Hy-Vee Receives Backlash for Layoffs in Iowa

Some local Quad Cities and regional Hy-Vee employees are still in a bit of shock.Not long after announcing they will no longer be open 24 hours, Hy-Vee began scaling back, citing staffing changes would happen. For several weeks now, Hy-Vee has been letting employees go and some family members have taken to social media. After a short search online, there were more stories about  what is is happening.

According to posts at TheLayoff.com/hyvee, there have been hour decreases, full-time employees demoted to part-time, and manager positions for entire sections of the store, eliminated.

Reddit.com is also a place where talk about the layoffs and changes are happening. One thread has over 188 comments and includes talk of Hy-Vee's lack of severance pay, among other things.

Below is Hy-Vee's original press release from February 18, 2020 at KELO.com:

"At Hy-Vee, we recently initiated a major company wide effort called Helpful Smile 2020, with the goal of keeping Hy-Vee the best place to work and shop in America. Since the opening of our first store in Beaconsfield, Iowa, we have a proud history of innovating to meet the needs of our customers. Today, the retail grocery industry continues to evolve and be incredibly competitive. Therefore, our local stores are making some changes to become more efficient while continuing to elevate our customers’ experience. 

To follow are some key updates: 

We are strengthening our training and succession planning within the Store Management career path. Starting this week, some of our Store Directors will now be known as District Store Directors and will oversee several stores as well as mentor Store Managers. With this change, some Store Directors will become Store Managers. The Store Manager position will help better prepare those who want to become Store Directors/District Store Directors in the future. The Store Manager will also have oversight of the day-to-day operations at his/her store. This is part of our effort to remain the best place to build a career in retail and ensure all Store Directors have the training they need before being selected for the role.

§ The decision to no longer remain open 24 hours a day and move our business hours to align with consumer shopping trends created an opportunity to reorganize both our overnight and daytime stocking procedures. This will make a difference to our customers as the majority of our stocking will be done during times when customers are not shopping, helping to keep our aisles clear of clutter so customers can have a more pleasant shopping experience in our stores. This move also allowed us to reevaluate how we operate our stores so that we can become more efficient. Because of this, Store Directors will be making staffing changes over the upcoming weeks – which could include promotions, reallocations or reductions – to reflect the needs of their individual store. 

To strengthen our nationally recognized dietitian program, 30 of our in-store dietitians will join the corporate team to support our health and wellness programs across the company. We will still allow our store directors to implement their dietetic programs locally.

We value our employees and customers, and want to be the best place to work and shop. Our industry is continually evolving, which is why it’s imperative that we evolve with it."