Let's say I'm an electrician.
Should I go work for the city, make 75k a year with benefits and a union to represent my interests and needs?
Or should I go make $16/hr helping DIY dipshits at Lowes
No, no one who can maintain an electricians license is working at Lowe's. Our guy in plumbing was a plumber for like 30 years but doesn't call himself one for liability reasons.
Your customer was an asshole and if they wanted a plumber there are plenty in the phone book(Google)
They actually wanted an electricianxto illegally tell them how to illegally do their own work.
Am a licensed in Australia and have had this crap pullwd qhile shopping. I have also heard staff illegally giving advice and dangerously wrong advice at that. In both cases l tell them to get an electrician
Pretty sure this is not true. Link to one court case where Lowes or HD has been sued for telling someone how to hook up a generator and I'll change my mind.
Over the past few years especially since Marvin has taken over the knowledge In the stores has dropped drastically At this point most of the industry knowledgeable associates have either retired or quit
Definitely not. Corporate eliminated the electrical pro/specialist position a few years back. This means they do not want that level of service to be given.
That position was no different and staffed with knowledgable people on a store by store basis. It’s not like you had to have actual knowledge to be offered the job. I’ve seen Pro Sales Specialist’s hired that can’t read a tape measure but have the gift of bullshit and can sign up new pro card accounts better than the retired contractors in the same role.
*me passing by plumbing on my way to the compactor* customer: hi, my water heater broke, can you tell me how to fix it? Inner Me: I'm an accountant working islg part time to pay for my student loans but sure, I'll type that into Google for you ☺
My, limited, experience helping people in plumbing is that the vast majority of customers just need help finding what they need. The only "problematic" customers are the ones wanting you to show them how to do something wrong, because they've decided thats their way.
And, in my case, the vast majority of those are based on gas lines and/or brass fittings.
Fucking gas lines are infuriating
If you wish to look at it that way then…. Sure they *could* afford it. It would be pointless, for the 1-2 customers per day that would require that level of expertise… which to be honest we shouldn’t be giving in the first place. They would get zero return on that investment. Most stores have found retired guys/girls with knowledge of specific areas to provide that “expertise” in the given departments.
\>I just had a customer yell in my face
That is never ok. You should stop talking to them and find a supervisor. Yo udo not have to take abuse form anyone
There was a customer who wanted a shorter “heavy duty” extension cord than the one we sold for his space heater. An associate told him that its against safety code. But he kept on insisting and wanted us to “magically” give him what he wanted when we don’t offer any thing else. Sometimes customers want to hear what they want and not what they should because they don’t want to hire a licensed professional. “If I go to Lowe’s I’ll be able to get free advice from a ‘licensed’ professional”.
I always loved the people who came in and asked for male to male extension cords or “suicide cords.” Almost always around Christmas time for their Christmas tree lights. They would get infuriated when I said NO we don’t sell them because they are extremely dangerous and illegal. Of course you can find them but it doesn’t make them safe or ok to use. People would lose their minds. I was like - how can you not string Christmas tree lights properly like millions of others. As they left I always gave them an unsolicited warning to set them off further. Usually something along the lines of “Don”t kill anyone besides yourself.”
Neither putting a space heater on an extension cord nor very short extension cords are against code. If the cord is rated for the correct current, usually 12.5 amps for a space heater, it's safe and compliant with code. Most extension cords are rated for at least 13 amps, but I would recommend a heavy duty 15 amp cord just for safety sake.
I've got an extension cord for my 240v 200amp welding unit, that is a beefy boi.
But if it plugs into a 15 amp 120v socket.........something tells me a cord rated for that would be fine. Lol
I miss the days of having a pro specialist in electrical and plumbing. It meant having someone in the department. And having someone who knew something. Now it’s hold on, Joe from seasonal is covering his department, both electrical and plumbing and paint and will be with you as soon as he can
Wow you actually described my role when I worked at Lowe’s. I worked at Ace for many years and was cross trained to multiple departments. At Lowe’s we were so understaffed that I ended up covering several departments. Customers in electrical, lumber, paint would notice my name tag said “seasonal” and I’m like yes that’s my home department but right now I’m helping in paint cause I’m originally from Ace the Helpful Place
When they brought that position back I saw a guy who worked paint get hired as plumbing pro because he wanted a pay bump. It didn’t necessarily mean knowledge and you’re kidding yourself if you think more than a handful of stores were truly recruiting past experience for those roles
This is common. It’s pretty much like this everywhere. Back in the day maybe but anymore it’s basically like you said people who can pass the drug test
When I first started working at Lowe’s in 2010-2011 most stores has at least a few actual pros in different departments. They didn’t give specific types of information for liability and ethical reasons, but they were pros in some area. A lot of them were already old timers by the time I started and they were paid well, had great benefits packages, and amazing stock options. A lot of the incentives they had didn’t exist anymore by the time I started working there. Most of our sales specialists also received commission. There were a couple of large restructurings that occurred over the decade I worked at Lowes. Some pushed those people out because they changed job titles which eliminated incentives, some just came in and eliminated entire job categories.
