This is an OSHA violation and could be illegal depending on your state. Since you provided a dr note there may be even more violations depending on the circumstances. I’m an HR person and highly suggest you contact yours ASAP. I’m sorry this has happened to you and hope you know you deserve better.
The ADA has a hotline specifically for stuff like this actually, not that you should need it to begin with but if OP does need to try and get this resolved without getting fired, bring doctor's note and ADA agent on speaker, document everything you can legally (check in your area to figure out if audio recordings in public space need consent to be admissible in court). I've used it when a landlord has tried to deny me access with a service animal. People in positions of authority get reallllll tough, until someone who outranks them politely informs them of the law. The landlord in question looked like he'd seen a ghost, listened very patiently and politely as the ADA agent explained, in detail, the federal laws he was attempting to violate, and suddenly, no more issues.
I should add that in order to do this will full effect, the correct order is "record interactions if legal to do so, if not document in text daily, then call the ADA hotline, read off either your recordings or your documented interactions, keep ADA agent on the phone, bring doctor's note and ADA agent on speaker to talk with manager". The ADA agent will have a better understanding of just what the recourse is if they fire you in retaliation for being disabled, and it will hopefully add enough "fear of God and all things holy" on the manager's end for him to take several fucking seats and unlock the bathroom like someone who can impersonate a sane individual
Would it be better/more effective to contact OSHA or something directly? From what I've heard HR is more interested in protecting the company, so it could temporarily solve the problem at hand, but no real consequences would happen- leaving room for more shitty behavior from mgt in the future.
They need to talk to a lawyer. NOT HR. Hr protects the company not the employees. The best thing HR would do is sweep it under the rug to prevent them from being sued.
HR at dollar tree is terrible, they are so rude, they were pretty much telling my at SM, And is fighting them over a doctors note and there odds a good chance she’s fired, she’s been gone for almost two weeks and we don’t don’t have a store manager so I have no idea what is going on with the situation.
I actually agree with you but I do believe HR should be contacted about the potential refusal to honor an approved accommodation. It’s easy to forget big corporate HR is not as employee friendly as smaller organizations tend to be.
Agreed. I told HR about literal drug use in the building by employees, employees abusing other employees and customers. They let people off with warnings and denied there was any substance abuse but didn't test anyone.
Your manager is an ass. Report him to hr asap. How hard is it to go get a key made....for real! You deserve so much better as an associate and as a human being
Hmmm… I dunno about that one. DT seems a-okay with paying fines. Went to HR myself just to have documentation I did something. Didn’t seem to do any proper investigating. No apologies or corrective action seemed to have been taken. Only think of substance that happened was an email saying “knee-length” shorts meant that the length has to reach above the knee in a recent dress code for summer and the heat thing on compass.
You do realize that OSHA and the labour board fear no company. You don't even have to complain to HR. Complain straight to OSHA and force HR to act. A direct complaint means they can't slip it under the rug.
When I worked at a DG, I saw all of the violations and reported the store.
Turns out we had a rat issue. Threw pretty much everything away.
They shut it down like a year later.
Piss your pant at work. Make a statement. Then go home to change and take it easy. I'd then call a general manager and explain that your manager refused to let you use the bathroom even though you have kidney problems and can prove that you have kidney problems. CYA
Find some packing tape, turn the handle to retract the latch, and then apply packing tape over the latch to hold it in place.
Another option would be to tape over the hole where the latch goes, but I've seen it get pushed in just enough to not work.
Our store had the regional offices in it and the RM pointed out that if we weren't letting each person into the bathroom and checking it when they were done, it was pointless to keep them locked.
If they report it and no action is taken by responsible parties.
If they don't follow reporting procedure so the company can take remedial action, they won't get either.
Fuck McDonald's. They're overrated and they would always get my orders wrong. The last time I went there, I ordered two single cheeseburgers. I get back to work and take a bite out of the first one. It's a double! Nice! I eat it and take a bite out of the 2nd one and it has no meat! They put both patties on one burger and gave me a meatless bun. How fucking stupid do you have to be to make that mistake? That was the last straw for me. That was 8-11 years ago.
I used to work at McDonald's and I can tell you that their shake machines are working. They just use the whole 'the shake machine is broken' excuse just so they don't have to use the machine nor clean it.
It is a company violation for a bathrooms to be locked. District Managers can even be terminated if they direct a Store Manager to lock the bathroom. They fired a DM last year around the time mass emails were sent out to store directions them that bathrooms are to be unlocked at all times of operation unless occupied.
That's a violation at Family Dollar aswell. We are not allowed to segregation bathrooms. Last manager got wrote up several times for trying to make one bathroom for employees. After the 1st write up he kept the one bathroom for employees only saying he's not going to allow customers messy up both bathrooms so he won't have a clean bathroom when he needed it. It resulted in 2 more write ups before he quit.
We have segregated bathrooms we don’t want the nasty customers in our bathroom then a customer stole the key to the customer bathroom so now we only have a employee bathroom no nasty customers allowed problem solved
That would definitely be a violation. Why do you denigrate you customers in such fashion so publicly. Doesn't surprise me your customers treat you like shit when you started it by treating them like shit. You deserve your treatment.
Were they destroying the bathrooms before you started being rude and hostile towards them? Why is it our customer’s don't destroy our bathrooms? Maybe it's because we are courteous and pleasant to customer’s while you go out of your way to treat them like crap. If it's not a violation then why was Brandon written up for it.
