Hey, y'all!

Posted: Sat Jul 05, 2003 6:31 am Post subject: Hey, y'all!

Ho hum, I guees I'm the 1st one here.....

Hello fellow bleeders. Keep it Orange!!

Posted: Sat Jul 05, 2003 12:40 pm Post subject:

IBIAD, since you are all alone for now, first I would like to welcome you and second I would like to take this opportunity to find out a little info on HD. I've read many, many, strange stories concerning HD's indocrinations and training seminars! Can you share the lowdown on how it really is?

How does it feel to bleed orange? Very Happy

Joined: 04 Jul 2003 Posts: 916 Location: roaming...

Many ex-Sears Appliance (BC) associates have gone to Home Depot. How are your staff responding to this surge in Sears-transfer?

Joined: 05 Jul 2003 Posts: 7

Looks like I am number 4 . glad this board is back up

Posted: Sun Jul 06, 2003 12:50 am Post subject:

Licatsplit,
As far as indoctrinations, I can't comment too much without specifics. I do know they have been shoving the NEW way down our friggen throats. Six Sigma (which is a huge new program on business strategies and production efficiencies) is at work at the upper levels but I don't know how much of an effect it has directly in the stores and the sales floor. This could be what you've heard about. From what I've heard, it's long and arduous to get to the upper levels (Black Belt). As far as training, yeah, they send people off to get it on particular stuff like plumbing, Garden, Appliances, Hardware, but it's pretty much the same as it's always been. No brainwashing involved, lol.
Kanaka,
I haven't any come over from Sears at my store. We've gotten some from Circuit City and they were pretty much accepted w/ open arms.[/i]

Joined: 06 Jul 2003 Posts: 3

Ibleedinalldept,
I posted my 1st just a few days before the site went down! I asked for the kitchen design position and the manager made an offer. Not sure if I agreed with the figure.
What is this position getting per hour in your store?
Thanks for the previous advise to all that responded.
50gef

Posted: Mon Jul 07, 2003 12:43 am Post subject:

50gef,
How much are you you making and what did they give you? Any extra increase is good, right? If you have experience in this area like installing or designing, you should be compensated quite well. Anybody selling $30,000 kitchens should be. If you're not experienced, you're still in a dept that has a very high payscale cap. Goodluck!

Joined: 06 Jul 2003 Posts: 3

Ibleedinalldept,
This is a new part time job for me,
My experience has not been proven to management yet.
10 an hour, is this week?
What would be the upper limit that I have to work for?

50gef

Joined: 04 Jul 2003 Posts: 916 Location: roaming...

Wow!
Have you had any experience in that dept. before?

Posted: Mon Jul 07, 2003 3:07 am Post subject:

$10 bucks would be weak for where I'm at (SoCal). It all depends on your local cost of living. An experienced Kitchen Designer making $25/hr here is not unheard of. It could be much lower for your locale. Have your ASM/DH to establish a game plan for you and have it put into your file so that when you come up for review, you can argue that you've accomplished your goals and make sure you point out other accomplishments if there are any. This will be your basis to draw off of for a pay increase.

Joined: 05 Jul 2003 Posts: 7

Wow that is good money for the few people that I saw in the Design center. I have installed and designed before wish I would have asked for that Dept.

Before I started there I install HD cabinets and all I can say if they cannot read a tape they should not be designing cabinets.

I think $10.00 is standard pay no matter if you know something or not.

50gef, where are you from, state?

Posted: Mon Jul 07, 2003 5:50 pm Post subject:

hi...i work at sears, and a home depot manager offered me 16-18 dolars an hour to start...is this the right pay for appliances?

Posted: Mon Jul 07, 2003 11:47 pm Post subject:

YES! Don't take if you're making more at Sears, though. They need to beat what you're making there. If they really want you to come over they will. Hold for $18 and make them stick to it. Comfirm the pay w/ both the store manager AND the HR. That way you have two solid numbers.

Joined: 05 Jul 2003 Posts: 7

Was wondering what the pay scale is at a southern California HD in the electrical department for someone that hold a contractors license?

Thanks

Posted: Sat Jul 12, 2003 10:49 am Post subject:

Seeing that the license is easily obtainble anyway, you can't get much of pay anyway unless the manager doesn't know any better. Can you prove that you KNOW electrical??? It would help. If so, don't hold out for anything less than 12-13 bucks. Good luck. Wink

Joined: 05 Jul 2003 Posts: 7

Not only can I prove that I know electrical but I will put out an open challange that I know more about most of the Departments than the managment.

