About two weeks after I applied, I received a call back and he scheduled an interview. I was only given one time to choose from but that made sense later. I get there and I'm being interviewed not for the job I applied for which was better pay and full time, but a part time job at really low pay. They are hiring several people for BOH and FOH in prepared foods and he jumbled all the resumes and called everyone back assuming they want these entry level jobs. Bad sign.
I was pretty annoyed that he didn't tell me on the phone that I'm going to be interviewed for a lesser position, but now I figure that he had no idea who applied for what when he did the call backs.
He asks me if I would be interested in a different position. I say it would depend on what kind of position. He implies cooking. I have 0 experience in commercial food prep (I'm a server) and I know that 0 kitchen experience usually starts out as a dishwasher so this is all pretty confusing that he's thinking of hiring me as a cook. He says things he means seriously and then giggles. He's pretty ridiculous in his lack of skill at hiring and is by far the worst interview I've ever gone to.
When I insist that I actually be interviewed for something he throws out a "what is a really hard day at work like" question. He hems and haws some more. He tells me that everyone is hired at part time and moved to full time when they prove themselves. At best, that's a terrible policy and it still sounds like it isn't true. In attempt at an explanation, he asks me how I would feel if I worked my PT hours and then they hired someone FT after he'd told me that everyone starts at PT. I told him that would be none of my business and he giggles. At this point, I hate the very idea of working with him, much less for him.
He implies that their department has made some really poor hiring decisions. I say that I'm an excellent employee with the references to prove it. I say "I'm a really hard worker," because he's implied that not everyone can even get to full-time hours because of their work ethic. He says, "everyone says they are a hard worker" and giggles again. What an idiot. Even if this is a universally true statement, who says this out loud?
He schedules me for a second interview with other team leaders in prepared foods. I figure it is worth going just to see what the hiring process is like.
I go to the second interview and am only slightly more impressed. They also have no idea which position that I'm being interviewed for. But we get that hammered out. It's a pretty run of the mill FOH interview, but some worrying things are said. He states that "unlike other restaurants, BOH (cooks) don't run FOH out of the kitchen here." I have never been told to stay out of the kitchen in an server job. I'm always working, so why would I be told to stay out? I've never experienced this dynamic and it implies that he (as BOH) assumes that FOH is lazy or at least lazier than the kitchen.
I shouldn't say yes, but I'm told another interview will be scheduled with the GM of the store. He'll call to schedule. The day the interview was supposed to be scheduled comes and I've gotten no call. Since the last I heard was that I was going to be interviewed again, I call the store to ask. Someone at customer service leaves a message and I never get a call back.
Everyone says Whole Foods is a great place to work, but honestly, this seems like a terrible place to work.
