I’ve been with FRO for at least a decade, during which time I’ve witnessed the cruelty and perversion of its hiring process and phony competitions. Unless you are well connected by blood, ethnicity or personal interests to someone in the hiring panel, which is 99% of the time, composed of service managers, the chances to get the so desired job are sooooo slim. This has always been part of FRO culture and no damn thing has ever been done about it.
There is nothing more inhumane than the hiring process at FRO. I didn’t know what they were talking about when they celebrated the Employer of Choice last week.
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I'm one of the victims of FRO hiring process. I've applied for ESO and other temp positions quite a few times. I've never been considered for an interview but I was assigned later to train the lucky ones who got the job!
ReplyDeleteAt FRO, we know who hires who and why. A few years ago, when this manager hired her tenant, I felt so disgusted and I quit applying. I hope things will change because I really want to feel proud to belong to a serious organization. In the meantime here's what to do if you feel your job has been given to someone else:
1. Write to the Deputy Minister. She's the Ethics Executive for the Ministry.
2. Write to the Integrity Commissioner of Ontario.
3. Write to the OPS Chief of Staff.
4. Write to the media.
What you don't wanna do is get the Union involved, because it's not gonna lead anywhere. You don't wanna complain to the Director of FRO either. Some have and got nowhere. However, You can write to the hiring panel and tell them in good English what you really think of them!
Hey, How about the manager who hired his girl friend earlier this year? You know who I'm talking about, but I guess love makes you do crazy things,eh? including sending bunch of qualified candidates to hell.
ReplyDeleteCongrats to the all female successful candidates in the recent competition. We're really so diverse!
ReplyDeleteIf one is upset that they did not get hired it is because they did not do as they were asked when they wrote the competition and did not respond correctly when they were asked the interview questions! I have told staff time and again, do not assume because you work here you are a shoe in! Some competitions at FRO have been unfair, most are fair, it is the encumbant that does not listen and feels it is unfair as they did not give the hiring panel what they wanted! Ask some of the recent competition winners who studied their asses off to get the ESO job!
ReplyDeleteNot one male , not one.... for all the male applicants, this Office is all about who you know, your experience is hardly taken in consideration. better ask the friends of the Managers who got the job by default,they have a advantage over anyone else.
ReplyDeleteHow about the qualified senior ESR's who have been there for 10 years. They are good enough to train/coach the new ESR's that come on board but not good enough to be a ESO. It's not what you know is who you know. For some hiring panels you have must have a good figure/good looking never mind the knowlegde or being able to handle the case load.I'm so disgusted. FRO managers are so concern about the clients need how about the staff?
ReplyDeleteTo Anonymous manager (entry Nov 23rd), I don’t think working at FRO gives you the right to get easy promotions (a shoe in), but the issue is about you managers have contributed in choosing which shoe to put. Would you deny that Kelly did not hire her brother, which resulted in a grievance? or that Oscar never hired his friends. He even offered the post of OMB rep to his long time friend right before he left and thank God he left. Would deny that Josephine did not hire her tenant and other friends? How about the pervert Rob Rotondo? Didn’t he hire his current girl friend and her friends? They are even dating openly and he’s been seen in the basement with female workers getting paid back. The list is long. Most managers have dirty hands in the hiring process and nobody seems to do anything about it. I’m so disgusted. I know I didn’t have a job because I’m not attractive, I may not have the required boobs or legs, and I don’t spend time sweet talking in managers’ office under the pretext of fundraising or other bullshit like those idiots on the 4th floor (who by the way got the job !) but I do have a brain and the right experience to do a good job that will benefit out clients.
ReplyDeleteI decided to quit applying. I won’t give a chance to any pervert to associate my resume with my body.
FRO needs an in house Director of Ethics with full authority to reprimand or fire. Looks like the current Director doesn't make enough money to watch her kids at play. No, seriously, we do have some managers that FRO can rely on. They provide a great service to their teams and to the public. They come to work to serve. The ones mentioned by X on 4th are the gov't trash. We know their history and how they got their jobs. I guess the public, must step in and help clean up FRO. Perverts may never serve clients properly because their minds are always where you already know.
