Target temporarily closes more than 100 stores as protests continue
Photo | Flickr/Mike Mozart
A Target store.
Target is closing more than 100 stores as protests continue to erupt across the country following the death of George Floyd at the hands of police.
The retailer is based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the same city where Floyd died and protests began nearly a week ago. Since then, crowds have gathered in at least 30 cities across the country to demonstrate. In many cases, anger and frustration boiled over — resulting in clashes between police and protestors, leaving buildings burned and retail stores, including at least one Target location, looted or vandalized.
Target CEO Brian Cornell published a note about the protests on Friday.
"We are a community in pain. That pain is not unique to the Twin Cities—it extends across America," Cornell said. "As a Target team, we've huddled, we've consoled, we've witnessed horrific scenes similar to what's playing out now and wept that not enough is changing. And as a team we've vowed to face pain with purpose."
As of Sunday morning, Target listed closures for 106 stores. The company anticipates "most stores will be closed temporarily," according to a release. In Minnesota, 33 Target stores will close, in addition to 46 stores in California, eight in Oregon and more elsewhere across the country. In recent years, Target has placed a growing number of smaller stores in city centers.
Workers affected by the store closures will be paid for up to 14 days of regularly scheduled hours during the closures, including the premium pay they would have received as part of Target's Covid-19 policies, the company said in the release. Workers may also have the option to work at other Target locations near the closed stores.
"Our store and HR teams are working with all of our displaced team members, including the more than 200 team members from our Lake Street store in Minneapolis," Cornell said. "We will make sure they have their full pay and benefits in the coming weeks, as well as access to other resources and opportunities within Target."
The unrest comes as the United States continues to grapple with coronavirus, which has already taken a toll on many retailers. While Target stores remained open as the pandemic spread, the company reduced shopping hours in stores and took other steps to reduce the risk of the virus spreading.
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