I think I'm in over my head....

[knittnkitten]

yup, sounds like marketing to me. a whole bunch of buzzwords and nothing gets done.

[K2!]

And I did find out that I am NOT paid for morning meetings OR conference calls, and they were trying to spin it like "if you make your sales goals, you're essentially making $20 an hour for your 8 hour shift." Then the hour you're in a meeting only bumps that down to $17 an hour, which is "still really good money to be standing around selling these products" They get away with not paying you for them, by saying they're not actually mandatory. However, they essentially write you off or "filter you out" for not showing up, because you "just don't have the right attitude for this field"

I don't know what state you're in but the not being paid for mandatory (whether they say it or not) meetings/conference calls before and/or after your regular work shift sounds just plain illegal.

http://www.billhornlaw.com/PracticeArea ... ations.asp

Start looking for something else ASAP and bail on this hole.

[OkamiKodomo]

State of Florida; it's a Right to Work state, which means the employers don't really have to have a reason to fire you. They seem to exploit the loopholes, because they're not actually firing you for not showing up. They're firing you because you're "not a good fit for their company". And because their training program moves so fast, they weed out folks who don't make the grade before they can gain the benefit of unemployment.

Funny thing.... they talk about people who have been working for the company for 2 years, and make it sound like they've been around for decades. Yet there's no mention of people who've been there for actual decades.

EDIT: Aaand I think I just got my biggest red flag. I asked what the numbers were for my shift, and the whole day, so I could know how much money I made today. My trainer said "Don't worry about the numbers. You don't need to worry about those yet."

[Geektopian]

Even in a Right to Work state, they have to pay you if you're required to be at work. Unless you're salaried or a contract employee, in which case you should be seeing a more or less regular paycheck anyway. Requiring you to work "off the clock" without some previously agreed upon salary is most likely illegal in any state and probably violates some federal laws as well. I've been in business myself and my wife is a manager now and based on what you've said here, both of us felt something was seriously amiss with this company.

I know the economy is shit right now and real unemployment is much higher than what the Bureau of Labor Statistics is reporting but this place sounds like a dirtbag operation. I hate to say it but you need to bail out now.

[OkamiKodomo]

My fiance said I might be a contract employee after all, because my pay is a guaranteed base pay. I'm so confused, and that's what's most frustrating... and I'm really beginning to wonder if they keep things ambiguous intentionally. But I'm going to have to stick it out until I do find something else.

[Kirahfaye]

Red flags aside (and there are a supertanker load of them so far) is this a place you think you will actually enjoy working? Is the environment one that benefits you personally as well as professionally? Do you see yourself working there, and enjoying it, 2 years from now? How about 5 years? Ten? Are you being made to feel part of the team or more like the water boy - someone they have use for but of little consideration?

You can leave now and have no derogatory issues other than being without a paycheck until you find a better job. You wouldn't even need to add this job to your next employment application.

[OkamiKodomo]

Unfortunately, all the forms are filled out, so I wouldn't get my unemployment anymore if I were to quit, and commission-wise, it's not enough to pay the bills anymore. I'm just trying to keep it together until I CAN find something else. But half the crap that I have issues with are things that were either not told to me during my interviews, or I was told something completely different. The job was listed on career builder as retail, not sales. I've tried to stay clear of "sales" jobs because I'm not a pushy person. I don't want a job where they want me on call 24/7, I want to work my shift, and go home, and not have to deal with them til I go in again the next day, so this is definitely not where I belong. None of this "lifestyle" nonsense or bits about "voluntary but really mandatory meetings and conference calls" was mentioned until I was already signed up.

And the trainers are a friggin mess! Neither of them are on the same page, and they keep telling me different things! One says "it's fine to have drinks so long as they're kept under the table" the other says "you can't have anything but a water bottle, and it has to have a lid" One says my sales pitch is great, the other says it isn't. One says to go with the flow, the other first says it has to be scripted, but then says you'll find what works for you. I was told at my interview, I'd be able to have a flexible schedule, and my days off be consecutive. The trainer that does the scheduling said I can't have that. I know all this sounds like bitching, and yeah, a lot of it is. But I'm so gosh darn frustrated right now I could cry. And then I got outright accused of lying today, because I wore a shirt that isn't all white. My white shirt (I only own ONE for crying out loud, because I wasn't told until the day before I had to be on the sales floor that I had to wear a white shirt) got coffee dumped on it from my damn dog yanking on the leash while I was walking him and drinking my coffee.

The stupid conference call I was on last night was nation-wide, for all the branches of the company, and of the team of 20 people in my division, only 2 were there: myself, and one of my trainers. As I saw in a webcomic one time, I feel like a high-functioning retard on his first day at the cash register.

Ok, I think I'm done. This topic can be locked or whatever. I'll just have to deal with the baloney until I can find something else. Thanks for all your support and advice gang.

