Wow... My eyes have truly been opened about Gamestop...

[Jitters Caffeine]

In the last few days, I have heard about and subsequently researched horrible things Gamestop has been accused of doing. Now I'm not talking about whether or not the "used games market" is stealing money from publishers, I'm just talking about business practices of the stores themselves. But from what I hear, Gamestop is guilty of acts that are LITERALLY illegal in the state of California, such as not giving employees breaks, forced searches on employees before their lunches and at the ends of shifts, and damn near stealing money from employees with something called a "Comdata" card that the store signs you up for when you're hired. It was also brought to my attention that in some, not all, that employees actually run criminal record scans on customers without notification. Even the police at least TELL you that their doing it. Now this is FAR from everything that I've been told, but I would really like to know if anyone else had heard anything like this. I would especially like it if current or former Gamestop employees would speak up, because those people would have been on the front lines so to speak.

Now I have no idea how "up to date" my information is, but I will be glad to link the videos I was shown that really bothered me.

Please do not misunderstand me. I fully supported and even defended Gamestop until just recently, so this isn't just some "I hate how they steal money from publishers" thing. I am speaking on Gamestop's apparent treatment of employees as expendable numbers that can be replaced in an instant, and customers as walking sacks with dollar signs on them ripe for the pillaging. I am genuinely interested in any information people have about their experiences.

Yeah so? If the employees really mind they wouldn't work for gamestop . Either that or they would sue them . If the employees are not aware of these laws , then it's their own fault , ignorance is not an excuse . Say what you want about gamestop but , it's the employees fault for not contestig this or working for them. I blame gamestop for nothing.

Having worked at a Movie Gallery where the employees were generally treated like shit (employees not getting paid properly, before forced to stay at work until long after posted hours such as a shift start at 8 in the morning, ending at 5:30 and yet forced to stay until well after midnight) and placing blame on employees for lost merchandise even though the company itself didn't provide the store with mirrors, cameras, or any security system beyond an alarm to keep burglars out when the store was closed) I can tell you that there are reasons for keeping a crap job and not complaining whenever you're mistreated.

Me and one other employee were in college, we had to keep our jobs. One of my coworkers was in massive debt. Two of the employees were single mothers. We didn't have the time or money to try and sue a company that had the money to buy as many lawyers as they needed and we couldn't quit because then we weren't getting paid and in as small a town as we lived in, it's difficult to find another job.

You don't say anything because you could get fired or be forced to quit. You can't say anything against your manager to the higher ups because if the manager finds out it was you, your job is on the line. And if the higher-ups are the problem, who the hell are you supposed to go to?

I'm not saying Gamestop is or is not evil. I've never worked there and I don't know any employees that work there. What I am saying is that it's not as simple as "don't like it, don't work there."

I understand that , but the thing about life is , the choice is ALWAYS yours . To reuse a common quote i hear here all the time " a man chooses , a slave obeys ",( thabk you bioshock). The option is always yours , by not saying anything the emoyeed basically accepted this treatment. I know sometimes i might not seem as black and white as stay with your current job or quit, due to circumstance , but at the end of the day it is your choice if you stay there or not . Go look for another job, find someone to help woth the situation at work, DO SOMETHING. It's easier said than done , especially if you are a single parent ( like in your example ) but no one is going to do it for you ,it's up to you to change your situation , i you don't then it's your own fault .

Basically i truely believe ( maybe because i'm naive or maybe iv'e gone through enough hardship and said enough is enough) that if your in any kind of situation where where you are unhappy , than the responsibility falls on the person to change it , might not be easy but it's possible )

It's pretty inconsiderate of you to try and turn this into a philosophical debate by quoting a hacked up version of Ayn Rand if you ask me. A person NEEDS money. It's as simple as that. You're literally saying it's the person's fault their being treated illegally and that they're CHOOSING to be unhappy. In times like these, people are LUCKY to have jobs at all, and being uncomfortable is a small price to pay when you know it's either that or not having anything. I was treated like garbage at my last job. I was literally screamed at by my superiors for being late to pick ups, when the person yelling at me was the one who gave me the call 15 minutes past due AND didn't give me an address to the business I was supposed to be picking up for. Why did I put up with it? Because I was being paid $10 and hours and it was the ONLY job I could get an interview for after 3 months and 40 applications worth of searching.

