Monday, January 21, 2008
Rethinking Sears
I gave up on Sears back in the late 80's when the stopped taking Visa, Mastercard, and American Express in order to shill the Discover Card. Although I liked their product lines, especially Craftsman tools with their unlimited lifetime warranty, I decided I didn't want to buy from any company that didn't want to take my money on my terms. (And why is it that big, successful American companies, think GM and others, always seem to get so arrogant like that?)
Anyway, I received a possible chain letter from a friend, shown below:
I know I needed this reminder since Sears isn't always my first choice. Amazing when you think of how long the war has lasted and they haven't withdrawn from their commitment. Could we each buy at least one thing at Sears this year?
How does Sears treat its employees who are called up for military duty? By law, they are required to hold their jobs open and available, but nothing more. Usually, people take a big pay cut and lose benefits as a result of being called up.
Sears is voluntarily paying the difference in salaries and maintaining all benefits, including medical insurance and bonus programs, for all called up reservist employees for up to two years.
I submit that Sears is an exemplary corporate citizen and should be recognized for its contribution. I suggest we all shop at Sears, and be sure to find a manager to tell them why we are there so the company gets the positive reinforcement it well deserves.
Pass it on.
Well, I checked out the deal on Snopes, my go-to resource Internet spam and other associated crap and was surprised to see that it's a true story: http://www.snopes.com/politics/military/sears.asp.
Now I feel obliged to give Sears at least one more shot at winning back my business. OTOH, there aren't any of their stores nearby. But I think I owe them that much. What's more, the Snopes article points out that Sears isn't the only company being a good community citizen. You can find out many other businesses that help in the same way at http://esgr.org/ - Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve. I was surprised, for example, to learn that several area banks, grocery stores, and local business are just as good. Way to go, team!
I encourage you to check out http://esgr.org/ and give them your business.
Best regards,
-Kev
Anyway, I received a possible chain letter from a friend, shown below:
I know I needed this reminder since Sears isn't always my first choice. Amazing when you think of how long the war has lasted and they haven't withdrawn from their commitment. Could we each buy at least one thing at Sears this year?
How does Sears treat its employees who are called up for military duty? By law, they are required to hold their jobs open and available, but nothing more. Usually, people take a big pay cut and lose benefits as a result of being called up.
Sears is voluntarily paying the difference in salaries and maintaining all benefits, including medical insurance and bonus programs, for all called up reservist employees for up to two years.
I submit that Sears is an exemplary corporate citizen and should be recognized for its contribution. I suggest we all shop at Sears, and be sure to find a manager to tell them why we are there so the company gets the positive reinforcement it well deserves.
Pass it on.
Well, I checked out the deal on Snopes, my go-to resource Internet spam and other associated crap and was surprised to see that it's a true story: http://www.snopes.com/politics/military/sears.asp.
Now I feel obliged to give Sears at least one more shot at winning back my business. OTOH, there aren't any of their stores nearby. But I think I owe them that much. What's more, the Snopes article points out that Sears isn't the only company being a good community citizen. You can find out many other businesses that help in the same way at http://esgr.org/ - Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve. I was surprised, for example, to learn that several area banks, grocery stores, and local business are just as good. Way to go, team!
I encourage you to check out http://esgr.org/ and give them your business.
Best regards,
-Kev
Labels: Thoughts
# posted by Zebraman @ 8:27 PM 