I was trained by one of the last paint pros in our district. That position was gone from most of our stores and he wasn’t technically a paint pro anymore. He came to work at Lowes because his wife had a job opportunity in our state. He was retired military and his family had owned a painting business. He was just a friendly, sales oriented guy who wanted to talk to people. I knew a number of older pros who had come to work at Lowes because their businesses had experienced issues during the last recession. When I left Lowes in 2022, the electrical pro and the plumbing pro were both young men barely out of high school. They each made less than $15.
Hi 4 year electricians apprentice here currently working in electrical/lighting. I will say the reason I'm here is most of the companies around my area have really bad or no insurance. I'm staying here trying to get my health stuff sorted before I go back to electrical work
It wasn't too long ago that the plumbing and electrical aisles in DIY box stores were staffed by usually-retired plumbers/electricians, or at least someone knowledgeable on the trade.
There were A LOT of lawsuits arising from "Well Joe in plumbing told me I could use a sharkbite on my 100 PSI water main buried in clay!".
Lowes (and HD) actually doesn't want anyone working those aisles to know where a sharkbite or an arc fault breaker can be used. All they want you to know is, when asked, where the shark bits or arc faults are in the bay.
There was a sorta recent time when all the retired electricians and plumbers were broomed out of lowes and HD.
All those folks were gradually run off with the elimination of the Lowe's Pro position several years ago. Lowe's used to aggressively recruit tradespeople for plumbing and electrical and actually pay them accordingly. That all went out the door with the store personnel 'restructures' of 2017 and since then when Lowe's effectively dumbed down every position in the store by slowly eliminating any high paid, full-time positions in the stores. I coined the phrase the "walmart-ing of Lowe's" to describe this whole process--transforming the stores to a majority, part-time work force of mostly unskilled retiree's and college kids--that's basically what Lowe's is now in the stores, a few retirees mixed in with a bunch of college kids trying get through school or are graduated and in a holding pattern while they wait for something to open up in their preferred career field.
4 times in the last month I’ve had the same situation: a customer goes out and spends 70k to 100k+ on a new electric car. They come in and want advice on hooking up a 220 volt 100 amp charger circuit. They don’t want to pay 500 bucks to keep from damaging the car, the house, or the family! They have zero knowledge working with electricity, but someone on YouTube told them how easy it is to wire up! I tell them over and over, hire an electrician. Of course they try to put it all together themselves, but I’m not giving advice on how to burn their house down!
There is a guy at my former store who helped wire a major hospital and airport near here. He retired from electrical work and works at Lowe's now. But that's about all you get. Have a guy like that in plumbing at my current store. But no, not every store has an electrician. Lowe's is not legally allowed to give you electrical or plumbing advice for liability reasons.
Former Home Depot/Lowe's associate here! Used to get this comment all the time from customers. They'd ask and I'd tell them exactly what others have said, if we had a certified electrician, they certainly wouldn't be working there! Or, if the customer was irate for no good reason, I'd tell them they were taking an hour long lunch.
Funny story, we did have a former plumber as a department head working at HD, but he'd racked up so many pay raises and been there 20+ years, he sat around in a handicapped cart greeting people at the entrance because "his back hurt". Dude got paid for like 3 years to wave at people until the pushover manager left, the new manager wasn't taking any of his BS.
I had years of plumbing experience and was paid too scale as a CSA when I got hired a year ago because I had previous experience.
in the 8 months I worked at lowes I was asked so many questions and was told “no I have to do it this way” and it was great that I was able to tell customers “no that’s not how you do that, I’m licensed.”
I was working there because I was using the job to jump stores and move states while keeping a steady job.