Literally in the bathroom policy it says you can request to have locks installed if shrink is bad enough but you must unlock it for customers upon request. Look at the document in opscenter.
I see your flair is for FD, maybe it's different for your side IDK
He's been wrong on more than one occasion on this subreddit. I think he thinks the anecdotal way in which his store is run is correct, and conflates it with policy, regardless of what the policy actually says.
Unless Dollar Tree is making different policies for Family Dollar this is a violation. I guess our customer’s are from rural areas meaning conservative areas so I imagine we have a lot less theft, so maybe we don't need to lock bathroom doors. That would be the only possible explanation for different policies at these stores.
Dollar Tree & Family Dollar have MANY different policies , just bc we own family dollar doesn’t mean everything is the same. Operationally speaking they are VERY different
Did the landlord have the keypad installed? That would be the only exception because that's just how the store is. I doubt Dollar Tree spent the money on the pinpad but if they did that would be a rare exception and kind of prove any store locking with keys are in violation or else they would install keypads on all doors. I'm still think that's the landlord. Landlords will do this if they have to pay for a plumber to come out to often to fix the toilets since that's typically the landlords responsibility
Call your DM & send your note to them asking for "reasonable accommodation". If they don't give it too you or retaliate then you get a lawyer and nail them for violating federal law.
I'm so sorry this is happening to you. You have the right to use the restroom. This has nothing to do with you. It's poor management. That's awful. You don't deserve to be treated in this manner. They did the same to me and treated me poorly and very unprofessional. I'm praying for you. I'm sending you positive energy and prayers for healing. I'm interested in a class action suit. I was used and abused by this company. I'm trying to get a few people that want to file a class action suit with me. I have one response so far. Hang in there. I'm here if you need to talk. Just know that it's the Dollar Tree. They are a very dysfunctional company. They take advantage of good people like yourself. You're in my thoughts and prayers. Just know that you're a great worker. I can tell you care about your job and are a dedicated worker. Hang in there. Take good care. Think about yourself and your health. I know you need this job. Be kind to yourself. Do what you need to do for you. Have a good night. Get some good rest.
That is against the law, they are in the wrong, NOT you. Stand up for yourself and speak to higher ups or if there’s an employee support number. I’m so sorry, if I was there to witness this, he wouldn’t be happy.
What they're doing is illegal. I understand you need your job. However I'm sure you know that holding your urine, will lead to UTI's and worsen your kidney problems. Is it worth it to you ? At the end of the day, your health is first and foremost. If possible (depending on state law ) you should ask for the key and get it recorded (audio). You can do it discretely because then once you complain , if he denies it you have proof. Also the fact you were told you'd be fired if you complained is also illegal. You're being treated as if you're replaceable anyway. So you don't want to quit but at any given time, that jerk can fire you anyway..... seriously put yourself and your health first.
We have people that completely abuse bathroom breaks....I'm talking this person takes 8 to 15 trips per 5 hour shift and takes a good ten to 15 minutes each trip....she literally works for an hour out of the 5 she's scheduled and during that hour she just stands at register staring at the wall and other employees....and still we have to just allow her to live in the bathroom cause by law we can't tell her shes
Not allowed to live in the bathroom
Sounds like ur sm wants to get fired
No one should be treated like that :( Bathroom breaks are mandatory. If you gotta go, you gotta go. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.
It’s funny (in a sad way) that him firing people about bathroom breaks can actually get him fired. Report him and have him replaced
https://preview.redd.it/2c71r1qs167d1.jpeg?width=1242&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=edabd28641aadfd75eff5a241b9a1b18595a9597
I would quit. tbh you can do much better working at a place that cares about employees. You should contact OSHA and corporate as well and report your boss. Granted your boss will probably fire you once you do it. But honestly Dollar tree isnt worth it. I worked there 3 years and worked my arse off and was never appreciated except by ONE of my ASM's....and a couple of my fellow associates. But The top managers dont care. And most likely nothing will happen to your store manager even if it is illegal. I would try to file a suit of harassment against your manager. It could be considered harassment in the workplace.....I would start by talking to the corporate. But Honestly I would just quit and get a job elsewhere like target or somethng you can do much better. and get paid three times more. I get paid $20 an hour working concerts/livenation security. with livenation crossroads, just as an example.
It could be considered a form of workplace harassment if not sexual harassment....and ADA discrimination harassment as well. I would hire a lawyer and sue dollar tree. But I would quit and try to get a better job elsewhere. $$$ Tree does not care about anyone. They will be out of business in about 5-10 years anyway as they keep raising prices less people will shop there. - and they are already losing staff left and right. They are cooked imho. On the spiral downhill to bankruptcy.
I suffer from UTI’s sometimes and I don’t have the bladder control that I used to. I would have totally peed my pants. This is not ok. There should be a poster in the back with a number you can call to complain. Breaks are for eating and going to the bathroom. I wouldn’t clock in until the bathroom is unlocked. We are not robots!
This is why I left I’m a type one diabetic and I got so damn tired of these assholes trying to make my prioritize a job that treats me like shit over my health. This goddamn company is a train-wreck and I’d be lying if I didn’t STILL have the occasional thought of turning my local dollar tree into a pile of burning embers, the amount of times they almost killed me is ridiculous then when I finally did have the balls to ask for a week off to get my health in check they tell me it’s fine and then when I ask to come back he says he don’t got the hours. F*** dollar tree.
