Reddit Thread Warns Target Seasonals That Call Outs Hurt Retention

On December 13 a widely viewed thread in the r slash Target community, started by a store leader, warned seasonal team members that frequent call outs could make them less likely to be retained once the holiday season ends. The post drew dozens of responses from current and former seasonals asking how absences affected retention, recounting stores that cut staff for attendance issues, and describing stores that kept people despite some missed shifts when they demonstrated strong availability and skills.

Comments in the thread reflected recurring friction points for retail seasonals. Workers reported being subject to attendance point systems and availability matching, and said that scheduling pressure during high demand blackout days such as Black Friday and Christmas Eve often intensified the consequences for missing shifts. Many commenters described uneven management practices between stores, with some locations exercising stricter coaching and enforcement than others. That variation left seasonals uncertain about how much weight managers placed on attendance relative to performance or customer service skills.

The thread also revealed differences in timing and communication of retention decisions. Several posters said stores informed them whether they would be kept on after the holidays only after the New Year, while others received notifications immediately following the season. That unpredictability affected workers planning for income and schedules in January and beyond, and contributed to anxiety among those hoping to convert a seasonal role into a longer term job.

For employees this debate matters because attendance policies intersect with real life constraints such as illness, transportation and family obligations during the busiest retail month. For managers the thread underscores a challenge in balancing staffing needs for peak days with fairness and transparency in who is retained. The exchanges serve as a real time worker forum snapshot, capturing how front line team members experience policy enforcement and communicate about job security as stores move from seasonal staffing into regular staffing cycles.