I'm saying that no matter what bullshit, alpha personality facade you're trying to pass of as advice is saying, if it's your only choice, you'll do whatever it takes to make sure you can keep yourself at the standard of living that you think is acceptable.

And you think your the only one going through shit like that? I guess everyone is against YOU then? Hell if ot's hard for you it's hard for everyone, yet not everyone stays is shit conditions just because they had it rough . Sitting in front of screen and complaining is NOT going to change anything . If you want to accept you fate , bend over and take it just because you tried and that job was the only place you found , you have a right to , but there are people who change their situations all the time . If it's not your fault then whos is it tell me ? People always want something for nothing and quite frankly that just makes you lazy and you deserve to be in the predicament you're in . I have no pity for you. All i hear is " i tried and failed boohoo" , well suck it up princess! Either he happy you found something or realise you aren't happy and do something about it . I for one shall not shed a tear for a person who chooses to give up and whine because they are having a rough time . EVERYONE HAS IT ROUGH.

You're the only one throwing a bitchfit here. I was asking if anyone else had heard these accusations and if anyone would share their experiences. YOU were the one who became confrontational, YOU were the one disregarding people, and YOU were the one who is arguing behind the safety of your computer screen stewing in your impotence. We were having a nice discussion til you came around.

 

[Polarity27]

In the last few days, I have heard about and subsequently researched horrible things Gamestop has been accused of doing. Now I'm not talking about whether or not the "used games market" is stealing money from publishers, I'm just talking about business practices of the stores themselves. But from what I hear, Gamestop is guilty of acts that are LITERALLY illegal in the state of California, such as not giving employees breaks, forced searches on employees before their lunches and at the ends of shifts, and damn near stealing money from employees with something called a "Comdata" card that the store signs you up for when you're hired. It was also brought to my attention that in some, not all, that employees actually run criminal record scans on customers without notification. Even the police at least TELL you that their doing it. Now this is FAR from everything that I've been told, but I would really like to know if anyone else had heard anything like this. I would especially like it if current or former Gamestop employees would speak up, because those people would have been on the front lines so to speak.

Now I have no idea how "up to date" my information is, but I will be glad to link the videos I was shown that really bothered me.

Please do not misunderstand me. I fully supported and even defended Gamestop until just recently, so this isn't just some "I hate how they steal money from publishers" thing. I am speaking on Gamestop's apparent treatment of employees as expendable numbers that can be replaced in an instant, and customers as walking sacks with dollar signs on them ripe for the pillaging. I am genuinely interested in any information people have about their experiences.

Yeah so? If the employees really mind they wouldn't work for gamestop . Either that or they would sue them . If the employees are not aware of these laws , then it's their own fault , ignorance is not an excuse . Say what you want about gamestop but , it's the employees fault for not contestig this or working for them. I blame gamestop for nothing.

You seem to believe that jobs grow on trees in this economy, and that money for lawsuits also grows on trees. I don't know where you're from where people can just up and quit when they're unhappy and easily find another job, but it sounds like a nicer place than this one.

 

[Jitters Caffeine]

Whether or not the accusations against Gamestop are true or even fair I'm shocked by how much defense of the company and stores I'm seeing here.

Ripping games, charging near full price for a used copy when they bought it back for thirty dollars cheaper, being partly responsible for online passes, pre-order bonuses, DlC and proliferation of shovelware. These are all things Gamestop stands for.

I get that paying sixty bucks for a game is a ton of money for younger people or people without the expendable income. It sucks that the price point of games has gotten so high. Supporting such a crappy place that does so much damage to the industry that supports our hobby is still no excuse to save a couple bucks.

Would you like to renew your edge card? I've got like 100 pre-orders for the Skyrim guide. It's 700 pages dude so you know it's good. Are you sure you don't want it? No? Cool. I'll ask you again next time you come in. Hey soccer mom who doesn't know any better. Let me take advantage of you!

