7-ELEVEN Class Action Franchise Lawsuit Brewing?

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• Along time ago 7-Eleven pierced the Independent Contractor veil......controlling and defining the product assortment, mandating the who what where when and how of a franchisee's employee's in regards to ordering. A store is now a plantation populated by indentured servants....gives new meaning to "servant leadership!"

• We FZ'S are not only employees but we are also 21st century modern paid SLAVES
  That's why majority of FZ'S are coward
  If they are not then please unite yourself to protect your respect and integrity as well as your business
  Call your your fellow franchisees and ask them to get involve through your association or call the attorney
  Atleast do that to make yourself feel that you are not coward FZ'S
  Tell all of them to call everyone and form unity
  To fight for your rights
  Just yesterday alone franchisees got scare as SEI is planning to take over franchisees store because according to them they can do anything any time to anyone.please do not listen to rumor as this is another tactic they use to scare and threaten FZ'S
  I request all FZ'S ask yourself are you happy or are you sure you are independent contractors or feel SEI controls you like slaves
  Please involve yourself and call your fellow FZ'S to show that we are not cowards and slaves of SEI
  Please ask all FZ'S to share their views through this website

• All 7-11 FZ'S throughout USA be one group as national coalition asso
  Will not at all protects you as they themselves are worried for their future so call your local foa and support the foa that is going to fight for your legal rights
  Or atleast call your local congressman or senators
  Don't forget you are next as they are targeting individuals
  Be careful with your FC as they are stealing thinks from your office and taking pictures don't let them speak to your employees or managers anymore
  As it begins from there they are also traitor and will stab on your back
  Don't let them talk to your employees give them in writing if they need anything they have call only FZ'S employees can be sold over easily as they bribe them and promise them stores or jobs.
  All FZ'S be alert as FC is the middle man and they are also hungry for promotion so they are not your friends but they are spy for upper management
  They said they have no choice as they are afraid of losing their jobs

• Xx wrote: "Just yesterday alone franchisees got scare as SEI is planning to take over franchisees store because according to them they can do anything any time to anyone... this is another tactic they use to scare and threaten FZ’S"

  How did they communicate this to franchisees yesterday? You can share internal correspondence confidentially by emailing it to unhappyfranchisee[at]gmail.com.

  Also, commenters, use your real email in the comment form as only ADMIN can see it and it will be kept confidential. I would like to send a message to a couple of you.

• Somewhere along the line 7-Eleven thought they could define and control a franchisee similar to how a fast feeder operates. There is a huge difference between a burger joint and the corner convenience store. A fast food outlet has a finite menu REAL proprietary products (there is only one burger patty like a McD's qtr pounder) and a brand standard that the consumer expects. A can of corn is NOT a proprietary item plus a convenience store has endless SKU possibilities. Even 7-Elevens so called "proprietary" food items vary across the country and most items like the taquito's are Ruiz items available to anyone......the only thing proprietary is a plastic cup that says "Big Gulp"....their donuts vary in spec across the system and just because the agreement says "it is proprietary if we say it is" doesn't make it so......a McD's can dictate cook time, temps and all sorts of things because they sell unique items.....at 7-Eleven there is hardly anything unique about what we sell.....and the onerous order system that generates more cost and lower profit well.....next time

• I STILL DONT UNDERSTAND WHY FZ'S ARE NOT GETTING INVOLVED YET
  LOOK AT THE OTHER FRANCHISE COMPLAINTS AND ATLEAST ADD YOUR VIEWS TO THIS SITE SO EVERYONE CAN RELATE OR SAY OR SHARE THEIR PROBLEMS OR ISSUES WITH SEI
  AGAIN PLEASE DON'T SHOW THAT FZ'S ARE COWARD
  PLEASE UTILIZE THIS SITE AS THE TOOLS FOR YOUR PROBLEMS WITH SEI
  CALL ALL YOUR FRIENDS AND FZ'S IN YOUR RESPECTIVE MARKETS AND SHOW THE UNITY ATLEAST. IF YOU DON'T THEN YOU KNOW WE ARE COWARDS

• Customer Review for 7-Eleven, Inc.:

  22 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
  Review:
  September 5, 2011
  Reviewer:
  Frustrated 7-Eleven Mafia Franchisee from NY,MO,CO,TX,CA,WA everywhere.
  Review Title::
  7-Eleven A Very Bad Franchise, A Total MAFIA like Operation!.
  Rating:
  1 Star (or Unacceptable).
  Review:
  Dear Prospective Business Owners !!

  I have been a 7-eleven Franchisee for past 2 years. This is a TOTAL MAFIA operation, please DO NOT fall for them. They mistreat their franchisees on different levels, neither good accounting infastructure nor maintenance infastructure.

  They make various promises as you are signing up for their franchise but the ones who make the promise disappear or make a 360 degree turn on their commitment. Old stores and equipment which keep on breaking and expect you to get fixed and pay and on top of it have the audacity to ask and force you through their different cheap legal business tactics to keep shining their almost dead equipments around the store such as old hotdog grills, sandwich case , bathrooms , floor tiles etc.

