Home Depot

Location: Tampa, FL
Store Number #: 0256

1. ASM turns it into a prison, this is no lie.

2. No socializing with people on the floor (You will be reprimanded or even written up for a small 20 sec chat with someone. You will also be reprimanded for socializing with someone the ASM does not like.

3. Intentionally Left Blank

4. No mobile phones on the floor, even during operating hours. It's hard to come by a hand held computer, because the daytime associates carry most of them. You are INSTRUCTED UPON HIRE, that you MAY download the app on YOUR mobile phone and assist the customers utilizing YOUR mobile phone, if there is no handheld available. I spoke to a few people who are still employed there, 1 person was written up for using their mobile phone to assist customers, this happened about 2 months ago.

5. When receiving a verbal, they will pull a witness into the room with you and the ASM. The witness usually being just as high and corrupt as the ASM, will lie and accuse you of anything, performance or attendance. Everyone refuses to sign a write up that comes from this ASM and his witness.

6. The ASM will follow you around the store and spy on you from another isle, had you risk chatting with someone. The ASM will also watch you from the cameras or follow you into the bathroom to wash his hands, shortly after he just washed them. He always knows what isle you are on.

7. The music repeatedly plays over and over on the overhead system every day of the week. Having headphones will land you a write up. Having one headphone in will land you a write up. Having softly playing music that a mouse couldn't hear will land you a write up.

8. You have to BE one of the select few, 2-4 day time associates and 2 other freight associates working overnight, who are allowed to play music louder than 50 decibels, the average human speaks 54db from 6 feet away, the music can be heard from 3 aisles over. Candidates who are allowed to listen to music, Hip Hop is allowed, however any other genre, r&b, reggae, jazz, elevator music or love songs, you will be reprimanded or written up.
9. Age Discrimination is big in this place, if it’s not with music, it's mostly about age. Anyone between ages (home depot minimum) and 29 will be treated poorly and likely written up weekly, because well, corrupt ASM. If you are part of the 30-39 age groups, you will be treated poorly like the minim age groups and they will look for something to write you up about, they do not show mercy on you. If you are 40 and higher, you are their best friend and only friend. While the younger age group is exceeding performance, if you are not above 40, not have grey hair or not have wrinkles on your face from aging, you get no respect from the ASM or store manager.

10. No one gets noticed on the night crew. The break room has a TV, majority of the pictures that scroll through the network are all Daytime associates and 3 photos of night crew, which when I say night crew, it’s really upper management, none of the night crew on the lower latter get noticed. Only one award is offered to each person on the night crew when the ASM or management feel sorry for you or try to buy you back in from quitting. Count the number of homer awards night time associate who has been there for a year and compare the amount of awards to the daytime associate who has been there for 6 months.

11. Their pallets consist of birthday cake structure. Large bulk on the outside, consists of larger boxes, in the center of the pallet, 150-200 smaller boxes on the inside; boxes as big as a Rubik’s cube. The pallet stretches 8 1/2 feet over your head. They claim corporate has statistically came up with this, as an average of what needs to be accomplished while on overnight freight, but the handbook or job description does not claim any of this information.

12. Daytime shift have silver carts filled with duties, smaller freight like night time freight crews. Their freight is the smaller Rubik’s cube type boxes. YEAH, they don't do it, they leave it to the freight team. This went under investigation by the store and daytime were supposed to be doing their freight, or consequences will occur. Yeah, they were just teasing, overnight freight is still being forced to do daytime's work.

Some overnight freight members will leave their overstock for you to put up, even if it’s not in your department. You get in trouble if you don’t put up their freight.

13. Rules get bent, broken and made up upon will. You can use the handbook against them, however, that gets over ruled by Store Manager.

14. You must be wearing a polo shirt. Yes because you're sure to impress someone at 2 in the morning with your fancy polo shirt.

You will be wearing this polo shirt in 95+ degree atmosphere. Your gear cannot contain logos. That is of course unless you are fraternizing with the ASM, then surely you can wear a Tampa bay Rays hat, shorts with logo's on them, Dolce and Gabbana visor, or a military hat sporting your favorite clothes brand.

You cannot take your apron off in the store, even if it is 95+ degree atmosphere while you are sporting your fancy but nonetheless, hot, sweat drenched polo shirt. That is of course you are fraternizing with the ASM; in which that is the case, you can walk around the store in your undershirt or wife beater with the other select few overnight; otherwise, expect a write up for taking your apron off.

You are not allowed to wear pants with holes in them, unless of course you are fraternizing with the ASM, then you may join the 2 others in the night crew and 1 other from the day crew who are allowed.

15. They shut down the AC system after a certain time, usually after all of the daytime shift leave, blow dryers are shut off at night. Automatic paper towel dispenser is shut off. Try working in a warehouse at 95+ degrees with no ventilation but the sliding doors to the outside garden.

19. Their freight is usually late by a week (I mean receive it on time and let it sit in the freight area for a week) and they don’t tell corporate about it, it rots in the receiving area until they actually decide to do something with it.

20. Prior to a walk or a DM appears at the store, they will clean the freight floor and make it look nice and neat at least 8 hours prior to their arrival.

They WILL put 2 WEEK OLD freight inside a semi-truck connected to the bay (And I have seen them do this at least twice in my employment there, seeing that the DM doesn’t visit very often), close the truck doors, lock the truck doors, close the bay doors, lock the bay doors and then clean the surrounding bay area. DM is oblivious that almost 2 week old freight has been stash’ed into the truck so he/she won’t see how far behind they are.

22. Store manager is quick to conclude and assume the worst in daytime and night time employees. She will threaten without a cause and she is just as corrupt as the ASM.

24. Part-Timers and full-timers get a minimum of $9 per hours. This is standard, however, working there for more than a year, won’t land you any raises, unless you are fraternizing with the ASM or store manager.

25. Benefits are horrible for part-time and full time employees, they even confess this themselves upon hiring you. You’re better off finding cheaper benefits in the market than here, don’t waste your time.

26. The ASM and lower ended superiors will inform everyone that the DM and Loss Prevention is visiting. This is so no one will get in trouble, however if you do your job like most of us, then this shouldn’t be an issue. The DM needs to pop in unknowingly to catch the ASM and his corrupted witness with their pants down.

Everything I stated has only to do with the overnight ASM, he’s unprofessional, no one likes him. He is running a prison there. The wardens assistant is not liked either, it didn’t take long for everyone to figure out who he was even after working there for 2-3 months. They both go hand in hand.

There are 2 ASM’s that are still loved, the Weekend ASM and the daytime ASM, they are great people and do not buy sides. In fact the weekend and daytime ASM do their jobs and what I mean by jobs is, they will jump on a machine and put up steel beams, pack out freight, help customers, wrap and tag pallets, get involved in teamwork or assist you in your department, work till blood and bone exposed.

The weekly overnight ASM, would rather camp out in the backroom where the cameras are, harass people for no reason. Walk around the store with his mobile phone out, text his wife or call her up just to talk. Follow you as you work (I call this freight stalking). Eaves drop on your conversations from an isle over, spy on you from the cameras, spy on your from aisles over, follow you into the bathroom, follow you into the break room, follow you around the store, write you up for no reason.

I enjoyed working here to an extent. When the weekly overnight ASM was not available, the store went smoothly, everyone works together and people make progress.

When the weekly overnight ASM appears, everyone's tail tucks between their legs, they're scared to express an opinion and frown at his every presence. People shouldn't have to feel this way when they go to work. Being around him really does cause psychological trauma, and he knows he is doing it.

I don’t even think Mr. Menear knows this is happening in his store. Or maybe he does…