Timewise Food Stores -Shell Gas Station - Research Paper Example

Nauman Amin and CRN: Legal Environment of Business, 20741 Interviewee’s and Position Rashid, Store Manager Interviewee’s Company Name and Street Address: Timewise Food Stores (Shell), 23644 Hwy 59, SoutheastMontgomery, TX 77365 Interviewee’s Work Phone Number/Email: 281-570-3247 Interview Date and Location: April 23, 2012 in Porter Shell Gas Station Consent Acknowledgment: Student hereby certifies that Interview was informed of the report submission details and that Interviewee consented to the Interview. Report Submission Date: April 28, 2012 Timewise Food Stores (Shell) gas station I asked you in the class that if I can do Shell gas station for this assignment and you said “it’s ok”. The employee is the Shell store manager for Timewise Food Stores Corporation, which is located in Houston, Texas. The corporation owns and operates 240 convenience stores under various major fuel brands like Shell, Chevron, Exxon, Texaco and Valero in the Texas marketplace. I’m doing major in Supply chain management and currently I’m an employee of Timewise’s Shell gas station as a cashier. I am very much intrigued by Timewise Food Stores, and I intend after my studies to go and work for a multinational retailer corporation like Timewise in the advanced capacity as well. That is why I choose this company. There are two main types of laws and regulations that govern Timewise Food Stores in its day to day operations. These are the governmental regulation and company policy. Shell gas station is one of the very vast liability stores that are located in Texas. There is a variety of legal compliance whose adherence is required of the company. There is a legal requirement, professional standards and policies that the company has established for all its outlets in the Texas. The legal requirement includes federal and local county laws that regulate the stores in their daily activities. The most important for Shell store manager is to be aware of any matter related to Tobacco or Alcohol. Federal law requires Shell to sell tobacco to customers over the age of 18 years old and alcohol to over the age of 21 years old. However, each state is free to create its own laws, agencies, and punishments. According to Texas regulation, there is no restriction concerning selling hours or places of sale of Tobacco. However, the violation of term in buying or selling Tobacco to minor is subject to same penalties as alcohol penalties. The laws on alcohol establishments occur under the control of the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission. According to Texas law under Sec. 106.025, first and second offense of minor licensee is considered a class-C misdemeanor which means it only carries a 30-60 days maximum suspension of license and a fine of up to $500.00 along with 8 to 40 hours of community service. However, if the licensee is over 18 years of age, then it usually increased to a class-B misdemeanor, which is 6 months to a full year in jail and a $250 to $2000 fine. An offense under this section is punishable as provided by Sec. 106.071. According to Texas law under Sec. 106.03 a clerk who actually sold the alcohol to a minor is liable and receives the same penalties as the licensee. Federal law requires from each States to implement timing and distance regulation of sale of alcoholic beverages within the premises of Shell gas station. However, each States is free to create its own regulation to sale an alcoholic beverage. According to Texas law any business that sells alcoholic beverages must abide by timing regulation. The selling of alcoholic beverages is permitted from Monday to Friday (7:00 AM to 12:00 AM), Saturday (7:00 AM to 1:00 AM), and Sunday (12:00 PM to 12:00 AM). In some county and Texas are entitle to forbidden the sale of alcoholic beverage within the county limit. In some county the sale of alcoholic beverage is forbidden within the county limit which the decision decided by county election. According to Texas law under sec. 109.33 the state law authorize city to adopt a local regulation of prohibiting the sale of alcoholic beverages within 300 feet of a church, public hospital, and public or private school. Under some circumstances the distance can be increased to 1000 feet. The distances are measured from school in a straight line in a direct line crossroads and from property line to property line. Montgomery County requires Shell gas station to obtain dozens of different licenses and permits annually. However there are four main permits that Shell gas station undertakes the important. Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission Permit, Texas Sales and use Tax Permit, Sales of Tobacco and Alcohol Permit, and Food Handling and Services Permit for making hotdog and nachos. Timewise Food Stores owning Shell Gas Station is C Corporation and in a general partnership. C Corporation as define as close corporation which means a company whose stock is not publicly traded. The most important part of Shell store manager in relation to regulation is to oversee employees within the store to ensure compliance with food service, merchandising, pricing, and administrative requirements are established by Timewise Food Stores. The manager is liable for any action of a clerk if occur. All the responsibility will be on the manager because of his/her failure to monitor clerk action or the event. As an Example, Montgomery County can seize Shell’s Food Handling and Services Permit, if the hotdog or nachos is expired and being served to their customers. In addition, the company can face legal dilemma if the customer bodily property affected by that action. The company will held manager accountable for the action that caused any sort of damage to the company. Also, the company can dismiss the manager from the position and may even take legal action against that manager. Secondary part of shell store manager job is to ensure compliance of employees with established payroll, sales, security and recordkeeping procedures and practices. This is the company regulation that the manager must