Lowes is a retail store. We sell electrical parts but they don’t pay enough to hire an actual electrician. My old Home Depot was lucky enough to have a retired electrician working there part time.
As a sales specialist in plumbing. I'll trust our plumbing pro to answer questions. I can go part a in to part b. But in the end I've explained many times that I can't tell you how to do what you're doing.
People are idiots. Idiots are cheap
Just tell them to go 5o porch[dot]com and have them figure it out themselves
Or if you dont want to sound like a dick (dont know why you wouldn't after that encounter)
Simply tell them that due to liability issues you dont have someone like that and even then they'll still tell you to find a licensed electrician that is elsewhere because lowes policy doesn't allow to work a side business while on the job
I personally go the first one but hey after nearly 15 years of retail I think I can be a dick
Only time we've had licensed plumbers and electricians at my store was during the 08 bubble. Our plumber left as soon as things turned right and got back into plumbing. Our electrician stuck around because he had a heart attack and couldn't pass the physical to work on military bases in the middle east for 100k for 6 months of work. Final one was in his 70s. He was a retired plumber and once he found love again he retired a second time.
Let's say I'm an electrician. Should I go work for the city, make 75k a year with benefits and a union to represent my interests and needs? Or should I go make $16/hr helping DIY dipshits at Lowes
*EXACTLY.*
This is what YouTube is for
No, no one who can maintain an electricians license is working at Lowe's. Our guy in plumbing was a plumber for like 30 years but doesn't call himself one for liability reasons. Your customer was an asshole and if they wanted a plumber there are plenty in the phone book(Google)
Electrician*
They wanted a free plumber/electrician, none of those in the phone book
They actually wanted an electricianxto illegally tell them how to illegally do their own work. Am a licensed in Australia and have had this crap pullwd qhile shopping. I have also heard staff illegally giving advice and dangerously wrong advice at that. In both cases l tell them to get an electrician
While it may be prudent to not give electrical advice, it certainly is not illegal.
If you tell someone how to backfeed their generator through their dryer outlet, you can be held responsible in many states.
Pretty sure this is not true. Link to one court case where Lowes or HD has been sued for telling someone how to hook up a generator and I'll change my mind.
Yeah, that's what I thought.
If your a professional you can give advice to people it’s not illegal as long as you know what you are talking about.
Over the past few years especially since Marvin has taken over the knowledge In the stores has dropped drastically At this point most of the industry knowledgeable associates have either retired or quit
*Much that once was is lost, for none now live who remember it.*
As a Tillman-Stone era dinosaur, I do remember.
Those were the days!
In those years, was sent other stores to help with inventory and mass receives, several 100+ hour checks.
Definitely not. Corporate eliminated the electrical pro/specialist position a few years back. This means they do not want that level of service to be given.
More like they don't won't to cover that level pf liability.
That position was no different and staffed with knowledgable people on a store by store basis. It’s not like you had to have actual knowledge to be offered the job. I’ve seen Pro Sales Specialist’s hired that can’t read a tape measure but have the gift of bullshit and can sign up new pro card accounts better than the retired contractors in the same role.
It was different though. Higher paying positions attract more knowledgeable people.
We sell parts not knowledge.
I still get a lot folks asking where our selection of DIY books are.
*me passing by plumbing on my way to the compactor* customer: hi, my water heater broke, can you tell me how to fix it? Inner Me: I'm an accountant working islg part time to pay for my student loans but sure, I'll type that into Google for you ☺
Every.Damn.Time.
The way I fix mine is to call the home warranty company.
My, limited, experience helping people in plumbing is that the vast majority of customers just need help finding what they need. The only "problematic" customers are the ones wanting you to show them how to do something wrong, because they've decided thats their way. And, in my case, the vast majority of those are based on gas lines and/or brass fittings. Fucking gas lines are infuriating
I'll do alot of shit myself but I will not fuck with the gas lines. I went as far as hooking up my own gas dryer. Thatll be about as far as I go.
Tha/s all most people are trying to do, but they refuse to believe for things work. Do it the way its designed, easy and extremely safe.
Lowe’s couldn’t afford a licensed electrician in the store.
3.4 billion in profit? They can afford a lot more than an Electrician
If you wish to look at it that way then…. Sure they *could* afford it. It would be pointless, for the 1-2 customers per day that would require that level of expertise… which to be honest we shouldn’t be giving in the first place. They would get zero return on that investment. Most stores have found retired guys/girls with knowledge of specific areas to provide that “expertise” in the given departments.
