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Home » Macy’s To Furlough Most Of Its 130,000 Workers

Macy’s To Furlough Most Of Its 130,000 Workers

by CLAYCORD.com
28 comments

Macy’s is furloughing a majority of its 130,000 employees until further notice.

The following statement is from Macy’s:

“The COVID-19 outbreak continues to take a heavy toll on Macy’s, Inc. business. Our top priority is the health and safety of our customers, colleagues and communities during this unprecedented crisis. All of our stores have been closed since March 18th and will remain closed until we have clear line of sight on when it is safe to reopen.

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While the digital business remains open, we have lost the majority of our sales due to the store closures. We’ve already taken measures to maintain financial flexibility, including suspending the dividend, drawing down our line of credit, freezing both hiring and spending, stopping capital spend, reducing receipts, cancelling some orders and extending payment terms, and we are evaluating all other financing options.

While these actions have helped, it is not enough.

Across Macy’s, Bloomingdales, and Bluemercury brands, we will be moving to the absolute minimum workforce needed to maintain basic operations. This means the majority of our colleagues will go on furlough beginning this week. There will be fewer furloughs in our digital business, supporting distribution centers and call centers so we can continue to serve our customers online. At least through May, furloughed colleagues who are enrolled in health benefits will continue to receive coverage with the company covering 100% of the premium. We expect to bring colleagues back on a staggered basis as business resumes.”

28 comments


S March 30, 2020 - 5:43 PM - 5:43 PM

Sorry to hear this Hanne

Hanne Jeppesen March 30, 2020 - 6:25 PM - 6:25 PM

Thank you S. I might get a little bored, right now I’m catching up on things. I have other income and my expenses are fairly low. Low car payment, no credit card bills etc. I will be fine, and I can probably get unemployment.

ZZ March 30, 2020 - 5:48 PM - 5:48 PM

Wonder who will comment on this one…

Gittyup March 30, 2020 - 8:50 PM - 8:50 PM

Lol

Turn n Burn March 31, 2020 - 6:36 AM - 6:36 AM

Ha ha ha!!! I was thinking the same thing!!! Almost every post they’re on says I work at Macy’s!!!

mike favar March 30, 2020 - 7:38 PM - 7:38 PM

This might be the beginning of the end for Macy’s. I think they have been having trouble with online competition. Also I think they will pull out of at least 2 bay area malls (Hilltop Mall and Newpark Mall ), the latter mall having lost 2 of its anchor tenants in the last year.

Aunt Barbara March 30, 2020 - 9:53 PM - 9:53 PM

for positively sure. The low class help they hired brought them down to a new level of lower than low.
the phone systems sucks and the service is nil…adios

Aunt Barbara March 30, 2020 - 9:56 PM - 9:56 PM

for positively sure. The low class help they hired brought them down to a new level of lower than low.
the phone systems sucks and the service is nil…adios TO WHAT ONCE WAS A GOOD STORE…. No More! very sad

Lambie March 30, 2020 - 7:58 PM - 7:58 PM

You can still shop online 🙂

Hanne Jeppesen March 31, 2020 - 12:38 AM - 12:38 AM

Aunt Barbara I don’t think you know what you are talking about. I agree some of the younger sales associate doesn’t understand excellent customer service. Having said that I worked with several younger women and men at SunValley Mall, that was very accommodating to the customer, and any of the older sales associate that I worked with all gave excellent customer service. Helped the customer find items, ordered items for them, put things on hold etc. etc. When were you last in a Macy’s?
What’s more if you don’t feel you were treated right all you have to do is to complain to a manager, and the associate will be talked to and corrected. As a senior associate and someone that has had my own business, I saw it as part of my duty to try to tell new associates what good customer service is. I doubt Macy’s will be going away, just like I doubt Kohl’s and Nordstrom’s will disappear. Penny and Sears I’m not so sure about. I have only been at this store since November, before that I worked at the Palo Alto store at the Stanford Mall, the customer’s there was more demanding, not necessarily difficult, just more demanding. All in all 90 percent of the customer’s I dealt with was very nice and reasonable people and very appreciative of the service I provided for them. I love my customer’s and miss them.

