Thread regarding Sears layoffs

At one time we would have several college students working at Sears, now all we seem to hitre are high school students,with limited availability and put them into all departments,in HI this happened and the person was there for about six months before Human Resources said they were too young to work in HI so they are moving him into appliances on commission. How it took over six months to find out a minor was working in this department is beyong me,such incompetent on Sears part.

I have worked for Wal-mart, Kmart and Sears. All retail has problems with hard work and putting up with B.S. but Wal-Mart gives raises and bonuses. When I worked for Wal-Mart I received a .10 raise within a month, another raise of .50 within 6 months and as I did training I was qualified to apply for other jobs in the store. When I finally left, (I went to school) I was making 13.50 per hour (this was in the mid- 2000's. We also received bonuses for the store doing well i.e. low theft, high sales, customer service etc. I made at least another $1000 per year with bonuses.

KMart/Sears-- no raises for the five years I was there, no incentive to do training except management yelling to do training. Most of the training had nothing to do with my job (I took forklift training, which took 4 hours to complete) I'm a cashier. I did not get paid for the four hour orientation I was required to take.

When I did get raise it was because I took a pantry lead position (which was eliminated within three months). But with the minimum wage going up in our state I was making the same as a new person walking in the door. We were also required to sign a form stating that even though the minimum wage was increasing the pay for long time employees would not go up the same.

So after five years of no raises, never missing a day of work, never complaining and doing my job. I was making as much as the kid who calls in every other day, spends most of his day walking around talking to other people, and has been written up numerous times for various violations. Not an incentive to stay or to even do a good job.

So I'm back to wal-mart while I finish my masters degree and move on with life.

Yes they are full of it when it comes to raised. They hide behind this BS called a lateral move which is complete horse s---. Recently at my store a cashier was hired had 11.50 a hour. I'm receiving lead and make 0.45 less than a cashier. Talk about a joke. In my area the median for a person in my position is 15.00 a hour. They want all this work from me and when they get to talking about me and my job performance I shut them down every time with pay me more money or you get what you pay for. SHC hate employees that stand up for themselves and call them out on the dumb things they come up with. Lord willing things work out for me I can't get out this company fast enough.

@N7WUsEy-1osb Sears doesn't give raises their was a CAC lead that was their for a good 3 years minimum wage was going up was catching up to his pay $10 (yes a lead making $10) as soon as minimum caught up (this is CA) his wage didn't go up. He talked to the store manager and said he couldn't do nothing. That is straight up b---s--- because recently a girl took a lead position, but before that discuss a pay increase at first they told her no. Than I guess she pushed it because she said I won't take the position and she ended up getting a pay increase this happen in early 2017. So it is possible to get pay increases, but its the store manager and I know he is bias has his favorites.

Well you are right on Hobby Lobby. It says they pay their full time around $15/hour which is wonderful. Part time I think are paid around $9/hour from what I read. They said they are the exception paying very well.

"Wow! I haven't seen those retail jobs yet with $15 per hour 40 hours a week. Sounds like a good opportunity!"

I live in a booming area (Denver Co) so it may not be so great in other parts of the country. But Hobby Lobby has signs up in the stores for $15 full time with benefits jobs. And they are closed on Sunday. There are signs up for retail jobs everywhere here. Walmart starts at $11 an hour. And they keep building stores so there is opportunity for advancement.

No I was saying when I first started in corporate, I worked a part time job too on the weekend. I couldn't do that until I got to corporate as when you work in the stores even back then as a sales manager, you have no idea what your schedule is going to be. I am just saying back then the entry level jobs in corporate weren't high enough paying to just do one if you lived by yourself. You had to have supplemental income even in corporate back then.

There really aren't that many positions to move up TO. At my store the leads are filled by long term employees. Folks that have worked @ Sears since HS. Same for the 2 ASMs and the Operations manager.

Eight years???? I haven't been with Sears that long & I knew we didn't get raises but I didn't know this has been going on for 8 years. I feel bad for the older people that worked their way up from minimum wage over the years to ... what the newly hired teens are making ... because of the minimum wage increase in my state. I blame SHC, not the state.

To the person below that held 2 jobs before going to corporate, this isn't teaching or social work where you may have a calling. It's a corporate job where you are pressed hard to make money for the company. Very different.

In education the superintendent of the schools may make 4 or 5 times as much as a new teacher but if that teacher stays, he or she will make 1/2 OR a little more that 1/2 of the superintendent's pay. The superintendent is usually the highest paid position.

If I stay at Sears, I can't even do the math to get to how many times my pay would need to multiply to get to any one of the C-level executives pay.

Yes I do work for SHC. I had no idea there was a wage freeze for 8 years in the stores. Is there an opportunity to move up as that would probably warrant a raise. I know we don't get raises if we stay in the same job, but if we are promoted then there is the possibility for a raise.

