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(38 posts)

Garlic Jims Gormet Pizza Closed

Started 1 year ago by Angel
Latest reply from Vanessa

Angel
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December 22, 2010

On December 21, 2010
My brother and other crew employees were told Garlic Jim's is closed and they have to re apply to get a job there again. And today all employees will be replaced.
This happened the week
of Christmas. People like my brother who worked very hard for the company were not given severance or any warning what so ever. He has to now look for a new job in this economy along with the other workers who depended on this job to keep themselves fed and their families fed.
Please send blessing and prayers to these now out work employees who need jobs.
And may they try to have a good Christmas.
They have rents to pay and bills too.
Very Unfair.
This is due to the new owner laying off the whole crew without giving them a chance.

sincerely, An Ex Customer

Posted 1 year ago #
Angel
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please post and leave your opinion.

Posted 1 year ago #
HelperMonkey
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I am confused. are they closing down and that's why they fired everyone? or did they just fire the whole crew and will start with a new crew? (either way, it sucks...just wanted a little clarity)

Posted 1 year ago #
clark5080
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maybe that location got sold to someone else and they wanted to hire their own employees

Posted 1 year ago #
Sue
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HelperMonkey, I just went online as if to place an order, and for West Seattle it says "reopening soon." Very curious.

Angel, I'm sorry your brother is out of work. I'd be curious to hear their side of the story on what is going on.

Posted 1 year ago #
JanS
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so...there's a new owner? I have a friend whose son delivered for them...I'll ask her what's up..

Posted 1 year ago #
Sue
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I just happened to be googling, and came across a Yelp review for the Ravenna location on 65th, and earlier this month it was listed as closed, and then reviewers mentioning it had reopened. I wonder if they have the same owner. Seems a little coincidental.

Posted 1 year ago #
pam
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This is very frustrating to hear - at least one of the young men delivering pizzas is putting himself through the UW and has been through two or three of the owner changes in the last couple years. What a crap*y deal.

Posted 1 year ago #
velo_nut
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So... not to sound heartless but what's "unfair"?

Business is business. Lots of jobs out there right now, especially if your old job was at a pizza place.

Posted 1 year ago #
Sonoma
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Bah, humbug, Velo-nut. Scrooge the Stooge lives! AND condescending, too. "Business is business" is a meaningless phrase, though it can be serve as a handy excuse for corporate malfeasance. "Business is business," sayeth BP. "Business is business," sayeth AIG. Now, it's true we may not know the entire story. But it sucks to lose a job, even a low-paying one, and especially before Christmas.

Posted 1 year ago #
WSB
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They have changed owners multiple times, we were told recently, though this is the first time we've heard about job losses in the process. For example, its original franchise owner was a WSB sponsor for a while a few years ago. After he got out of that business, the parent company ran it for a while. Lost track after that. The franchise was listed for sale for a while - our last story in the archives mentioned a new owner applying for a liquor license in September of last year:
http://westseattleblog.com/2009/09/news-from-the-liquor-license-apps-2-west-seattle-notes

Posted 1 year ago #
redblack
Member Profile

maybe it's easier to hire a crew that makes less money than to slash everyone's pay. less "drama." or "risk of lawsuit." if the current employees have to reapply, i'll bet dollars to doughnuts it's for lower wages.

velo-nut, there are, on average, 4 or 5 job seekers for every job opening.

you know that unemployment number they keep talking about on the tee vee? that means there are more people than jobs.

Posted 1 year ago #
JanS
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velo-nut..SOMEONE has to work in a pizza place, otherwise...that Margherita pizza you love wouldn't exist, now, would it. Enough with the condescention, please!

Posted 1 year ago #
flowerpetal
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Isn't it a presumption that the whole crew is out of a job? Perhaps some will be hired back. I wonder if any of the laid off staff are going to reapply. Angel, do you know?

Posted 1 year ago #
redblack
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flowerpetal: i was going by the original post: "And today all employees will be replaced."

i'd like to hear more, though. it would be nice if the management would address the issue, here or in another forum, whether it's fact or rumor.

