The Home Depot/True Stories

  On Wednesday, May 20 2009 I was called into  the manager's office.  When I arrived  Anne Pearson, my supervisor, and Pat Levin, store Manager, were present, I was asked to take a seat.  The three of us had a conversation about an incident that had  happened a few days prior, an incident which I and an Assistant store manager had already gone over a few days before .

     The incident involved a customer complaint about a cashier and a compliment to me, the customer had written a comment on what The Home Depot Corp. calls the VOC,( Voice of the Customer).

    Pat Levin hadn't called me to this meeting to congratulate me  or reward me for the positive comment,( which is corporate policy three times equals $50.00), he ridiculed me for not calling a manager into the  situation, I had already gone over the facts of the situation with ASM Romero previously.  The fact was I HAD called several times with NO compliance!

     The conversation went on for a few minutes about policies  than Pat threw the report on the table and pointing his finger at me threatened me .  He said " I have only been in this store for six weeks and you have been missing for three!! And you have another week coming next month you want off!!" " He went on to say that if I missed one more day I was going to be fired. He said he didn't care if a had a doctors excuse or not..

    When it was my turn to speak I reminded him that two weeks of what he called "missing" was a paid vacation, I had earned and had been approved, my management, three months previously.  The  other week was three days I had blood poisoning with a doctors documentation.  The week in the coming month was to be a four day weekend , of which, again, was earned vacation time and was again, approved my management months prior.  Pat repeated I was missing, and refused to acknowledge he was mistaken, and again threatened me.

    I am writing this as forgoing information as to what lead up to my termination.  The next morning I was late. I called my supervisor and told her I was running late, she told me not to speed not to worry.  ANNE and I had been in conversations about changing my schedule to accomadated cutomers in the later afternoon.

When I arrived to work my supervisor, Anne Pearson told me to" take a short lunch and work an hour over  to make up the difference and she would clear it with ASM" she said it was fine. I did a short lunch and worked an hour over as she said.  This happened on May 21 2009 I was terminated on May 26 2009, five days later.  

    I am also supplying a  copy of my most recent review which indicates nothing about missing time, and the space for areas of improvement  mentions neatness of desk , but not attendance.

     During the meeting of my termination I asked my ASM about the five times I was mentioned, positively, on the VOC in the previous three months and about a letter from a customer praising me to Corporate whether these counted in my favor.  He said no it only mattered I was late.

I have been UNEMPLOYEED for almost two years. I dedicated close to ten years of my life to The Home Depot, only to be dismissed by one short arrogant power hungry man.  

I am sure to anyone who worked with me or any customer I helped I was an awsome help to them. I had been held in high regard as a knowledgable and dependable resourse at the store inATASCADERO....Had I known that two years later I would be facing homelessness and povery unimaginable I would have sought legal counsel. YET ???