Drug policy.

[cec080]

Hey yall. I was at a cec over the weekend and these employees acted like they were on drugs. what is cec's policy on drug testing employees. :eek :eek

[pizzacam]

Man half the employees across the country would be canned if they did random drug testing. :lol :hat

[ChuckEFranchize454]

your not kidding gabe...heck all the employess at my store would be canned if that was the case. i would be the soul survivor of the store since i dont drink or smoke:D :D ;) ;)

[cec080]

i was just wondering..... i don't know how to reply to those responses. hmm. i'm at a loss for words.. :eek :eek :eek any more feedback is welcome....

[pizzacam]

Just keep it on the DL(yeah right, on a message board) People gotta find some way to still have fun at CEC

[JyPsy]

Much against my personal beliefs, (i think any job involving children should be 100% drug free) many people indulge in some various drug use, but provided it doesn't interfere with their work, most employers turn a blind eye to it, similar to alcohol.

Now what do you mean they "acted as if they were on drugs"?
were they just acting goofy?
I have been to some CeC's where when the customer count was low, the employees mess around, goof off, act silly, what have you. and knowing people that arent used to this behaviour say "they are on drugs!!".

just my 13 cents.

[puppetmaster29]

From what I can recall a drug test is only given to hourly and salary managers and all corprate people or if a cast member is promoted to a manager then a drug test will be given also. Unless they have made a change that I dont know about.

[pizzacam]

Damn, I agree with JyPsy...but what can you do when managers come in all hung over? :lol

[CEC3066]

wow Mike we never had any Drug teests done in Fairfield, are franchised stores exempt?

[puppetmaster29]

That's a good question.

[cec080]

Jypsy said it "acting like they were on drugs". thats what i meant about the cast members. they were fooling around very strangely.thats why i brought it up. i was never drug tested nor my Dad so thats why i was asking. i totally agree with you about the 100% drugfree workplace! especially since there are kids. yet you get the opposite with beer. why does cec sell beer? >D 90.5%of workplaces do pre employment drug testing.

[pizzacam]

Dude, nothing to apologize about..this board's about CEC and everything it entails or doesn't...Drug policy's better than a damn 20 page nonsense thread...:rolleyes

[Shiney Happy Jenn]

To confirm what PupperMaster said earlier....yes, there IS drug testing done but ONLY for any Manager positions ( OC, AM, GM,Dm, Corp, etc.). There is NO testing whatsoever for "regular" Cast Members.

When i was promoted from "Kitchen Rat" to "Opening Co-Ord" as soon as my GM received the ok to promote me i had to be shipped off for testing within 48 hours. What a nightmare, as the testing place was MILES away...a good 45 min ride...and i don't drive! I ended up having to bum a ride with another CM who was being promoted as well. It was such a pain in the patooie as both of us did'nt even take aspirin!

I have seen some nutty stuff...and i can vouch that if CEC tested ALL employees before hiring they would not have enough staff to run all their stores! Sad but true in many cases. It's those Kitchen Rats and Game Refs you have to keep your eyes on really.....at least in these parts.

[JyPsy]

True, but hell if you are getting paid the pittiance that most "kitchen rats" or CMs get paid, most wont care about their jobs anyways.

The quality of pay is directly proportionate to the quality of employee loyalty.

But when it comes to a kids store, where children are always there, In my opinion you have got to be on your toes, if a kid gets hurt, or someone gets accused of something involving kids, and you are stoned or drunk or whatever, that could be more detrimental than being fired.

but the reason they don't do more drug testing? first the employee turnaround i assume is pretty high at CeC, and secondly, it would be too costly, which is the CeC mantra "It would be too costly".

[Aaron]

lol! If CEC did drug tests on everyone there'd be no one left. :lol
Only a good handful in this state would pass.

-NJ

[sungun12]

if i ever thought a cm was stoned or drunk, they wouldnt be working. it is too expensive. it costs a pretty penny times how many cm times how many stores. its not worth it. well, not that its not worth it but i dont know if it has so much to do with the fact that the pay is lower and they dont care about their jobs, i think some of it is because they just are teenagers and thats about it. what teenager doesnt dabble in stuff. pretty normal. but doing it in my store = youre fired

[pizzacam]

:lol

[Shiney Happy Jenn]

Jypsy, to answer your question....

