STAY AWAY! This is the worst job recruiting scam ever, and the door-to-door sales that they make you do is technically illegal and could get you arrested by the cops!

I responded to a Craigslist ad that said I could make a minimum of $2000 a month, training would be provided, no experience needed, etc. Since I was looking for a job, I thought, "might as well try" and applied for it. I was thrilled when they called me back and said I was accepted. Oh if only I knew what I was in for!

First, they made me sit through 3 days of training. My job was to go around and show off the Kirby vacuum cleaner for customers that they have arranged appointments with. Work hours would vary a bit depending on appointments, but they would generally be from 10 in the morning to 6 in the evening. I would be working Mon-Sat. Throughout, they emphasized that I would be making at least $2k a month and that I could make even more on commission.

Then came my first day on the job. At 10 in the morning I piled into a van with 5 other people and off we went to Concord. And that's when the horror began. There were no appointments! Instead, the team leader informed us that we would be going DOOR-TO-DOOR and try to get them to open up to let us do a demo! I was completely appalled - I HATE door-to-door salespeople that knock on your house unsolicited and now I *WAS* one. I asked to leave, but the team leader explained that it was no-can-do since they had to make the rounds and couldn't turn back just for me. He and several others on the team kept trying to coax me into doing door-to-door sales; I flat out refused each time. Also, in the midst of this discussion, it came out that the $2000 a month minimum had a catch; you only get paid that minimum amount if you do at least 15 demos a week! If you don't make your quota of 15 demos a week, you get NOTHING!

I was horrified at the behavior of my colleagues. They kept yammering and pleading and whining when people refused to let them into their houses. In one instance, after being turned down, one of them had the nerve to ask the lady that answered the door whether or not he could use the restroom! "Listen, I know you don't want a demo, but I really gotta take a piss so let me use your bathroom ok?" This nonsense continued late into the night - we were still knocking on doors at 10 at night! When I pleaded with them to stop since we would be disturbing families with children who had school the next day, my team mates looked at me as if I was the one who was crazy!!! All said and done, our group didn't make it back to the office until 1:00 AM in the morning of the next day!

I resolved that I would never go back again, and as I was telling one of my close friends, he pointed out that he thought that what had happened was illegal since most cities required door-to-door salespeople to have special permits. Out of curiosity, we looked it up online and found this:

http://www.ci.concord.ca.us/CITYGOV/municode/chapte r018.htm#sec18-442

Quote:
"It shall be unlawful for any person eighteen (18) years of age or older to engage in peddling or solicitation activities within the City without having in his possession a valid and current solicitors permit issued by the Police Chief"

A further Google search revealed that this seems to be a GENERAL practice of the Kirby company. Apparently, one of their salesmen got arrested back in 2004. One of the charges against him was "violation of the Transient Merchant Act in Canton, Ill." which is basically the same law as the one in Concord, ie door-to-door salespeople need to have a license from the city.

http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/kirby_salesma n.html



So there you have it, my horror story of how I wasted 4 days of my life and did something which could have gotten me arrested. If you see any recruiting offer and it leads to Kirby, do yourself a favor and STAY AWAY!

Excellent as a vacuum cleaner though a bit heavy for an elderly person to handle. That's why the 3 stars.

It's when the user gets into the attachments that life gets complex. levers must be turned in the correct sequence, parts moved, and that's just to attach the hose. The shampooer must be put together, then attached by mating exactly to the belt drive, levers turned hoses attached. were it not for the DVD, our Kirby would have been used as an anchor soon after we purchased it. Labels on parts are simply raised lettering without contrast. Perfect vision in both eyes is a good idea.

How many people does it take to use all the features of a Kirby? - two. One to read the manual or watch the DVD and the other to do what is shouted at them.

We'll probably keep ours until we're too feeble to push this weighty behemoth around as a vacuum. It does have a power drive, but it's still heavy. I do think I'll be looking for a home shampooer rather than go through the agony of setting up the erector set Kirby's engineers have developed.

BTW - the salesperson made it look quick and easy. I'm sure it is if you do it half dozen times a day.