Thread regarding Big Lots Inc. layoffs

Called to cash out my 401k (small amount, I have a larger one, going to use it on a credit card) and they said that Big Lots has me on a leave of absence.

Maybe Big Lots should change the color of their logo to yellow. Cowards tell you over the phone that your terminated, District Manager is a coward who thanks you for over 25 years then terminates you over the phone , HR is also a coward, and if your Stl knew about this he’s the biggest coward for taking a vacation when this all went down

I have a question, why did the CEO add more work to us and cut back on everything why is that ????

I’m still working at BL and I’m stressed out with all this work that they added especially DTS , we have to do more now than before and I’m very curious to see how this is going to be played out

go gorilla style on them get eBay stickers that say shop eBay for half the price and free shipping and put them all over the outside on the trees , the corrals front windows they will have a hard time taking them off especially if they are very high that would be funny

When people start to realize that they can get the same merchandise for half the price and free shipping or low shipping cost on ebay from the comfort of home they will have a wake up call.

After more than twenty years of service I retired from Big Lots several years ago. I guess my timing was good. I was recently in a Big Lots for the first time in 4 years. The store was boring. I don’t envision a customer traveling any distance to shop there. The staples didn’t seem to be better priced than many grocery stores. The majority of the store seemed to be planagrammed. What happened to the “thrill of the hunt”? The majority of merchandise seems to be imported from China. With Trump imposing a 10% tariff on September 1st, they will probably be forced to raise their prices. All in all, they have become another brick and mortar retailer....Sad.

Things started to go down soon after CEO Fishman left. The new CEO, David Campisi, moved the headquarters to be near his home in New Albany Ohio. What a dumb waste of money just to satisfy the egos of the executive staff. The HQ on Phillipi Road could have been expanded as the building had been designed to accommodate an expansion. The money could have been better utilized to improve the condition of many of the stores.

I can’t imagine how they can maintain an acceptable gross margin when they seem to have a 20% sale so often. Not a great way to do business. How much of a bump in sales, if any, are the remodeled stores realizing?

In regards to the realignment of DM’s. How many, if any, were let go? Was the size of their district enlarged? Who was let go? Were they seasoned DM’s or relatively new hires? How about the number of Regions? You would think a least one region would have been eliminated.

I feel sorry for those of you who were let go. There are many other retailers out there who are hiring and are likely a better place to work. I suggest that you join “Linkedin”. Through that application you will be able to connect with many contacts that are hiring.

I’m an STL and I can PROMISE you we did not know anything. I was blind sided. My BEST performing Assistant was cut and they were also my highest paid. My other assistant is a new hire and got a requires improvement on his review this year so performance was absolutely not a factor. My assistant that was let go had an IDP in place as promotable now to STL. My DM is not even familiar with any of us as they are new to this district after the restructuring. So all of your points are invalid. No one can convince me otherwise that it was 100% the associates who were hurting the bottom dollar the most with the highest salary. They might’ve thrown in a couple others to throw us off but we are not as stupid as they would like to think we are.

I filed a complaint to HR on July 2 I've been with Big Lots for seven years, demoted on July 29th and/or offered a severance package. I feel retailated against also turned 40 same month, age discrimination too?? I put my heart and soul into this company and to be treated like this, no thanks.

Based on what I know, I will give my opinion. The firm they hired suggested cutbacks, obviously. They cut back at the corporate level, then they cut back the dms. I think the dms left were then told to choose those they felt were underperforming. I'm not saying anyone was underperforming, just that your dm wanted you gone. This is why they moved people around. They let go the people they felt should be fired and moved the ones they felt were worthy. They changed the title and job responsibilities so that they can legally say that your job is being done away with. It wasn't about your pay, or how well the store is doing. It was about how your dm, and probably your stl ( for the assistants let go) felt you were doing. I'm pretty sure the stls were in the loop. Just based on comments made before it went down, I know my stl knew. He made a comment that seemed like nothing, but after the fact was glaringly obvious. I wish everyone the best of luck. I've been let go before in a situation that was sh–ty. I know how you feel. In the meantime I would suggest all those left at big lots start looking for another job. There is no job security with a company that would do this.

