As many of you know I have worked at Home Depot either full or part time for a few months over 7 years, minus my time off when I refused to wear the mask. Even though the new/current manager is an incompetent leader, no people skills or leadership ability, I very much enjoyed working there. Aside from constantly finding and reporting various problems that should have been corrected but completely ignored by those in charge. Anyways, Monday I stopped in at a local ATV/Motorcycle repair shop in my neighborhood to ask about a job. While waiting to talk to the owner I talked to the main employee who had nothing but good to say about the owner and the job. The shop is almost always busy and on the few occasions where work is delayed due to waiting on parts the boss has other tasks such as upgrading the shop with installing better interior walls usually using upcycled metal roofing, hanging various work related decorations, or like last week rolling out the new sod in the yard of his house next door to the workshop. All things i am capable of and would enjoy doing especially if I am getting paid.
Anyways, while talking to the main employee he admitted to me that he had been preparing to leave to open his own company installing tile and that he had several jobs lined up just waiting for his extra time. We had a good talk while the boss was talking with a customer, again nothing but positive comments from the employee. I have "known" the owner several years and every conversation was always very polite and professional and I know him to be a top notch guy. When I got the chance to talk to him and ask about a job he said he had a distant relative that was supposed to start last week but hadn't shown up yet but he had also planned to hire another guy for a total of 3 employees. During this conversation the other main employee chimed in on how he wanted to start his own tile install company and it became a 2 or 3 way conversation for about 5 minutes until the boss man said "I gotta go talk to my wife." and he walked away. He was obviously frustrated at losing his main employee.
I completely understood his frustration but he had my name and number and I knew he would call me, eventually. Well, yesterday, a day later on my way to work my phone rang and after a brief discussion he offered me the job. He knew I wanted to give a 2 week notice to Home Depot and he already worked that out the other guy so he would hang around a month to help me learn the ways for a couple weeks before he parted ways. I have decent knowledge and experience on rebuilding car engines, transmissions, and transfer cases, I have worked on and maintained and repaired my own ATVs for years, and I am capable of most repairs and maintenance on any car or truck so the learning curve on in depth repairs on bikes/ATV's/SideBySides shouldn't be to steep. But, he said he wanted me more for answering the phone, talking with customers, placing orders for parts, and handling the front end but when that is slow I will be working in the back or doing things like cleaning and upgrading the shop or laying sod in the yard. I am totally good with that and I have experience with all of it. Heck, I am 55 and what he is expecting is a cake job in my book compared to what I do at Home Depot.
The bonus, slight pay decrease for starters but once I prove myself I will be back to what I am making now at Home Depot, he is only a 1/4 mile from my house as opposed to 26 miles each way to Home Depot, it is daytime Monday through Friday with a relaxed schedule for when I need a long weekend or if something comes up. He already approved my week vacation around Labor Day for when I travel back to Michigan for a family get together, and he mentioned birthday and Christmas gifts, and I will assume parts at cost for the upcoming work on my own ATV's. Plus, when my sons come to visit this summer I will have every evening and weekend free to enjoy time with them and maybe my oldest (15) can work a few hours and earn some cash while learning some stuff.
At work I waited in the parking lot for my supervisor to arrive. I asked about his weekend, how he was doing and a few other casual questions and then i said "I am sorry." I followed that with my 2 week notice and explained the situation. He was happy for me, but we both know the odds of him getting a replacement of any value are slim and I felt bad for leaving him even though the Home Depot BS is out of my control. Throughout the night I told most the others on our team I was leaving and they were all bummed but happy for me. I am not putting myself on a pedestal as the King Worker but everyone knows the odds of getting a good coworker are very slim, and if thenew person stays past the first week or two is even slimmer.
Aside from all that I ended up having a great day. Even though my work tonight was a "mess" I didn't mind working through the mess and doing all I could to get it done before I went home. The mess was created by incompetent new workers who have no clue how to do the job correctly and probably never will do the job correctly. Again, that is Home Depot's problem and management doesn't give a darn because the store manager makes no effort to make improvements. On top of that for 5 months we have been told the regional big wig would stop in to visit with our team but it keeps getting postponed, with the next supposed date/lie being the middle of June. Well, I doubt that will happen even though they claim it has to be before the end of June because it has to be within this quarter. Yup, right, uh-huh, sure, it will happen, they promise. I plan to leave a list with my supervisor on what the moron needs to look at, see, witness, and take action on if he gives a damn. I will even volunteer to come in IF he ever arrives to point out the problems and offer any and all suggestions to make things better for not only our store but for the entire corporation, but I doubt that will be allowed.
Regardless, I am leaving on good terms, with a 2 week notice, and I will be rehire able if I ever need to go back. It is still my best option for a "close to home" decent paying job if I ever have to resort back to the corporate life.
