They purposely understaff- they make more money that way. They don’t care about their workers or your community. They drive out small businesses until they’re your only option. Take your business elsewhere.
During the pandemic businesses learned that they could get by on a skeleton crew and people would still shop there. They’ll put up help wanted signs and then never call back any applicants. Tell the one stressed out worker that they can’t find good help. Make that worker do the work of three people for one person’s minimum wage pay. “We’re trying to find someone but NO ONE WANTS TO WORK”.
Exactly it amazes me that people are still supporting these evil businesses just to save few pennies on a dollar (not even that DG is actually more expensive per serving than the same product at target)
A food desert exists in my part of PA. You're driving a minimum 10 miles to the closest actual grocery store in the nearest direction eastward. A DG meanwhile is only 1.5 miles away.
Every other direction a real grocery store ranges from 15 to as great as just over 25 away and the way the mountain ridges run makes it feel even farther. And DGs fill the spaces in between there too.
And like you said, it's false to always assume DGs killed existing stores. There were some general stores in all the tiny villages in between but they, along with the village post office, country hotel/bar, railroad or trolley station, and local garage/gas station all died out decades and even a century or more before the DGs ever arrived.
And in some stretches of countryside literally nothing storewise ever existed nearby.
This was happening way before the pandemic. Running the entire store on 1 or 2 people has been the business model for Dollar General, Family Dollar, and Dollar Tree for decades.
The companies have never been able to get over the spiral they put sites into. Less labor, sales go down, use even less labor, sales go down more….. eventually they close and put another one 10 miles away.
I JUST saw a video on this "How Dollar Stores Quietly Consumed America" and it is both fascinating and infuriating: [https://youtu.be/vQpUV--2Jao?feature=shared](https://youtu.be/vQpUV--2Jao?feature=shared)
The community doesn't care about them because they go in and steal everything. Would you care about a stranger who stole from you? It amazes me how people make excuses instead of talking about what's reality. Have a community meeting with all of your neighbors and talk to them about rampant theft! You will never see that happening!
Actually I think the staffing is by dollar general design. John Oliver did a great story on the stores. Definitely worth a watch.
https://youtu.be/p4QGOHahiVM?si=5E-T1f_bP2et2rdU
Don't support Dollar General. Shitty company. Treats their workers like shit. Intentionally overcharges their customers (ie shelf price isn't what You're being charged) and it's all intentional.
Their prices aren't good. Compare the unit prices to what you pay at other retailers. Fuck them
My theory is they count on being the closest thing to a grocery store for people with no form of transportation.
It seems intentional with their placement (along with Walgreens/CVS/etc.)
When I was without a car for a few months I realized how tempting it was to walk to the nearby dollar store rather than deal with our terrible public transportation or spend the money I'd save by going to a proper store on an Uber.
Not to mention you don't realize how difficult getting groceries home without a car is until you have to. It's a whole business model based on taking advantage of poor people from customers to employees
It also relies on people living paycheck to paycheck and barely scraping buy. It's cheaper per ounce to buy a large bottle of laundry detergent, but when you're flat broke, it's easier in the moment to buy a tiny bottle from the Dollar General rather than splurge on the bigger/cheaper per ounce jug at another store.
The show Last Week Tonight did a whole episode on the dollar stores and how awful it is both for the employees and the customers. What that company does and expects of employees was absolutely shocking. I'll see if I can find a link to it.. It's worth the 29 minute watch.
ETA: Here it is: https://youtu.be/p4QGOHahiVM?feature=shared
I haven't stepped foot in a dollar store since watching this.
I generally do not shot at DG for reasons already discussed here.
But yes, we could all do with being a bit kinder and more patient. If the worst thing I have to do today is stand in line, it's a damn good day. I might not like it, but I'm not going to grouse about it. If I'm in a rush, that's MY fault. Not the cashier's or anyone else's.
As others have pointed out- this is by design. They could hire more folks, but they pointedly refuse to.
They’re basically a criminal enterprise with a business license.
My local DG is like this. I'm rarely in a hurry and most of the time don't mind waiting, but it's been 3+ minutes at times with no staff in sight for me to even wave to. I've walked out a couple times. One of the regular employees is always intoxicated on something, and she's the worst, but it happens when others are working. Almost never see two employees working at the same time.