I will openly challange any manager or DH that I have a better PK than they do and will go head to head with them.

Also how does an HR person hire someone based on knowledge when the know zero about the product. Thats the problem with HD.

How would you like your doctor hired to work at a hospital based on an interview with a Building Contractor?

When I win I recieve top pay(cap) and f/t hours as a reward.

ALso getting a license is not as easy as you may think.

I visited a HD the other day and was asked to help a customer because the DH knows what my knowledge is. And I do not even work there.

Joined: 05 Jul 2003 Posts: 7

..........

Posted: Sun Jul 13, 2003 8:41 pm Post subject:

Most people no more (at least they used to) of all the depts than the management does. Managers jobs aren't based on PK but on running a business as well as managing people.

Sometimes an HR will have someone of knowledge sit in on an interview to see if the applicant is BS'ing. Their prior work history will also reveal a lot if the HR does the proper background checks.

A Contractors License is easily obtainable here in California. I don't know about elsewhere.....

Joined: 05 Jul 2003 Posts: 7

A Contractors License here in California is not that easy to obtain?
Do you have one?

If you are going for a trade like painting, yes. General no.

Anyway the HR that I met with knows nothinbg and never even walks the store.

And I must disagree with you on two points:

A manager must not only have PK knowledge but must be able to manage and run a dept as a business, that is why they are in managment.

A lot of us are also customers and know that 90% of the associates are hard working but know nothing.

To really be of help to a customer you must know how an item works and what are the applications. I was told if I did not know something read the box and fake it.

Well thats a great idea. Now you have two people that know nothing, the customer and associate. Now this normally leads to finding a manager that does not know the answer which now you are forming a parade to find someone who knows.

I flat out asked my DH about a product and was told that they did not really have the PK knowledge on that item, go find so and so and ask them.

Now we know everyone is not an expert as I am not by any means but I could take a customer around the store and be able to answer all the questions needed to complete the project.

Posted: Mon Jul 14, 2003 5:50 am Post subject:

I guess I'm wrong. I know it used to easy to get a license.

Our HR never walks the store either. Only when giving the tour. You would think they would make it a point to reach out to the people that work there and not alienate them at least once a week. Even if it is for only ten minutes. Oh, but I forgot. Their only in place to cover the management's and company's ass. Rolling Eyes

Actually, it would be HELPFUL if the DH had some product knowledge in his/her own dept but not really necessary. That's where the experts do come in. To train those who aren't experts. If the DH isn't administrating this this to happen, then they aren't doing their job. A sku is a sku. It can give you all the history and info you need for a given product. If the product is merchandised right, in stock and the people w/ the right pk to push it and the thousands of other products in the dept., the team, DH, store, company will be successful.

Joined: 29 Jul 2003 Posts: 2

Hey y'all,

It's the new name for MoonedbyHD ... remember, I'm the female associate who had to deal with three pervs and finally walked out after dealing with the ignorance and hostility of most of my co-workers? Thought I'd pay a visit after taking time to lick my wounds.

I love the new look of the forum now! What happened to the old one?

Does anyone hear from Ex anymore? I remember several of you IBleed, Ex, Kathy, and others being so supportive while I was going through all my stuff at HD. I remember that Ex's mom had by-pass surgery and was recovering about the time my life got really busy with a new job and college classes. I was wondering how her mom is now.