abide by. The manager is held accountable if any error occurs in concerning to payroll, sales, security, and recordkeeping. The manager must pay out of his/her pocket if such error occur. Therefore, the manager must observe and track the records on daily basis to prevent such matters to occur. Third part of manager duty is to ensure to provide proper conducts environmental training and compliance programs to prevent legal problematic matters to occur. This is the serious liability for company and for manager. The company or a manager can face a legal negligent charge if company or manager hired or trained employee inattentiveness. Therefore, the company or manager first must appoint a reasonable worker to perform the task reasonably and trained the worker. So that the worker can execute the duty as it should be. In general, Clerk is responsible for company image therefore; it is manager’s duty to oversee his employee’s daily tasks. Consecutively, the Shell manager must work 56 hours a week to accomplish daily tasks which is the obligation of manager’s position. The information about changes in laws and regulations are delivered to store manager mostly by Timewise Food Store in view of the fact that the company regularly deals with legal laws and regulations. As soon as new regulations establish or changes occurs in laws, the company send the information to all Timewise Food Stores convenient stores around Texas by mail, e-mail, fax, phone, or personally. At some occasion local legal agencies delivers newly formed regulation handbook to the manager. Despite of how manager receive the information. The manager must protect and implement in laws and regulations once the information is delivered. The company can provide training problem depending on newly formed or changes in laws and regulation. Store managers job is a load of burdens of legal responsibility which require managers to have years of experience working at the gas station business. The manager must attend program if the law require manager to attend some sort legal program to learn about recently changes in law. However, the company will be responsible of any manager’s expense due to attending the program. Timewise Food Stores is the organization which means all the manager that operate Timewise Food Stores is a member of a professional organization. As a member of Timewise Food Stores, the managers do receive regulatory guidance which then the managers passes to their employees. The manager and the clerk play the key role of Timewise Food Stores on the subject of dealing with customers. Every in-store activity is important to Timewise because the manager and the clerk are providing the image of Timewise Food Stores. Therefore the company takes serious precaution in regarding to promote any store employee to management position. Primary, the company require years of work experience of Timewise Food Stores from the store employee or entrant. After the hired or promotion to manager position, the company provide management training program in which the trainee receive a store management certificate from Timewise Food Stores. In the training program of management the trainee must pass written, simulation and oral exam in minimum score of 90%. A trainee learns through exercises and simulations on how to keep track on following the policy of the company and legal regulations. The company ensures that the trainee must learn how to handle conflict through solving many scenarios related to compliance. There’s no guarantee of what type of regulation will be form in the future in next 2 to 10 years because this business is unpredictable on the subject of governmental laws. There are too many restrictions from the government to Timewise Food Stores that the company improvises to operate their stores around Texas. In gas station business currently the law and regulations changes every year in every Timewise Food Stores. The system of Timewise store changes when the new regulations form or changes occurs in the law. As soon as the law and regulations changes the company implements and ensure that their operating stores are implementing as well. The only regulation that should be change and implement is federal and state law and regulation on the subject of sale of Tobacco and Alcohol. According to store manager, there are more case related to clerk gets trapped by selling Tobacco or Alcohol to undercover minor then the actual minor that attempt to buy. As a result, that caused both company losing an employee and employee losing his/her job. In the opinion of store manager is that the buyer is liable of selling tobacco or alcohol to a minor. However, clerk should not get the same penalty as minor buyer who actually attempt to buy intentionally. Instead the seller should get the first and last warning or small fine instead of being charge of class-B misdemeanor offense. The company has complied with the legal code of ethics provided for in the various laws and policies of Timewise Food Stores that is not for public consumption and thus cannot be shared. Ethics are very important because it ensures that there is a conductive environment economic in terms of competition and that the consumers get value for their money hence. Timewise Food Stores are popular in Texas mainly for their customer services. Therefore, a clerk and a manager play a key role in presenting the company by giving excellent customer service. In this business employee deals with the customers throughout days and nights because the station is open 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. Customer service is the main challenge for Shell employee on the subject of dealing with all sorts of customers of sex, age, and race. The company policy requires employees to observe personal ethics and high standards of business in the conduct of their responsibilities and duties. Employees are required to make an effort to deal honestly, fairly, and with integrity with the Timewise Food Stores’ customers. Therefore company appoints territory manager who also handle ethic’s related task. On the other hand store manager deals with