Apology to Caleb (but Netshops still sucks)

Caleb, I'm sorry if you think I have an issue with you. My issue is with Netshops' management and the hiring decisions they make. You aren't the first employee they've had who has obviously had a substance abuse problem. You wrote about your experimentation. Others wore it on their sleeve. And on the front of their shirt. And smelled like they bathed in it the night before. MyFaceJournalBlogs are great for finding pictures of Netshops employees stumbling drunk while out and about in the city.

Anyway, hopefully you get my point - you Caleb, are just an example of the poor decisions being made by someone in upper management. Whether it comes directly from Doug, HR or Tina, it doesn't much matter when it impacts employee morale and potentially the customer's experience. I have no problem with you and I hope you succeed in your career with Netshops. (Just be sure you keep your resume updated.)

If you're impaired while at work it will affect your decisions when dealing with customers. No way around it.

Being impaired at work should not qualify one for a promotion. Unfortunately in the past at Netshops, it has. One of the past customer service supervisors was complained about on a regular basis because the stench of alcohol trailed behind him like a cloud as he walked the floor. Eyes watered and noses were assaulted on a daily basis. Complaints were ignored because management didn't want to deal with the problem. Another supervisor came to work drunk on many occasions. His red nose and cheeks were common every weekend morning shift he worked. While a nice guy, if Netshops really cared about their employees, someone from management would have talked to him about AA/treatment of some sort. Yes, it is a tough topic to discuss with the employee, but better for all involved that he get some help. Instead, I've heard he was laid off. Great way to get rid of a problem Netshops management. Rather than council the employee and help them with a problem, its easier (and probably cheaper) to lay them off, putting the ex-employee in the perfect frame of mind to drink to excess and giving them more time to devote to a destructive pattern of self abuse. Some really good decision makers you've surrounded yourself with there Doug. Top notch staff.

Based on Caleb's blog, it appears Caleb has the opportunity to continue the trend of supervisors who walk the floor and make decisions on how to handle customer service issues while impaired. Good for him, bad for the customer. Some of the people who were let go over the past year as a result of the layoffs were pretty vocal about the need for random drug testing. (Generally speaking, those asking for it had observed the problems in the call center - the call center wasn't the only area with problems - it was a problem throughout the entire company, just most visible in the call center. This is because there weren't any cubicle walls to hide behind. Since starting this tangent of the blog, I've had reports of many 'lunches' where alcohol was consumed. Unfortunately, this isn't against company policy. It's tough to go against company policy when there isn't a policy in place forbidding an activity. Kind of like dating someone who's beneath you on the org chart, right Tina?) But I digress.... The vocal employees were ignored and released in the next round of layoffs. It's too bad because they only wanted what was best for the company.

Good thing the customer isn't what Netshops is focused on.

Next time, we'll talk about employees who excel at doing nothing all day and somehow retain their positions at Netshops. As always, send your insider info along to me via email - laid_off_by_netshops@yahoo.com - the source will be confidential unless you tell me otherwise!