Posted 1 year ago #
flowerpetal
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Thanks redblack. You're a more thorough reader than I! :-)

Posted 1 year ago #
austin
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Whenever I hear the name Garlic Jims I can't help but be reminded of the guy going around the neighborhood putting up door hanger coupons for them two years or so ago. He assumed I needed a more personal approach and actually walked in to my living room shouting "knock knock!" until I came out of the back to see what on earth. Then after being ejected from the front door he went into my back yard, to y'know, see if anybody back there needed any door hangers. I've never actually had pizza from them because, aside from the incident with the mether coupon guy, their name makes me think of a large man who eats too much garlic, and the associated odor.

Posted 1 year ago #
dhg
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I used to "monitor" right wing am radio and Garlic Jim's was one of their advertisers. I prefer locally owned, non franchised, pizzas.

Posted 1 year ago #
JoB
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velonut...

yes, business is business...

and a business that depends on local custom would do well to remember that the employees they sacked just before Christmas have friends and family who are potential customers... or not.

I don't think I am the only forum member who chooses not to do business with a local business that doesn't treat it's employees well...

i know.. we are a small if vocal minority...

but think about it... the kind of service provided by unhappy employees isn't the most effective advertising...

not good business :(

Posted 1 year ago #
nuemes
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I can't eat glutens and Garlic Jim's was the only pizza place that offers gluten free pizza that I'm aware of in West Seattle. We ordered weekly.

Dropping their whole staff and advertising on right-wing (read: hate) radio are two major flaws and will stop me doing business with them until I hear otherwise.

I hope the new owners post here and explain their actions. Maybe they have legit reasons. Or not. Sounds like they're going to have to earn many of us back.

On a gluten free up note: Great Harvest bakery at the junction has gluten free pizza crusts. Friendly folks, locally owned; been very happy buying gluten free goods from them weekly over the last year. Check them out if you haven't yet.

Posted 1 year ago #
HelperMonkey
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nuemes - Bison Creek Pizza in Burien also offers gluten-free crust. :)

Posted 1 year ago #
nuemes
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HelperMonkey: Thanks for the heads-up about Bison Creek!

Posted 1 year ago #
velo_nut
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I think y'all need to pull up your pampers.

Obviously the business was not profitable with it's current design and/or crew. I don't know how many have owned your own business (that has staff... not a work at home) but when things go south and you are doing the best you can to keep your own own head above water you change mangement and staff. Everyone is so quick to point the finger at Garlic Jims when who knows if this kids was just not a good fit.

The comment on the pizza crew? I know certain people have a certain skill set. If you get laid off at a pizza place, try KFC (you might get to fly that new flag of theirs) or Taco Time or maybe even Starbucks! Hell... Target is hiring right now.

If Condescending is telling it straight and not sugar coating reality, Count me as a number 1 a$$.

PS- And yes, Ive been laid off (6 months last year) So don't think I don't know the difficulty of not working. There is work out there right now, even at Labor Ready.

Posted 1 year ago #
Franci
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Luciano's also offers a gluten free pizza and they deliver as well. http://www.mylucianos.com

Posted 1 year ago #
rw
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Recruiting and building or rebuilding a qualified and effective staff is very, very expensive. If the new owners really plan to lay all of the existing people off and hire all new people then that is bad both from a financial and PR perspective.... a fairly extreme measure.

On the other hand, laying everyone off and then quickly rehiring the good people should make sense. In fact, it can even make sense to pay those people something while the business is closed for reorganization so they know that you value their contribution and want them to come back.

I doubt that anyone was making so much money that rehiring at lesser pay is an option.

I've never had a Garlic Jim's pizza, nor do I know any of their employees, so I have no skin in this game, other than as a member of this general community. But doing this days before Christmas is tacky, to put it mildly.

And I've have to know a lot more about their advertising habits and how/who manages their strategy before I would form an opinion based on a single heresay example.

Posted 1 year ago #
SomeGuy
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RW hit on a key point that may be in play here. The people who were just laid off were likely employees of Garlic Jim's corporate, based on the fact that the parent company had been running this location since taking over from the original franchise owner.

Whomever has now assumed the WS business may well have their own legal entity (e.g. "WS Pizza LLC" or similar) and therefore all former employees may have been let go and then (the good ones anyway) rehired by the new entity.

