Two clashes between staff and customers in one day at Manner, a rapidly expanding coffee chain in China, have sent discussion of the company’s working practices viral on Chinese social media over the weekend, as anger at those involved has turned to scrutiny over how Manner treats its employees. Surveillance footage from one store shows a woman demanding that her coffee be made first because she was “late,” with a staff member telling her that orders are processed in the sequence they are received and offering to cancel her order if she was dissatisfied; the ensuing argument between the two then escalates into a physical fight. A similar confrontation seemingly occurred at another Manner store in Shanghai and has also gone viral online. A report from local media outlet Jiemian quoted a Manner employee as saying that the company assigns only one person to stores that record daily sales of under RMB 5,000 ($688.50), with the lone worker responsible for everything from looking after stock, taking orders offline and online, making coffee, and cleaning. According to the report, Manner’s baristas earn about RMB 5,000 a month on average even in first-tier cities like Shanghai. Manner has grown popular due to its affordable prices and high-quality flavors, with its cheapest Americano priced at RMB 15. The brand, which was founded in 2015, opened its 1,000th store last October. [Jiemian, in Chinese]
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