Just for the record ... I worked at the Hoover Home Depot in Alabama on Galleria Circle near the Riverchase Galleria. I DARE HD to come after me since I do NOT work for them anymore ... and since I DID talk to three attorneys, one of whom (in a large Birmingham law firm that deals almost solely with sexual harassment) made a follow-up call to me last week ... and since I DID go to the EEOC and found that if I had only talked to them three months prior, I could have sued HD for the way they handled my situation with Mike the first perv. I DID meet with Joe, the district Human Resources Manager over 26 stores. Robin, an HRM in this district, sat in on my discussion with Joe. I know for a fact that, a few weeks after my meeting with Joe, Debra in Phone Sales lied to someone for about an hour on the phone that she kept calling "Bill" and told that person that I was looney, that I was a habitual liar (it is known across the whole store by everyone that SHE is daft and is a habitual liar). She also told them that I asked for what I got because I was "always working with all those men" ... and I was supposedly "always flirting with the men." The only places a female can work in the store with only/mostly women is behind the cash register, at Special Services, Phone Sales and in the computer room. HD solicited MY employment (Johnny S. did) because of my knowledge about plants, so ... Wow!!! Where do ya think they would want me to work? Behind the cash register? Duhhh... I don't think so. Plant people usually work in Outside GARDEN. (Somebody in management obviously put Debra up to this to cover HIS own behind ... ) You tell one lie and you have to tell more lies to cover up the first lie or ya have to get others to tell more lies FOR ya. Ahhh ... but I still have the yellow copy of the performance sheet on which Mark the HRM at the time "documented" in HIS HANDWRITING his punitive, threatening conversation with me. I can PROVE what management did to ME! I am a conservative Christian lady and behaved/still do behave as such ... I also dressed as such, so ... go figure. There are a few people in (those few with standards and character) who would vouch for my appearance AND my behavior. Apparently, Mike the perv in Outside Garden, who is NOW the Department Head (and I KNEW that would happen after I walked out), has duped GSM Tom, and everybody else at the store and in the district. Mike's like most pervs ... he could charm the scales right off a snake ... and they don't have sense enough to see through his Bill Clinton charm and lies.

One of the vendors that I deal with now in my nursery business told me Mike is not department head material. Mike pulled off thousands of dead or dying plants and never wrote them in the Mark Down book. He was largely responsible for our shrink being so high in Outside Garden in 2002. But Tom "likes" him. Give both Mike and Tom enough rope and they'll hang themselves. Tom and his ASM "boys" will be the ones to suffer. Tom's best ASM Jeff went back to Eastwood (The Carnival). I wonder what happened there. Jeff has character and class and didn't belong at the Hoover store anyway.

I was raised to know the difference between right and wrong and was taught to never sacrifice my integrity for ANY reason. I live and I'll die by that principle. The Hoover boneheads can believe what they will. Opinions are like noses anyway -- everybody has one and they're all different -- and some could use a LOT of work!

In spite of it all, I finally have my second wind and my confidence back. Kinda funny, too. My temporary assignment in HR at my local college ended and I'm looking for work now. I interviewed with the local Alabama Career Center to begin my job search and my interviewer told me to sign up for Unemployment. Guess who's paying my Unemployment Compensation while I CAREFULLY search for an employer this time??!! That right! Home Depot! Gimme an "H!" Gimme an "O!" ... Gimme an ... and on and on. Very Happy

Y'all all hang in there. Try not to bash me too hard for this post. The wounds are still deep.

Something is very messed up at the Hoover store. Here's to hoping that your stores are better places.

Yup, I'm still long-winded. But ya gotta remember. It's been a long time since I've visited.

Cool

Joined: 29 Jul 2003 Posts: 2

Hey y'all,

It's the new name for MoonedbyHD ... remember, I'm the female associate who had to deal with three pervs and finally walked out after dealing with the ignorance and hostility of most of my co-workers? Thought I'd pay a visit after taking time to lick my wounds.

I love the new look of the forum now! What happened to the old one?

Does anyone hear from Ex anymore? I remember several of you IBleed, Ex, Kathy, and others being so supportive while I was going through all my stuff at HD. I remember that Ex's mom had by-pass surgery and was recovering about the time my life got really busy with a new job and college classes. I was wondering how her mom is now.

Just for the record ... I worked at the Hoover Home Depot in Alabama on Galleria Circle near the Riverchase Galleria. I DARE HD to come after me since I do NOT work for them anymore ... and since I DID talk to three attorneys, one of whom (in a large Birmingham law firm that deals almost solely with sexual harassment) made a follow-up call to me last week ... and since I DID go to the EEOC and found that if I had only talked to them three months prior, I could have sued HD for the way they handled my situation with Mike the first perv. I DID meet with Joe, the district Human Resources Manager over 26 stores. Robin, an HRM in this district, sat in on my discussion with Joe. I know for a fact that, a few weeks after my meeting with Joe, Debra in Phone Sales lied to someone for about an hour on the phone that she kept calling "Bill" and told that person that I was looney, that I was a habitual liar (it is known across the whole store by everyone that SHE is daft and is a habitual liar). She also told them that I asked for what I got because I was "always working with all those men" ... and I was supposedly "always flirting with the men." The only places a female can work in the store with only/mostly women is behind the cash register, at Special Services, Phone Sales and in the computer room. HD solicited MY employment (Johnny S. did) because of my knowledge about plants, so ... Wow!!! Where do ya think they would want me to work? Behind the cash register? Duhhh... I don't think so. Plant people usually work in Outside GARDEN. (Somebody in management obviously put Debra up to this to cover HIS own behind ... ) You tell one lie and you have to tell more lies to cover up the first lie or ya have to get others to tell more lies FOR ya. Ahhh ... but I still have the yellow copy of the performance sheet on which Mark the HRM at the time "documented" in HIS HANDWRITING his punitive, threatening conversation with me. I can PROVE what management did to ME! I am a conservative Christian lady and behaved/still do behave as such ... I also dressed as such, so ... go figure. There are a few people in (those few with standards and character) who would vouch for my appearance AND my behavior. Apparently, Mike the perv in Outside Garden, who is NOW the Department Head (and I KNEW that would happen after I walked out), has duped GSM Tom, and everybody else at the store and in the district. Mike's like most pervs ... he could charm the scales right off a snake ... and they don't have sense enough to see through his Bill Clinton charm and lies.