The best part, I should have several weeks or more with my sons over the summer and have time to play and have fun and work on my 2002 Avalanche t prepare it for my oldest son for when he turns 16 in October. If I am lucky he and I can rebuild the engine in my '72 Chevy pickup and get it on the road again. Maybe even get the '64 Chevelle running again. Smiles from ear to ear.
Anyways, while talking to the main employee he admitted to me that he had been preparing to leave to open his own company installing tile and that he had several jobs lined up just waiting for his extra time. We had a good talk while the boss was talking with a customer, again nothing but positive comments from the employee. I have "known" the owner several years and every conversation was always very polite and professional and I know him to be a top notch guy. When I got the chance to talk to him and ask about a job he said he had a distant relative that was supposed to start last week but hadn't shown up yet but he had also planned to hire another guy for a total of 3 employees. During this conversation the other main employee chimed in on how he wanted to start his own tile install company and it became a 2 or 3 way conversation for about 5 minutes until the boss man said "I gotta go talk to my wife." and he walked away. He was obviously frustrated at losing his main employee.
I completely understood his frustration but he had my name and number and I knew he would call me, eventually. Well, yesterday, a day later on my way to work my phone rang and after a brief discussion he offered me the job. He knew I wanted to give a 2 week notice to Home Depot and he already worked that out the other guy so he would hang around a month to help me learn the ways for a couple weeks before he parted ways. I have decent knowledge and experience on rebuilding car engines, transmissions, and transfer cases, I have worked on and maintained and repaired my own ATVs for years, and I am capable of most repairs and maintenance on any car or truck so the learning curve on in depth repairs on bikes/ATV's/SideBySides shouldn't be to steep. But, he said he wanted me more for answering the phone, talking with customers, placing orders for parts, and handling the front end but when that is slow I will be working in the back or doing things like cleaning and upgrading the shop or laying sod in the yard. I am totally good with that and I have experience with all of it. Heck, I am 55 and what he is expecting is a cake job in my book compared to what I do at Home Depot.
The bonus, slight pay decrease for starters but once I prove myself I will be back to what I am making now at Home Depot, he is only a 1/4 mile from my house as opposed to 26 miles each way to Home Depot, it is daytime Monday through Friday with a relaxed schedule for when I need a long weekend or if something comes up. He already approved my week vacation around Labor Day for when I travel back to Michigan for a family get together, and he mentioned birthday and Christmas gifts, and I will assume parts at cost for the upcoming work on my own ATV's. Plus, when my sons come to visit this summer I will have every evening and weekend free to enjoy time with them and maybe my oldest (15) can work a few hours and earn some cash while learning some stuff.
At work I waited in the parking lot for my supervisor to arrive. I asked about his weekend, how he was doing and a few other casual questions and then i said "I am sorry." I followed that with my 2 week notice and explained the situation. He was happy for me, but we both know the odds of him getting a replacement of any value are slim and I felt bad for leaving him even though the Home Depot BS is out of my control. Throughout the night I told most the others on our team I was leaving and they were all bummed but happy for me. I am not putting myself on a pedestal as the King Worker but everyone knows the odds of getting a good coworker are very slim, and if thenew person stays past the first week or two is even slimmer.
Aside from all that I ended up having a great day. Even though my work tonight was a "mess" I didn't mind working through the mess and doing all I could to get it done before I went home. The mess was created by incompetent new workers who have no clue how to do the job correctly and probably never will do the job correctly. Again, that is Home Depot's problem and management doesn't give a darn because the store manager makes no effort to make improvements. On top of that for 5 months we have been told the regional big wig would stop in to visit with our team but it keeps getting postponed, with the next supposed date/lie being the middle of June. Well, I doubt that will happen even though they claim it has to be before the end of June because it has to be within this quarter. Yup, right, uh-huh, sure, it will happen, they promise. I plan to leave a list with my supervisor on what the moron needs to look at, see, witness, and take action on if he gives a damn. I will even volunteer to come in IF he ever arrives to point out the problems and offer any and all suggestions to make things better for not only our store but for the entire corporation, but I doubt that will be allowed.
Regardless, I am leaving on good terms, with a 2 week notice, and I will be rehire able if I ever need to go back. It is still my best option for a "close to home" decent paying job if I ever have to resort back to the corporate life.
The best part, I should have several weeks or more with my sons over the summer and have time to play and have fun and work on my 2002 Avalanche t prepare it for my oldest son for when he turns 16 in October. If I am lucky he and I can rebuild the engine in my '72 Chevy pickup and get it on the road again. Maybe even get the '64 Chevelle running again. Smiles from ear to ear.