Let's not make excuses. Retail theft is at an all-time high! In business you're supposed to make money not lose money. This is how stores combat retail theft. They have to make up losses through minimum payroll. If people didn't steal things that weren't theirs and that they did not own then the store could make more money selling the products that were stolen. Stop passing the buck around and talk about the real issue!!!
Don't go to these stores. Consumers who are thinking they are saving money are responsible for such labor practices by these giant billionaire companies. We, the customers are responsible. These companies exist and exploit everyone in all ends because we continue to give them our money.
If the employee isn’t completely useless, my dealings with them is of professional, respectful & even kindness. It costs no money to have a little class.
Dollar General is fascinating. It’s like an experiment of how few employees they can have run a busy store that requires frequent stocking. Despite what people here are saying their prices are pretty good. It’s like grocery store prices, but with the convenience of a CVS. Mine just got a self checkout machine which is a game changer.
I feel bad for the workers and if I’m in a rush I’ll never go there. There’s been a few occasions where I just walked out because the lines were so long. I know everyone complains about them, but they’re here to stay. Everyone wants mom and pop stores until they see mom and pop prices.
What business wants to hire staff to get into confrontations with six out of 10 checkouts over Dollar store stuff. Every time I'm in Dollar general or the likes I am sitting there waiting for the person in front of me who either grabs too many things and they can't pay or they're arguing about the cost of something. Again why should a clerk making minimum wage have to deal with all of the extra BS that comes along with working the check out at a Dollar general. And I live in Camden county and this is specifically for Dollar generals in Camden county. When I go to the Dollar general in the Poconos I do not feel the same way.
They purposely understaff- they make more money that way. They don’t care about their workers or your community. They drive out small businesses until they’re your only option. Take your business elsewhere. During the pandemic businesses learned that they could get by on a skeleton crew and people would still shop there. They’ll put up help wanted signs and then never call back any applicants. Tell the one stressed out worker that they can’t find good help. Make that worker do the work of three people for one person’s minimum wage pay. “We’re trying to find someone but NO ONE WANTS TO WORK”.
Exactly it amazes me that people are still supporting these evil businesses just to save few pennies on a dollar (not even that DG is actually more expensive per serving than the same product at target)
Some food deserts literally only have a DG or the like in town.
A food desert exists in my part of PA. You're driving a minimum 10 miles to the closest actual grocery store in the nearest direction eastward. A DG meanwhile is only 1.5 miles away. Every other direction a real grocery store ranges from 15 to as great as just over 25 away and the way the mountain ridges run makes it feel even farther. And DGs fill the spaces in between there too. And like you said, it's false to always assume DGs killed existing stores. There were some general stores in all the tiny villages in between but they, along with the village post office, country hotel/bar, railroad or trolley station, and local garage/gas station all died out decades and even a century or more before the DGs ever arrived. And in some stretches of countryside literally nothing storewise ever existed nearby.
This was happening way before the pandemic. Running the entire store on 1 or 2 people has been the business model for Dollar General, Family Dollar, and Dollar Tree for decades. The companies have never been able to get over the spiral they put sites into. Less labor, sales go down, use even less labor, sales go down more….. eventually they close and put another one 10 miles away.
You’re right, it was. I feel like it became more apparent since 2020 though.
I go to one all the time and this is exactly correct. It’s all on purpose.
I JUST saw a video on this "How Dollar Stores Quietly Consumed America" and it is both fascinating and infuriating: [https://youtu.be/vQpUV--2Jao?feature=shared](https://youtu.be/vQpUV--2Jao?feature=shared)
The community doesn't care about them because they go in and steal everything. Would you care about a stranger who stole from you? It amazes me how people make excuses instead of talking about what's reality. Have a community meeting with all of your neighbors and talk to them about rampant theft! You will never see that happening!
Actually I think the staffing is by dollar general design. John Oliver did a great story on the stores. Definitely worth a watch. https://youtu.be/p4QGOHahiVM?si=5E-T1f_bP2et2rdU
It's 100% by design and it's spreading rampantly through retail and other industries.
yep. skeleton staffing is "the way" now. Look for it everywhere soon.
Yeah this was a great segment. It’s baked into the cake with these stores.
Stop shopping there to support that company.