I defended Gamestop myself until I took the time to actually look up the bases of the accusations against them

 

[awsome117]

There is nothing wrong with searching the employes. They are a Industry of small valuable things. It is Right to search them, But it had better be in the Employe handbook.

A right to search an employee? Umm where are you from? A cop cannot search you unless you are under arrest why should an employer have that right and why would you want to give them that right? imagine the abuse a manager could pull having that right between getting an employee fired by planting to sexual misconduct. No company should have the right to search an employee ever.

I don't think you understand how searching works. They don't take your clothes, bend you over, put on a rubber glove and say "this will only take a second".

From my experience, they usually only check bags, coat pockets, maybe a hat or two but that's about it. Also, they don't forcefully take the objects in question, they have you hold/show it to them.

I don't see much wrong with companies searching employees. Prevents thief and the like. Plus more often than not it says in the employee handbook they can.

 

[Jitters Caffeine]

In the last few days, I have heard about and subsequently researched horrible things Gamestop has been accused of doing. Now I'm not talking about whether or not the "used games market" is stealing money from publishers, I'm just talking about business practices of the stores themselves. But from what I hear, Gamestop is guilty of acts that are LITERALLY illegal in the state of California, such as not giving employees breaks, forced searches on employees before their lunches and at the ends of shifts, and damn near stealing money from employees with something called a "Comdata" card that the store signs you up for when you're hired. It was also brought to my attention that in some, not all, that employees actually run criminal record scans on customers without notification. Even the police at least TELL you that their doing it. Now this is FAR from everything that I've been told, but I would really like to know if anyone else had heard anything like this. I would especially like it if current or former Gamestop employees would speak up, because those people would have been on the front lines so to speak.

Now I have no idea how "up to date" my information is, but I will be glad to link the videos I was shown that really bothered me.

Please do not misunderstand me. I fully supported and even defended Gamestop until just recently, so this isn't just some "I hate how they steal money from publishers" thing. I am speaking on Gamestop's apparent treatment of employees as expendable numbers that can be replaced in an instant, and customers as walking sacks with dollar signs on them ripe for the pillaging. I am genuinely interested in any information people have about their experiences.

Yeah so? If the employees really mind they wouldn't work for gamestop . Either that or they would sue them . If the employees are not aware of these laws , then it's their own fault , ignorance is not an excuse . Say what you want about gamestop but , it's the employees fault for not contestig this or working for them. I blame gamestop for nothing.

You seem to believe that jobs grow on trees in this economy, and that money for lawsuits also grows on trees. I don't know where you're from where people can just up and quit when they're unhappy and easily find another job, but it sounds like a nicer place than this one.

That's exactly what I was saying

 

[lapan]

There is nothing wrong with searching the employes. They are a Industry of small valuable things. It is Right to search them, But it had better be in the Employe handbook.
But everything else.. Damn, Like Jakko, Id like a Reputable source for it... Wow.

If I was working somewhere and they searched me when I left, I would resign. I will not be treated like a criminal.

Good luck getting a job then.

Only very few companies do that, so it shouldn't be that hard. Well, at least in austria, maybe other countries are more paranoid.

 

[Reverend Del]

I know for a fact that mandatory random searches or non random searches have to be in an employee's contract in the UK. I used to work as a security guard for a computer firm and had to search forty random people a day. This was after they walked through an airport scanner set to maximum sensitivity to search for microchips they might have pilfered. But the employees knew that they might be searched, knew they couldn't avoid being scanned and were told ahead of actually being offered a position of employment. After which it was sealed in writing in their contracts. This company was super paranoid, but then it had a right to be I suppose.

 

[Jitters Caffeine]

I know for a fact that mandatory random searches or non random searches have to be in an employee's contract in the UK. I used to work as a security guard for a computer firm and had to search forty random people a day. This was after they walked through an airport scanner set to maximum sensitivity to search for microchips they might have pilfered. But the employees knew that they might be searched, knew they couldn't avoid being scanned and were told ahead of actually being offered a position of employment. After which it was sealed in writing in their contracts. This company was super paranoid, but then it had a right to be I suppose.