I wish all of you who were let go the best and hope you are able to get new work asap. I lost really good peers and am sickened by what has happened. I was lucky to stay due to our store doing well. however I will not continue with a company that has such disregard for the people who run it.

All you current Biglots employees have a lot of work heading your way , if you think we did a lot before we got caned you’re in for a rude awakening.

Check out UFCW.org
They can help!!
Perhaps some calls to OSHA. I’m sure there’s safety hazards in the back rooms. DTS equipment is for sh–! Someone’s gonna get hurr!

Biglots is a joke and I don’t understand why people don’t Boycott

I know one thing if they did a d–g text in my store they would same money that way. With all these ppl they hire and don’t do it. I even know managers that take pills that there not supposed to and they still have a job. They tell you not to say anything sorry I haven’t sign anything and if someone ask I tell them I got lay off !!! I am not lying. What am I to tell my next employer a lie be cause they done us wrong and want to keep it a secret!!! You can’t get in trouble for telling the truth!!!

To cover a few points from the posts prior …

I was a ATLM who was let go, I did not make as much as the ATLS who was allowed to stay. Our store was successful for the whole 7 years I worked with the team (I was part of the original starting crew there). We are even in the middle of the "Store of the Future" upgrades. Saying it was all about the money the person was making, is 100% false. It felt more like they put all the names in a hat and picked blindly who was gonna be let go from what store they saw where they could potentially save money based off the stores success. The interaction was completely blind-sided, heartless and just blantly disrespectful to everyone who was let go. I was also no where near the cap for what I could make, being in a state with a higher minimum wage.

I will second the notion that our plates of work were overly full, ESPECIALLY the ATLM who had 10x more responsibility than the ATLS.

Being let go was more heartbreaking than anything, our store was a family and being ATLM working with certain members of freight for 5+ years, we got our s–t done and enjoyed working as the team that we were supposed to be … now they all feel betrayed by corporate for taking the one leader who worked their tail off with them. It only hurt the store to the point that it might cause a ripple effect and those good workers will move on elsewhere and only doom the store from the success it was to a failure. It was the only time I have seen our STL get emotional about someone leaving, he always did a great job being as professional as possible but that day he sure dropped the wall and we had the first hug as friends... It hurt … a lot more than just me.

Reap what you sow corporate heads … you guys will be next with bad decisions like this continuing.

Want to save money, every DM needs a 30% pay cut. All CEO people as well. No company cars, apple phones, iPads, iPods, laptops. They all need to go. Every two years they get upgraded. Flying people allover the country .

The reason this hasn't hit the media is because Big lots isn't on any radar, it's a cheesy retailer with no value to the public, or media outlets. Think about it, you know how every one complains about stores open on Thanksgiving, BL is and no one mentions it on "the list" of open retailers, anyone who matters doesn't, pay attention to Big Lots. And those of us who were let go, if we took the severance, we can't say anything.

I've been with Big Lots for over 12 years. I got let go the same way over the phone. I was the ATLM. Then two days later the ATLS got let go as well, right after returning from vacation. What a way to go. We sacrificed so much for our store and put up with so much BS, from stressing over limited resources to trying to get the overwhelming amount of sets done on time, from staying overtime to covering whenever we were out a STL and maintaining the store running at all costs to our well being! The list goes on. And yet here we are now...wondering what just happened. Corporate never cared!...Thats what happened!

If you still work for the company, you lose your job. If you got laid off, you lose your severance package.

Someone will squeal eventually.

I agree with you , what is everyone scared of ????????? I think they want to go back to Big Lote I mean BigLots lol

Why is no one going public. Even the ones let go? What are you scared of? That bully if a CEO is getting just what he wanted

Call me crazy but people are say that the merchandise managers s—ed, but yet the want you to get everything done with little hours and they even cutting back more for DTS how are they supposed to get all that work done ?????

They were a target from the beginning

People think about it

Anyone know how BOPIS is doing??