I agree the timing is terrible, but I bet there's more to this story than originally posted. Curious to see if the new owners weigh in - both to get "the rest of the story" and also to see if they realize the business value of proactively communicating with the well-informed WS community, thanks in large part of course to WSB.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Posted 1 year ago #
tom kelley
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I just saw a post on Craig's List that announced open interviews in WS today for what looks like all positions. "We will provide an outstanding work environment where teamwork, integrity, respect & fun thrives." reads their ad.I'm having a little trouble squaring that philosophy with canning the entire staff.

Posted 1 year ago #
JoB
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if your intent is to rehire existing employees who are capable..
you pre-screen them before inviting open interviews so you know how many positions are left to fill.

Posted 1 year ago #
SomeGuy
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Coincidentally, today's Daily Deal from Living Social is 50% off Bison Creek Pizza and Pub:

http://livingsocial.com/deals/14336-50-off-pizza-beer?msdc_id=27&ref=SEADeal122410_27_729email

Posted 1 year ago #
JanS
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talked briefly with my friend whose son delivered for Garlic Jim's. He worked last Sunday night, nothing said to him. Got a text on Monday that he was no longer employed. Now, that's professional! Now he's desperately looking for a job...he's a college student, and this was helping with expenses.

Posted 1 year ago #
yeah-me
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SomeGuy -- you make the most sense here. If they liked their jobs at Garlic Jim's then hurry up and apply with the new owners! Unless they were horrible at their job they are very likely to get rehired very quickly.

It is probably a paperwork issue (that should have been handled with more finesse -- but maybe the outgoing owners did the firing without consulting the new owner.)

Posted 1 year ago #
WSB
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I have an appointment to speak with the new owners this afternoon, so if you're online later in the day, be on the lookout. They are working at their Edmonds location today so the staff can have Christmas Eve off, they explained when we set the appointment to chat later.

Until speaking with them, I won't know their side of the story, but in a fair amount of business stories I've covered, it would seem the employees of a sold business worked for its previous owner, and wouldn't necessarily be part of the deal, however poorly or well it was executed. Not that there's ever a good way to have your job cut (I was part of a mass "we deactivated your keycards even before we told you you were all out of work" layoff at Disney a decade ago).

Posted 1 year ago #
dhg
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You worked at Disney? I hear their work ethic was, "Don't want to work on Saturday? Don't bother showing up Sunday!" (did I just hijack a thread? aww, Chupacabra!)

Posted 1 year ago #
WSB
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Disney Internet Group. But every media job I have ever held (including that one) required work potentially every day of the year, every night of the year, so nothing was different there, and I knew what I was getting into when I went into a Life Of Media. News/information never sleeps.

Meantime, just spoke with new owner. Story in the works. But one correction right off the bat to the OP here: The old owner, says the new owner, closed the business on Monday, before the new ownership was even in place (they signed the deal Wednesday). The old owner (a private firm, not the parent corporation) therefore threw everybody out of work (and did the notifying). Three former employees who came in to pick up stuff were invited to reapply, and two did, says the new owner. Writing up the rest now.

Posted 1 year ago #
antmanbee
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Garlic Jims posted on Craigslist
http://seattle.craigslist.org/see/fbh/2126931564.html

Posted 1 year ago #
HMC Rich
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I thought this post was in the running for a world record in jumping to conclusions.

No one is owed a job. NO ONE IS OWED A JOB.

I don't know how everyone was let go but at least a manager or owner should tell a person face to face. That is what I did and how I have been a recipient of a pink slip.

Nuemes. Talk radio and right wing radio is freedom radio, not hate speech. I like the fact that we can choose our flavor, 1090 or 770 or whatever. Free speech is a gift and a right. If you view right wing radio as hate, so be it but I think that is not very respectful and wrong, but you are allowed to believe and say what you want.

Posted 1 year ago #
JanS
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right wing radio...Rush, and his ilk...IS about hate..and false information. Can't get around that. I don't listen to it all very much these days, not on the liberal side either...I just get pissed off, the BP goes up. Sigh...so I get my info in other ways. Mostly by reading.

Posted 1 year ago #
Vanessa
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Wheeee! Sometimes reading posts from last to first sure takes some wild turns. How did pizza folks losing their jobs turn into Rush and right wing hate speech radio...?......wheeeee back to work.

Posted 1 year ago #