There is a bloodbath at the Phoenix call center, 7-8 sups, a good third of the call floor let go and more cuts to come, at least 2 more that I have heard of. Nobody is safe....and there is no notice. I think they are picking names out of a hat because there is no rhyme or reason to who's being let go. This is all over the call center, all departments, the loyalty card csrs, Home Shopping csrs, and even social media! Plus a rumor that Albertsons hired over 200 for their call center in Boise right before the merger; they must be going to all temps because there was nothing on their careers page about hiring.
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The problem with Safeway's backstage is that they were calling the shots in divisions they had no business really being in. Why are they in California and figuring out what goes to stores in Dallas, Washington DC, or what have you?
67118, this is the exact same thing you posted before. They helped finance the buyout of Mervyn's over a decade ago, and if this was all true, then Albertsons LLC would've been long gone by now. The fact that almost 10 years after buying out Albertsons originally it's still running should tell you something.
Good Glad they are gone
Nice that we are a leaner company
Well anonymous 67933, you won't be selling groceries for long when there is no one backstage to process your orders! Do you actually believe that the merchandise magically appears in the stores overnight? When Cerberus has sold off a bunch more stores, all of the production plants and has loaded up the store end with as much debt as it can hold and then they start selling off stores as 'unprofitable', we'll see how long you can keep your job selling groceries that are non-existent. In short, you sir, are an idiot!
Yawn
Lets see we cut all these backstage jobs... guess what
The world didn't end
We are still selling groceries
And life is so so much better
Hey Anonymous66180 Let's realize that investment bankers bought Safeway. Safeway got sold because the former owners could not get as much profit out of it as the shareholders were promised by the investment bankers. Cerberus (name refers to the dogs that are the hounds of hell). Look up the Google images for "Cerberus": Does that give you confidence that more baggers, delivery service for the housebound elderly, and a better store are what is ahead? Take a quick look at the investment banker's way to make piles of money for shareholders: It is described in the experience of Mervyn's. It's a pretty straightforward procedure.
1.) Buy a company (Safeway), Make it look more profitable in a big hurry (i.e. disbanding the shrink program and telling stores to stock the shelves with as much product as possible, it doesn't matter if you have to throw half of it away due to spoils) and for the short run by cutting costs (see: massive layoffs), selling assets (i.e. the significant properties Safeway owns), reducing services, and other "Economies".
2.) This than makes all the ratios banks use to give loans much more favorable, even though the new financial plan is not sustainable for a long term business.
3.) But with the new rations, a hugh refinance gets made with the banks, thus saddling Safeway with massive debt and yielding obscenely big "fees" (paid out of the capital that is lent) for Cerberus investment bankers and the shareholders.
4.) Adding this massive load of debt to an already crippled grocery business, Safeway then declares bankruptcy, where Cerberus then sells it at fire-sale prices, once again yielding big profits for themselves.
Did you expect the hounds of hell to care about Pleasanton's grocery needs or your local store needs? They are interested in profits, indeed they have a fiduciary legal responsibility to make the most profitable arrangements for their shareholders. The rest of us will just have to get over it--get over the loss of grocery store, loss of jobs, disruption as the properties are all sold off and everything settles into something totally different.
No one is safe...you think at the store your precious job is untouchable. Think again and start preparing yourself for another industry. That is all-
Very true and very sad. Didn't matter if you worked there 12 days or 12 years. No one was safe. Sad to see the entire company prepare to be steam rolled. They boxed up and escorted people out by the dozen every 40 minutes or so. I've never seen anything like it.
Both sides (grocers and backstage) are equally important
Anonymous66180 - you are an idiot. If there was no 'backstage', there would be no stores to sell groceries. Who do you think makes sure the trucks and suppliers are running on time or at all? Who makes sure there semis are all loaded with the stuff needed in the stores? It sure ain't you grocery hustlers!
Glad to see the cuts backstage. Stores sell groceries.. backstage doesn't
Weird. I hear they want to expand Safeway.com delivery service. Perhaps, they just want to relocate all the call center services to Idaho?
I work at the home shopping department. Without even considering how the service worked or what the call flow is, they cut half of the department and expected the other half to handle the entire call flow. This is not right and I am looking for something else. Our customers deserve better than what this merger is going to provide them.
To the poster who asked what home shopping is, it is the department that takes the calls for grocery delivery and works with the local stores who provide the service to get the groceries delivered. It is on the Safeway.com website.
What is homeshopping?
This is absolutely true and even worse than the original poster implied. Scuttlebutt is Home Shopping is going away, the loyalty card is going away and the "Phoenix Headquarters" will soon be a thing of the past. It's probably a tax write off for Cerberus.
I am confirming this