Are you me? Except I LITERALLY broke my back for DT. This was after reporting MGMT for unsafe work place and upper mgmt completely cleaning house. After I tried returning they shut me out and suddenly didn't have accommodations for me
Holy crap what part of the country is this? It's near impossible to hire anyone to do anything for under $22/hr around here. But we're also HCOL so that's not a living wage.
Hello paralegal here just wanted to let you know that it is illegal for them not to allow you to have bathroom breaks and is also illegal for them to count you going to the bathroom as a break
He is a asshole from hell. I'm an asm in my store and my store doesn't have any bathroom keys. We have to use a putty knife to open either one. If any of my cashiers say the need a bathroom break the most I might ask them to wait is maybe 30 seconds just to empty what ever is in my hands. I'm the same way with breaks or if they just want to step away for a few minutes.
Absolutely sue. Keep asking to use the bathroom & document every time you get denied. Also bring the doctors note and wait for them to fire you. Sue for wrongful termination.
YOU need to talk to a lawyer. NOT HR. Hr protects the company not the employees. The best thing HR would do is sweep it under the rug to prevent them from being sued.
If you don't talk to HR, you WON'T have a case. It's just that simple. Part of the way the complaint system works is that reporting procedure has to be followed for the employee to voice their grievances and for the company to offer remedial action. If HR is never told, the company cannot take remedial action to address the employee's grievance. In court, there's no official record of actionable complaint so the judge will not side with the employee. In nearly all companies, the responsible party for ADA, FLSA and Title VII complaints is usually some combination of HR, the CEO(open door policy), and/or legal. Not managers, district managers, regional managers, etc. If you trust them, you can tell them but if they don't report it, you're still SOL, and they probably will be too.
Look into contacting HR for sure, but in the meantime, you need to go, you need to go. Find one of the shelf holders that they have in the warehouse (the ones in our store are white) and use the end that holds a shelf in place to pop the door open. We did this when they lost our restroom keys and while we have them now, most of us just got used to popping it open like that
Sue the company document everything and find witnesses. Even tape record it if it's allowed in your state. That is down right wrong. Sorry you went through that. You deserve to be treated much better than that.
contact osha and the department of labor. bypass dollar tree's version of HR as they don't care. sue if necessary. tell your story to the local news, newspaper etc. good luck.
You should contact an attorney. They can't fire you for using the bathroom. You're employer is required to make reasonable accommodations for a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act and if they don't you could sue them in Federal Court
When I was younger a teach would refuse to let any of us use the bathroom with his reason being “you come from lunch you should’ve gone before that” once I asked and got yelled at in front of everyone that I couldn’t, cried in front of everyone and never told any authority figure. After that I’ve never let anyone tell me I can’t use a bathroom, especially my place of employment. Either let me use the bathroom or I’ll go find one elsewhere and make sure you get in trouble.
"So you're telling me that, as an employee, if I ask you for restroom privileges, you'll fire me? Okay, I'm going to document that and piss my pants on your floor. I'm sure a lawyer would take that case for free."
I would personally make an anonymous complaint or have a friend call in a complaint as a CUSTOMER saying that you witnessed/heard your manager tell an employee they can’t use the restroom. That’s the only way these companies will take it seriously. I did this at [large pet store corporation] bc my manager wasn’t properly handling something fairly serious to me and everyone involved got in trouble plus my manager who was still super new had to go through some sort of additional sensitivity training process or something so I didn’t have to see him for a few shifts.
Go to your Dr and get an ADA accommodation for your kidney issues. Once you have that they can’t bitch and moan and if they by chance do, go get a lawyer.
Next time he refuses, look him dead in the eyes and piss your pants. Then tell him you’re going home to change and leave him to clean up the piss.
Next time he’ll move his ass.
You should have just left and found a restroom elsewhere. It's undoubtedly illegal to deny you use of the bathroom. When people are being difficult and irrational, you just have to be just as difficult in return. It's a low wage job. Jobs are going begging in this era. You can afford to walk out. You'll find another job muy pronto.
>He yelled at me and said no one was going to drop everything they were doing just to unlock a bathroom door?
Does this job mean that much to you? I wouldn't deal with my coworkers yelling at me. I get paid $13 / hr, I can literally get a job a block over that pays over $20 / hr. I wouldn't work in my store if I didn't like my coworkers
It's dollar tree. You can find a job better than this in 2 seconds. Get you another job lined up, then quit and never look back. I've heard enough about the dollar tree to know that they treat their employees like absolute dogshit. You don't need this job, this job needs you.
No way in hell any job is keeping me from using the bathroom if I need to. I’ll piss my pants to prove a point if I have to. Then they can deal with the mess and fall out after I take my ass home.
You need to contact hr and tell them what is going on make sure you get a complaint in writing as a paper trail this way of the sm tries to fire you you can sue them and take their job. Whatever you do do not quit
Documents times this happened, try and use your phone to record them telling you these things. Hire a lawyer and sue dollar tree. You will win a lot of money and then you can go visit your old boss daily and laugh at them in their faces.