The are violating our rights and maybe Federal law

Im a lead associate i only work part time but was talking to the other managers yesterday our merch lead was terminated and service lead put in his position i dont know how that happened but the merch lead we had wasnt doing his either im assuming the manager had a say in this because why else would the merchlead get fired and someone whos never worked the truck get put in that position their standards are way to high theres no way to get all the sets moved and ready week to week most times they move the sets 100 times and give no extra payroll for it the store manager can say whatever makes them look good but its simple in my mind they were giving the option of which one to keep and let go thats why he got let go and she moved service lead to over merchandise i think the store managers and district managers sat down or atleast talked about it and made that decision and didnt have the decency to give anyone notice and most of us have known each other for a many years if they knew this was going to happen they should have gave a heads up so the ones affected could have been looking for another job and not been treated like last weeks trash

Whoever is administering THIS website is censoring/deleting comments they don't like. I had a very inciteful comment with a "+8" rating that was taken down by the site administrator(s). Are YOU intimidated by the Big Lots' Gestapo? What ever happened to "Freedom of Expression" and our 1st Amendment rights? The Big Lots board of directors SHOULD convene an urgent meeting to discuss Bruce K. Thorn's costly employment with the company. He is taking us to a very dark place, where anyone who is not a "new hire" faces a VERY HOSTILE work environment! "Bruce The Butcher" apparently never learned that Abraham Lincoln freed the slaves in 1863! :-(

Investors don’t care about associates...very true. But they would care about a shady business practice covering up mass layoffs and more than likely lying to them on how they increased profitability

Corporate NEVER wants to listen to us at store level that interacts with the customers daily and truly know the business. Instead they hire firms, and executives to tell them these crazy far fetched ideas on what ppl want. Well we’ve been screaming it to you for years. Jennifer wants CHEAP prices, a better Rewards card like the one we had to start with, 10th visit 20% off. She loved the closeouts. She loved the HVM to shop at Christmas like laptops and TV’s and MP3 players. Closeout division should have never been closed. That was our niche. Everyone loved it. News flash we Will never compete with Walmart and big name retailers because all we carry at Christmas is throws and dearfoam slippers and generic toys. Jennifer wants hot electronic items, the newest trendy it item of the season. Not last years leftovers. Our Black Friday ad has been identical for the last 5 years. Cover page and all. No excitement, no door busters, no items driving sales or getting Jennifer to line up at the door like in years passed. We’ve all seen it. Watched it go downhill. Told anyone who would listen. Get ignored. And now what a surprise we are going under. Maybe fire your buyers who buy the same junk day in and day out and promote a few STL’s who REALLY know the business. But us bottom feeders that make ur salary know nothing

Investors don't care about associates. They care about their investment $$$ Show me the money!!!

Why is everyone scared to @ or # them on twitter or Facebook. Call them out on it. Tell the news outlets. I’m sure investors would love to hear they are hiding a mass layoff. And there were corporate level and DM level layoffs too. Just done in different waves. That’s where the 4,000 total came from. In some markets they eliminated 2-3 management positions from each store.

Google WARN act. Company’s are required by law to give 60 days notice when doing mass layoffs of over 500 employees. Big lots did not do this. They terminated 393 and offered 152 demotions that if they weren’t accepted they were lates off. That total 545 people. 45 people over the minimum requirement for the WARN act to take effect.

Also if you go on indeed and Glassdoor they have started to post the positions they let go as job openings as of 1 day ago.

Wow , I want to know more about Big Lote lol
Very interesting stuff , I was with Biglots for 8 years as a STL and they let me go just like that, I’m not sure if it’s true but I’ve heard that most employees are upset on how this wet down

What happened to Bruce Thorn claiming he was going to make Big Lots one of the top 100 companies to work for nationwide - that will never happen. As a matter of fact, Big Lots has dropped to 524 from 510 in Fortune 500.

You should speak out... Our problem (big lots associates) never want to say anything. We just deal with it... Now look at us out of a job...

I told myself I wasn't going to comment on here, but yet, here I am. Seeing the comments about current managers still with the company job hunting and people "walking on egg shells" is exactly how my store was today. Everyone in management questioning the future of this company or their future with the company.

