Target employees skip shifts after detainments

Some staffers call off work after colleagues who are US. citizens were detained by ICE.

- By JAEWON KANG AND ALicia A. CALDWELL

ANTI-ICE demonstrators protest inside a Target in St. Paul, Minn., to call on the company to take a stand.

(Scott Olson Getty Images)

Target Corp. was hoping for a fresh start with a new chief executive officer, but an immigration crackdown in its hometown, Minneapolis, is putting the retailer back in a familiar position: confronting a political maelstrom that’s disrupting operations.

After immigration officials briefly detained two Target employees who are U.S. citizens from a Richfield, Minn., store this month, some retail staffers started calling out of work at several locations in the Twin Cities area.

Meanwhile, some teams have postponed planned in-office weeks at headquarters. And local faith leaders have demanded the company ban federal agents from its stores and parking lots and issue a statement clearly condemning the enforcement operation. Outgoing CEO Brian Cornell is set to meet with them Thursday, according to the delegation.

The timing of the turmoil couldn't be worse for Target, which risks angering shoppers and employees by taking almost any stance on polarizing topics such as immigration and law enforcement. The company is still reeling from backlash against a pullback in diversity initiatives that turned away some shoppers. And it comes just a few years after Target was whipsawed by protests over merchandise tied to Pride Month and counterprotests when it later stopped selling some goods. Company insider Michael Fiddelke, set to start as CEO on Feb. 1, has said he will focus on revitalizing sales and reviving the retailer's underperforming shares.