ReplyDeleteWhat a fantastic blog, I can see that everything is really on target. NOT. I feel that this blog is more of an outlet for disgruntled employees rather than being a gathering of action for those who are seeking change. It also strikes this writer that no one looks towards themselves, in the incident of not being hired, to ask "what could I have done better in my interview?", "What could I do in my daily job requirements that would strengthen my experience and solidify my resume?" And this I assure you is not a manager, I work among you and serve our clients as well as you but I share an understanding that I am judged on my performance and no one can control that but myself and I am responsible for my own success. However I find it offensive that you name managers who some people like myself truly find to be leaders and actually like, (just because they are a manager doesn't mean I'm obligated to hate them). This is unacceptable in any work place that you would name an individual such as you have. Allegations such as these should have been brought forward to our union rep, or our ADM to be handled properly if you felt that our director is incapable or prejudiced in handling this type of situation.
ReplyDeleteFinally, if a team mate has a birthday and people are asking for contributions for a cake or gift its the same as if some co-workers want to pitch in for a gift for a manager --> you have every right to decline!!!! You don't even have say why, just politely decline!! As for our director I feel that our ADM needs to make a change and our work environment definately needs to improve. It all starts from the top, and maybe then blogs like these would not be necessary.
So again, in the future please keep in mind that this a forum for change, not to name names, or discredit individuals, or post slanderous comments. If we want to be taken seriously, I my personal opinion, think things need to be moderated slightly more in the direction of the ideals that this posting forum was created then the minister will take us seriously and we will see improvement in FRO.
I just read the intent of this blog posted on Oct 30/08 and it has nothing to do with this mix of malicious comments, gossips and accusations. This is not the place for the stuff said about managers, whether there's any truth to it or not….This is not exactly a productive discussion!
ReplyDeleteI know how to get promoted at FRO: get a husband in IT whose access to all hiring manager’s V:drive may be the best “connection” to have a perfect test and interview!!!! .....Secret of success: knowing the questions and expected answers in advance!
ReplyDeleteX on 4th,who is now on 6th...It is obvious that you are a bit bitter over not being attractive,popular, etc. which in turn proves why you would be such a disgruntled ESR, you seem to believe that you are owed an interview let alone an ESO position. Have you ever thought that maybe if you were even the least bit interested in cleaning up your act and stop being such a "gossiping parrot" that the managers might like you? That your colleagues would even support you? Have you even tried to re-evaluate that some of us have been ESR's a hell of a lot longer than you and have even been offered the ESO position temporarily only to be right back in an ESR spot after working hard? SO do not sit there and type slanderous remarks to your co-workers, friends, managers etc. It's a shame you have shown how disgusted you are in your physical appearance in your Dec. 22 blog, perhaps take a look at why you are such a failure? Don't blame others for your stupidity, blame YOURSELF.
ReplyDeleteP.S. I believe spell check may be an asset to your next interview as well.
Anonymous of Jan 3rd,
ReplyDeleteI thought gossiping parrots is what FRO managers like!
Many of these “victims” of the hiring process need to stop sticking their nose in everybody’s business, change that negative and bitter attitude and build up a fine reputation of professionalism and dedication to the work they do. How many of my colleagues have told me to read magazines in between calls and have the perfect answer if the manager of duty called, or to go shopping on my off-phone time, or not to get any call 10 minutes before my phone shift is over, or to “accidentally” hung up on y clients, or to go home early and tell somebody to log me out ?… If I were a hiring manager I would think twice before giving the chance to these people…they are experienced smart and know the legislation inside out..but they have serious attitude problems and their only concern is to take advantage of the system instead of showing off their real talents… We not only have “rights” but also responsibilities and we need to take them seriously …
ReplyDeleteTo Anonym Jan 4, 09
ReplyDeleteAt FRO it’s not about professionalism or dedication to one’s job. Most of us are professional and care about the people we serve. It is about who you know. Your professionalism is never an asset. It has been like this for years because the leaders are not professional to start with. Check the staff at next door MTO for instance. The difference is huge!
This blog reflect how people are sick of this. What X on 4th and others said about managers is absolutely true. X on 4th should have spelled out the complete list. It is disgusting to see some hiring their friends or whoever is out there kissing their *** as if they’re recruiting for their own businesses. FRO is a public institution. It does not belong to any staff member no matter how senior he/she is.
Now some talk about bringing issues up to the Director’s office or the Union rep instead of creating a blog and naming names. I know of at least 3 colleagues who have in the past brought issues to the Director’s attention, guess what? Their complaints were dismissed and they are now flagged as trouble makers. These “trouble makers” will never dream of getting anywhere. That’s why I find this blog to be really brilliant. I may start one myself!