One of the vendors that I deal with now in my nursery business told me Mike is not department head material. Mike pulled off thousands of dead or dying plants and never wrote them in the Mark Down book. He was largely responsible for our shrink being so high in Outside Garden in 2002. But Tom "likes" him. Give both Mike and Tom enough rope and they'll hang themselves. Tom and his ASM "boys" will be the ones to suffer. Tom's best ASM Jeff went back to Eastwood (The Carnival). I wonder what happened there. Jeff has character and class and didn't belong at the Hoover store anyway.

I was raised to know the difference between right and wrong and was taught to never sacrifice my integrity for ANY reason. I live and I'll die by that principle. The Hoover boneheads can believe what they will. Opinions are like noses anyway -- everybody has one and they're all different -- and some could use a LOT of work!

In spite of it all, I finally have my second wind and my confidence back. Kinda funny, too. My temporary assignment in HR at my local college ended and I'm looking for work now. I interviewed with the local Alabama Career Center to begin my job search and my interviewer told me to sign up for Unemployment. Guess who's paying my Unemployment Compensation while I CAREFULLY search for an employer this time??!! That right! Home Depot! Gimme an "H!" Gimme an "O!" ... Gimme an ... and on and on. Very Happy

Y'all all hang in there. Try not to bash me too hard for this post. The wounds are still deep.

Something is very messed up at the Hoover store. Here's to hoping that your stores are better places.

Yup, I'm still long-winded. But ya gotta remember. It's been a long time since I've visited.

Cool

Joined: 03 Aug 2003 Posts: 5 Location: Illinois, USA

I will openly challange any manager or DH that I have a better PK than they do and will go head to head with them.

I won't waste my time with that. Neither of my managers knows dick about tools. They get all defensive about it and say things like "I don't have to know all about tools to run 'my people'." What a crock o' caca! She's run off more associates than the thief - I'm sorry, the aggressive customer helper - who will say and do nearly anything to get a sale.

My whole store comes to me when they have questions about tools. If I don't know it off the top of my head, I can usually have a pretty quick answer because I'm willing to look AND I know where to look.

When I win I recieve top pay(cap) and f/t hours as a reward.

What's the pay cap? I keep hearing about this here, but never a word of it in store.

I was 24/7 available for years and never got f/t. I can't even get regular part time hours, I guess because I'm so openly available.

I visited a HD the other day and was asked to help a customer because the DH knows what my knowledge is. And I do not even work there.[/quote]

I can't do that yet. The nearest HD is 90 miles away. They may have the floor poured by now on the one they're building in Bettendorf, but I doubt it. They had most of the steel up a week ago Saturday.

Word has it they're shooting for a November opening. I don't know whether Sears is planning to show us any more respect or any more money when they open, but there are a lot of people wanting to find out.

Does anyone have a timeline on when Tool Territory is to roll out in all stores? I first heard about it in early '99, and I've been waiting. I'd like to lose the commission part of the department, not because I don't want to be rewarded for my efforts, but because I'm tired of other people being rewarded for my efforts.

Someone said here that commissioned sales makes animals out of some people. It's true, but some of us refuse to lower our standards of behavior to make a buck.

I'm raising children to be ethical individuals. Lowering my standards would mock what I'm teaching and make me a liar in their eyes.

I was physically pushed out of the way by another associate who was on her way to steal a sale from me. 9A vs. 9B issue. If it had a plug and a motor, she wasn't supposed to sell it. In hindsight, I learned what to do if it should ever happen again.