@N7WUsEy-1osb there has been a wage freeze in place at least at the store level for eight years. Do you even work for SHC?

I don't know that there are many full time jobs out there in retail. I know even when I first came into corporate with a full time job, I had more than one job. I worked a second job for many years on Saturdays/Sundays to make extra money.

Did you ever ask your store manager why you don't deserve a raise? Just straight out asked?

@N7WUsEy-unh Exactly you get what you pay for Sears! Theirs a reason why they are failing because they arent willing to pay for the better workers. I know this manager that once said everyone is replaceable and I agreed with her, but the only thing I would say is everyone is indeed replaceable, but what if its one of the good ones, one of the most efficient especially a veteran that basically knows the processes leaves than you will get a new one that might just go through the training, might stick around a little longer but not that long, or might just not come after he/she got hired. Course maybe one will stay, but how long is it going to take to have that person learn all the processes efficiently when their is no hours lol...

I love how Sears makes it seem like your applying to a high tier job. When I applied they made me get a drug test like really lol. You make them get a drug test or a background test yet their pays stays the same. Not even the best employees can get a raise thats why people don't stick in Sears. I get no motivation so it goes down if you don't value your hard workers they will leave for a better paying job. What sickens me more is if you have another job they hate it I mean maybe if you guys paid better and I can become a full time I might not need a second income to survive?

Been their 4 and half years not a single raise (other than the government increasing the minimum). Or and when a manager gets on me and they really get to me I just respond by.

"minimum wage minimum effort"

I can do more, but I only get paid minimum so ya I will just do the bare minimum.

Agree if you get raises and bonuses..,.it didnt sound good from their the layoff post either. I have never worked there.

iom-- At least at Wal-Mart you get raises and bonuses for doing a good job. That makes a huge difference.

What's worse is adding new positions, area supervisors, and plopping anyone in them and giving them extra money to just walk around and do what they want. Have no clue how to work with people and the ones who bust their rumps get nothing...

So read the the Layoff for Walmart. It's interesting. It seems they struggle with many of the same things we do as a company.

In my area Walmart pays cart attendants $12 an hour starting off. Minimum wage is 7.25 and it doesn't seem like they struggle with hours either. My company brings cashiers in at 10.50 per hour and pay for credits the same way that Sears does.

Wow! I haven't seen those retail jobs yet with $15 per hour 40 hours a week. Sounds like a good opportunity!

It's not only the minumum wage payment that keeps people away it is also the lack of hours, lack of raises or any type of advancement and lots of crazy rules to follow. Drug test are only done in the more affluent areas man stores in urban areas don;t do the drug test. Seems kind of racist to me.

Minimum wage jobs. 15 hours a week. Quotas and pressure for SYW, PA's e.t.c.. No raises. No possibility for real advancement. The certainty of being laid off and out on the job market again in a few months to a year or two at most. Having a potential future is part of the overall compensation aspect of a job. The mystery here is how SHC keeps anybody on the payroll. I see retailers begging for help at $15 an hour pay, full time (40 hours) with benefits.

I remember hiring in 1994 for the stores for part time jobs, and it was difficult back then paying minimum wage, so I am sure it is hard today too. Have you tried to recruit at the local high schools?

They get what they are willing to pay for. Cant expect the maximum out of ppl if you are only going to pay minimum wage. Doing those drug and background checks are useless since most ppl who are very qualified over want to work there either short term or a second income.

"positions we hired for are minimum wage and average less than 15 hours a week. So, maybe, the bottom of the barrel is all we will get?"

You just nailed it with that statement -- what did ya expect... an Oxford grad

Think about it. Minimum wage and no chance of ever getting a raise. It used to be that fast food was the bottom of the pay scale but they pay more than that now. So they are basically getting people who are too stupid or lazy to work at McDonald's. It doesn't seem that they even try to hire semi-qualified people anymore.

When it's comes to working for Sears/Kmart it is a complete joke. You can have years of work experience and still get "offered" minimum wage. Like you said the getting a raise aspect is complete mind boggling. They want to "promote" you but can't compensate you accordingly. People that they hire quickly realize that it's not an ideal workplace and see that the pay don't equal the work.

Sears treat people like trash and pay them minimum wage and cut hours or benefits don't be surprised by what you get.

Is Sears still using the point system for attendance? In our store they haven't enforced it in over a year. They don't even enforce no shows. If someone doesn't feel like working on any particular day they just don't show up. If and when they do show up on another day nobody says anything to them about it. The district recruiter told me Sears is so desperate will hire anyone who can breathe.

When you have Target and Wal-Mart paying 10.00 an hour, and all you can offer is minimum wage, and the promise that you will never see a raise, this is the kind of people that you will have.

Sounds like sears is pounding you in the rump!!!