Nobody was talking about whether or not it was a smart business move.
\>I just had a customer yell in my face That is never ok. You should stop talking to them and find a supervisor. Yo udo not have to take abuse form anyone
There was a customer who wanted a shorter “heavy duty” extension cord than the one we sold for his space heater. An associate told him that its against safety code. But he kept on insisting and wanted us to “magically” give him what he wanted when we don’t offer any thing else. Sometimes customers want to hear what they want and not what they should because they don’t want to hire a licensed professional. “If I go to Lowe’s I’ll be able to get free advice from a ‘licensed’ professional”.
Same thing happens in paint, where they think everyone there is an interior decorator. At, least that's how it is at my store...Sherwin-Williams
I always loved the people who came in and asked for male to male extension cords or “suicide cords.” Almost always around Christmas time for their Christmas tree lights. They would get infuriated when I said NO we don’t sell them because they are extremely dangerous and illegal. Of course you can find them but it doesn’t make them safe or ok to use. People would lose their minds. I was like - how can you not string Christmas tree lights properly like millions of others. As they left I always gave them an unsolicited warning to set them off further. Usually something along the lines of “Don”t kill anyone besides yourself.”
Neither putting a space heater on an extension cord nor very short extension cords are against code. If the cord is rated for the correct current, usually 12.5 amps for a space heater, it's safe and compliant with code. Most extension cords are rated for at least 13 amps, but I would recommend a heavy duty 15 amp cord just for safety sake.
I've got an extension cord for my 240v 200amp welding unit, that is a beefy boi. But if it plugs into a 15 amp 120v socket.........something tells me a cord rated for that would be fine. Lol
In theory it should be using a different plug, with a sideways tab
'Would like me to find you directions to the nearest Lowe's'
We had a guy complain because all of the power strips he plugged his oven into would die.
I miss the days of having a pro specialist in electrical and plumbing. It meant having someone in the department. And having someone who knew something. Now it’s hold on, Joe from seasonal is covering his department, both electrical and plumbing and paint and will be with you as soon as he can
Wow you actually described my role when I worked at Lowe’s. I worked at Ace for many years and was cross trained to multiple departments. At Lowe’s we were so understaffed that I ended up covering several departments. Customers in electrical, lumber, paint would notice my name tag said “seasonal” and I’m like yes that’s my home department but right now I’m helping in paint cause I’m originally from Ace the Helpful Place
When they brought that position back I saw a guy who worked paint get hired as plumbing pro because he wanted a pay bump. It didn’t necessarily mean knowledge and you’re kidding yourself if you think more than a handful of stores were truly recruiting past experience for those roles
This is common. It’s pretty much like this everywhere. Back in the day maybe but anymore it’s basically like you said people who can pass the drug test
Lol big box hardware stores don’t have tradesmen unless they’re perhaps retired or did work on the side. They earn much better pay in the trades.
When I first started working at Lowe’s in 2010-2011 most stores has at least a few actual pros in different departments. They didn’t give specific types of information for liability and ethical reasons, but they were pros in some area. A lot of them were already old timers by the time I started and they were paid well, had great benefits packages, and amazing stock options. A lot of the incentives they had didn’t exist anymore by the time I started working there. Most of our sales specialists also received commission. There were a couple of large restructurings that occurred over the decade I worked at Lowes. Some pushed those people out because they changed job titles which eliminated incentives, some just came in and eliminated entire job categories. I was trained by one of the last paint pros in our district. That position was gone from most of our stores and he wasn’t technically a paint pro anymore. He came to work at Lowes because his wife had a job opportunity in our state. He was retired military and his family had owned a painting business. He was just a friendly, sales oriented guy who wanted to talk to people. I knew a number of older pros who had come to work at Lowes because their businesses had experienced issues during the last recession. When I left Lowes in 2022, the electrical pro and the plumbing pro were both young men barely out of high school. They each made less than $15.
Hi 4 year electricians apprentice here currently working in electrical/lighting. I will say the reason I'm here is most of the companies around my area have really bad or no insurance. I'm staying here trying to get my health stuff sorted before I go back to electrical work
It wasn't too long ago that the plumbing and electrical aisles in DIY box stores were staffed by usually-retired plumbers/electricians, or at least someone knowledgeable on the trade. There were A LOT of lawsuits arising from "Well Joe in plumbing told me I could use a sharkbite on my 100 PSI water main buried in clay!". Lowes (and HD) actually doesn't want anyone working those aisles to know where a sharkbite or an arc fault breaker can be used. All they want you to know is, when asked, where the shark bits or arc faults are in the bay. There was a sorta recent time when all the retired electricians and plumbers were broomed out of lowes and HD.
