. . . I applied on-line Thursday and got a call from a recruiter on Friday. My interview was on Tuesday.If you're that desperate for attention, Abdul, why didn't you just drop turkeys out of a helicopter at a crowded mall parking lot the day after Thanksgiving? The only look people have on their faces after reading this tall tale of fraud and deceit is how you can stand to look at yourself in the mirror in the morning.
There were a couple times during the process that everything almost went south. One lady helping out with hiring kept looking at me like she recognized me from television. And during the first interview the hiring manager looked my undergraduate degree in communications and journalism and asked me if I knew I was applying for a job at call center? I told her yes, and she asked me if I was sure about what I was doing. I told her we were good and the interview went ahead.
It was pretty standard and I was able to answer their questions in a mostly truthful manner. They asked me what I did at my other jobs, to which I replied, I spent a lot of time taking calls from angry people and helping them solve their problems. They asked me if I could handle with an irate caller who was abusive and uninformed. I just smiled and said yes. I did have to take a drug test. Here’s a tip, never joke about have poppy seed bagels for breakfast. Drug testers aren’t known for their sense of humor.
While waiting around I got a chance to meet some of the people who were applying for work. I met a woman who used to manage a department store that went under. I met an older gentleman who lost his job. There were some younger people looking for jobs, although someone needed to tell them how to dress for an interview. An Abercrombie sweat shirt, torn jeans and sneakers doesn’t quite say “hire me”.
I eventually met with the main hiring manager and we had a nice chat. She walked me through a number of questions at the end of the interview she offered me a job. The starting pay was $9 an hour, but that’s a training wage. After 8 weeks, depending on your performance, you can make up to $13 an hour and if you work Saturdays, you get an extra dollar an hour. There’s no limit on overtime and there’s ample opportunity for promotion and advancement. Your only limit is what you put on yourself. And yes, it does come with full benefits. And since I’d likely be on the morning shift, 6:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m., I could still teach and do my other part-time jobs.
Now I know some of you are going to bring up issues like child care, transportation, education, etc. My reply, “so what”. As my grandmother used to say “all God’s children got problems” and you play with the hand you are dealt and deal with it. If you are a high school dropout in the 21st Century I have very little sympathy for you.
And just for the record, I am not taking the job. This was about proving a point. The point was that there is work out there if you are willing to work to look for it. And here’s another little twist for your amusement, by not taking the job I am freeing up the position for someone else who needs it. So my experiment not only proved that there is work out there, but it also created a job.
No need to thank me, the look on your face right now is more than enough.
Wednesday, December 08, 2010
Abdul Hakim Shabazz Is A Total Fraud, No Surprise
If WXNT's radio talk show host wanted to set out to poke fun of the masses of unemployed persons in the worst economic recession this nation has suffered since the Great Depression, he could not have done a better job than the publicity stunt he pulled this past week. Radio talk show host Abdul Hakim Shabazz pretended to set out on a mission last week to apply for a job to show how easy it was to find work if you really wanted to be employed. Shabazz said he would rule out applying for any jobs in downtown Indianapolis since he says so many people know the least listened to radio talk show host in Indianapolis and that landing a job there would be too easy. So where would he go in search of a job? Well, he publicly announced that he had applied for a customer service representative position with ACS. "Just 'applied' for my 1st job; ACS call center rep in Anderson. Took 30 min on-line. Even had a 'voice' test over the phone," he wrote on his Twitter wall at the outset of his job search. He continued to post updates on his Twitter wall over the next several days on his progress in landing that job . ACS, of course, would be the same company connected to all of his political crony friends in state and city government who have been raping the taxpayers to enrich the company and its hired gun lobbyists. So today he is boasting he got the ACS job after just five days of searching for a job.
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10 comments:
What are you talking about? It was a valid experiment to show that there are jobs out there. You may have to make less than you did before and choose a completely different field; but nobody should be unemployed for 2+ years if they are truly trying. Underemployed sure but not unemployed.
You miss my point, Daniel, at the place where he found employment--ACS. Anybody with any common sense familiar with the lay of the land here locally knows it was a planned out stunt. As soon as he announced he was applying for a job at ACS, publicly I might add, we already knew how the story would end.
That's a full time job for $27,040 per year (after training). Actually in the first year, Abdul will make just $25,600 or $2133 per month.
After you take 20% payroll, FICA, state, local (COIT) taxes you are left with about $1700 a month.
The job is out of town right? Figure another $400 minimum a month in gas money to get to the job. That leaves you with $1300 a month to buy groceries, pay rent, utilities, etc.
It is barely a living wage. No worries cheap processed food like Ramen noodles are 4 for a dollar.
Abdul is more qualified to work in a call center than host a radio show, even one that no one listens to.
$9/hr America. What a country!
That's $18720 gross annual income! Anderson will be rescued from decay, overnight.
Yes, Abdul, you have solved America's economic woes. America will be saved when everyone recognizes that household income should be $37K. Both parents will need to work, obviously, and care of the children will be left to the television and the microwave.
Future generations will grow up with the skills they need to - work at call centers!
HFFT, shhhh, we want him to take the job.
The funny thing he suggested on the radio that his education, experience and law degree would help him get a job so he eliminated that. Actually that would HURT his chances to get a job...not help it. Probably those who have the most difficult getting jobs are professionals, like lawyers, who are generally viewed as overqualifed for non-law jobs...and there is only a limited number of law jobs around.
I made over $40k a year working in the RCI call center in the mid-90's. Oh...and I worked 30 hours a week, not 40 + overtime to make ends meet.
The politically connected ASC is offering less to a post-college grad than RCI paid to high school grads in its call center 15 years ago!
You didnt mention the third year salary freeze, the thankless hours spent answering unwarranted complaints, the bonuses higher level managers of acs receive, and parties exclusively for members of the elite acs employees only. I didnt get my annual invite this year. Only a few select will be attending. This job perfect for abdulthefool.
Of course, he would have left himself open for firing for just cause by not being truthful on his education and work experience. And as ACS is a world leader in outsourcing, and given that other countries are hustling for call centers, it would provide a convenient excuse to fire him then deny him unemployment insurance coverage.
Yep, ole Abdul did show us something.
There is an old Jewish law: "One cannot ask the price of something if one is not prepared to purchase it."
Unless Abdul approached upper management of ACS with what he intended to do and they agreed, he is a thief. He took their time and effort, not intending to work there. I guess he needs to revise his philosophy to include that it's alright to steal from others, so long as it doesn't look like stealing.
Besides, the only thing that his dopey experiment proved was that he is capable of being underemployed.
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