  They keep finding ways to charge its franchisees for various things and take their hardworking monies from them. On their mistaken charges it takes months and years to get your money back, their accounting ways and gross profit sharing is completely controlled by them like MAFIA like they have an on off button as to how much money you should make and keep slogging yourself like a modern day slave for their profits with no empathy of ones commitment to their family.

  Their merchandise ordering system is again so slow and frustrating and their stupid FORMULA of ordering F+M-I=O which these idiots swear by and are so wrong about and embarrassed but cant even take it back. 7-Eleven idiots if F or Forcasting is wrong to begin with then nothing in left over formula matters and but these idiots cant even go back on their idiot ways of doing business.

  I challange their President the very idiot Joe De Pinto to manage low profile store and employees on min. wage as a franchisee with no future for your employees and no family life, you will break and run away in 7sec and runaway in the 11sec. but its easy to sit in nice ac office with polished black shoes with your feet on table and allow this degree of disrespect for your current hard working franchisees and for future businessmen and investors who are considering investing their hard earned money with 7-Eleven in any way. SHAME SHAME on 7-Eleven the Mafia Convenience Store Business. Thank God for Heaven but 7-Eleven Mafia Corporate belongs in HELL, God If you are listening punish these idiots for their sins.

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• Independent Contractor
  Definition: A person hired to do work for another but who is not an employee or agent of that person. Control is subjected to the end result and not as to how the work is performed as opposed to an employee who receives direction on what, when and, to some degree, how to do a job.

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  If you need additional personnel for your business but decide your business can't afford to hire any more full-time employees, you might consider using the services of an independent contractor. With an independent contractor, you may save money because you don't have to withhold and pay the person's income, Social Security and Medicare taxes.

  And while independent contractors do translate to lower payroll costs, be advised that the IRS scrutinizes this whole area very carefully. The IRS wants to make sure that your workers are properly classified and paying the government the necessary income and payroll taxes that are due.

  To stay out of hot water with the IRS, be sure the workers you classify as independent contractors meet the IRS definition of an independent contractor. The IRS has a 20-point text its auditors use to determine the proper classification. Here's a list of the some of the major points:

  Who has control? A worker is an employee if the person for whom he works has the right to direct and control him concerning when and where to do the work. The employer need not actually exercise control; it is sufficient that he has the right to do so.
  Right to fire. An employee can be fired by an employer. An independent contractor cannot be fired so long as he or she produces a result that meets the specifications of the contract.
  Training. An employee may be trained to perform services in a particular manner. However, independent contractors ordinarily use their own methods and receive no training from the employer.
  Set hours of work. Workers for whom you set specific hours of work are more likely to be employees. Independent contractors, on the other hand, usually establish their own work hours.
  To stay on the right side of the IRS, it's best to document the relationship you have with any independent contractors in a written contract. This can be a simple agreement that spells out the duties of the independent contractor. The agreement should state that the independent contractor, not the employer, is responsible for withholding any necessary taxes. In addition, have the independent contractor submit invoices. Also, be sure you file Form 1099-MISC (Miscellaneous Income) at year-end. By law, you're required to file and give someone Form 1099 if you pay that person more than $600 a year. The form must be given to the independent contractor by January 31 of the following year. Form 1099 with its transmittal Form 1096 must be filed with the IRS by February 28 of the following year.

  If the IRS finds you've misclassified an employee as an independent contractor, you'll pay a percentage of income taxes that should have been withheld on the employee's wages and be liable for your share of the FICA and unemployment taxes, plus penalties and interest. Even worse, if the IRS determines your misclassification was "willful," you could owe the IRS the full amount of income tax that should have been withheld (with an adjustment if the employee has paid or pays part of the tax), the full amount of both the employer's and employee's share of FICA taxes (possibly with an offset if the employee paid self-employment taxes), plus interest and penalties.

• It looks like that SEI already picked up the stores which they want to clean up first. The reason is they picked up the opinion leader's stores (FOA leader group) targeted.

  My Experience is that they never take any action before a couple of years about the cleanness and date code. Nowadays this is a control point to franchisee who do not listen or obey their direction. Field Consultant visit the store anytime even midnight and take a picture any violation according to their guideline and give franchisee a letter of notification. Be careful.

  My concern is they never checked the cleanliness until 2011. I agree we should clean the store always however before 2012 SEI didnt take any action. Why are they doing nowadays?

  There is no approval process on SEI accounting system when they charge expense to franchisee's account. They just take money without agreement for example FM charge.

  There are so many mistakes from SEI but they dont care theirs but franchisee only.

  I dont have hot food and remodeled store. But my neighborhood store does. Since my neighborhood store remodeled, my sales dropped. Is this not discriminate?

  What do you think my points?

• How legal is the following ?
  When we sign a contract, SEi can change the contract any time without letting you know.
  Amend it ..
  WHERE IS THE GOVERNMENT WHO PROTECT THE FRANCHISEE?
  There are 2 states which has a law to protect the franchisee and guess what ?
  7-11 is not in those states.