Noni B doesn't give us time to pee: staff

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This was published 5 years ago

Noni B doesn't give us time to pee: staff

By Anna Patty

Staff from the Noni B Group have spoken out about not having enough time for toilet breaks and unrealistic work demands including sales targets that some struggle to meet with their own purchases.

One staff member reported her mother bought 10 kaftans to help her meet strict daily sales targets. Another said a store manager had been in tears because of work-related stress and the struggle to find time for toilet breaks.

"If you are on your own and you have 15 customers, you can't ask them to leave so you can go to the toilet," she said.

Generic stock image of a Noni B store.

Generic stock image of a Noni B store.Credit: Cassandra Hannagan

Some staff within the ASX-listed Noni B group of stores, which include Noni B, Rockmans, Millers and W.Lane, said they were often expected to work by themselves, apart from a half-hour change over.

"We were told we could not close the doors, even to go on a toilet break. We always have to ask someone from one of our sister stores to relieve us for that five or ten minutes we need to go to the bathroom. They can't always come in time because they are busy as well," one said.

"I've been stuck, sometimes I'm busy and busting and holding it for two or three hours. I've heard of one lady who had to use a mop bucket."

Noni B staff have spoken out about pressure to meet sales targets.

Noni B staff have spoken out about pressure to meet sales targets.

Eight women who have worked for the Noni B Group in different locations around NSW spoke to The Sydney Morning Herald on condition of anonymity, for fear of reprisals. The company employs 7000 people across Australia.

A spokesman from the Noni B Group disputed the claims saying staff could ask for cover from up to eight sister brands in the same shopping centre "or alternatively close the store should they need to take a toilet break".

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The spokesman said sales targets were based on historical performance and staff were rewarded for meeting them with cash-based incentives and 'store dollars' to spend on stock.

One of the eight women told the Herald she had bought a couple of items from her store each week because "at the end of the day, we have to call someone to say if we haven't met our sales targets".

"I have felt obligated to buy something so I don't get into trouble, just to make budget," she said.

The "daily flash" of directives and sales targets come through a computer system called ICON.

A staff member said she has changed window banners and signage within the store from one sale promotion to another sometimes "two or three times a day". "They have no concept of the work involved in doing that," she said.

Tasks included climbing a ladder without the supervision to change window banners for sales promotions.

Directives to staff.

Directives to staff.

Noni B's spokesman said staff were given clear safety procedures including "the do's and don'ts of climbing a ladder; for example team members must always work on a firm base and wear appropriate footwear".

"Safety comes first," he said. "We advise team members never to rush when working on a ladder and, even if a customer needs assistance, that they should carefully finish their ladder task first".

Staff have also complained about having to store an oversupply of stock in dressing rooms and already congested storerooms, creating potential trip hazards.

A congested storeroom.

A congested storeroom.

"My back room is full and I have two fitting rooms full of trolleys," one staff member said.

The Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees' Association (SDA) is challenging the registration of a new Noni B enterprise agreement and plans to cut shifts of part-time workers by 20 per cent. The SDA said this was "without proper consultation and understaffing [of] stores which has placed excessive sales demands and work tasks on remaining retail staff”.

“In some cases, this deliberate understaffing meant retail employees were at times left in stores alone and could not take toilet breaks or were forced to lift heavy boxes and work up ladders in an unsafe manner," SDA national secretary Gerard Dwyer said. "The lack of staff has also resulted in masses of stock remaining unprocessed and being stacked in change rooms and blocking fire escapes, clearly in breach of [Work Health and Safety] laws.”

The Noni B Group spokesman said the SDA was invited to raise any legitimate concerns "to enable us to immediately investigate and address them where necessary". He said of the 7000 staff the Noni B Group employs, 5500 are covered by the proposed new enterprise agreement. He said of the nearly 4000 staff that voted, 3,205 (81 per cent) approved the new agreement.

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