basic ethic related task. As company requires store managers to work minimum of 56 hours a week in store to monitor the inside store activities. The territory manager goes to Timewise Food Stores by random walk-in without notifying to a manager of his/her arriving. As part of strategy to monitor the Timewise Food Stores to prevent legal problematic situation to take place. According to store manager’s point of view on Shell gas station business, different station carries different standards of conduct. I interviewed this Shell station which is a very small station in size compare to other gas station. According to a store manager, small station has fewer conveniences unlike big station that have more facilities. As an example, this station have only one employee operating the store that does not have place to sit, small restroom which is located outside of station about 150 feet away which makes it really difficult for employee to maintain it clean for a customers. Gas stations follow different roles of law and ethics depends on what government regulations require. Each gas station abides by federal, state, and local regulations. Local regulations can be different depending on the location. There are some county that does not allow the sale of alcohol in the county limit. The manager earned his management certificate from Timewise Food Stores which he learned context of managing Timewise stores including compliance program. He learned through exercises and simulations on how to keep track on following the policy of the company and legal regulations. According to the manager, smarter regulation should be enforced and the law and regulation should be written in favor of local businesses. As an example, if the majority people of neighborhood are in favor of playing poker should be allow then local agencies show allow the local gas station to allow customers to play poker within the premises. There are many restrictions on gas station that are not in favor of local people and that affect the local businesses. The manager advised me to work harder, smarter and pay complete attention to work which will prepare me to be successful in business. A person should work no matter what the work is because it becomes additional skill. According to manager that more a person work the more the person earns experience and the more work place the person explore the more skills the person earns. Also, try to learn all aspect of work which will help in the future. In my opinion the compliance of Timewise Food Stores (Shell) is quite up to standard. The implementing of the regulations and strategy to keep up with governmental laws and regulation is remarkable. Regardless of what the manager believe that what need to be change the manager yet still abide by governmental laws and regulations. The Timewise Food Stores shape managerial structure in the company to monitor the daily activities. The company hired territory manager to watch for regulatory compliance in his/her territorial portion and in store manager to monitor daily activities for no less than 8 hours a day. Overall, the company developed a secure system to prevent legal dilemma to occur. Clerk is being watch by the manager, the manager is being monitor by territory manager, and territory manager is being observed by Timewise Food Stores Company. I have gained confident in my ability to locate laws and regulations of any company or industry I wish to work for in the future. Through this research and this course I have learn how to avoid conflict and become more aware of business laws and regulations. I believe that this research will be helpful for me in the future as I am doing my major in supply chain management. I will be interested involving in compliance on the professional level only if my future job requires me to then I might even obtain a certificate as a compliance professional in my company. As my interviewee advised me, the more experience and the more additional skills leads you to be successful in business. For me there are many lessons that I learned in this class that I considered important because it enhanced my awareness of the business laws and regulations. Throughout the period of semester I learned vast number of subject relating to legal environment, contracts, commercial transactions, agency and employment law, business organizations, government regulation, and property and cyberlaw. I think it will benefit me even more if I take the advance course of business law because I believe one must know about legal environment to implement it to avoid legal conflict in the future. What I learned from this assignment that I think is important that is how to search out the governmental law and regulations. The instructions on how to search out the legal law and regulation by instructor is very helpful to complete the compliance report. I learned that operating a business in U.S. is legally very complicated because there’s more liability on principal then the agent or worker. In order to be success in business and operate a business one must have knowledge of legal environment to implement. If I ever want to start my business or open my company I know now how to do my research on that business law and regulation. My view overall business has not changed since I am doing this assignment about Shell gas station, I already knew about federal, state, and local law and regulation on Timewise Food Stores. However, I learned the responsibilities of a manager who have burdens of liabilities and how he deals with it in day to day basis. Work Cited The Petroleum Refining Maximum Achievable Control Technology Accessed 25th April 2012 from: U.S Environmental Protection Agency( 2012) : Compliance centre; Petroleum Sector accessed 25th April 2012 from < http://www.epa.gov/compliance/assistance/sectors/petroleum.html > ChemAlliance.org (2012) U.S Environmental Regulation . Accessed on 25th April 2012 from: < http://www.chemalliance.org/tools/?subsec=12 > ChemAlliance.org (2012) Resource Conservation and Recovery Act Accessed on 25th April 2012 from: < http://www.chemalliance.org/news/?catid=144> Read More