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Black Friday is upon us and already there is some horrifying news. A Walmart employee was killed around 5am this morning at a Long Island store as throngs of shoppers broke through the doors and trampled him to death. A 28 year old woman also caught in the stampede miscarried her baby. Horrible. Almost unbelievable. But not quite, sadly. Leaves some of us to wonder how many more incidents like this will occur before stores start facing the realities of insane opening situations?
What should be a festive, fun event has turned deadly. Call it eagerness. Call it desperation. Call it inhumane. Call it whatever you like, but face the facts. Big chain stores that offer huge discounts on Black Friday need security. And probably more of it than they might like. Crowd control is essential. The feverish, every man for himself, stop for nothing not even a fallen pregnant woman atmosphere has come to fruition because of the endless advertising of “deep” discounts, under stocking of items and opening hours that are a disservice to shoppers and employees alike.
We are in hard times, certainly. People are getting desperate. They will do anything to save money. Someone I heard about last night was going to camp out at Circuit City on Thanksgiving night so they could be near the front of the line when the doors opened at 5am or whatever ungodly hour they opened. Sound crazy? Yep, but to some people it’s fun. Or even necessary, they think. The economy has tanked, people are worried about losing their jobs and their kids still need the newest dancing Elmo. Never mind the idea of buying less or rethinking the way holidays are celebrated. Easy for someone like me with no kids to say, I know.
People are going to shop like crazy on Black Friday no matter what state the economy is in. For many families early morning shopping the day after Thanksgiving is a tradition. A family ritual. I never really understood this until I worked in retail for 8 years. While I always hoped to spend the day after Thanksgiving relaxing, spending time with family and friends and eating way too many leftovers, l came to learn that other people loved the crowded, hectic, whirling, swirling, breathtaking reality that is Black Friday shopping. By 9am there were customers who were almost done with their Christmas shopping. They’d been up for hours, maybe stayed up all night, but they were satisfied.
Perhaps stores could start being a tad more responsible. Maybe put an end to these 4am and 5am openings? Or worse, Thanksgiving night openings? Maybe stop basing sales goals on last year’s numbers which are now irrelevant so employees aren’t forced to work themselves to death for measly bonuses or even an hourly wage? Maybe have more security and crowd control throughout the store so people don’t get trampled to death? Maybe?
Good luck shoppers and employees. I wish you significant savings and sizable bonuses. Be kind to one another. Please try to remember that holiday spirit. I think it’s still out there somewhere.
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