21 replies to this topic

[P0ZBURN]

I am considering applying for a job as a sears repair technician.  Is this a good career move?  Does anyone know the pay and benefits?  Thanks

[nickfixit]

With 24 years invested, all I have to say is ...

Run!

Run now,

Run long,

Run hard,

Run like the wind,

Run like a Frenchman in the face of battle...

Pay is good, benefits going to shit, company run by K-Mart, Micro-managed to death by vermin, just might go chapter 11

[nickfixit]

Unless....

You could use this to gain new skills and build up your Resume'. This could work out as a good sepping stone. Things could go well in the long run, I'm just not real confident.

[kdog]

i second nicks views as a longtime employee of the machine- plusses are (were) great market share,lots of work. minuses are many, most frustrating is the loads of unnecessary politics surrounding the job, unqualified/inexperienced management. a phrase that was once coined,stuck among us techs:  "we,the unwilling,led by the unknowing; are doing our best to do the impossible for the ungrateful".  nicks "monkey with the machine gun" analogy pretty much sums it up.

[exsearsguy]

POZBURN, you'll gain a lot of insight into whether you like appliance repair or not.Most importantly you'll see lots of things you have never imagined. Read CRAZY GROSS HOUSE thread below.Most likely, you'll get one.But I wouldn't make a career at Sears.

[Poobah]

POZBURN my father in law was a Sears tech for over 25 years till he had a stroke and had to retire in the mid 90's.  I've heard him say many times how much he liked his job, and being able to help people out.  he is one of those that has never met a stranger and is a real people person.  That being said he also talks about how much it changed over the later years with the problems of butt head managers and corporate people. I would agree with the others if you want to get into the repair game go to work for sears and learn all that you can, and build a resume. Working with them you will surely be able to tell if you want to do this job or not.  I agree with the benefits too they sent a letter to him awhile back and informed him about the changes in insurance premiums. his was going to triple for the same amount of coverage, so for this I'd say watch your back and def. don't trust them........

[Dan Webster]

I have many friends that have worked for sears, If you are willing to work hard and have long days with constant pressure to get the job done quickly and move on to the next, then this is the job for you. They expect you to complete your jobs very fast and be proficient, this is not a job for the weak hearted or the lazy, You will be expected to do a set number of jobs per day at a set time and if you cant make the quota you will be in for some tough times, They expect quick and good! and many calls per day . Its high presure and nerve racking for younger folks but its satisfying to know that you can keep up. They know you cant do it all ,its up to you to do the best you can and not wimp out 

[SuperTec]

X-Sears tech, SuperTec, steps up....

 

 

 

 

RUNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN

 

 

Thier rules and regulations suck... And I was even what they called, "Train the Trainer"... Meaning when something new came out, I went and learned about it, then went around teaching the techs how to fix it before it hit the market....

 

Unless you do not have a problem screwing your customer... For instance... The last call I ran for Sears was the final straw for me... I was handed a call on a frig. The complaint was, "not working correctly. take bulb." I get there and the customer is approximately 90 to 95 years old. A sweet old lady. As kind as can be... She had mentioned she was hessitant on having Sears come out because they were elisive about how much they would charge. I ask her what was wrong with her frig and she started explaining to me that she needed someone to change her bulb in her frig. See, she did not have family around and her husband had died about 4 months earlier. And to top it off, she had arthritis in her hands. She was unable to grip the bulb and remove it. Let alone get her hand in a possition to grip the bulb... Anyway.. I changed her bulb and grabbed my nice little laptop (HHT at the time) and started inputing what I did... $109.00 for the service call, $3.00 for the bulb and tax... Um, no.... My laptop, while was leaving, seems to escape my hand and proceeded to waller in the mud puddle next to my van. Unfortunate thing was, according to the report sheet Sears had recieved, because my laptop had not sent my arrival to the call, the customer wished to cancel the call when I arrived. So Sears did not recieve anything for that call....

 

Was what I did wrong? Maybe... But no way on this earth was I going to charge this customer $110.00 + for changing her light bulb.... Call me a bad boy or what ever... But I have done this for 17 years now and have a good repore with my customers... I could not see me charging her what Sears wanted me to... And it was not the first time they over charged....

[RandyRAS]

Was never a Sears Tech, I lucked out and went to work for a small indepentant servicer, yea the benifits sucked, but he had 30 yrs under his belt, and he was the best boss that I ever had.  My brother in law is a ex-Sears tech, and has been out on his own for 12 yrs. when I started my own he came and gave me advice, when he was done I had lost what little respect that I had for him. He was still carrying the Sears attitude, screw the customer, he even told me that I could charge whatever price I wanted because of my location and being nearly the only tech in the area.

He even charged my dad, (71 at the time) 160 bucks to change the pump on a Whirpool DD and that was with the "Famlie Discount"

mabey he is a butt because he was a Sears guy for so long, but I would rather think that he was born that way and sears played little in his development to being a big a hole.

