and racial diversity; "tipline" calls to human resources; proximity to a union office; and violations recorded by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
Store-risk metrics include average store compensation, average total store sales, and a "diversity index" that represents the racial and ethnic diversity of every store. Stores at higher risk of unionizing have lower diversity and lower employee compensation, as well as higher total store sales and higher rates of workers' compensation claims, according to the documents.
Store-risk metrics include average store compensation, average total store sales, and a "diversity index" that represents the racial and ethnic diversity of every store. Stores at higher risk of unionizing have lower diversity and lower employee compensation, as well as higher total store sales and higher rates of workers' compensation claims, according to the documents.
Maybe the employees could figure out the exact spots, travel paths and pause times necessary to create a heat map of a big middle finger.
Meanwhile, the official response from Whole Foods is actually way more draconian sounding than anything I think I could have come up with.
posted by BigHeartedGuy at 4:18 PM on April 24, 2020 [24 favorites]
Meanwhile, the official response from Whole Foods is actually way more draconian sounding than anything I think I could have come up with.
posted by BigHeartedGuy at 4:18 PM on April 24, 2020 [24 favorites]
...violations recorded by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration...
Imagine a set of risk metrics consisting only of measures of quality of working environment... Oh no! There's a union risk because the health care plan sucks and the staff are underpaid! What ever can we do?
posted by kaibutsu at 4:24 PM on April 24, 2020 [63 favorites]
Imagine a set of risk metrics consisting only of measures of quality of working environment... Oh no! There's a union risk because the health care plan sucks and the staff are underpaid! What ever can we do?
posted by kaibutsu at 4:24 PM on April 24, 2020 [63 favorites]
On the one hand, I’d have been surprised if no one had built this tool. The metrics listed don’t even seem that difficult to obtain or “creepy”: the distribution of store sales, compensation, OSHA claims, and diversity are things that WF should be tracking for other reasons. The others seem like public data. I’m angry that they’re doing this, but it’s an obvious enough analysis that I can hardly be surprised...
On the other hand: this would seem like an excellent argument for forcing companies to make these metrics public as part of their quarterly reports! Because if they’re using these to track likelihood of unionization, I don’t see any good reason why unions shouldn’t have access to the same data to allocate their resources.
Otherwise it seems like the most dreadful informational asymmetry...
posted by a device for making your enemy change his mind at 4:31 PM on April 24, 2020 [41 favorites]
On the other hand: this would seem like an excellent argument for forcing companies to make these metrics public as part of their quarterly reports! Because if they’re using these to track likelihood of unionization, I don’t see any good reason why unions shouldn’t have access to the same data to allocate their resources.
Otherwise it seems like the most dreadful informational asymmetry...
posted by a device for making your enemy change his mind at 4:31 PM on April 24, 2020 [41 favorites]
One very specific quote chilled me most here, it's really the creepiness dark horse of the whole thing.
The "sentiment" data is pulled from internal employee surveys and "is likely to be the first score to improve based on your efforts."
The word "improve" here clearly means (despite all their double-speak in their official response about employee rights) to reduce the likelihood of a union forming. This means that they are not only tracking this, but that they have an optimal outcome -- no unions, not even the "risk" of a union.
The fact there is language about "improving your score" suggests strongly to me that they are grading someone on this. Team leads? General managers? Regional managers? Who knows. But it sounds from that sentence like there are actual human beings who are being designated not just responsible for collecting this data, but for using it to prevent other people from forming a union -- and if so, that a union forming (or even threatening to form) would represent this person failing their duties and possibly facing some kind of consequence.
It sounds like they are charging people with making sure their fellow human doesn't try to improve their working conditions, on pain of a "bad score" and whatever that carries with it.
Granted this is speculation but I don't think it's a big stretch.
posted by gloriouslyincandescent at 4:40 PM on April 24, 2020 [37 favorites]
The "sentiment" data is pulled from internal employee surveys and "is likely to be the first score to improve based on your efforts."
The word "improve" here clearly means (despite all their double-speak in their official response about employee rights) to reduce the likelihood of a union forming. This means that they are not only tracking this, but that they have an optimal outcome -- no unions, not even the "risk" of a union.
The fact there is language about "improving your score" suggests strongly to me that they are grading someone on this. Team leads? General managers? Regional managers? Who knows. But it sounds from that sentence like there are actual human beings who are being designated not just responsible for collecting this data, but for using it to prevent other people from forming a union -- and if so, that a union forming (or even threatening to form) would represent this person failing their duties and possibly facing some kind of consequence.
It sounds like they are charging people with making sure their fellow human doesn't try to improve their working conditions, on pain of a "bad score" and whatever that carries with it.