Hanne Jeppesen March 30, 2020 - 8:11 PM - 8:11 PM

I think Macy’s will survive. I would hate to see it disappear. Not necessarily because I work there, I can work some other place (I have a Life and Health insurance license and use to make a nice living selling Long Term Care Ins and annuities) or retire. However, I have been shopping at Macy’s since I came to this country more than 50 years ago. When I lived in New York I use to shop at the big flagship store on 34th street. And who does not love Macy’s Thanksgiving parade?
Macy’s still has great deals if you have the card, or shop when they have sales.

S March 31, 2020 - 6:43 AM - 6:43 AM

I hope they survive for nostalgia. But, all good things come to an end: Newberry’s / Gone
Woolworth’s / Gone
Montgomery Ward’s / Gone
Sear’s / Going….
sadly there is a long list…..

Captain Bebops March 31, 2020 - 9:33 AM - 9:33 AM

Jim Cramer, a TV financial analyst (known for wild claims) announced last week that after all is said and done week could wind up with only three retailers in the US: Amazon, Walmart and Costco. Welcome to the New Whirled Hoarder.

Hanne Jeppesen March 30, 2020 - 10:27 PM - 10:27 PM

It just dawned on me, I work in evening gowns and better sportwear. Starting in February, we started to sell a lot of gowns for the prom, I helped several young ladies and their Mom and or Dad select the right gown, being it commenting on what would look good, finding just the right gown, or ordering one if we didn’t have the right size and color. Now it looks like there will be no prom, I feel bad. Obviously to these young teen agers this was a big thing, and at that age you don’t realize that there will be other occasions to wear a pretty gown. I’m sure when Macy’s opens up again we will have a lot of returns, not only prom gowns, but purchases made for cruises and other events in the next few month. Sad

Silva March 31, 2020 - 8:01 AM - 8:01 AM

Very sad indeed, Hanne Jeppesen. I really wish I’d come in and said hello before this happened. Macy’s was always a fun store to shop in. I enjoyed the downtown SF store when I lived just on the other side of the bridge. We still use our crystal vases and glass bowls I bought there in the mid 90s we put flowers in all the time. I have a thing for glass, I’d go there for gifts and get a gift for me too. My mom and my aunt bought our crystal stemware in the Concord store for our wedding present. It was on sale, and it was a steal! My DH decided he needed cologne last year and wanted to get it there, and I had to smell loads of them to see which one I could stand. The salesperson made it a fun experience. She was a consummate pro. I’m really sorry this happened before you’d decided you were ready to leave. I’m very happy to hear you’ll be okay. I always enjoy your posts!

Sign from Above March 31, 2020 - 10:52 AM - 10:52 AM

Proms are the least of the problem. Graduating seniors will probably never get the chance to walk across the stage and receive the diploma they’ve been working toward for 12 years! Very sad.

Shoulda Coulda March 31, 2020 - 11:40 AM - 11:40 AM

Silva, you’ve got a good heart!
We may be quarantined at home or
practicing social distancing but you make
me feel that we’re all a little closer together.

Silva March 31, 2020 - 2:57 PM - 2:57 PM

JJ March 31, 2020 - 5:13 AM - 5:13 AM

Wow, @Aunt Barbara what a comment to make when you know a Macy’s employee writes here at Claycord.

I apologize to you Ms. Jeppesen. She knows not what she writes.

I noticed in retail, when people complained about poor customer service, they usually were ‘poor’ customers. 🙂

Chicken Little March 31, 2020 - 8:17 AM - 8:17 AM

She knows exactly what she writes. Why do you think she wrote it? Pay no attention to trolls.

