Great Work Enviornment at ERAC, not

[ravencr]

Sorry to make it sound that way...I agree with you.

Chris

Originally Posted by ravencr

I didn't like the financial planning, and it's as hard or harder than erac, by the way. The executive director position ran out of funding.

Chris

In the words of an ERAC clone-I guess you couldn't "hack it" as a financial planner.

[ravencr]

You guys sure do ASSume a lot without knowing any facts. I stopped doing the financial planning after running my own office, having my own staff, just didn't like it anymore and wanted to do something different. Call it what you want.

Chris

[hekiliko'olau]

Originally Posted by Unregistered

I worked at the Green Monster for about 2-1/2 years and have several friends that work/have worked there too. We all concluded that our experiences were pretty much the same and reflects on ERAC as a whole. The brain washing starts immediately:

In the first interview we were told about how great ERAC is and how it is growing by leaps and bounds and there would be no limit to my potential. We were told that we would be in charge of own destiny if we worked hard", We would be on the fast track. We were all given the same line of 6yrs. 600K. How could ANY college grad resist? I even had some written questions that I prepared ahead of time about the pay, hours, and time off. All of the interviewers answers were ambiguous at best. I was specifically told "pay would be around 19K give or take and is competitive with this geographical area". This was the proverbial hook they gave me and to any other first time interviewee.

In the second interview we were told "you have what we're looking for" and "your special because you made it past the first interview" The point was crystalized when I was told: "Do you remember that lady in the yellow blouse before your first interview?" "She didn't make it." The interviewer then went into some general daily details about writing tickets, picking up customers and washing cars. We were all assured that "the starting MT (empty) stage would be a short amount of time when you put it in perspective of your whole career". This was This is the reeling them in phase.

Third interview-was a lunch interview at a popular spot and we were all told congrats, you made it! We were all told: you are really gonna love working at ERAC because of all great people and fun you will have with your co-workers. Wow, a real business lunch for an interview! After lunch we went to a large branch and signed the employment papers and had a short tutorial on writing up tickets and a "sanitized version" of a car wash (this branch had an auto carwash system). I was assigned my branch and told to report there the following Monday. This is the hook, line and sinker-they have you!

This is my experience

That first day when I arrived, the branch manager and the AM didn't know I was hired. (Should have been a first clue about non-communication here). Reality set in quickly, but I was blind. All day long I wrote up tickets, shuttled customers, and washed cars I wanted to make a great impression and I blindly did everything I was told. I was taught to stall the customers, lie about availability and even swiped other branches cars (this was called initiative). I was charged up, I wanted to do something great, I wanted to contribute to the team, I wanted to succeed. After a few days I warmed up to my co-workers and was told that I "replaced some girl that couldn't hack it" A couple of months later a good co-worker at my branch was "promoted to AM" and "moving up" to the largest branch in the area. She burned out in about 2 months. That office was the airport office and was a meat grinder-it went through MTs, AMs and BMs as faster than corp. could replace them. (This should have been a huge red flag) I saw this as a bright light and that soon my time would come and I could "move up". Six months later our AM quit because she was "tired of the ridiculous hours" and got a job as an adjuster. She was very good at what she did but at the EOM city meeting she was smeared as "an ineffective team player". Again, the mantra of "couldn't hack it" was pounded into green massess

After a year and a couple of branches you get a pretty good feel of what is going on around you and reality starts to set in. By this time I ruined at least a dozen slacks and jackets and three pairs of shoes. I was going nearly broke buying clothes. I applied for an AM position took the grill and got promoted. I thought "wow, now I am making it" What I found was my BM was a turd, just sat on his ass "finding money" going through chargebacks and harrassing the female clerk at the gas station up the street. I grew his fleet by nearly 20% and he got all the credit.

By the time I was in two years I became cynical at the whole scam. I had been to two Christmas parties now and got two shitty presents from ERAC. But you know what made the biggest impression on me? It was all the new faces in the crowd. Turnover from year to year I would estimate at nearly 50 percent. I clearly could not recognize over half the employees at the 2nd Christmas party. I was now referred to as an "old pro". I wasn't old anything I was just 24 then.


What broke the proverbial back was when I put in for a BM position. I interviewed, and was told I got the position. The next day the ARM e-mailed me and said "there was a mistake, and not everyone was interviewed." I found out later that day through the grape vine that an MT I trained with 7 months experience and no AM experience was hired over me. She had a degree in interior design and minored in blow jobs.

So what I am telling you is that if you work hard and give it your absolute best dosn't mean squat to ERAC. Don't count on an objective system to get promoted. What you can count on is VERY long hours 60-65 a week, low low pay around 18K and lots of stress. You will be exposed to lots of alcohol due to the frat boy mentality, and the females can count on being harassed, intimidated and assaulted at work.

Just don't count on your job at ERAC to pick you up. They will use you, consume you and throw you away.

Glad I'm gone

Hey Admin! Here's another one for the "Best Of" section.

Originally Posted by ravencr

You guys sure do ASSume a lot without knowing any facts. I stopped doing the financial planning after running my own office, having my own staff, just didn't like it anymore and wanted to do something different. Call it what you want.

Chris

you quit a financial planning job to wash cars as an MT?
wtf?

ERAC is a fraternity, plain and simple. The strict dress code, the sayings and mantras, the after-hours drinking. I'm not saying that this, in of itself, makes ERAC "bad" or "a company you shouldn't work for"...it's just that if you're the type like myself that prefers not to mix pleasure w/ work, then do your best to stay away.

You can sell all the DUB in the world; if you partake in after-work activites with your own cast of friends, duck out of other off-hour events, you will not get ahead.

Also, I see a lot of ERAC defenders mention about how a college grad with no experience has to start somewhere, and therefore can't bitch about 60hr weeks washing cars and being yelled at. I agree with the premise of "you gotta start somewhere", but I missed where the only company in the world that hires new college grads with little-to-no "real world" experience is Enterprise. *News Flash* There are countless entry-level positions across the goddamn universe, that offer (not by much, but still) higher pay with less hours. Really. I'm serious. Hit up CareerBuilder.com. You may be surprised.

Originally Posted by ravencr

You guys sure do ASSume a lot without knowing any facts. I stopped doing the financial planning after running my own office, having my own staff, just didn't like it anymore and wanted to do something different. Call it what you want.

Chris

I call it downward mobility no matter how you try to spin it.