Granted this is speculation but I don't think it's a big stretch.
posted by gloriouslyincandescent at 4:40 PM on April 24, 2020 [37 favorites]
I miss the good old days, when we planned a unionizing meeting out on the lawn in front of the building at noon, and when we went out there, the sprinklers were on. They were never on. Management could only have learned about it because somebody squealed. This was pre invasive technology days. I think life was simpler then.
posted by njohnson23 at 4:50 PM on April 24, 2020 [27 favorites]
posted by njohnson23 at 4:50 PM on April 24, 2020 [27 favorites]
The people who are my closest possible access to groceries when I can't leave the house for potentially another 18+ months are working for an insane Upton Sinclair character. Cool cool cool. *barfs
posted by lextex at 5:23 PM on April 24, 2020 [24 favorites]
posted by lextex at 5:23 PM on April 24, 2020 [24 favorites]
Wild - it makes me wonder what tools could be useful to workers who are looking to organize - where are the heatmaps for them?
posted by jchomko at 5:40 PM on April 24, 2020 [8 favorites]
posted by jchomko at 5:40 PM on April 24, 2020 [8 favorites]
This is a figurative heat map. The local Kroger seems to use some kind of literal heat map to sort of predict checkout staffing requirements in the checkout at any given times. Had me confused for a moment...
What's described in the article sounds like a bit of a yawn, though. The framing sounds like they're chipping employees somehow. But what's described sounds more like more vague data analysis. Even things like employee surveys aren't really described very clearly. Are they actual surveys issued to employees? Which would be useful if anonymous, and pointless if not. Or are the surveys compiled indirectly by other metrics?
posted by 2N2222 at 6:17 PM on April 24, 2020 [2 favorites]
What's described in the article sounds like a bit of a yawn, though. The framing sounds like they're chipping employees somehow. But what's described sounds more like more vague data analysis. Even things like employee surveys aren't really described very clearly. Are they actual surveys issued to employees? Which would be useful if anonymous, and pointless if not. Or are the surveys compiled indirectly by other metrics?
posted by 2N2222 at 6:17 PM on April 24, 2020 [2 favorites]
Unfortunately, Whole Foods is, for lack of a better way to put it, exactly right about the situation. So long as employees consider unionizing only when work conditions become intolerable, it's in the company's interest to just barely keep your workforce not angry enough to actually go to the effort of unionizing.
When employees, as a whole, consider unions to be innately something they want and there is a critical mass of employees that want a union come hell or high water, tweaks to compensation and other happiness-type scores won't matter. And I'm not talking about store-by-store, I'm talking about the entire workforce.
But keeping an eye on things that make employees unhappy and blunting the worst negatives is working, because a sufficient number of employees only see the utility of unions as a response to intolerable conditions rather than as a way to participate in the governance of their jobs.
posted by tclark at 6:22 PM on April 24, 2020 [72 favorites]
When employees, as a whole, consider unions to be innately something they want and there is a critical mass of employees that want a union come hell or high water, tweaks to compensation and other happiness-type scores won't matter. And I'm not talking about store-by-store, I'm talking about the entire workforce.
But keeping an eye on things that make employees unhappy and blunting the worst negatives is working, because a sufficient number of employees only see the utility of unions as a response to intolerable conditions rather than as a way to participate in the governance of their jobs.
posted by tclark at 6:22 PM on April 24, 2020 [72 favorites]
Imagine how mind-blowingly successful Whole Foods is in the other universe where they use this exact analysis to find stores that need more investment? Imagine how much their liberal hippy fan base would love them?
posted by bleep at 7:39 PM on April 24, 2020 [14 favorites]
posted by bleep at 7:39 PM on April 24, 2020 [14 favorites]
As a liberal I am very pleased to hear that Whole Foods are aiming to increase diversity and fight leftist class reductionism at the same time.
posted by Space Coyote at 7:55 PM on April 24, 2020 [4 favorites]
posted by Space Coyote at 7:55 PM on April 24, 2020 [4 favorites]
(tclark hell yes- as the union organiser at my workplace, it's amazing how much engagement dropped off when we had a nice, pro union boss compared to the arrogant buffoon prior.)
posted by freethefeet at 8:39 PM on April 24, 2020 [3 favorites]
posted by freethefeet at 8:39 PM on April 24, 2020 [3 favorites]
Whole Foods, Partial Humans.
posted by fairmettle at 11:41 PM on April 24, 2020 [7 favorites]
posted by fairmettle at 11:41 PM on April 24, 2020 [7 favorites]
I spent too many years working at Whole Foods in too many capacities. I don’t like the company and it makes sense that amazon bought them and at the end of the day the two companies deserve each other. Also amazon is a scourge on the earth.