My store "made the cut". I had a long conversation with my DM about our sales plan etc.. Then the lay offs came up from yesterday and she said how glad she was my store made the cut and how great we do. I told her, "Well, umm, all the management here claims to be job hunting because they feel like they will be next." Her exact words were, "They are over reacting." My store was more like a circus today. Some PT associates have heard about the lay offs and brought it to my attention expressing their concern the company is failing. If an associate that works 20 hours a week can see things are happening everyone can.

Doesn’t matter highest paid lowest paid... let’s just say most loyal and hard working... if your still with the company do not thank your lucky stars that you weren’t cut... take this as a warning you will be next because big lots doesn’t care about their associates... I know great ppl still with the company scared AF... Everyone is walking on eggshells.. Do you really want to work like that? When you leave it should be on your terms not pushed out with no notice.. We all have families to support and bills to pay... and no it’s not the end of the world but right now it sure feels like it... All I know is everything will work out so stay strong.. I’m definitely looking into what options I can take to make sure that this doesn’t happen again... GOOD LUCK

Those ATLS's, ATLM's, and STL's let go via a cowardly phone call were not all the highest paid among the management team in their stores. I know people in these positions who were actually the lowest paid members of management in their stores, and without write-ups. The handwriting is on the wall for all remaining members of management - GET OUT because they will do the same thing to the remaining ATLS's and ATLM's and put the majority of the work load on the only salaried employee in the store - the STL. The members of management will make this change work just like they do every other change those sitting on their thrones in Columbus dictating from the bench make with no thought for the countless tasks they put on their managers who have to work more and more hours in order to get the extra work constantly added done. When they see their changes working through breaking the backs of the STL's since they are the only associate in the store who can work limitless hours, they will continue with their cuts and putting more and more work on the STL's. Perhaps there should be some pay cuts for those dictating from the bench with no clue. Big Lots corporate no longer knows Jennifer. Jennifer is shopping Amazon online from the comfort of her home or desk, not having to deal with traffic to get to Big Lots, and receiving her merchandise in 1-2 days with FREE shipping! Big Lots corporate is sooooo far behind they cannot catch up with Amazon, Walmart, and Target. So, they have to let members of management in all their stores nationwide go in order to try and make up for sleeping at the wheel. It's too late and they have totally gone away from the niche they once had. Big Lots is not Walmart or Target, never will be, and customers are figuring it out pretty quick. Jennifer will find out how Big Lots has chosen to treat their dedicated hard working members of management, and she will not frequent the stores. Big Lots hasn't been a family oriented company for more than ten years. I use to be Jennifer when the stores carried unique items at a good price. No longer because I can find the same thing, if not better, at a lower price where I don't have to even enter a Big Lots store with a bare bones staff that is over worked due to constant cuts in hours. Jennifer is no longer your targeted shopper because you no longer have a clue or care about anything but making big bucks for the pencil pushers sitting in corporate at the expense of breaking the backs of your loyal members of management. Big Lots corporate has lost their way and no longer has a niche anyone is interested in. Since cutting stores to a bare bones staff in order to save a dollar and choosing to put the extra work load on the STL's back's is the direction you are going, perhaps you should cut the real dead weight company wide. Your DM puppets do nothing - cut those positions. Surely, there are plenty of very high paid pencil pushers in corporate that could also be cut without much loss. You preach about the importance of customer service but obviously have no idea what cutting staff to bare bones does to the ability to give the best customer service. Those being paid the biggest salaries in corporate need to have their decisions evaluated because they are talking out of both sides of their mouths, and driving the company into the ground! Why are the cuts always at the bottom level where without the store employees, whose hours you cut or positions you do away with, there would be no money to pay your big corporate salaries and bonuses? Keep making your cuts at the bottom, and YOU will be facing the same fate all the members of management you chose to let go with no notice this week!!!

Does anyone have a copy of the severance paperwork? With the list of employees "summer layoffs" . Screw big lots!

Anyone wishing to organize a union should contact the UFCW as soon as possible. Obviously if you’re an ex associate you can’t organize but I’m sure the remaining disgruntled associates would certainly love to.