So good to be gone - Customer Service Representative Daedalus Books Employee Review

1.0
8 Jun 2017
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Discounts on their products Coworkers are nice, interesting people. Starting wage is decent compared to most retail jobs with little experience required.

Cons

Call center management was absolutely terrible at the top, lazy in the middle, and all of the actual work was performed by a few the "Customer Service Specialists" who were undervalued & overworked and some CSRs who actually cared. The company was lucky no penalties were forced after the ACA required employers to offer health benefits to anyone who worked 35+ hours. When the law first went into effect, they did nothing to acknowledge it. Eventually they made cuts to hours to loyal employees who had been working "full time" with zero benefits, instead of repaying them for 6+ years of employment with health insurance. While the starting wage is higher than minimum wage and is decent for retail, the lack of benefits and no significant raises has led to a VERY high percentage of employees who have needed to file bankruptcy for medical bills and other debt. A quick search for the company name in Maryland court records will show dozens of rulings where the company has been asked to garnish wages for employees in financial trouble. Payroll and HR should realize the amount of time & effort they put into making sure wages were properly garnished is a hint employees are underpaid/not earning a living wage. The sexism by top management in the call center was also noticeable. One of the highest in the center, who may or may not have left the company, would make creepy comments & ask inappropriate questions of female employees. There was an incident in which someone accidentally got what appeared to be menstrual blood on a chair. Instead of cleaning/disposing the chair and moving on, the individual in question went around and checked the cubicle chairs of all female employees to see who was to "blame." The company offered a good amount of sick & vacation leave, but would actually penalize anyone who took more than a small portion of it for taking off too much time. It was clear this leave was meant for the executives to be able to take that much. Due to leave carryover, employees who are leaving after 10+ years are getting 5 figure payouts. This cannot be good for a company already in financial stress. The environment is very vindictive, even at the lowest levels of employees. If you did anything or said anything that someone didn't like, they would act like any small historical mistake was a huge offense. They keep records of small mistakes (typos in orders, etc.) on file for each employee and instead of reviewing them as part of a normal company review cycle, they only bring them out when they want to criticize an individual or need to make large cuts. For the employees they liked, they would have 10x the mistakes as others but would not be reprimanded in any fashion.

Explore other reviews about Daedalus Books

5.0
23 Jan 2025
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Easy work for beginners in the industry

Cons

boring work for enders in the industry

5.0
26 Sept 2015
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

The management is very approachable and willing to answer any question. They are also very flexible when it comes to scheduling and days off, as long as you notify them in advance. Day-to-day tasks are well-explained and very straight forward; it's easy to get the hang of things. During down time, you are welcome to read books from the current inventory which is nice for book lovers like me! We have a great store discount, and the job pays much better than any retail job I've previously had. The dress code is casual, and the work environment a whole is relaxed.

Cons

If you are a person who needs variety at work and doesn't like to sit down for long periods, this job probably isn't for you. Personally, like the routine, but it can become monotonous. Also, if you're a person who likes to browse the internet or be on your cellphone, this is also not for you - Daedalus is pretty strict about not browsing the web for personal reasons or using your cellphone, as we are constantly around sensitive customer information. The evening staff also experiences longer hours during the holiday season (extended from 8pm to 10pm) which can be a pain - but at the same time, the boost in income is handy during the Christmas season (and we have a celebration when holiday hours end, which is always nice!).

5
See reviews by: Helpful|Rating|Date|All