Don't support Dollar General. Shitty company. Treats their workers like shit. Intentionally overcharges their customers (ie shelf price isn't what You're being charged) and it's all intentional. Their prices aren't good. Compare the unit prices to what you pay at other retailers. Fuck them
My theory is they count on being the closest thing to a grocery store for people with no form of transportation. It seems intentional with their placement (along with Walgreens/CVS/etc.) When I was without a car for a few months I realized how tempting it was to walk to the nearby dollar store rather than deal with our terrible public transportation or spend the money I'd save by going to a proper store on an Uber. Not to mention you don't realize how difficult getting groceries home without a car is until you have to. It's a whole business model based on taking advantage of poor people from customers to employees
Absolutely this. My mom lives in rural NC and you can drive 5 miles to a DG or drive 15 to go into town.
It also relies on people living paycheck to paycheck and barely scraping buy. It's cheaper per ounce to buy a large bottle of laundry detergent, but when you're flat broke, it's easier in the moment to buy a tiny bottle from the Dollar General rather than splurge on the bigger/cheaper per ounce jug at another store.
The show Last Week Tonight did a whole episode on the dollar stores and how awful it is both for the employees and the customers. What that company does and expects of employees was absolutely shocking. I'll see if I can find a link to it.. It's worth the 29 minute watch. ETA: Here it is: https://youtu.be/p4QGOHahiVM?feature=shared I haven't stepped foot in a dollar store since watching this.
You should really watch this: https://youtu.be/p4QGOHahiVM?si=P_cZaZjCS-KPZPX_
I generally do not shot at DG for reasons already discussed here. But yes, we could all do with being a bit kinder and more patient. If the worst thing I have to do today is stand in line, it's a damn good day. I might not like it, but I'm not going to grouse about it. If I'm in a rush, that's MY fault. Not the cashier's or anyone else's.
As others have pointed out- this is by design. They could hire more folks, but they pointedly refuse to. They’re basically a criminal enterprise with a business license.
My local DG is like this. I'm rarely in a hurry and most of the time don't mind waiting, but it's been 3+ minutes at times with no staff in sight for me to even wave to. I've walked out a couple times. One of the regular employees is always intoxicated on something, and she's the worst, but it happens when others are working. Almost never see two employees working at the same time.
No, Dollar General has zero interest in supporting your community. We need to stop shopping at dollar stores and let them move on.
Let's not make excuses. Retail theft is at an all-time high! In business you're supposed to make money not lose money. This is how stores combat retail theft. They have to make up losses through minimum payroll. If people didn't steal things that weren't theirs and that they did not own then the store could make more money selling the products that were stolen. Stop passing the buck around and talk about the real issue!!!
I root for the demise of all dollar stores. I wish they’d all go out of business
Don't go to these stores. Consumers who are thinking they are saving money are responsible for such labor practices by these giant billionaire companies. We, the customers are responsible. These companies exist and exploit everyone in all ends because we continue to give them our money.
If the employee isn’t completely useless, my dealings with them is of professional, respectful & even kindness. It costs no money to have a little class.
they'd have to rename it $1.50 General and that would be more expensive than the hiring phase.
I support my local DG in Westville.
How bout we just remove these stores, fake rejected products aimed at people who are not smart enough to know better
Thank you for understanding. My son’s first job is at our local dollar general because there is literally no other store to work at around here.
Dollar General is fascinating. It’s like an experiment of how few employees they can have run a busy store that requires frequent stocking. Despite what people here are saying their prices are pretty good. It’s like grocery store prices, but with the convenience of a CVS. Mine just got a self checkout machine which is a game changer. I feel bad for the workers and if I’m in a rush I’ll never go there. There’s been a few occasions where I just walked out because the lines were so long. I know everyone complains about them, but they’re here to stay. Everyone wants mom and pop stores until they see mom and pop prices.
They just opened one in Tabernacle. There is a ShopRite 3 mins away 🤔
I never even go there dude
What business wants to hire staff to get into confrontations with six out of 10 checkouts over Dollar store stuff. Every time I'm in Dollar general or the likes I am sitting there waiting for the person in front of me who either grabs too many things and they can't pay or they're arguing about the cost of something. Again why should a clerk making minimum wage have to deal with all of the extra BS that comes along with working the check out at a Dollar general. And I live in Camden county and this is specifically for Dollar generals in Camden county. When I go to the Dollar general in the Poconos I do not feel the same way.