posted by nikaspark at 11:52 PM on April 24, 2020 [4 favorites]
posted by nikaspark at 11:52 PM on April 24, 2020 [4 favorites]
The Whole Foods right next to Duke's campus is clearly being affected by the push to unionize Duke's non-academic staff and grad students.
posted by hydropsyche at 5:08 AM on April 25, 2020 [4 favorites]
posted by hydropsyche at 5:08 AM on April 25, 2020 [4 favorites]
But keeping an eye on things that make employees unhappy and blunting the worst negatives is working,
Well on the bright side, it's working in another sense too. These employees have some power without even having a union. To put it another way, WF is over-responding to the mere threat of a union forming and not even waiting for the demands to materialize. They just told everyone (accidentally, which I'm sure they're pissed about) what buttons they respond to. Figure out what the metrics are, make them bad. Every metric can be gamed.
Generating this "heat map" information is two-edged. I'm sure it's valuable to WF, but also to the employees to know what the levers are, and to a national union, it tells them where to go recruiting.
posted by ctmf at 10:32 AM on April 25, 2020 [1 favorite]
Well on the bright side, it's working in another sense too. These employees have some power without even having a union. To put it another way, WF is over-responding to the mere threat of a union forming and not even waiting for the demands to materialize. They just told everyone (accidentally, which I'm sure they're pissed about) what buttons they respond to. Figure out what the metrics are, make them bad. Every metric can be gamed.
Generating this "heat map" information is two-edged. I'm sure it's valuable to WF, but also to the employees to know what the levers are, and to a national union, it tells them where to go recruiting.
posted by ctmf at 10:32 AM on April 25, 2020 [1 favorite]
I'm management in a place with two big unions, and I've got to say, WF is spending way more effort on this than they would just letting there be a union and putting that effort into not being shitty. The boogey-man of the evil union in your mind is way worse than actually dealing with them. And if you do it right, the union is actually more help than hindrance, because we all want the same thing - the company to do good.
posted by ctmf at 10:39 AM on April 25, 2020 [17 favorites]
posted by ctmf at 10:39 AM on April 25, 2020 [17 favorites]
The fact there is language about "improving your score" suggests strongly to me that they are grading someone on this.
Executives at the parent company of the grocery store in question frequently use the term "data-driven", as in "data-driven culture". The motivation for collecting data is generate metrics that justify decisions made to reach goals: profitability, market share, etc. Something is not "actionable" without data. Internal rankings or scores are definitely end products from analysis of the data they collect.
posted by They sucked his brains out! at 1:46 PM on April 25, 2020 [1 favorite]
Executives at the parent company of the grocery store in question frequently use the term "data-driven", as in "data-driven culture". The motivation for collecting data is generate metrics that justify decisions made to reach goals: profitability, market share, etc. Something is not "actionable" without data. Internal rankings or scores are definitely end products from analysis of the data they collect.
posted by They sucked his brains out! at 1:46 PM on April 25, 2020 [1 favorite]
I have worked at a Whole Foods and no shitty thing I learn about them doing to their employees will ever surprise me.
posted by ITheCosmos at 2:52 PM on April 25, 2020 [6 favorites]
posted by ITheCosmos at 2:52 PM on April 25, 2020 [6 favorites]
And if you do it right, the union is actually more help than hindrance, because we all want the same thing - the company to do good.
This. A million times. I'm currently the BA for our local and I always stress that we want the organization to be successful just not at our expense. We're happiest when we're supported and doing meaningful work and happy workers just work harder and do a better job. We also know that we're in for the long haul while most managers are around for 5-8 years because they're either good/successful and move up or on to better things or they're shitty and eventually get fired. Some managers get it and some get reminded on their way out.
posted by The Hamms Bear at 9:21 PM on April 25, 2020 [2 favorites]
This. A million times. I'm currently the BA for our local and I always stress that we want the organization to be successful just not at our expense. We're happiest when we're supported and doing meaningful work and happy workers just work harder and do a better job. We also know that we're in for the long haul while most managers are around for 5-8 years because they're either good/successful and move up or on to better things or they're shitty and eventually get fired. Some managers get it and some get reminded on their way out.
posted by The Hamms Bear at 9:21 PM on April 25, 2020 [2 favorites]
Imagine how mind-blowingly successful Whole Foods is in the other universe where they use this exact analysis to find stores that need more investment? Imagine how much their liberal hippy fan base would love them?
WH did this kinda shit (and much worse) for decades before Amazon came around, and that fan base didn’t care then, so why would they change.
posted by sideshow at 12:59 AM on April 26, 2020
WH did this kinda shit (and much worse) for decades before Amazon came around, and that fan base didn’t care then, so why would they change.
posted by sideshow at 12:59 AM on April 26, 2020
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posted by geoff. at 4:13 PM on April 24, 2020 [9 favorites]