Appleone
When I noticed several positions advertised by AppleOne I figured this was the agency for me.
While other agencies claimed they had nothing at the moment, AppleOne seemed to have plenty.
When I called for an appointment I was told by a bored sounding receptionist that I would have to come in and register. I was more than prepared to do that. I got an appointment for the following day with one of the consultants, Patricia.
I travelled over an hour and a half to get to the AppleOne, where after filling in registration forms I was taken to a freezing cold room to be tested in MS-Word, Exel, PowerPoint and a typing test.
By the time I got to the typing test, which was scheduled last, my fingers were frozen stiff.
In addition I had to complete a hard copy grammar and spelling test.
Once all the rests were completed I could return to the reception area while my test scores were being calculated.
Some fifteen minutes later Patricia came to greet me. Highly pregnant I noticed.
We had a pleasant conversation and Patricia informed me that although she had nothing for me at the moment she would keep me in mind for other jobs.
"What about all the jobs I saw advertised on-line?" I asked her.
"We had one job last week," Patricia informed me, "but since all consultants have access to that job, several of them posted that same job."
"So the seven advertised positions was actually one job advertised by seven consultants?" I asked.
"Correct," Patricia confirmed. "But not to worry, every week news jobs are coming in."
When I followed up with a phone call the following week, Patricia informed me that business was rather slow at the moment. Next week would be better.
When I called the following week I could not get hold of Patricia. I left two or three voice mail messages, but got no reply. Eventually I called the main number and spoke to the receptionist.
"Patricia is no longer with the agency," I was told. "She had her baby and is now on maternity leave."
When I asked if I could speak to her replacement the receptionist put me through to Valery.
When I got Valery on the line I explained that two weeks ago I had registered with Patricia who was now, as I had just been informed, on maternity leave.
Valery confirmed this and added that she would act as my consultant from now on.
She asked for my name and I heard her tapping some keys on the computer.
"Are you sure you registered?" she asked, "because I don't see your name in the computer."
As it turned out, not only was my name not in the computer, my test scores were not there either. If I wanted to be considered for employment, I had to re-register.
This being the middle of winter, I did not look forward to another hour and a half trip. But because I was desperate for work, I agreed.
Before meeting with Valery I again did all the testing.
A month went by without any results. I stayed in touch with my consultant, but business was slow, as I was told.
When I called in the beginning of March I was informed that Valery was no longer with the agency. Her candidates were being handled by Monique.
When I spoke to Monique I was told that in order for her to represent me I would have to register with the agency.
"I did register," I told Monique. "Twice in fact. First with Patricia, and when Patricia went on maternity leave with Valery."
"Are you sure," Monique said, "because I can't find you in the computer."
I gave up.
