by Anya Firszt, General Manager
Hello December; Hello Winter
Before welcoming in the New Year at the end of this month, we have another four weeks of fun and festivity to go.
The winter solstice is on Tuesday, December 21, the day with the fewest hours of sunlight in the whole year, and then voila the days begin to once again grow longer until we reach the summer solstice.
And, for your gift-giving and eating celebrations, we have stocked up on a wide variety of gift-wrapping, games and puzzles, and candles. For the food lover at heart there are holiday treats galore. We can assist you from food preparation to clean up to leftovers storage, we have you covered!
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Update
In the summer of 2020 we started our journey to become an equitable and inclusive organization. Here’s an update on the progress we have made on some of our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) work in the last couple of months.
This year we prioritized increasing the HR function capabilities and we added a position to create capacity for more robust training and development function. Concurrently the entire management team completes Step Up’s equity accelerator training and development investing 5-8 hours per month increasing our ability to apply equitable principles into our managerial and functional responsibilities. Following our development, the Board and senior management team worked together with Step Up to draft vision and mission statements, and identify strategic objectives that included DEI initiatives. The Board will review and approve the revised mission, vision, and goals during our December meeting.
We are now moving to the next step in our journey and we launched an 8-10 hour self-paced, on-demand training series for all staff focused on Uprooting Bias and Microaggressions, which we plan to integrate into onboarding and orientation of new hires. We will continue our steadfast commitment toward becoming an equitable and inclusive organization. If you are interested in learning more about our partner in this journey, Step Up: Equity Matters, check out their website at www.stepupforequity.com.
Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS)
As of the writing of this report, we are aware of the issuance of OSHA's COVID-19 Vaccination & Testing Emergency Temporary Standard, as well as of the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals stay of that ETS. We are continuing to monitor the pending legal proceedings and move forward appropriately once all litigation has been concluded.
You can find updates on our website at www.willystreet.coop.
Services and Staffing
Attracting and retaining staff is our number one challenge. We are continually evaluating our current staffing levels to determine if reductions in hours of some services or temporarily eliminating other services are needed to adjust for this labor shortfall. We appreciate your patience and continue patronage as we work through these staffing challenges.
Employment opportunities: Apply online for full-time and part-time hours at www.willystreet.coop/employment.
Holiday Hours This Month
- December 24, stores open until 6:00pm
- December 25, CLOSED
- December 31, New Year’s Eve regular hours
- January 1, 2022, New Year’s Day, CLOSED
Celebrate the gifts you have in family and friends—treasure them now and throughout the entire year.
Until next year…