[Swan]

OMG you make what *I* sell! Seriously. I work for a company that answers the phones for televisions advertisements!! We answer the phone for such products as:

Montel HealthMaster, P90-X 10, Minute Trainer, Slushy Magic, Sham-Wow, Sensa, Snuggli, Pillow Pets,
Dream Lite, Colonial Penn Insurance, Joan Rivers Good Hair Day, Grey Defence, Diabetes Club, Kevin Trudeau, Body Shaper, Internet Millionaire, Rich Dad - Poor Dad, Your Baby Can Read, Genie Bra, DogPedic, Orgreenic, Food Lovers Fat Loss System, SuperBeta Prostate, Wen Healthy Haircare, Ageless Male, Comfortisse Bra, Jack LaLanne Juicer, Allstate, AAA, Bark Off and many many MANY MANY more!

TRUST me, selling that stuff is a *RACKET* !!!!! I hired onto the company (LiveOps) four years ago and I THOUGHT I was getting a job like customer service or answering the phone for people making appointments (reception and such) and BROTHER was I WRONG! 90% of these companies practise deceptive advertising, they mislead, misrepresent, shade the truth and downright LIE. Television sales is HUGE because it preys on the "Buy one get one" "Oh this is affordable!" Call now *now* NOW!!! mentality.

Let me give you an insider's tip.
"Buy one get one absolutely FREE" means No WAY! Look at the SHIPPING and HANDLING!. It'll be twice what the product is WORTH For example, the Ronco Knives, which we sell - Buy one set for $29.95 get the second set free - the TWO sets WILL cost you $89.95! Why? Shipping and handling for eACH set is over $21 dollars!! So add a good $40 bucks to that price before tax!

InStyler! Get TWO for $14.95! No... the $14.95 os the TRIAL FEE and after that you pay $39.95 THREE TIMES PLUS $19.95 shipping and handling for EACH one! Do the math and it's just a teeeeeeny bit MORE than $14.95 (like, say $174.70... BEFORE TAXES)

And that isn't counting the "upsells" Get the Instyler with the "rapid pro heat" upgrade and it adds to the unit cost! Then there's the hair care stuff that you supposedly get "free" ... it's a continuity. You end up getting the stuff sent to you EVERY MONTH and they take so much out of your card "automatically"

Meaningful Beauty. 30 day supply for $39.95 with free shipping. Sounds GREAT until you find that it's a "Club Introductory" and you'll be sent the stuff FOREVER! True the pricing is great and it is a good product, but there are a lot of products out there that AREN'T. Empress Re-Gro for one. Men's Hair Club for another.

"Be the first to call! The first 100 callers wil get...." Actually that is ONLY to get you to call in FAST, before common sense sets in! On some of these ads (BodyShaper and Curve Control Jeans) We've been working on the "First 1000 callers" since 2007!! We take in thousands of callers EVERY DAY but still haven't met the first thousand goal? I don't THINK so!!

"You've won a Free 2 Day Bahama Cruise!" er... no. You've won nothing. You pay for your transportation THERE, then port fees, then use fees for EVERYTHING on the boat and you get crap accommodations. Whole thing could end up setting you back $10,000. And SERIOUSLY! Two DAYS?!!

"You can get a FREE $50 gift card voucher to Wal-Mart!" NO. RUN!! That is a flat out RIP-OFF! You will NOT get the card before they hit YOUR card for a zilion dollars! Those companies (same spiel each one) include ValuePlus, Savings2Go, ShoppingEssentials, Ticket2Fun, Free Rewards Plus, and a hundred more. They have too many hoops to jump through to "claim your reward" and time runs out before your "gift card" gets there. "30 day free trial" does NOT start when their mailer reaches you! It STARTS the INSTANT you say "Yes" and give them your credit card number! The PACKAGE arrives two weeks later, half way INTO your "Free Trial"

Here's the best tip of all! Never. *Ever* *EVER* call from a TV ad! Ever. Go to an "as seen on TV" store or website. You get the same (shoddy) item for a LOT LESS and you won't get your card charged over and over and over and......
Will I lose my JOB for naming the companies? I could. And it would be the BEST THING that ever HAPPENED to me!!

They tell us NOT to quote prices to the customers on the phone, but to get them off the line WITHOUT telling you what you actually SPENT. I don't do that. I TELL my caller! I lose more sales that way but at least I KNOW I've done the right thing in a crooked industry. I TELL my callers the risks and I point out the shipping and handling totals BEFORE they hit the last page of the script! I try to minimize the damage as best I can and I am looking to get OUT of this game.

Trust me, I'm looking for HONEST work!

Swan

[DollyKim]

Don't these industries survive because of the demand and general ignorance of the buyers? Outside of compulsive shoppers/hoarders who have to buy everything anyone without special needs who can't put a blanket on is an idiot.

[knittnkitten]

oh, my brother worked for the same company!! he didn't end up staying too long at least.