The Worker Thread

[O Really]

Shopping your values means shopping at somewhere that doesn’t endanger child workers repeatedly – boycott GAP, Old Navy & Banana Republic this year!

The petition reads:

Dear Bangladesh garment workers:

I'm pledging NOT to shop at stores that sell the clothing items you make until you've signed onto the Bangladesh Worker Promise Not To Burn Down the Factory. Get your act together!

http://news.msn.com/world/key-banglades ... d-in-blaze

[JTA]

Black Friday

Did any of you partake in black friday madness? One of my favorite past times is watching youtube videos of all those fools beating each other up over plastic junk. Looks like (unsurprisingly) even more stores opened on Thanksgiving this year. I just wanted to take this time to give a shout out to one of my favorite grocery stores:

Ingles:

• Always open on Thanksgiving.
• Doesn't pay their part time employees any extra for working on holidays like many other grocery stores.
• Won't let you tip their employees.
• Doesn't give merit based raises (limited to 25 cents/hour a year max, at least when I worked there).
• Is prejudiced against beards.

http://www.ingles-markets.com/

[O Really]

Last Thanksgiving, I went to Ingle's for something and when I checked out I told the checker "I'm sorry you have to work on Thanksgiving, but thank you for being here." She said, "I don't mind - I'm getting double time and I'll be home by 4."

[JTA]

Last Thanksgiving, I went to Ingle's for something and when I checked out I told the checker "I'm sorry you have to work on Thanksgiving, but thank you for being here." She said, "I don't mind - I'm getting double time and I'll be home by 4."

Nice. When I worked there they never did that. Maybe I just got spoiled, but before I left the motherland the grocery store job I had in high school trumped Ingles big time. For holidays, they let employees volunteer to work, and those who did got paid time and a half.

[JTA]

Is there a local chain grocery store that's more socially responsible? In what way/s?

Well, we usually shop at Publix. People say that they're expensive (usually people who don't shop there it seems), but I have to definitely disagree. Maybe if you're buying processed junk, I don't know, but my grocery bill is significantly less when shopping there plus I always get out in a timely manner, the employees seem to always be in a great mood (maybe the drug them?), and they seem to have more of a selection and better quality stuff.

I've heard they're a decent place to work for if you're part time from friends and co-workers that used to work there. From their website (http://www.publix.com/careers/whypublix/OurBenefits.do):

Core Benefits For All Eligible Associates

Employee stock ownership plan that contributes Publix stock to associates each year at no cost to them
An opportunity to purchase additional shares of our privately-held stock
Annual holiday cash bonus
All hourly associates are paid weekly
Quarterly retail bonus for store associates
401(k) retirement savings plan with a company match
Group health plan (with prescription benefits)
Group dental plan
Group vision plan
Free flu shots
Direct deposit in up to three separate checking or savings accounts
Credit union
Tuition reimbursement
Service awards
Employee assistance program
Tremendous opportunities for advancement
Opportunity to participate annually in a survey to let management know your opinion on a wide range of workplace quality issues

If it were up to me I'd probably take up hunting again or just scoop some food up off of the roadside to avoid grocery stores altogether.

[Ombudsman]

Trader Joes, Whole Foods, Fresh Market, Swamp Rabbit Cafe and the the farmers market are all good options for quality food.

[JTA]

I can get almost all the stuff they carry at the Co-op.

One thing I miss that doesn't seem to prevalent here in SC is being able to buy produce (sometimes even fresh sea food) from someones garden stand on the side of the road. I could literally drive < mile and find a garden stand in someones front yard with all kinds of produce laid out out to buy, drop some change in a bucket and be on my way with some fresh fruit and veggies. I'm sure this will probably be outlawed some day.

[JTA]

Trader Joes, Whole Foods, Fresh Market, Swamp Rabbit Cafe and the the farmers market are all good options for quality food.

Trader Joes is the best deal in my opinion in terms of quality/price. That place is amazingly cheap for some high quality organic stuff.

[JTA]

But, I do get some things at Ingles. Is there a local chain grocery store that's more socially responsible? In what way/s?

To be fair, when Winn-Dixie went out of business, Ingles did hire on as many former Winn-Dixie employees as possible so they wouldn't be without a job. I will give them that.

[O Really]

I shopped Publix for years in Florida, and spent the first couple of years here bitching that there was no Publix and Ingle's was no Publix. Ingle's has gotten better, I've gotten used to it, and now that Publix is coming to S. Asheville, I probably won't change. At least not immediately. If I start going to Publix and start finding things better, maybe so.

[Ombudsman]

Trader Joes, Whole Foods, Fresh Market, Swamp Rabbit Cafe and the the farmers market are all good options for quality food.

Trader Joes is the best deal in my opinion in terms of quality/price. That place is amazingly cheap for some high quality organic stuff.

