Anonymous Twitter user @FellyThelly blew up their (apparent) employer’s spot the other day when they posted photos of anti-union training materials from Office Depot. Later, they acquired the entire manual from another employee, titled, “Labor Relations Training for Office Depot Supervisors and Managers.” The user compiled the tweet thread into the Imgur post below.
Capitalism is only sustainable through a system of violence and social control
I still have a copy of the t*rget team lead guide to dealing with union activity that I nicked from the office when I worked there, it’s mostly the same stuff but it also revealed just how much of their management tactics were intended to frustrate any unionizing activity. For instance, they said that cross-training in multiple departments was the best way to get reliable hours, and encouraged everyone to do it; according to the manual, however, it was their way of keeping departments mixed up and jumbled, making it impossible for any single department to unionize (and forcing anyone who wanted to unionize to get the entire store to do it).
And that’s just part what the store managers are taught. Throughout, it mentions holding off on action and consulting a labor relations officer in the company on how to proceed. Who knows what kind of shady shit the people a step above do?
If you’re in retail and wondering how to go about unionizing, contact an existing retail workers union.
They are all very familiar with the anti-union tactics of retail owners and managers, and will have some advice for you, some literature to distribute, and strategies to counter these tactics. It has historically been extremely hard for retail and fast food employees to unionize specifically because the owners and managers keep us scared, disorganized, and are happy to fire us for unionizing, labor laws be damned. Their entire business model hinges on us being overworked and underpaid. Contact a union for help organizing in your store.