None of the jobs I've ever worked at required it. I currently work retail, and they don't have any rules in place for employee searches unless you have been caught either on camera or by another employee behaving suspiciously.

 

[crazyarms33]

I know I can't be the only person who's heard stuff like this...

I have heard about it, but until I see proof I remain skeptical.
As far as the card thing goes, I work at a place that has only 2 options of payment. One is direct deposit, which if you don't have, check out its ridiculously convenient. And option 2 is one of those cards(obviously not the gamestop card, I DONT work there). The reason my company doesnt issue paper checks is because there have been issues with fraudulent checks from former (read:fired) employees who kept using their old checks to get money from the company. So I understand why they don't give checks. It will be interesting to see where this goes from here though.

 

[Jitters Caffeine]

I know I can't be the only person who's heard stuff like this...

I have heard about it, but until I see proof I remain skeptical.
As far as the card thing goes, I work at a place that has only 2 options of payment. One is direct deposit, which if you don't have, check out its ridiculously convenient. And option 2 is one of those cards(obviously not the gamestop card, I DONT work there). The reason my company doesnt issue paper checks is because there have been issues with fraudulent checks from former (read:fired) employees who kept using their old checks to get money from the company. So I understand why they don't give checks. It will be interesting to see where this goes from here though.

Did you watch the videos I included in the OP? They were made by a former Gamestop employee and actually explains all of his accusation instead of just bashing them. They were shown to me by OTHER Gamestop employees who said they experienced similar problems. There are other videos out there, these were just the ones that were shown to me.

 

[Jitters Caffeine]

So here's my gripe with Gamestop and the reason why I haven't gone back since the release of Gen 1 X-Box 360.

Sometime during the year prior to the 360 release, I had pre-ordered it through my local Gamestop. 5 dollars and I get a guaranteed 360 on release day. That sounded good in theory.

The few months following up to the release, I was told that they weren't going to be getting enough 360s on release day to cover all their preorders. What? They further said that people who paid in full first would get their system first. I didn't have to pay any bills at the time and had a great job... so I put down the cash.

After paying in full, I found out that I had paid JUST IN TIME to get their second shipment... arriving after Christmas.

Now that was annoying but this is what takes the cake. It was the day I was supposed to get my 360. I went up to the counter and showed them my receipt (which I kept luckily). Now this is the shit that takes the cake and made me want to punch the clerk in the face. They told me, sir we gave you a refund on your payment last month.

Turns out, some other guy who has my same lastname, went into the Gamestop and asked for a refund. Instead of getting the $50 that he put down, he got a lot more $400 ( I think that was the price). So instead of getting my shiny new 360, I was told... well we have to clear this up and talk to the guy and get your money back. WFT?!?!

I asked for the store manager, who wasn't there, and was told... he'll be here at 3:00. I called the store and finally the manager said that I could pick up my 360 because they F'd up. Thank GOD!

Needless to say, I never shopped there EVER again.

From what I hear, there's a good chance that they HAD enough coming in, but they had employees and Managers call "dibs" on systems during the first shipment. I understand it happens quite a bit. So much that customers can't pick up new games because employees have squirreled away copies for themselves.

 

[Jitters Caffeine]

So here's my gripe with Gamestop and the reason why I haven't gone back since the release of Gen 1 X-Box 360.

Sometime during the year prior to the 360 release, I had pre-ordered it through my local Gamestop. 5 dollars and I get a guaranteed 360 on release day. That sounded good in theory.

The few months following up to the release, I was told that they weren't going to be getting enough 360s on release day to cover all their preorders. What? They further said that people who paid in full first would get their system first. I didn't have to pay any bills at the time and had a great job... so I put down the cash.

After paying in full, I found out that I had paid JUST IN TIME to get their second shipment... arriving after Christmas.

Now that was annoying but this is what takes the cake. It was the day I was supposed to get my 360. I went up to the counter and showed them my receipt (which I kept luckily). Now this is the shit that takes the cake and made me want to punch the clerk in the face. They told me, sir we gave you a refund on your payment last month.