Trader Joes has great prices on wine too. Some of their five dollar wines are really good. They have a 3 L boxed wine for 12 bucks that's pretty good for table wine.

I agree with you about Publix. It is clean and I rarely wait in line and they have a good selection of healthy food options that Bi-Lo doesn't have. Haven't been to Ingles in 20 year or so. Are they still refusing to sell alcohol?

But JTA, what part of SC do you live in that you can't find a produce stand?

[JTA]

Trader Joes, Whole Foods, Fresh Market, Swamp Rabbit Cafe and the the farmers market are all good options for quality food.

Trader Joes is the best deal in my opinion in terms of quality/price. That place is amazingly cheap for some high quality organic stuff.

Trader Joes has great prices on wine too. Some of their five dollar wines are really good. They have a 3 L boxed wine for 12 bucks that's pretty good for table wine.

I agree with you about Publix. It is clean and I rarely wait in line and they have a good selection of healthy food options that Bi-Lo doesn't have. Haven't been to Ingles in 20 year or so. Are they still refusing to sell alcohol?

But JTA, what part of SC do you live in that you can't find a produce stand?

Upstate SC. I'm able to find produce stands. We have a few in Spartanburg I go to as well as a decent farmers market on weekends. I was just saying it seems like individuals tend to not sell extra surplus produce grown from their gardens like I was used to seeing growing up.

[O Really]

Are they still refusing to sell alcohol?

That would have been way before I was here, but they have some of the best wine/beer shops around now.

[Ombudsman]

Upstate SC. I'm able to find produce stands. We have a few in Spartanburg I go to as well as a decent farmers market on weekends. I was just saying it seems like individuals tend to not sell extra surplus produce grown from their gardens like I was used to seeing growing up.

There's a guy down the street from us who has a huge garden in his front yard. His wife sells the surplus across the street.

[Mr.B]

"Haven't been to Ingles in 20 year or so. Are they still refusing to sell alcohol?"

I can't remember Ingle's not selling alcohol, but I do recall the Outlaw family, prior owners of BI-LO, not selling alcohol; as well as fighting against S.C.'s repealing the state-wide blue law. BI-LO stores still didn't sell alcohol until they were bought out by a Belgian conglomerate, Delhaize Group.

[Ombudsman]

"Haven't been to Ingles in 20 year or so. Are they still refusing to sell alcohol?"

I can't remember Ingle's not selling alcohol, but I do recall the Outlaw family, prior owners of BI-LO, not selling alcohol; as well as fighting against S.C.'s repealing the state-wide blue law. BI-LO stores still didn't sell alcohol until they were bought out by a Belgian conglomerate, Delhaize Group.

Think you're confusing Bi-Lo with Food Lion.

[Mr.B]

"Think you're confusing Bi-Lo with Food Lion."

Opps!... :-0?> ...not confused; I posted the wrong original buyer though.

Delhaize is the owner of Food Lion; Ahold (Dutch) bought BI-LO from the Outlaw family.
Since that time, BI-LO has been up and down and at one time tried to acquire some holdings from Delhaize. My bad.
History
Wikipedia

BI-LO was reportedly put up for sale in August 2010; Kroger and Publix were said to be interested in acquiring the chain,
but nothing ever developed from these rumors.

At any rate, I'm happy to see BI-LO holding it's own in the grocery business.....that's a dog-eat-dog business.

[Crock Hunter]

One thing I miss that doesn't seem to prevalent here in SC is being able to buy produce (sometimes even fresh sea food) from someones garden stand on the side of the road.

We do just that ... a guy near Taylor's Elementary sets up each summer.. Pick out your veggies and drop the money in the box.. . I've seen others in the area.. Even a guy with a fish/seafood truck though I've never bought from him.. (try Joe Joes Fish on Wade Hampton) ..

I second the vote for Whole Foods, Fresh Market and Trader Joes.. much of our eats come from those ...

[Crock Hunter]

They have a 3 L boxed wine for 12 bucks that's pretty good for table wine.

Wouldn't happen to be Black Box (brand) Cabernet... would it? BB make a very nice vin ordinaire..

[JTA]

One thing I miss that doesn't seem to prevalent here in SC is being able to buy produce (sometimes even fresh sea food) from someones garden stand on the side of the road.

We do just that ... a guy near Taylor's Elementary sets up each summer.. Pick out your veggies and drop the money in the box.. . I've seen others in the area.. Even a guy with a fish/seafood truck though I've never bought from him.. (try Joe Joes Fish on Wade Hampton) ..

I second the vote for Whole Foods, Fresh Market and Trader Joes.. much of our eats come from those ...

Nice I'll have to check it out. There was a good seafood place in Spartanburg I'd go to - http://carolinasfreshfishandseafood.net/

That's the only place I know of that I can get live blue crabs from. Do you know if Joe Joe's Fish sells them? I can't find a website. Wait looks like they do! 17 bucks a dozen hell yeah that's the cheapest I've seen around here.