The Des Moines Black Lives Matter group has released a series of demands for Hy-Vee in alignment with a protest on Saturday afternoon. The demands were listed on Twitter and are as follows, "We demand all managers involved in sexual harassment, protest suppression, discrimination and all forms of abuse to be fired. We demand the employees to get a raise for working during COVID. We also demand for the employees who have not received their reviews to get them and be compensated according to their work ethic. We demand for Hy-Vee to ban all forms of discrimination and racial profiling. We demand a safe work environment for employees and customers. We demand for sexual harassment to be taken seriously at Hy-Vee. We demand that part-time workers be able to earn (paid time off). We also demand opportunity for part-time workers to become full-time. We demand a public apology from the unfair treatment of employees and customers." It comes after an employee, Jassma'ray Johnson, wrote on social media that she had been an employee at the Park Avenue Hy-Vee for three years and "decided to distance myself from a company that does not and has never valued my Black life and labor." According to the post, Johnson had been exposed to racism, sexual harassment and sexism during their time at Hy-Vee. In her post she said that after protesting during local George Floyd demonstrations, she was moved to a less noticeable role and allegedly told by a manager, "we hired you to work, not to protest." The post also said that there had been seven confirmed COVID-19 cases in the store and Hy-Vee "haven't informed any of their employees and has threatened (people) with termination if told," Johnson wrote. The demands were released before a boycott protest outside of the Park Avenue Hy-Vee in Des Moines. Hy-Vee released a statement that said in part, "Over the past several weeks, there have been many important conversations on race relations in America. In support of these conversations, Hy-Vee has committed to providing a $1 million donation and one million volunteer hours to organizations that support racial unity and equality. We are aware of the allegations made by Jassma’ray 'Jazzy' Johnson, a former employee at our Park Avenue Hy-Vee store in Des Moines. As an employee-owned company, we are committed to the fair and equitable treatment of our employees, regardless of race, gender identity, sexual orientation or religion. We do not tolerate harassment or discrimination, and have a process at both the store and corporate level for employees to report any issue. While we cannot comment directly on any specific case, we have tried multiple times to speak with Jassma’ray 'Jazzy' Johnson to discuss her situation but to no avail."The release also stated that Hy-Vee conducts ongoing employee reviews and 93% of Park Avenue Hy-Vee employees received a raise in 2020. They even said that Johnson had received a 25% raise over the time she worked at Hy-Vee. It also said employees had received a 10% raise in March, "for all front-line employees working in our store." Hy-Vee said that part-time employees have the opportunity to apply for full-time positions if they are available. "Our attempts to understand and resolve Jassma’ray 'Jazzy' Johnson’s specific issues have been unsuccessful as has any outreach to the Black Lives Matter Iowa group," Hy-vee said in its statement. "Instead, individual Hy-Vee employees have been targeted and threatened on social media and at the store. Our efforts to understand and address any concerns have been met with silence – until today’s protest. We remain dedicated to maintaining a safe, open and inclusive environment for employees and customers in all of our stores. We are committed to being a part of the solution to any racial divide in our country – our hope is others will do the same."The Des Moines Police Department said it had a vehicle damaged during the protest.
DES MOINES, Iowa — The Des Moines Black Lives Matter group has released a series of demands for Hy-Vee in alignment with a protest on Saturday afternoon.
The demands were listed on Twitter and are as follows, "We demand all managers involved in sexual harassment, protest suppression, discrimination and all forms of abuse to be fired. We demand the employees to get a raise for working during COVID. We also demand for the employees who have not received their reviews to get them and be compensated according to their work ethic. We demand for Hy-Vee to ban all forms of discrimination and racial profiling. We demand a safe work environment for employees and customers. We demand for sexual harassment to be taken seriously at Hy-Vee. We demand that part-time workers be able to earn (paid time off). We also demand opportunity for part-time workers to become full-time. We demand a public apology from the unfair treatment of employees and customers."
It comes after an employee, Jassma'ray Johnson, wrote on social media that she had been an employee at the Park Avenue Hy-Vee for three years and "decided to distance myself from a company that does not and has never valued my Black life and labor."
According to the post, Johnson had been exposed to racism, sexual harassment and sexism during their time at Hy-Vee. In her post she said that after protesting during local George Floyd demonstrations, she was moved to a less noticeable role and allegedly told by a manager, "we hired you to work, not to protest."
The post also said that there had been seven confirmed COVID-19 cases in the store and Hy-Vee "haven't informed any of their employees and has threatened (people) with termination if told," Johnson wrote.
The demands were released before a boycott protest outside of the Park Avenue Hy-Vee in Des Moines.
Hy-Vee released a statement that said in part, "Over the past several weeks, there have been many important conversations on race relations in America. In support of these conversations, Hy-Vee has committed to providing a $1 million donation and one million volunteer hours to organizations that support racial unity and equality. We are aware of the allegations made by Jassma’ray 'Jazzy' Johnson, a former employee at our Park Avenue Hy-Vee store in Des Moines. As an employee-owned company, we are committed to the fair and equitable treatment of our employees, regardless of race, gender identity, sexual orientation or religion. We do not tolerate harassment or discrimination, and have a process at both the store and corporate level for employees to report any issue. While we cannot comment directly on any specific case, we have tried multiple times to speak with Jassma’ray 'Jazzy' Johnson to discuss her situation but to no avail."
The release also stated that Hy-Vee conducts ongoing employee reviews and 93% of Park Avenue Hy-Vee employees received a raise in 2020. They even said that Johnson had received a 25% raise over the time she worked at Hy-Vee.
It also said employees had received a 10% raise in March, "for all front-line employees working in our store." Hy-Vee said that part-time employees have the opportunity to apply for full-time positions if they are available.
"Our attempts to understand and resolve Jassma’ray 'Jazzy' Johnson’s specific issues have been unsuccessful as has any outreach to the Black Lives Matter Iowa group," Hy-vee said in its statement. "Instead, individual Hy-Vee employees have been targeted and threatened on social media and at the store. Our efforts to understand and address any concerns have been met with silence – until today’s protest. We remain dedicated to maintaining a safe, open and inclusive environment for employees and customers in all of our stores. We are committed to being a part of the solution to any racial divide in our country – our hope is others will do the same."
The Des Moines Police Department said it had a vehicle damaged during the protest.
This content is imported from Twitter.
You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.