Yes, turnaround is insane at most locations...not all...but MOST. Its the same anywhere really when your target employment pool is teens.

Yeah, i can say that part of the "no DT" for Cm's is simply that: DT's are SO costly to a Company. It's always been about the mighty dollar with modern-day CECE...so when you look at it from that angle it makes perfect sense.

However, as Jypsy points out...the fact that this policy is going on at a "childrens" place where kids safety is of concern one is left wondering if this is really a wise move. Again, CECE is all about $$$$ and could care less about anything that would mess with their bottom line. Sad but true.

[sungun12]

see, i dont believe that one Jenn. i dont think it has anythign to do with being cheap or not caring. i just dont think its possible. especially when you get into the legality issues with them being minors (i only have like 5 cm over 18) . im sure you have to get parental permission, if you can even drug test teenagers for pre-employment at all.

now i totally believe in management drug testing. if the person in charge of those teenagers is a responsible adult then you shouldnt have those problems. none of the stores i worked in did. one time in one store someone got busted for coming to work not so sober and their parents were called to pick them up and they were fired on the spot. once word spread about that, you wont have a problem.

i think its when its let go, or the 'responsible adult manager' doesnt care or doesnt think its a big deal is when it matters. like i said - i would NEVER let a cm work if i thought they were under the influence of anything and they know that so therefore, they dont.

getting the whole company to drug test wont do anything. yay, you pass and then go out the next day and do it. they cant drug test every week. even the richest company in the world (walmart) only does it at pre-employment or if you get hurt and there is a comp claim. the manager has to care about their store. simple as that. it has nothing to do with the company not caring, *all of this in my opinion - of course* i just dont see it being feasable. <~did i spell that right??

[JyPsy]

Sungun, I don't mean to argue, but to simply debate :) (peaceful arguing)

I have been to many companies as an employee, from burger king, to arcades, to a security guard, and of cours retail, and it was always the same thing.

Drug testing regularly was too costly, and again turnaround was a huge issue, mainly with those under 18.

I did some searching on restrictions on drug testing underage employees and strangely found nothing, so i assume, (key phrase assume), that it functions the same as for adults.

I really think that the reason the drug issue is so lax in some stores is the managers don't care. If you fire an employee for drugs, thats more paperwork, and training someone new to replace them. I spoke to a local employee friend of mine (names and store location kept private obviously), and said they have been through multiple managers in the three years he has worked there, not one manager has wanted to go through the hassle of everything involved, not to mention worry about accusations of discrimination if the durg policy was enforced.

Now, i am sure the Vast majority of managers would drop a CM in a second if he came in all messed up, stinking of weed or alcohol, but the point is if CeC wants to bring up the quality of their stores, this is something that must be addressed, possibly by encouraging an older demographic to be employed, that might step in for a longer period of time.

The company loses money in training employees constantly, so it could be feasable, financially, to offer a higher starting wage with the understanding of a VERY strict no drugs/alcohol policy (on the job). No coming to work buzzed/drunk or whatever. I am not saying this would solve the problem but would put those that are less serious on notice, and with higher quality employees, less complaints. less complaints means more customers.

The things i hear the most from friends and family about CeC are always:

*Out of control children
*Urine/sweat Smell (some stores had/have it bad. especially those that have poor ventilation and large skytubes!)
*terrible customer service
*haphazardly inconsistant tasting food.
*"Rat show looks broken"

I agree on the food and poor service, but again the standards are not enforced enough anymore. I used to be able to go to a Chuck e's anywhere in the state nearly, and get almost identical tasting pizza. This I Loved....but i am getting far off topic.

I believe the entire issue at hand is employee quality. most of the problems would be solved if they dedicated themselves to making CeC a place you WANT to work for, and are proud to as well.

I stand behind my statement that the rate of pay is the one of the biggest things that make people not care, and not take the job seriously.

These are big issues the big rats in suits upstairs need to look at in a serious way before they chip away at the company too far.