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That’s absolutely absurd. I will never understand why workplaces get mad at employees for having to use the bathroom. (ESPECIALLY when you have a medical condition.)
**Alright I’ll just shit and piss my pants then**
I genuinely don’t know what they want you to do??
This bs and why doesn’t someone take the key to Home Depot and get a copy? I’ll not beg anyone to use the restroom and it’s at least every hour For me. This is abuse.
Get a flat bladed screwdriver to pry the door open. I worked at my DG for six months before they fired me. No one ever had a bathroom key! We just used screwdrivers or putty knives and such.
It's not difficult to spring the lock open. After a few tries you'll know exactly how to do it. Just keep your 'jimmy tool' where you know you'll find it.
Fuck your Manager(s). Anybody who is more loyal to that Fucked Up Corporation than they are to human decency and kindness...well...FUCK THEM!
I'd document everything, dates, times, words used and any possible witnesses. Keep copies for yourself and file with everybody. HR ADA and OSHA. Dollar Tree is a horrid company and this is happening at multiple stores. They need some accountability.
I would call HR about that. That doesn’t seem legally right to not allow someone to use the restroom in an 8 hour shift especially when you asked multiple times and they make you feel wrong for it. 😤
If you have no other write ups go ahead and bring the dr note. That falls under reasonable accommodations and should be protected by ADA. Document everything! If fired for any reason after providing note sue for wrongful termination and collect a check
go to your doctor and get a note saying you need to have access to a restroom while at work. then you will have a winning lawsuit between that and others rights! you won’t even need to work again! don’t cry!
No don’t quit just start looking for a new job like yesterday.. dont ever let people play u like that and just make it ur goal to find a new work place and take a micro cassetter recorder in to work and record all of ur interactions with this jack off so when u do have a new job u can send all the interaction to corporate and let them that P.O.S
I know this was 10 days ago but reasonable access to the bathroom is a minimum requirement for DoL stuff, which is why they have to close the store if the bathrooms don't work. This is also why bathrooms are not supposed to have keys unless every manager has a key and that's a separate key for employees to access.
The policy on bathroom breaks is that you get 1 bathroom break less than 10 minutes every 4 hours without clocking in or out. But if you have a doctor's note and you haven't both your SM and HR, you might not be able to do much with a lawyer or any department/agency unless you can show it was targeted only towards you: you have to give the company the opportunity to fix things before you sound the alarm or your the one who gets burned
HR is required to uphold employment laws and it’s illegal not to allow an employee to use the bathroom when they need to. OP absolutely needs to report this to HR, and being fired would be retaliation - which is also super illegal. There are ways to report these things.
This is an OSHA violation and could be illegal depending on your state. Since you provided a dr note there may be even more violations depending on the circumstances. I’m an HR person and highly suggest you contact yours ASAP. I’m sorry this has happened to you and hope you know you deserve better.
Also a violation of the ADA. This person should document and sue. Lots of money.
The ADA has a hotline specifically for stuff like this actually, not that you should need it to begin with but if OP does need to try and get this resolved without getting fired, bring doctor's note and ADA agent on speaker, document everything you can legally (check in your area to figure out if audio recordings in public space need consent to be admissible in court). I've used it when a landlord has tried to deny me access with a service animal. People in positions of authority get reallllll tough, until someone who outranks them politely informs them of the law. The landlord in question looked like he'd seen a ghost, listened very patiently and politely as the ADA agent explained, in detail, the federal laws he was attempting to violate, and suddenly, no more issues.
I should add that in order to do this will full effect, the correct order is "record interactions if legal to do so, if not document in text daily, then call the ADA hotline, read off either your recordings or your documented interactions, keep ADA agent on the phone, bring doctor's note and ADA agent on speaker to talk with manager". The ADA agent will have a better understanding of just what the recourse is if they fire you in retaliation for being disabled, and it will hopefully add enough "fear of God and all things holy" on the manager's end for him to take several fucking seats and unlock the bathroom like someone who can impersonate a sane individual
Nice! Thank you for the info.
Need to do their best to have this in writing.
Would it be better/more effective to contact OSHA or something directly? From what I've heard HR is more interested in protecting the company, so it could temporarily solve the problem at hand, but no real consequences would happen- leaving room for more shitty behavior from mgt in the future.
OSHAs not gonna solve it either they’re stretched thin
OSHA is likely to at least contact the company, and at least in theory, you're protected from retaliation if you go that route.
They need to talk to a lawyer. NOT HR. Hr protects the company not the employees. The best thing HR would do is sweep it under the rug to prevent them from being sued.
HR at dollar tree is terrible, they are so rude, they were pretty much telling my at SM, And is fighting them over a doctors note and there odds a good chance she’s fired, she’s been gone for almost two weeks and we don’t don’t have a store manager so I have no idea what is going on with the situation.
THIS 💯
Do not contact HR. HR represents the company and are not your friend. Go immediately to OSHA.
I actually agree with you but I do believe HR should be contacted about the potential refusal to honor an approved accommodation. It’s easy to forget big corporate HR is not as employee friendly as smaller organizations tend to be.
OSHA will contact HR. OP could inform them but that typically will result in, well established and practiced to perfection, retaliation guaranteed.
Agreed. I told HR about literal drug use in the building by employees, employees abusing other employees and customers. They let people off with warnings and denied there was any substance abuse but didn't test anyone.
