In recent years, people have been spreading the rumor that Trader Joe’s employees are constantly flirting with customers – and some people even claim that management instructs them to do so. The tales have spread so far that they’ve made their way up the chain of command at the store because Trader Joe’s senior leadership has finally responded. In the latest episode of the Trader Joe’s podcast, hosts Tara Miller and Matt Sloan were joined by the company’s CEO, Bryan Palbaum, as well as vice CEO and president, Jon Basalone, to discuss the company’s new offerings, price points, and among other things, flirting. At the risk of disappointing some shoppers, when asked whether crew members are instructed by management to flirt with the customers, Palbaum replied, “Definitively, no.” “Well, I think we just have such a unique environment in our stores that, to go into a Trader Joe’s store and feel that everyone is genuinely interested in whether or not you are having a good day, compared to maybe perhaps other retailers, I could see how that might be misinterpreted,” Palbaum explained.
There has always been a strong emphasis at Trader Joe’s on the importance of workers’ friendliness to customers, encouraging crew members to walk customers to items they cannot find and to reach into customers’ bags instead of using conveyor belts to ring up food and other items. As stated in the employee handbook, employees must provide a “wow customer experience,” defined by the company as “the feelings a customer gets about our delight that they are shopping with us.” According to Basalone, people are so accustomed to false interactions that kind gestures can sometimes be misunderstood as flirting. “Bryan’s right. I mean, you go through this world, and you run into so many people that aren’t genuine, that aren’t kind to you, that when you walk into a place when that’s happening, it feels like, Whoa, okay, I think they’re flirting with me, when actually, yeah, that’s just what niceness feels like, you know,” Basalone added.
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Meanwhile, one thing Trader Joe’s employees are definitely doing is organizing independent unions at multiple stores across the U.S., according to Jacobin. Trader’s Joe United members have so far presented several proposals. The union wants a minimum wage of $30 an hour, which is greater than the current starting wage of around $18, as well as a cost-of-living adjustment as part of the wage increase. According to them, the company has not provided a counter-proposal with concrete figures to support their claims. In addition, they have proposed guaranteeing retirement contributions to all crew members, providing health insurance for all members under a plan similar to that offered to management, with the employer covering all costs, and providing additional paid time off.