Turns out, some other guy who has my same lastname, went into the Gamestop and asked for a refund. Instead of getting the $50 that he put down, he got a lot more $400 ( I think that was the price). So instead of getting my shiny new 360, I was told... well we have to clear this up and talk to the guy and get your money back. WFT?!?!

I asked for the store manager, who wasn't there, and was told... he'll be here at 3:00. I called the store and finally the manager said that I could pick up my 360 because they F'd up. Thank GOD!

Needless to say, I never shopped there EVER again.

From what I hear, there's a good chance that they HAD enough coming in, but they had employees and Managers call "dibs" on systems during the first shipment. I understand it happens quite a bit. So much that customers can't pick up new games because employees have squirreled away copies for themselves.

I've seen it happen when I worked at Best Buy (Geek Squad Agent) even the day before Black Friday when we were setting up. Oh the things that I have seen there.

... I wonder if there are Former BBY employee rants somewhere or I need to start one.

If you've got the evidence to back up your claims, I say go for it.

 

[Saltyk]

A friend of mine was an Assistant Manager and he was fired because one night he was closing up ad HAD A SEIZURE. Yeah, he had a seizure and was fired. That is so amazingly illegal that I don't even know where to begin. Last I heard, he was suing them for it.

For the record, he knew the Store Manager was trying to fire him, but this excuse is really bad. Not like he was a bad employee, either.

 

[viking97]

despite all those good reasons to despise gamestop, honestly, the reason i hate them the most is they give you like two bucks for a game they're going to sell for forty.

i buy pretty much all my games on digital download now, its the way of the future baby!

 

[Jesse Billingsley]

I've watched the videos awhile ago, and know how corrupt the management is at GameSpot already. That's why I don't go there and encourage people to avoid them as much as possible.

 

[Jitters Caffeine]

From what I hear, there's a good chance that they HAD enough coming in, but they had employees and Managers call "dibs" on systems during the first shipment. I understand it happens quite a bit. So much that customers can't pick up new games because employees have squirreled away copies for themselves.

Well that does make sense. I mean when there is only going to be a limited supply and its a first come first serve it only makes sense that the guy who works there would pick up his copy first since he would be the first to pay for it. Just because they work there does not mean they are not allowed to buy anything from the store.

But this is when their SUPPOSED to be filling preorders made by customers who have paid their games in full, then can't pick it up because they're holding them for themselves.

 

[thelonewolf266]

I was wondering when the obligatory weekly thread about why Gamestop is evil and clearly the work of the Devil would pop up.Hello old friend.

despite all those good reasons to despise gamestop, honestly, the reason i hate them the most is they give you like two bucks for a game they're going to sell for forty.

i buy pretty much all my games on digital download now, its the way of the future baby!

Lets be honest most game shops give you that kinda money for pre-owned games, trading in games has never been a particularly profitable thing for consumers to do.

 

[Jesse Billingsley]

Gamestop is actually the best retail place I've worked. If you want to look at a place that treats their employees like shit and doesn't give a damn about customers and charges up the ass for products, look at OfficeMax. That store is evil and owned by evil people. Gamestop is saintly in comparison.

My cousin works for OfficeMax, he hasn't complained, I think. Point is is that chains vary in service and management quality. Throughout history, rulers of large empires would appoint governors to districts to serve as an authority figure. Some would rule in the name of the one who appointed them, but most would be corrupted by the power given to them and would abuse that power to do whatever they wanted, "in the name of the ruler." Large companies are no different, in some areas you will have good managers and quality service, other will do anything, even fire employees for an uncontrollable health issue, just to gain money. I don't disagree, I'm sure some Gamespots are run by good people who are just doing their jobs. Hell they may even be aware of how overpriced games are being sold for in their stores, but they can't do anything about it. Same goes for OfficeMax, Staples and Walmart. But money is to much of a corrupting thing, and some people unfortunately believe that it's much more important to sell something used for ten times its original value then for half.

 

[J-Alfred]

Jeez, there's a lot of love for Gamestop on this forum, isn't there? I haven't seen such vicious replies to such an innocuous topic in some time...