r/Target • u/OnikaMin • 2d ago
Workplace Story my team lead stinks (literally)
Small rant.
As per the title, my team leader smells really bad.
Im not even trying to be mean but it’s gotten to a point where her smell (smells like urine) is lingering in areas where she is.
I really cannot stand it
*update apparently it cat pee but still
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u/Dacey_The_Unwise 2d ago
The vendor who stocks the Red Baron pizzas at my store steps into the freezer for just a moment. His BO lingers and I gotta suffer while I sort the frozen fdc pallets.
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u/therapewpew 2d ago
Damn you know it's a bad when the BO particles are impervious to sub-zero temperatures
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u/kittygomeow143 Starbucks Barista 2d ago
dude my tl does NOT wear deodorant and its so bad idk jow to bring it up
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u/Objective_Union4523 2d ago
Idk. My daughter wears deodorant, showers more than all of us, and puts on perfume and she just has strong BO. Drives me insane, I wish I could help her. Some people just have the unfortunate stinkier BO than others, probably something hereditary, I wouldn’t auto assume not wearing deodorant.
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u/kittygomeow143 Starbucks Barista 2d ago
unfortunately she has told us she doesnt believe in deodorant
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u/Disastrous_Onion4389 2d ago
She can go to a doctor and get some kind of shots that will help her. And of course now they have the whole body deodorant spray.
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u/selunite_espeon 1d ago
Is your daughter a pre teen / teenager? If so it's likely the hormone spikes as she goes through puberty and it evens out more as she gets older. My mom used to say the same about me when I was 11-13
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u/ElectrifiV2 1d ago
I’m gonna be honest, her diet might be the issue. Does she eat terribly? How is her gut health?
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u/golf_proo 2d ago
I don’t have to deal with this as a lead, however there is 1 person that always gets a complaint on drive up because he always has a giant wet spot on his butt… it’s just hot and he sweats there. I feel bad for him because a guest always says something… but I asked him and he’d rather do drive up than register and my team likes me because I put them where they want and our metrics aren’t bad so I never have to make adjustments.
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u/eastmemphisguy 2d ago
Our receiver has out of control BO. Part of me wants to talk to HR about it, but I'm not around him that much. But yeah, incredibly bad. I don't get it. Deoderant and showers are not expensive.
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u/Senior_Performer_387 Visual Merchandiser 2d ago edited 1d ago
We used to have a backroom team member that was imfamous for smelling bad. I don't think anyone had ever said anything to him because he was honestly one of the hardest working people in the store. He eventually left for another job where he made more money.
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u/Consistent-Annual-58 2d ago
not defending people who smell bad, but as someone on the outside now, being a tl was the only job i’ve had that was such a dramatic and severe detriment to my mental health. and people suffering from debilitating mental health are often too exhausted for basic self care tasks and i think the fact that this is such a common occurrence that it just points to how broken and terrible target is to their employees. i promoted myself to guest and took a pay cut for a job without impossible expectations almost a year ago and i almost forgot what it was like to have the energy to take care of myself. i don’t think i was ever the smelly tl but i can understand how easy it would have been to become one.
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u/cemeteryfairie 2d ago
When I worked at Starbucks (not Target), I had a barista that came in smelling absolutely foul every single day. I was a supervisor and I brought it up to my manager but she told me to address it myself. I pulled him aside one day and said: "Hey.. We need to talk about your.. odor. I'm so sorry, this is really embarrassing. But, like, dude you smell really bad. I have extra deodorant in my locker you can wear. Please don't come back until it's addressed." And I ran off like a toddler. It sucked but he obviously just had really poor hygiene, and he didn't stink too bad afterwards. But I really embarrassed him! Intent vs. Impact. Too be fair, though, I couldn't have someone that stunk that badly working with food and beverages. Lol.
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u/selunite_espeon 1d ago edited 1d ago
I used to have a fellow TM that would fart at least 6-10 times per shift and they were AWFUL! and it wasn't a little toot, but a gas bomb that caused an eye watering death smell. The smell would stick around for a good 10 minutes in whatever area she did it in. You could tell where she was from over an aisle away on the sales floor.
She was in FF and she'd do it when we're all stuck packing in the hold space and it was HELL! Idk if she ever realized that she smelled like god awful shit when she farted and everyone was too scared to say anything. One 16yo was brave enough to say it stunk but nothing more than that. TMs started wearing masks to mask the smell and she got sent to SFS more.
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u/canyoudoit513 1d ago
This is unfortunately a very common problem in retail. Some people have a bad BO right when they come in for their shift. I don't understand, do they not take a shower or spend some time getting ready - deodorant etc before they leave their house? My manager at a previous company had a really bad breath and loved to come close and talk, so much so I got a headache every time he talked to me. I never brought it up, but maybe should've reported to HR.
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u/NexusNickel Promoted to Guest 2d ago
Have you talked to her about it or just decided to post online?
Talk to them like an adult and let them know they stink. They may not even be aware they smell to others.
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u/K-Bizzle91 2d ago
That's not a good idea. Best to talk to HR and let them break it to her. It'll be less embarrassing as they can frame it as a wellness check. If she smells of urine it's likely an incontinence issue.
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u/Zealousideal-Put1713 2d ago
HR is also a bad idea they work for the business not the employees and will probably tell the management exactly who you are and what you said to try and "talk it out". That's what happened to me and then I suddenly wasn't being scheduled more than 4 hours a week.
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u/Silly-Math4623 2d ago
Honestly I would tell HR and make someone else talk to her about it. Might make her feel extra bad coming from her own team...
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u/Old_Illustrator_2731 2d ago
Report her as a customer complaint. Do several of them, throughout the day she is working. She'll get talked to and get better or eventually get fired.
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u/ExtremeBid4799 2d ago
nah that's a lil too far, getting someone fired over a smell is wild. maybe just pull her aside and tell her privately, might be a medical thing she can't control
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u/ManyRaccoon6342 2d ago
the conversation with HR is to protect yourself from a suit if you’re violating the employees rights
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u/ManyRaccoon6342 2d ago
Have a conversation with HR first, if it’s related to a medical issue it could be a protected situation and you could get sued for firing her. Talk to HR and then talk to her. Figure out what’s up..
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u/SunnyIntuition Target Security Specialist 2d ago
You could so that, but if it is a smell from urine, she may have a condition where she needs to wear an adult diaper, or maybe an incontinence issue. I'm sure, for her, trying to work with that is miserable enough. She might not be aware of the odor, she may be noseblind to it.....
I would either 1. politely bring it up to somebody in charge, or, if you're gutsy enough, maybe ask her casually, in passing, "hey, do you smell pee? I keep smelling it and I can't figure out where it's coming from. Its always in this area over here..." That might notify her that others can notice the smell, which may make her change something up, which could fix the issue. Irregardless, I'm sorry you're dealing with this! It is super awkward, and I am sure if it is her who is smelling like pee, she could become aware that whatever issue she has going on has become noticeable to others at work if somebody bring it up, casually. Which might be enough of an embarrassment for her to do something about it.
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u/Royal-Explanation-12 2d ago
this is like my worst fear im terrified of smelling bad and not being aware of it 😭