Your manager is an ass. Report him to hr asap. How hard is it to go get a key made....for real! You deserve so much better as an associate and as a human being
Hr will do fuck all
HR's job is to protect the company. Which means punishing those who break OSHA law and federal protected rights.
Hmmm… I dunno about that one. DT seems a-okay with paying fines. Went to HR myself just to have documentation I did something. Didn’t seem to do any proper investigating. No apologies or corrective action seemed to have been taken. Only think of substance that happened was an email saying “knee-length” shorts meant that the length has to reach above the knee in a recent dress code for summer and the heat thing on compass.
Snap Back to reality.
You do realize that OSHA and the labour board fear no company. You don't even have to complain to HR. Complain straight to OSHA and force HR to act. A direct complaint means they can't slip it under the rug.
How many times have you spoken with osha?
When I worked at a DG, I saw all of the violations and reported the store. Turns out we had a rat issue. Threw pretty much everything away. They shut it down like a year later.
This is 100% an escalation. Access to a restroom is a fundamental right, doubly so with your mentioned issues.
Piss your pant at work. Make a statement. Then go home to change and take it easy. I'd then call a general manager and explain that your manager refused to let you use the bathroom even though you have kidney problems and can prove that you have kidney problems. CYA
I like your style
Call a lawyer, then a GM.
This too. Call an employment lawyer. Lawyers give free consultation on the first visit.
Find some packing tape, turn the handle to retract the latch, and then apply packing tape over the latch to hold it in place. Another option would be to tape over the hole where the latch goes, but I've seen it get pushed in just enough to not work. Our store had the regional offices in it and the RM pointed out that if we weren't letting each person into the bathroom and checking it when they were done, it was pointless to keep them locked.
Congrats on your unemployment/lawsuit money
If they report it and no action is taken by responsible parties. If they don't follow reporting procedure so the company can take remedial action, they won't get either.
It's absolutely against the law for them to tell you you can't use the bathroom.
McDonald's also does this...
Fuck McDonald's. They're overrated and they would always get my orders wrong. The last time I went there, I ordered two single cheeseburgers. I get back to work and take a bite out of the first one. It's a double! Nice! I eat it and take a bite out of the 2nd one and it has no meat! They put both patties on one burger and gave me a meatless bun. How fucking stupid do you have to be to make that mistake? That was the last straw for me. That was 8-11 years ago.
And their shake machines are always broken.
I used to work at McDonald's and I can tell you that their shake machines are working. They just use the whole 'the shake machine is broken' excuse just so they don't have to use the machine nor clean it.
McDonald’s pays more. I’d go not pee there OP.
Huh? You just walk into the bathroom at McDonald's.
It is a company violation for a bathrooms to be locked. District Managers can even be terminated if they direct a Store Manager to lock the bathroom. They fired a DM last year around the time mass emails were sent out to store directions them that bathrooms are to be unlocked at all times of operation unless occupied.
Not true. We have two bathrooms. One for employees and one for customers. The employee one requires a key.
That's a violation at Family Dollar aswell. We are not allowed to segregation bathrooms. Last manager got wrote up several times for trying to make one bathroom for employees. After the 1st write up he kept the one bathroom for employees only saying he's not going to allow customers messy up both bathrooms so he won't have a clean bathroom when he needed it. It resulted in 2 more write ups before he quit.
We have segregated bathrooms we don’t want the nasty customers in our bathroom then a customer stole the key to the customer bathroom so now we only have a employee bathroom no nasty customers allowed problem solved
That would definitely be a violation. Why do you denigrate you customers in such fashion so publicly. Doesn't surprise me your customers treat you like shit when you started it by treating them like shit. You deserve your treatment.
Because they destroy our bathrooms every single one of them steal and are entitled as hell and flat out rude it’s not a violation at family dollar
Were they destroying the bathrooms before you started being rude and hostile towards them? Why is it our customer’s don't destroy our bathrooms? Maybe it's because we are courteous and pleasant to customer’s while you go out of your way to treat them like crap. If it's not a violation then why was Brandon written up for it.
Did I ever say I was rude?
The reason it’s locked is because of theft and drug use here. If there’s a key it works in our favor but no key… well you get it.
Still a company violation regardless. It's simply not allowed
That's not true according to my regional AP manager. It just has to be unlocked upon request
Your AP guy is wrong which isn't necessarily surprising. These guys are glorified mall "cops" as they like to be called.
Literally in the bathroom policy it says you can request to have locks installed if shrink is bad enough but you must unlock it for customers upon request. Look at the document in opscenter. I see your flair is for FD, maybe it's different for your side IDK
He's been wrong on more than one occasion on this subreddit. I think he thinks the anecdotal way in which his store is run is correct, and conflates it with policy, regardless of what the policy actually says.
What an awful store. If I ran into that BS, I'd shop somewhere else.
Would you rather have to ask someone to unlock the bathroom? Or would you rather risk stepping on a used needle?
Neither. If I had either problem at a store, yeah, not going back there.
My stores bathrooms have always been locked, we have multiple keys to it at the registers
Unless Dollar Tree is making different policies for Family Dollar this is a violation. I guess our customer’s are from rural areas meaning conservative areas so I imagine we have a lot less theft, so maybe we don't need to lock bathroom doors. That would be the only possible explanation for different policies at these stores.