Anyways thats my $2.22 opinion....i really am enjoying this conversation :)

[cec080]

Boy the feed back is tremendous! i'm glad to see that this topic is really getting positive feed back. with the bit about minors and drug testing. i believe that they do have to get parental concent. but then again it may differ from state to state.

[sungun12]

i dont know man, i think CEC is a place people like to work for, I always have. I dont know what its like in the other districts. Im in Pittsburgh. Everyone knows there is a Pittsburgh but in reality, its not that big of a city. I dont get nervous if im downtown at midnight after a show and Im walking to my car alone. Its not scary. We only have a few 'sketchy' areas. and you just dont go there and they just dont leave. All in all its quite a wholesome city with wholesome teenagers.

Its hard to get older clientel. When you think about it, even if we started at like $8 an hour, what adult with a family and a mortgage could live on that? Do you really think you can find good wholesome adults that would work for that? Its hard. But its the perfect atmosphere for teenagers. Its fun, its spending money for them and they can keep up. Im not saying I wouldnt hire someone because of age, but teens are more drawn to it. Its kinda always been that way. I know I was.

Its not hard to term someone. Now with aloha, all it takes is a click of the mouse. no paperwork. takes one second.

I dont know, Im still gonna stick with my original 'if you run your store right and actually care' you wont have those problems. i dont. like my dm always says, you want to run a store so that if your kid, or brother or whatever was a cm, you wouldnt ever have to worry about them working there. we owe it to their parents and the cm to teach them about life and how to be a successful addition to any team. and i totally agree.

one of my kids from butler is now the personnel director of kennywood (the amusement park in pittsburgh) and is in charge of hiring and training. i know he got that job because of the stuff i taught him. and THAT right there is why i LOVE my job. I made him a better person and he will be successful because of me, if only a small part, and thats what its all about. Period.

[JyPsy]

all in all sungun, thats what it comes down to.

You care about the company and your job. The typical american employee thats on standard wages usually doesnt...they go in collect a paycheck and go home.

If the manager cares enough, they will find a good crew, and encourage them to do the best they can.

[pizzacam]

If the manager cares :lol :lol Man, I've yet to find one that's an equal balance, they either care more about the employees the rules being followed and the games and or show go to hell...or vice versa.

[Shiney Happy Jenn]

Jypsy, that is very true what you have stated.

Sadly much of the Corporate world does not see it this way. Those of us who DO take the care and effort to find and train a awesome caring crew are often frowned upon and eventually booted. We are seen as "time wasters", "crazy dreamers", or ( wait for it)...."..not strong enough to do there job.."

Trust me, i learned the hard way. :|

They only want bodies to fill the holes in the staff positions, pay them less then a chimp would earn typing with his toes, and drive any shread of enthusiasm or creativity out of them. Anyone who thinks or dissagrees with anything is seen as a threat to their fragile Corporate world aligence. Anyone who tries to offer some views "out of the box" is shot down like a clay pigeon. So your typical staff starts out great, and then shortly over time they are reduced to shunted zombies. Once they are "used" they are dumped and the new recruits are brought in to start the vicious cycle all over again. It's disgusting the way most Stores are run in these parts. This is considered "normal business practices" here. It's ****e!

Not having a standardized Drug Policy for ALL hires insures they will always be able to accept anyone regardless of their private practices. Makes you just wanna bring your kids right in...don't it? :b

[sungun12]

i dont know, i guess i just cant see your side of it at all. i mean, i understand what your saying, but being that ive worked at cec for 10 years and have NEVER seen these kind of problems, i guess I just cant fully get it.

ive never worked at a store where we had these major employee issues and ive never really had a manger who just didnt care.

and i must say.....it feels great.

[Shiney Happy Jenn]

Count your lucky stars then girl, as you are indeed very VERY lucky.

[cec080]

i'm glad to see this topic really got going! i was afraid it would have been a huge problem!! :D :D

[JyPsy]

agreed jenn, sungun is VERY lucky to not have these problems. Also they arent problems really, since there is no drug testing, there is no proof anyone does drugs, therefore there is no problem.

Ignorance is bliss.

There will always be exceptions, and it seems like your area is one of them that really manages to keep their noses clean, which makes me have some hope for the company :)

Solution: clone sungun and make her the Manager of every store!
theres brand identification for you!