Employee Beware: Sears Jobs Pay Commission Only

The Truth Behind the "Now Hiring" Signs

Kat V, Yahoo! Contributor Network
Dec 5, 2007 "Share your voice on Yahoo! websites. Start Here."

When I gave up my job in the summer to begin student teaching I anticipated being short of money, especially around the holidays. Student teaching is like any other unpaid internship, you work with a professional in the field to gain experience in the hopes of obtaining a position in the near future. In between college and graduate school I worked in office environments, both temp and permanent, but with my student teaching schedule taking up every weekday morning I couldn't even fit in part-time mailroom work. Seasonal retailing seemed like the best solution for much needed money to pay my bills, so I filled out several on-line job applications for stores such as Old Navy, Dress Barn and Sears.

Sears responded almost immediately with a list of interview dates, so I took the most convenient one and prepared myself for the routine questions I had last been asked when I was 17 and working at Kmart. I found the Human Resources office easily enough, and when I stepped inside waited about fifteen minutes before an Assistant Department Manager called my name. I heard the expected: every week the schedule changes, it's seasonal-to-hire, the need to be efficient and customer-friendly, and fielded the desired answers potential employers in a retail environment look for. The position was for a Shoe Associate, so I was taken to the department floor and shown the stockroom. In the middle of describing the position I heard him say ".....since this job is commission only." To give him credit, he referred me to another department where "there's a base salary plus commission."

Apparently Electronics and one other department are the only two currently hiring employees who will receive a base-salary. I have never heard of this in a store like Sears before, and I'm wondering if the merger with Kmart Corporation has something to do with it. Usually you'd think of a place like Sleepy's to be commission only, because money is only made when a larger product is sold. In a place like Sears, many products both large and small are sold every hour. Plus, one has to take into consideration the fact that employees are not only competing to win a title such as "Employee of the Month" but money in their weekly paycheck. While in Human Resources I read a lot of the literature on the walls. In small print something read "Employees who take home $20 or less a week." Suffice to say, it may pay more working at a fast food restaurant.

Published by Kat V

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