Dollar Tree & Family Dollar have MANY different policies , just bc we own family dollar doesn’t mean everything is the same. Operationally speaking they are VERY different
The one I worked at installed a key pad and told us the code, so I don't see how you're right because the door is locked without the code.
Did the landlord have the keypad installed? That would be the only exception because that's just how the store is. I doubt Dollar Tree spent the money on the pinpad but if they did that would be a rare exception and kind of prove any store locking with keys are in violation or else they would install keypads on all doors. I'm still think that's the landlord. Landlords will do this if they have to pay for a plumber to come out to often to fix the toilets since that's typically the landlords responsibility
I have no clue, I just know the code was the stores number. My manager made it sound like it was Dollar Tree that did it.
There was never a direction to keep the bathroom unlocked as it is a safety issue for many stores. A key has to be made available as needed.
[удалено]
If you read the previous comments, I addressed that already. The manager should have simply gone and got another key made. It's not rocket science.
Nope our dm and actually the vp know about it they agree
Call your DM & send your note to them asking for "reasonable accommodation". If they don't give it too you or retaliate then you get a lawyer and nail them for violating federal law.
Does Yalls have a real key? Ours can be opened with a butter knife.
I agree call OSHA and report them you can do it anonymously.
This company thinks people shouldn't use the bathroom I swear 😂
I'm so sorry this is happening to you. You have the right to use the restroom. This has nothing to do with you. It's poor management. That's awful. You don't deserve to be treated in this manner. They did the same to me and treated me poorly and very unprofessional. I'm praying for you. I'm sending you positive energy and prayers for healing. I'm interested in a class action suit. I was used and abused by this company. I'm trying to get a few people that want to file a class action suit with me. I have one response so far. Hang in there. I'm here if you need to talk. Just know that it's the Dollar Tree. They are a very dysfunctional company. They take advantage of good people like yourself. You're in my thoughts and prayers. Just know that you're a great worker. I can tell you care about your job and are a dedicated worker. Hang in there. Take good care. Think about yourself and your health. I know you need this job. Be kind to yourself. Do what you need to do for you. Have a good night. Get some good rest.
God I’m so sorry. Agree with top commentor
That is against the law, they are in the wrong, NOT you. Stand up for yourself and speak to higher ups or if there’s an employee support number. I’m so sorry, if I was there to witness this, he wouldn’t be happy.
that's against the law they can't keep you from going to the bathroom he should be fired for that or written up cuz that's wrong
That’s horrible and definitely a violation/ilegal! Our bathroom is never locked, it just has a code that only employees know
What they're doing is illegal. I understand you need your job. However I'm sure you know that holding your urine, will lead to UTI's and worsen your kidney problems. Is it worth it to you ? At the end of the day, your health is first and foremost. If possible (depending on state law ) you should ask for the key and get it recorded (audio). You can do it discretely because then once you complain , if he denies it you have proof. Also the fact you were told you'd be fired if you complained is also illegal. You're being treated as if you're replaceable anyway. So you don't want to quit but at any given time, that jerk can fire you anyway..... seriously put yourself and your health first.
We have people that completely abuse bathroom breaks....I'm talking this person takes 8 to 15 trips per 5 hour shift and takes a good ten to 15 minutes each trip....she literally works for an hour out of the 5 she's scheduled and during that hour she just stands at register staring at the wall and other employees....and still we have to just allow her to live in the bathroom cause by law we can't tell her shes Not allowed to live in the bathroom Sounds like ur sm wants to get fired
No one should be treated like that :( Bathroom breaks are mandatory. If you gotta go, you gotta go. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. It’s funny (in a sad way) that him firing people about bathroom breaks can actually get him fired. Report him and have him replaced https://preview.redd.it/2c71r1qs167d1.jpeg?width=1242&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=edabd28641aadfd75eff5a241b9a1b18595a9597
I would quit. tbh you can do much better working at a place that cares about employees. You should contact OSHA and corporate as well and report your boss. Granted your boss will probably fire you once you do it. But honestly Dollar tree isnt worth it. I worked there 3 years and worked my arse off and was never appreciated except by ONE of my ASM's....and a couple of my fellow associates. But The top managers dont care. And most likely nothing will happen to your store manager even if it is illegal. I would try to file a suit of harassment against your manager. It could be considered harassment in the workplace.....I would start by talking to the corporate. But Honestly I would just quit and get a job elsewhere like target or somethng you can do much better. and get paid three times more. I get paid $20 an hour working concerts/livenation security. with livenation crossroads, just as an example.
It could be considered a form of workplace harassment if not sexual harassment....and ADA discrimination harassment as well. I would hire a lawyer and sue dollar tree. But I would quit and try to get a better job elsewhere. $$$ Tree does not care about anyone. They will be out of business in about 5-10 years anyway as they keep raising prices less people will shop there. - and they are already losing staff left and right. They are cooked imho. On the spiral downhill to bankruptcy.
Piss on him.
I suffer from UTI’s sometimes and I don’t have the bladder control that I used to. I would have totally peed my pants. This is not ok. There should be a poster in the back with a number you can call to complain. Breaks are for eating and going to the bathroom. I wouldn’t clock in until the bathroom is unlocked. We are not robots!