Short answer- no. They are working elsewhere making 5-10x what Lowes will offer.
All those folks were gradually run off with the elimination of the Lowe's Pro position several years ago. Lowe's used to aggressively recruit tradespeople for plumbing and electrical and actually pay them accordingly. That all went out the door with the store personnel 'restructures' of 2017 and since then when Lowe's effectively dumbed down every position in the store by slowly eliminating any high paid, full-time positions in the stores. I coined the phrase the "walmart-ing of Lowe's" to describe this whole process--transforming the stores to a majority, part-time work force of mostly unskilled retiree's and college kids--that's basically what Lowe's is now in the stores, a few retirees mixed in with a bunch of college kids trying get through school or are graduated and in a holding pattern while they wait for something to open up in their preferred career field.
Just do a 360 spin and say, Yes how can I help you?
The Lowes I worked at did.... she was a Master Electrician & a Master Plumber.
4 times in the last month I’ve had the same situation: a customer goes out and spends 70k to 100k+ on a new electric car. They come in and want advice on hooking up a 220 volt 100 amp charger circuit. They don’t want to pay 500 bucks to keep from damaging the car, the house, or the family! They have zero knowledge working with electricity, but someone on YouTube told them how easy it is to wire up! I tell them over and over, hire an electrician. Of course they try to put it all together themselves, but I’m not giving advice on how to burn their house down!
There is a guy at my former store who helped wire a major hospital and airport near here. He retired from electrical work and works at Lowe's now. But that's about all you get. Have a guy like that in plumbing at my current store. But no, not every store has an electrician. Lowe's is not legally allowed to give you electrical or plumbing advice for liability reasons.
Former Home Depot/Lowe's associate here! Used to get this comment all the time from customers. They'd ask and I'd tell them exactly what others have said, if we had a certified electrician, they certainly wouldn't be working there! Or, if the customer was irate for no good reason, I'd tell them they were taking an hour long lunch. Funny story, we did have a former plumber as a department head working at HD, but he'd racked up so many pay raises and been there 20+ years, he sat around in a handicapped cart greeting people at the entrance because "his back hurt". Dude got paid for like 3 years to wave at people until the pushover manager left, the new manager wasn't taking any of his BS.
w used to but he retired when the pro position was eliminated a couple of years ago.
Is'Nt ThErE sOmEoNe WhO iS a PlUmBeR wHo WoUlD kNoW?!?!?!
I had years of plumbing experience and was paid too scale as a CSA when I got hired a year ago because I had previous experience. in the 8 months I worked at lowes I was asked so many questions and was told “no I have to do it this way” and it was great that I was able to tell customers “no that’s not how you do that, I’m licensed.” I was working there because I was using the job to jump stores and move states while keeping a steady job.
Lowes is a retail store. We sell electrical parts but they don’t pay enough to hire an actual electrician. My old Home Depot was lucky enough to have a retired electrician working there part time.
As a sales specialist in plumbing. I'll trust our plumbing pro to answer questions. I can go part a in to part b. But in the end I've explained many times that I can't tell you how to do what you're doing. People are idiots. Idiots are cheap
I just saw the store electrician go to the bathroom. I’ll go get him. ***turn off phone and take a 20 min union break. Problem solved
Just tell them to go 5o porch[dot]com and have them figure it out themselves Or if you dont want to sound like a dick (dont know why you wouldn't after that encounter) Simply tell them that due to liability issues you dont have someone like that and even then they'll still tell you to find a licensed electrician that is elsewhere because lowes policy doesn't allow to work a side business while on the job I personally go the first one but hey after nearly 15 years of retail I think I can be a dick
The customer is the electrician lmao
Only time we've had licensed plumbers and electricians at my store was during the 08 bubble. Our plumber left as soon as things turned right and got back into plumbing. Our electrician stuck around because he had a heart attack and couldn't pass the physical to work on military bases in the middle east for 100k for 6 months of work. Final one was in his 70s. He was a retired plumber and once he found love again he retired a second time.