Being Laid Off.....But Wish to Approach the Media

Nafe92014

Good evening TE,

I have just received word yesterday that I will be laid off from my current position at Geek Squad on the 17th. He told me the reason is that he doesn't have enough hours to keep me on but he said he'll call me should they need help. However, when I went to work this morning to check my schedule, I saw that the following week after my termination, he has another person in my place. I was beyond pissed! The other fellow that he "hired" into my position works in merchandise and he doesnt have his A+ or any IT experience. Now I haven't approached my manager regarding this concern, but is it right for me to approach the media regarding dishonesty of a manager to his employee? To me, this is unacceptable. I can't believe my own GM who i trusted would lie to me and hire someone else with 0 experience.

lsud00d

I can tell you're pretty perturbed by the situation but unfortunately this is nothing newsworthy and is probably more common than you think. I'm not sure of the laws in Canada regarding employment but if you feel like taking it to the next step I would look into that first.

But, I recommend taking this as a life lesson. You don't know the reasoning behind what has happened and there's no point in expending any further negative energy on the situation. Freshen up your resume and prove them wrong by getting an even better and higher paying job!

alias454

I wouldn't bother. A dishonest person in management isn't really newsworthy. You should look at this as a blessing in disguise. It may be hard to see it now but he may have done you a favor.

Nafe92014

Done me a favor? I was actually hoping to stay there until i got back to tech college in September. Now it seems like I gotta apply for EI again...:/. Oh, and btw, FutureShop has a "policy" that we can't use our supervisors as references.

MeanDrunkR2D2

I think you are just feeding into your own frustrations and anger at this point. While it would be nice to keep gaining some kind of experience, this isn't the type that will really prepare you for a future working in IT. I'm sure he has his reasons for letting you go and maybe was trying to be nice to you about why he was letting you go and didn't want to upset you further. It is after the holidays and for them I'm sure the store will be less busy and maybe they are paying this new guy with no experience less money or maybe they didn't like your attitude. Take it as a learning experience and if you are serious about IT, I'd start looking for any Tier 1 helpdesk to start working towards your long term goals. Now, you say you are going back to college in September, I'm sure that you can find any job to work in the meantime if you need the money.

Brush this aside and look long term and in a few years you will look back and wonder why the heck they got you so upset.

As far as reaching out to the media? That's a non-story on their part and it won't get you what you want, which is your job back. And should they run the story, and a company looks into your history in the future, they'll see this and think they have a head case or drama on their hands and will quietly pass you by. Just let it go. Geek Squad isn't a job that is highly looked upon by the professional IT industry.

alias454

Do they give you extra money for being a "displaced worker" for school that is or is school in Canada like in the UK where everyone goes if they want?

Nafe92014

You guys are right. I am hoping to getting some Tier 1 Help Desk experience at my local hospital if theyre hiring again. @alias454, I believe my final paycheque will have the extra "thanks for helping us out" amount included. . I guess in the mean time, I will look for other work, and focus on my Cisco studies.

BradleyHU

alias454 wrote: »

I wouldn't bother. A dishonest person in management isn't really newsworthy. You should look at this as a blessing in disguise. It may be hard to see it now but he may have done you a favor.

exactly!!! he's definitely doing him a favor. That place sucks anyways, and they're struggling, especially with Amazon, NewEgg and other online retailers taking away sales, and not having to deal with the pesky sales reps trying to get you to get a PSP plan attached to your purchase.

Bchen22

I think its good
Geek Squad is not something you wanna really make a career out of.
Low pay and consistent weekend work no thanks.
Office jobs and School jobs are are better.
And the way you explain it I be way better off not workin for a manager that treats me like a toy picks it up whenever he feels like it
You have tech experience now find another job:)
good luck buddy and dont be discouraged:)

N2IT

I'm not going to tell you what or what you shouldn't do. I would find an attorney in your area and speak to them about wrongful termination. No one on here knows the laws as well as an attorney. See if you can score a free visit and explain your situation. You'll all the information you need from that conversation IMO.

Nafe92014

thanks for all of the feedback. I think i'm just gonna brush it all aside. I don't think I'll ever wanna work for retail IT again. Ran into my former IT supervisor from my local hospital who I worked for a 3 month term a year ago. They may be hiring again soon. . I'll take my chances and apply there again.

Cyberscum

I say go back and make a scene! You will be letting your supervisor know of your displeasure and you will get the news coverage you are looking 4! 2 birds one stone

Nah JK please dont really do that....Even if it would be AWESOME!

As long as you learned some stuff and got some exposure and expierence you got what you needed from the job....Now move on.

Jon_Cisco

I think you should move on without giving it a second thought. However if you are still concerned be sure to check the companies overall hours and payroll for the coming months. It could be that the reduction was for the location and transferring someone to your slot was to fill a hole that was previously covered. Overall hours may have been reduced and for reasons only management knows it made sense to remove your position.