There should be an end to the shit that’s happening at FRO. We want to be able to come to work and feel comfortable to do our job.
As to some staff reading magazines, etc. How about the soap operas that happen behind close doors, inside managers’ offices?
What is the outcome of all these discussions? .. Even the ADM may be reading this blog..so what?
ReplyDeleteA lot of the accusations in this Blog are a real joke and a discredit to many of the people who studied hard to get their positions. Just because you have NO interviewing skills you blame it on being ugly or not sleeping with a manager? Are you serious? As usual you refuse to look in the mirror as to where the real faults lie. In case many of you have not checked this is not the private sector where your experience alone gets you a "promotion". A lot of people feel that it is their god given right to move from an ESR to an ESO. If you think that all the managers do are hire “their” people then why don’t you LEAVE and go to another ministry? WHY? Because the same lack of skills that prevent you from getting an ESO position become evident when you try to interview elsewhere outside of FRO. So before you start ripping this manager and that manager or saying that this ESO or that one only got where they are because of who they know or are married to PLEASE look in the mirror and put blame squarely where it belongs!
ReplyDeleteoh and for the person who enjoyed making wild accusations and rumours Naming names is very pathetic when you yourself are hiding behind an anonymous one!
I see another angry manager checked the blog
ReplyDeleteFriends and Relatives Only (FRO)
ReplyDeleteWhy do some managers have staff in their offices for hours at a time, every day, talking personal stuff? Why do the same managers ask their other staff "are all of you caught up?", "is there a meeting going on?"
ReplyDeleteWhy does a female manager walk up and down all day with her heavy feet....checking up on her staff under the premise that she is saying "good morning"? Why does this manager like bringing stress upon staff over and over again? Why doesn't the Director notice that her staff is always away for some medical/stress reason? Doesn't it look bad for a manager when their staff is never here? What does this say about that manager?
Why do all managers flock around the director's office every day laughing and carrying on like it's a party? Why does the director allow this to happen? Does she not realize that they are all sucking up to her for the wrong reason. It's pathetic. If managers can laugh it up, why can't staff laugh it up?
Why do some managers blame the director when they themselves cannot make decisions on their own? They always say, "the director said, "it can't be done". They want the blame to be taken away from them when it suits their needs.
Why do managers earn high salaries when they are just confirming your attendance and watching the clock to see if you are 2 minutes late and ask you if you want to change your start time? Why can't managers give a little to their staff? They would get a lot in return, i.e. respect and loyalty.
Why does one female manager have no personality? She is not approachable, she is not sympathetic. She does not say good morning, good afternoon or otherwise. She is a cold hearted individual. She does have family. Things happen to everybody sooner or later. How does a woman like this fit in the FRO environment? She should be let go immediately. She also hides behind her mentor who does all the work for her. This cold hearted manager does nothing on her own without checking with her buddy. That is why they go to lunch together for 2 hours every day. Look out for them, in a parking lot near you.
How does a manager get her niece and her tenant to work at FRO and totally denies the whole thing?
How does a manager get away with having pretty girls in his office all day long without getting caught by his boss and/or his boss' boss. Unbelievable? How does he get away with it? Pulling them off their phone shifts when it suits him? What could be so interesting in his office? The last competition he was involved in - the same type of "young girl" was hired. They all look the same,act the same and are around him like he is the "MAN" of FRO.
The ADM must investigate FRO's management team and clean it up if FRO is to be successful.
Why are there so many sisters/brothers and cousins working at FRO?, who has helped them "getting in"?
ReplyDeleteYou know what would also be very interesting for the people who like dropping names is if one of those "angry" managers wrote and named the FRO employees who have pathetic user logs with entries over a year old, or name the employees who are habitually late, or name those who call in sick when they get a paper cut or name the staff members who can't handle client calls and just refer them to managers or the case owners so that they do not have to deal with the issue, or name the names of the FRO employees who spend most of their time gossiping and goofing off,
ReplyDeleteSince naming names is kosher lets hear about it!
Yeah I'd like to see one of those entries, so management if you're reading please entertain us!
How can managers name the staff who are not pulling their weight when they are busy picking on the hard-working employees. The employees who do nothing all day and have done nothing over the years are "untouchable". You know who they are. They are all sweet and charming to those managers who buy their bull****. They continue to get assitance in cleaning up their outdated userlogs and they never get remprimanded. How is this fair?