1791 March 31, 2020 - 8:29 AM - 8:29 AM

JJ,

Despite that last line being very judgemental with a dollop of profiling, I can see your point.

Hanne Jeppesen March 31, 2020 - 10:43 AM - 10:43 AM

Silva and JJ, Thank you. Frankly as far as I can tell Aunt Barbara is not able to write a positive comment.
Silva I will let you know when I’m back there.

As for customer’s easily 90% of our customer are very nice, some of the them are super nice, they appreciate what the sales associate does for them. I also try to save my customer’s money even I it means splitting up the purchase, so they can use different coupons. The remaining 10% fall into these categories, difficult, very difficult, and impossible to please no matter what. With so many nice customer I don’t let the other customer’s ruin my day. Can say the same for this post.

Hanne Jeppesen March 31, 2020 - 11:48 AM - 11:48 AM

Silva, I love the Union Square store, they always have more than the other stores, especially of high end designers. Until my hairdresser retired about 13 years ago or so, I would go into the City for my haircut,
and always go to Macy’s there. Last time I was there was 5 years ago when I was shopping for a dress for my daughter’s wedding, even though I was working in the Palo Alto store. I hardly go into the City anymore, parking and traffic has made it an unpleasant experience.

Cowellian March 31, 2020 - 6:48 AM - 6:48 AM

I suspect that many businesses, large and small, will not survive the pandemic. And the $1200 won’t go very far if people don’t have jobs to go back to.

1791 March 31, 2020 - 8:44 AM - 8:44 AM

Corwell,

Aren’t you forgetting Nancy’s promise to up the ante on bailout bills at least three more times? And what about President Trump’s need to get in the word?

“Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!”. The floodgates of financial hell have not only been opened but look more like the failed Oroville Dam spillway than an intelligent plan.

JJ March 31, 2020 - 7:44 AM - 7:44 AM

Years ago I heard the Walnut Creek Macy’s was the highest grossing store in California.

On another note a friend told me about working at a clothing store in Countrywood Shopping Center that had locations in Alamo, Danville and Lafayette and a few others, I think Auburn, too. Anyway, ladies from Alamo, Danville and Lafayette would buy clothing in their respective neighborhoods while shopping with their friends, and return their purchases to the Walnut Creek location, sans friends.

Same friend told me this one woman shopper would come into the store, purchase hundreds of dollars worth of children’s clothing by herself because she said her 12 year old daughter didn’t like shopping with her. And then return the once nicely pressed apparel all rolled up in a bag for full refund.
There was no one in the back of the store who ironed out these now wrinkled goods.

Some people. 🤪
I have always felt bad for retail. A lot of ME, ME, ME shoppers out there.

Hanne Jeppesen March 31, 2020 - 5:39 PM - 5:39 PM

I don’t know for sure, but in terms of merchandise available and higher end designer’s, it’s usually San Francisco Union Square, Palo Alto Stanford Mall and Valley Fair in San Jose. I know that we were always busy in Palo Alto, at SunValley Mall not the same, we had real slow days, especially after Christmas. Palo Alto was usually busy, real busy and crazy busy. Remember we had google and face book close by, and thus every week we had a lot of international customer’s. They tend to not be as concerned about prizes, because the items the buy, clothing, Coach and Michael Kors handbags, are more expensive in other countries. Macy’s even send a special code to Chinese tourist that gave them 20% on most merchandise, meaning those customer’s brings a lot of money to the store.

Natalie March 31, 2020 - 12:42 PM - 12:42 PM

Macy’s didn’t keep skeleton crews to sell essential items like socks, underwear, tshirts, basic pants, pajamas, shoes and other basic clothing needs. People don’t need fashion items, but people still need practical wear. Maybe it was too logistically complicated to do a limited service.

Right now Target has very little competition for in-store sales of clothing items. The clothing departments of Target stores get so many people them, that it’s impossible to do the 6ft distancing.


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