[Mad Mac]

[user=3693]RandyRAS[/user] wrote:

He even charged my dad, (71 at the time) 160 bucks to change the pump on a Whirpool DD and that was with the "Family Discount"

Bastard. No other way to put it.

[exsearsguy]

Randy, sounds like he's a -------  from the get-go. Most people I worked with at Sears were definitely nice folks. It was the upstairs people that were --------.

[Buckwheat]

Hey POZBURN Buckwheat here, I have read your posting as well as all the others and I agree & disagree with everybody. Sears for the most part is a great great company. Other than being self employed I believe they are the highest paying employers out there, in this field & I cannot complain about the benefits. Like SuperTec was I am the "Train the Trainer" for our units. As frustrating as the company can be it is still what you make of it. I believe it doesn't matter where you work there is always going to be something you agree with or disagree with the way I see it we all have to work somewhere doing something. Good luck with your decision

[Chat_in_FL]

[user=25473]ApplianceJunk[/user] wrote:

Hi,

I alway's wondered how sears trained there techs. I have never seen any sears techs at the factory training schools I have gone to.

Most of the training is on the job. They now require some experience/trade school training for new hires. Screening tests ensure the trainee has basic troubleshooting knowledge. The new system is called a mentor system, where a trainee (mentee) is assigned to a mentor. The trainee rides along with the mentor, learning the company way of doing things. Length of training is based on the learning curve of the mentee.

I haven't actually seen this plan in action. The mentor is supposed to receive a increase in pay for his troubles. I am designated a mentor, but haven't been assigned a trainee since (hence, no increase in pay).

Also, factory reps come directly to classrooms to introduce their newest product lines. Frequency of such training is linked to a training budget -- so it is rare.

Also does sears have there own tech line like whirlpool were there guys can call in for help if they need it or a website to look up tech sheets and download manuals?

Yes, they have acces to their own Sears Tech Assit Center (STAC). Also, the notebook computers they carry contain endless parts list, tech sheets, and diagrams, along with confidential service bullentins on known issues.

There are Pros & Cons to all of this, but that's it in a nutshell...

[Scottthewolf]

I left Maytag Factory Service when I got word of their financial difficulties  and heard they would go to A&E Factory Service (a fancy name for Sears All Brand Service)  because I was in no way going to work for Sears a third time. I quit and come back 3 times with Sears, I must be a glutton for punishment!

[grey shrek]

I too quit and returned to sears 3 times. Happens when you move to diff. cities. Sears isn't too bad to work for in Canada if you don't count the wage , benefits , workload and the fact you have some snotnosed supervisor the has never even changed a light bulb. I try not to be angry--- now retired---sort of...   grey shrek

[K-man]

if you dont mind not having a social live try it. i drive in excess of 175 mi per day average 10 calls and home after 7 each night...

[certified tech group 51]

There is a place to learn the trade ....It is the Major Appliance and Repair Technology.....Renton  wa.   Sears,  Whirlpool,  The  Eletricians Union  plus a few others are on the board of Directors........ 7 hours a day....5 days a week for almost 2 years.   When you get out, you have a good working knowlage of all appliances and most brands....BUT only if you listened  and studied....Sears in Seattle is short of techs,   in april 08,  the request was for 15 graduates......I worked for an  Sears authorized shop,...... Yup, it was charge..... charge... charge .   On the coast of Ore. there are a lot of senior citizens, that  can't fix a light bulb, but we had a price list  and if you did not use it................................... On my own now, and if I want to change $25.00 for the light bulb / parts and labor,. so be it.  I know that I get plenty of referals from that old lady that tells all her friends and neighbors about that nice young man who helped her out......  SO yes you can cut your teeth, working for Sears, we all have to know the workings of how some business are run.....  Good Luck.

[telefunkenu47]

I logged in 25 years with Sears and bringitback, had a pretty good ride for the first 20 or so.Put 2 kids through college, all the toys I ever wanted etc...everything pretty much turned to sh*t when the decided to start cheating us out of  35 minutes on the way to and from our first and last call every day. That ended up being about 5 hrs OT per week. The days got even longer and the miles too, because they had no disincentive to limit the routes, and I had no incentive to work any longer than I had to. Best decision  ever made was to leave!! 2 dealer stores are my best scource of calls and word of mouth far better than phone book ads.  

[Chat_in_FL]

[user=15157]telefunkenu47[/user] wrote:

when the decided to start cheating us out of  35 minutes on the way to and from our first and last call every day.

 

What I can't figure out, is that according to Federal Statistics, the last Census, the average commute is 25 minutes -- so where does Sears get 35 minutes? An extra 10 minutes each way, 20 minutes a day, times 10,000 techs... adds up...