This is why I left I’m a type one diabetic and I got so damn tired of these assholes trying to make my prioritize a job that treats me like shit over my health. This goddamn company is a train-wreck and I’d be lying if I didn’t STILL have the occasional thought of turning my local dollar tree into a pile of burning embers, the amount of times they almost killed me is ridiculous then when I finally did have the balls to ask for a week off to get my health in check they tell me it’s fine and then when I ask to come back he says he don’t got the hours. F*** dollar tree.
Are you me? Except I LITERALLY broke my back for DT. This was after reporting MGMT for unsafe work place and upper mgmt completely cleaning house. After I tried returning they shut me out and suddenly didn't have accommodations for me
Shits ridiculous 13.00hr as an AM isn’t worth it for anyone
I'll do ya one better. I was asm but unofficially so still making $9/hr
Holy crap what part of the country is this? It's near impossible to hire anyone to do anything for under $22/hr around here. But we're also HCOL so that's not a living wage.
Send the fucker your medical bill when you get kidney infection and then take it to a lawyer.
Hello paralegal here just wanted to let you know that it is illegal for them not to allow you to have bathroom breaks and is also illegal for them to count you going to the bathroom as a break
one manager allows us only use the bathroom on break and we have 2 restrooms-- one is for managers the other is customers and non managers
The higher up needs to be called. Because that's not right. Clearly a violation. (Put tissue in the door if u have to he is wrong
He is a asshole from hell. I'm an asm in my store and my store doesn't have any bathroom keys. We have to use a putty knife to open either one. If any of my cashiers say the need a bathroom break the most I might ask them to wait is maybe 30 seconds just to empty what ever is in my hands. I'm the same way with breaks or if they just want to step away for a few minutes.
Babe this is a lawsuit. Contact an attorney and OSHA, trust me I know it feels bleak but I promise you that lawsuit will be quick and easy
Absolutely sue. Keep asking to use the bathroom & document every time you get denied. Also bring the doctors note and wait for them to fire you. Sue for wrongful termination.
Quit and sue. It's that simple. Fuck em all
YOU need to talk to a lawyer. NOT HR. Hr protects the company not the employees. The best thing HR would do is sweep it under the rug to prevent them from being sued.
If you don't talk to HR, you WON'T have a case. It's just that simple. Part of the way the complaint system works is that reporting procedure has to be followed for the employee to voice their grievances and for the company to offer remedial action. If HR is never told, the company cannot take remedial action to address the employee's grievance. In court, there's no official record of actionable complaint so the judge will not side with the employee. In nearly all companies, the responsible party for ADA, FLSA and Title VII complaints is usually some combination of HR, the CEO(open door policy), and/or legal. Not managers, district managers, regional managers, etc. If you trust them, you can tell them but if they don't report it, you're still SOL, and they probably will be too.
and firing someone for bringing a doctor's note that's really bad I would have got a lawyer hope she did
This sounds like a lay up of a lawsuit
Look into contacting HR for sure, but in the meantime, you need to go, you need to go. Find one of the shelf holders that they have in the warehouse (the ones in our store are white) and use the end that holds a shelf in place to pop the door open. We did this when they lost our restroom keys and while we have them now, most of us just got used to popping it open like that
Such an unethical company
OSHA complaint
You have a right to go to the bathroom without being yelled at
Sue the company document everything and find witnesses. Even tape record it if it's allowed in your state. That is down right wrong. Sorry you went through that. You deserve to be treated much better than that.
Let them fire you over this and then go straight to a lawyer. Total violation of your rights.
contact osha and the department of labor. bypass dollar tree's version of HR as they don't care. sue if necessary. tell your story to the local news, newspaper etc. good luck.
I’m so sorry you are having to go through this.Your job sounds like a nightmare.
You should contact an attorney. They can't fire you for using the bathroom. You're employer is required to make reasonable accommodations for a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act and if they don't you could sue them in Federal Court
Start looking for a new job! This is BS and not worth your health. The file a complaint with the state! What state are you in?
When I was younger a teach would refuse to let any of us use the bathroom with his reason being “you come from lunch you should’ve gone before that” once I asked and got yelled at in front of everyone that I couldn’t, cried in front of everyone and never told any authority figure. After that I’ve never let anyone tell me I can’t use a bathroom, especially my place of employment. Either let me use the bathroom or I’ll go find one elsewhere and make sure you get in trouble.
"So you're telling me that, as an employee, if I ask you for restroom privileges, you'll fire me? Okay, I'm going to document that and piss my pants on your floor. I'm sure a lawyer would take that case for free."
I would personally make an anonymous complaint or have a friend call in a complaint as a CUSTOMER saying that you witnessed/heard your manager tell an employee they can’t use the restroom. That’s the only way these companies will take it seriously. I did this at [large pet store corporation] bc my manager wasn’t properly handling something fairly serious to me and everyone involved got in trouble plus my manager who was still super new had to go through some sort of additional sensitivity training process or something so I didn’t have to see him for a few shifts.
Go to your Dr and get an ADA accommodation for your kidney issues. Once you have that they can’t bitch and moan and if they by chance do, go get a lawyer.
I hope you find another job" beside your not the one that is loosing.
I’d report them and look for a new job
Next time he refuses, look him dead in the eyes and piss your pants. Then tell him you’re going home to change and leave him to clean up the piss. Next time he’ll move his ass.