ReplyDelete**correction for the Jan 7/08 comment: reprimanded
ReplyDeleteDo you guys agree that many FRO managers are scared to handle escalated calls? and that they can't make or take a simple call to/from a client?
ReplyDeleteTo Anonymous Jan 26. 8.27 PM
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you finally got it all out of your chest!
Excuse my ignorance but what do you really mean by "...heavy feet"? Do we have female managers with heavy feet?
"heavy feet" i assume means theyre fat. that should not be made an issue, but when working in a professional office, it is rather inappropriate to be seeing said "heavy footed" manager's unshapely bottom and visible pantylines....(shudder)
ReplyDelete...moving on
- valid point about certain people spending most of their day in managers offices, or "planning social events
- it is not that the girls who were hired, and are part of a " harem" are not doing their jobs or are not capable, that's not the point..the point is they got it over other capable and senior E.S.R.'s due to connections and showing of skin, when it was supposed to be a "fair" competition.
- Yes, most managers do nothing but deal with attendance and vacation requests, nothing else. They cant even handle client call backs, or when asked a work related question ( re legislation etc) will refer you to a senior E.S.O, because they don't know the answer themselves. How is that managing, and how does that warrant the salaries they are paid. Instead hire Team leaders at a reduced pay to deal with only attendance and vacation requests. God only knows what will happen when the few remaining knowledgeable managers eventually leave/retire. FRO will be in bad shape then.
- Posting names of employees, be it managers or E.S.R./E.S.O's is wrong on so many levels. We don't give our full names to clients, so to post them on a public forum on the internet is careless, irresponsible and may lead to action being taken for slandering individuals. If you must, post initials..or even FRO I.D. #'s as then only employees will know who they are, and the public wont have full names of employees....treading on very dangerous ground here.
- Lois ..if you're reading this...hope you take it into consideration and do something, as all the issues listed on this site, are reasons moral is low in the office, and the office isn't working as smoothly and efficiently as it could/should. Employer of choice...we got a loooong way to go for that. ( not to mention that on days when there is extreme weather alert or blizzards, most of the government is sent home to accommodate employees...except FRO!! lol!!,,yay..employer of choice)
I love my job, and that what I do everyday helps the recipient in getting their support, and in a cheesy way is making a difference in peoples lives. Unfortunately, the stupid politics, and incompetency of managers,and retarded internal procedures /decisions made ( ie, how many attempts have been made to get a new system, how many pointless training sessions have been attended to be ready for said systems, how many millions of taxpayer dollars wasted, and we are in the same state we were in 10 years ago!!!) put a damper on attitudes and get in the way of being able to perform the job effectively.
What a joke. What an absolute joke.
ReplyDeleteNinety-five percent - and I mean call centre CSAs, CSCs, intake, finance and any other division of that nightmare of an organization is filled with your classic, burnt out, public sector employees that have no perception of what it`s like to have a real job in the private sector where people are actually accountable for their own performance. With only a few exceptions, the laziness and sense of entitlement among both frontline and management employees is astounding. How most of you people cash your paychecks and sleep at night is beyond me.
What FRO needs is a Director or ADM with a private sector mentality, take about 10 million of tax payers money, and package off 90% of the employees. The place is full of cancer - very few care about the clients - most only care about how quickly they can get off the phones, or how many files they can hide, or how many shifts they can blow off.
For the few that do care, i really I pity them. I couldn`t take it there anymore so I left. The place needs a bomb to be dropped on it.
What a joke. And the morons whining about jobs on here are the ones who hide behind mediocrity and expect to get promoted. Anyone half employable to get a real job and be a productive citizen in the private sector, as your skills would be clearly wasted at FRO.
Wow... what a post.
ReplyDeleteSo... I agree with some of the items being brought forward --- some people are out of control.
Yes, there are issues with hiring. Yes, there are issues with other items. Lois should look at the comments and consistant comments both on here and that have been 'documented' should be investigated. We don't want bitter employees but we also don't want managers in FRO that have many complaints placed against them from various people. The reviewing of the 'phone police' would also be beneficial. You have set time limits to speak to clients. Are you kidding me? Get rid of the 'call centre environment' and make it a client services environment. So it took me 4 minutes instead of 2. I wrote a clear note so the next person will know what has happened without reviewing years of notes. Ask employees how you can help the staff do their job better. But remember when you ask--put action into it. It's not enough just to ask--you have to do something about it also.