Good Luck I expect you will be fine once you move on.

LeBroke

Honestly, I worked retail/sales myself for a couple of years (not Geek Squad or anything really IT related), and..

More likely than not Best Buy doesn't care about tech skills. People in management think any moron can do it, and on some level, they're probably right. If you do your job right, but get all the tech wrong, it's better for Best Buy.

Let me explain: your job isn't to fix computers. It's to sell people your computer-fixing service. It doesn't matter that you can remove a virus in 10 minutes and do a fresh reinstall in 20 while keeping all the data, and migrate the configuration after. What matters to them is someone comes in with a virus or a broken key on a keyboard, and they leave having bought $300 in warranties, protection agreements, and copies of Norton.

The fact that you haven't properly removed the virus is even better - if you're a good salesman, they'll come back to you and pay again. I had the misfortune of working with a douchebag that came from such a school (and what's more annoying, he was my manager for a while).

Also, the other guy is probably cheaper, while you're likely at the upper end of the Geek Squad payscale ($14-15 I believe?).

iBrokeIT

Well if that isn't enough motivation for you to quickly finish your Cisco studies I don't know what would be...

The_Expert

I agree with everyone here... move on my friend! There is no sense in sticking around a place that does not value you as an employee. Keep working at your skills and get better and better. Your next job will pay you more than this place...

Just don't let this situation get you down. Keep fighting for what you want!

JoJoCal19

LeBroke wrote: »

Honestly, I worked retail/sales myself for a couple of years (not Geek Squad or anything really IT related), and..

More likely than not Best Buy doesn't care about tech skills. People in management think any moron can do it, and on some level, they're probably right. If you do your job right, but get all the tech wrong, it's better for Best Buy.

Let me explain: your job isn't to fix computers. It's to sell people your computer-fixing service. It doesn't matter that you can remove a virus in 10 minutes and do a fresh reinstall in 20 while keeping all the data, and migrate the configuration after. What matters to them is someone comes in with a virus or a broken key on a keyboard, and they leave having bought $300 in warranties, protection agreements, and copies of Norton.

The fact that you haven't properly removed the virus is even better - if you're a good salesman, they'll come back to you and pay again. I had the misfortune of working with a douchebag that came from such a school (and what's more annoying, he was my manager for a while).

Also, the other guy is probably cheaper, while you're likely at the upper end of the Geek Squad payscale ($14-15 I believe?).

This. I'd wager this is the exact situation. Especially the last part. They probably have the other guy four or five bucks an hour cheaper. This is how life works, just use it as a learning experience and be glad you got out when you did.

snunez889

Take it as a lesson learned. Loyalty doesn't mean nothing in the work environment.

cbigbrick

The best revenge is greater success in the next job.

IIIMaster

The media isn't going to do anything. But you could have voice your opinion in regards to the issues and spoke to the district manager. Other than that enjoy your work compensation and look for something else.

Priston

LeBroke wrote: »

More likely than not Best Buy doesn't care about tech skills. People in management think any moron can do it, and on some level, they're probably right. If you do your job right, but get all the tech wrong, it's better for Best Buy.

I know someone who used to work for the Geek Squad. If you have Tech skills your most likely someone they don't want. Geek Squad has a lot of policies to prevent anyone with tech skills from troubleshooting anything. If you don't follow their script and you actually fix computers in a timely manner you will get in trouble with management...

When a computer comes in, instead of fixing it within 5 minutes in front of the customer, Geek Squad would rather take it to the back and go through there script of tests that have nothing to do with fixing the problem. Oh the hard drive died? Instead of replacing it we need to scan for viruses and spyware which will cost $100, then sell you our anti-virus suite which cost another $100, then run hardware diagnostics which cost another $100, and finally sell you a new hard drive for $100.

If you went off script you would have cost Geek Squad $300! So they don't want people that know what they are doing

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nmNrm9vHBHs

Nafe92014

@Priston, this is EXACTLY the main reason why I will never work for a Big Boxes IT company ever again. The policies that I had to follow, were just not right in my opinion. It made me look more like a fool selling services instead of fixing issues.

NetworkingStudent

I never worked at Geek Squad, but I have heard horror stories.
I think he's doing you a favor, by allowing you to get out of that toxic environment.
Here's some links that may help in the job search:
http://mikenation.net/2007/06/mike-tech-show-podcast-129-06-16-07.html

Preparing for the Job Interview (PDF)
http://mikenation.net/files/Preparing_for_the_Job_Interview.pdf

Keep banging your drum someone will listen and your day will come.
It took me 3 years to find my IT job.
Keep banging your drum someone will listen. See videos below

DEAD MAN FALL - Bang Your Drum
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PzCZEIqezJg

Craig Ferguson - Last Show - Keep Banging On - Celeb Edition - Dec 19, 2014
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nTPBMkQrPI8