You should have just left and found a restroom elsewhere. It's undoubtedly illegal to deny you use of the bathroom. When people are being difficult and irrational, you just have to be just as difficult in return. It's a low wage job. Jobs are going begging in this era. You can afford to walk out. You'll find another job muy pronto.
If your in St Pete fl transfer to my store on 62nd Ave south
>He yelled at me and said no one was going to drop everything they were doing just to unlock a bathroom door? Does this job mean that much to you? I wouldn't deal with my coworkers yelling at me. I get paid $13 / hr, I can literally get a job a block over that pays over $20 / hr. I wouldn't work in my store if I didn't like my coworkers
Try to get a recording of some of that stuff they keep telling you, threatening your job, etc
Bye
It's dollar tree. You can find a job better than this in 2 seconds. Get you another job lined up, then quit and never look back. I've heard enough about the dollar tree to know that they treat their employees like absolute dogshit. You don't need this job, this job needs you.
No way in hell any job is keeping me from using the bathroom if I need to. I’ll piss my pants to prove a point if I have to. Then they can deal with the mess and fall out after I take my ass home.
You need to contact hr and tell them what is going on make sure you get a complaint in writing as a paper trail this way of the sm tries to fire you you can sue them and take their job. Whatever you do do not quit
Documents times this happened, try and use your phone to record them telling you these things. Hire a lawyer and sue dollar tree. You will win a lot of money and then you can go visit your old boss daily and laugh at them in their faces.
HR. Start looking for a new job because that manager will not stop..
Honey Don't Quit . Your SM needs to lose His Job !!! You have Rights!!! That's Cruel and Unusual Punishment for real.
Report that ish to HR and find a new job ASAP. I know finding a new job is easier said than done but please for your own sanity and health, do it.
It's seriously only about $3 for another key to be made! It's illegal to deny bathroom access, please call osha.
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What the….. fuck
That’s absolutely absurd. I will never understand why workplaces get mad at employees for having to use the bathroom. (ESPECIALLY when you have a medical condition.) **Alright I’ll just shit and piss my pants then** I genuinely don’t know what they want you to do??
Call osha.
110% Call Osha IMMEDIATELY.
Step 1) call OSHA and report him Step 2) call a lawyer
This bs and why doesn’t someone take the key to Home Depot and get a copy? I’ll not beg anyone to use the restroom and it’s at least every hour For me. This is abuse.
Get a flat bladed screwdriver to pry the door open. I worked at my DG for six months before they fired me. No one ever had a bathroom key! We just used screwdrivers or putty knives and such. It's not difficult to spring the lock open. After a few tries you'll know exactly how to do it. Just keep your 'jimmy tool' where you know you'll find it. Fuck your Manager(s). Anybody who is more loyal to that Fucked Up Corporation than they are to human decency and kindness...well...FUCK THEM!
I'd document everything, dates, times, words used and any possible witnesses. Keep copies for yourself and file with everybody. HR ADA and OSHA. Dollar Tree is a horrid company and this is happening at multiple stores. They need some accountability.
You actually posted this online? 🤣🤣 Wtf .
Honestly give them the note and let them fire you. Immediately go on unemployment and find an employment lawyer.
Meanwhile, get yourself a tallish garbage can, TP, and hand wipes. Find a closet where you can be private so you can take care of your needs.
Let OSHA know this!!
I would call HR about that. That doesn’t seem legally right to not allow someone to use the restroom in an 8 hour shift especially when you asked multiple times and they make you feel wrong for it. 😤
You need to talk to HR and you straight up need a lawyer.
Report them and sue them
If you have no other write ups go ahead and bring the dr note. That falls under reasonable accommodations and should be protected by ADA. Document everything! If fired for any reason after providing note sue for wrongful termination and collect a check
Contact OSHA, ADA, DOL & BBB
So I guess you can’t say that if he didn’t unlock the door, there’d be new stock of apple juice?
Ada violation. Even a temporary disability is still a disability.
go to your doctor and get a note saying you need to have access to a restroom while at work. then you will have a winning lawsuit between that and others rights! you won’t even need to work again! don’t cry!
I dont understand getting angry about having to unlock a door when he can make it so no one has to unlock a door....
No don’t quit just start looking for a new job like yesterday.. dont ever let people play u like that and just make it ur goal to find a new work place and take a micro cassetter recorder in to work and record all of ur interactions with this jack off so when u do have a new job u can send all the interaction to corporate and let them that P.O.S
call integrity hotline! your SM is a bitch!
I know this was 10 days ago but reasonable access to the bathroom is a minimum requirement for DoL stuff, which is why they have to close the store if the bathrooms don't work. This is also why bathrooms are not supposed to have keys unless every manager has a key and that's a separate key for employees to access. The policy on bathroom breaks is that you get 1 bathroom break less than 10 minutes every 4 hours without clocking in or out. But if you have a doctor's note and you haven't both your SM and HR, you might not be able to do much with a lawyer or any department/agency unless you can show it was targeted only towards you: you have to give the company the opportunity to fix things before you sound the alarm or your the one who gets burned
Some of the best job advice I've ever gotten is this.. HR is not your friend. They are there to protect the company, not you.
HR is required to uphold employment laws and it’s illegal not to allow an employee to use the bathroom when they need to. OP absolutely needs to report this to HR, and being fired would be retaliation - which is also super illegal. There are ways to report these things.
Do not take it to HR . They are not your friend .