My name is mark, my wife works for Meijer (GR-MI) and they were doing a reslot on vacuums and put the old ones on clearance that are no longer on there plannogram. The vacuum’s (23) originally sold for around $200.00 and they put them on clearance with a sticker price of $29.99.
She and follow employees, customers, and some management personnel, bought them at this price. About a month later they are now being told that the corporate office made a mistake and they were supposed to have been sold for $129.99 and not $29.99.
Meijer now wants them to pay $100.00 but she feels she did her job by checking on the computer to verify the price. The store director had a one-on-one meeting with her and the topic discussed was that it is everyone’s responsibility to fully investigate. This means not just scanning the item but also involving leadership. (The same leadership that walked out with these vacuums.)
She had looked it up on the computer and it had scanned and rang up at $29.99. The next topic of discussion was that they didn’t fully investigate before purchasing the item with a suspicious or questionable pricing and may result in their termination.
They are giving them 30-days to repay Meijers $100.00 with out it going on their files. Can they do this?
Mark
Dear Mark,
Each state creates their own labor laws – Michigan, is what’s called a “Right to work” state, the employer can legally fire any employee for any reason or no reason what-so-ever.
In all likelihood, this is not a legal business practice. However, the question you need to answer is; Is it worth your wife losing her job over? Will the store allow your wife to simply return the vacuum if paying $100 is a financial burden on your family?
You might want to consider seeking legal advice from a qualified attorney. Just be aware that filing any lawsuit could take years to resolve and the chances that your wife will lose her job during the fight is highly probable.