In saying that,
Who do you people think you are to post people's names. They have a life outside of FRO - they have families - they have friends. If you are that bitter and upset go find a job outside of the gov't -- go to the 'real world' where your making $10 per hour and dealing with the same crap. Change your attitude or change your job. I have also applied for the ESO comp--twice and didn't get the job. Am I disappointed, of course I am. But I called and spoke to the hiring managers and got feedback to better prepare me for next time. My manager was awesome--she is a good person and really cares! I loved what I did--I'll be cheesy too and say I like helping people. There are so many bitter people in that place--if you hate it that much leave to allow people who will appreciate it in. We can't change the process--we can change our attitude and our approach to change. The Team of me and my 2 ESO's were awesome -- we get along and truly take pride in the job.
One huge issue at FRO is that we are not respected by the public. What the heck are we doing here-- airing our dirty laundry. If I was a S/P or S/R and read this I am going to think no wonder I don't get my $$... these bitter people don't give a crap. We are belittling ourselves and our jobs. At some point the bitter people are going have to make a choice to either be productive or get out. I'm not saying everything you said is wrong--it's how you said it that was wrong.
Come on people don't add fuel to public opinion about us. Our job is hard enough without giving them more ammunition against us.
Jan 8/09 10:34 entry
ReplyDeleteJan 10/09 9:20 am entry
You both said that staff's names should not be used and you both used ADM's first name? Why did you both do that?
When there is a snowstorm and staff comes in late, instead of the managers asking you "when are you going to make up your time" (this is as soon as you log in). They should be saying this: "Thank you so much for making the effort of coming in today, we really appreciate it". Why must time be made up during horrible weather conditons? It doesn't happen all the time. Give a little, managers, staff would be more positive and appreciative knowing that their efforts were admired.
ReplyDeleteLet's try something different for a change. Why does staff have to be stressed out all the time?
Use the human touch and not the hard-nosed, no compassionate touch.
Another comment I have: Why are only the men managers more understanding to their staff? They receive more respect. What are the women managers trying to prove? That they are hard-assed. Mellow out, ladies. Don't let yourselves be called "bitches". It doesn't sound nice. You would not believe how you are all hated by everybody. Don't let some staff fool you just because they are smiling and talking to you nice. You should all be ashamed of yourselves. You give all the other women staff a bad name.
Why are only men managers more understanding to their staff than female managers?
ReplyDeleteEasy. Male managers have more fun with female staff. Maybe too much sex relaxes them. Female managers haven't got that chance. Lack of sex causes frustration and bitterness. This is scientifically proven.
I guess Male managers should donate some of their time to these frustrated female managers.
Didn't someone said before that managers will contribute in increasing the numbers of cases at FRO? He is damn right!
Lois being the ADM of FRO is public knowledge, im not revealing some great mystery. But posting first and last names of employees/managers isnt public knowledge. And if you noticed I didnt use her last name!!!
ReplyDeleteManagers bash each other, they are all on a power trip. This one hates that one, that one hates this one. Managers do not set a good example for staff. Everybody works for the OPS, nobody gets bonuses or promotions that easily. Why can't everybody get along with each other and work together towards the common goal? Why do they waste time at their daily meetings discussing "nothing" because nothing ever changes.
ReplyDeleteWhy do some managers harass you to death when they are monitoring the call centre, you know who the anal ones are and some of them never call you? Did you ever wonder about that?
Here's another question:
ReplyDeleteWhy is it that nobody does anything about it?
How can a manager possibly make staff do work on their work time and get away with that? How can they force staff do what we are being paid for? .. Tyrants!! Do not traumatize staff!!
ReplyDeleteHere are more questions:
ReplyDelete1. If you are IN a movie, why are you ON TV?
2. What seeds were used for seedless grapes?
3. If humans evolved from apes, why do we still have apes?
**** Pathetic ****
ReplyDeleteModerator, do yourself a favor and close this pitiable blog
ReplyDeleteHi there, I'm not part of the FROntline teams. I work for a different dept on the 7th floor. I can confirm what many say about the manager Robert with regards to his relationship with this woman in his team. I see them talking all the time, sometimes for over half an hour, either inside his office or at her cubicle. I guess relationships like that are pretty common at FRO, except that Robert is not afraid to show what he's doing.
ReplyDelete