JM Ridgeway - Unfair Treatment

Before the date range assigned had expired, I asked their scheduler, Paula Hammond, to cancel my shop and gave the reasons, sending her 2 SHOPPER CONTACTS. She acknowledged my messages, and in fact, asked me if I can do it if the due date is extended further. I said no, I drove there with the intention of doing the shop, but the area is so bad that I do not feel comfortable waiting for delivery to a parked car (I was going to give a store name and address). She chose not to cancel my shop. She let it expired. I got shop expiration notices asking for my report. I responded immediately that I asked the shop to be canceled, giving date (before due date), time, and scheduler name. But no, they refused to cancel as requested and gave me a citation. I wrote and wrote, even to the owner himself, did they respond? NO

This is the treatment I get after working for them for over 2 years, always submitting reports on time, and getting good scores.

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Sounds frustrating.
I don't work for them. Is the citation going to affect future work?

If not, I might let it go at this point.

JM Ridgeway is a company that really expects shoppers to stick to what they say they are going to do.... I would venture that different companies would handle your scenario differently.... No company truly expects you to venture anywhere dangerous. However, many will expect you to know what you are getting into before you accept the shop.

Whether their treatment of you is "unfair" or not could be the subject of a debate - into which I don't care to delve. However, as a matter of practice, I verify that I am okay with the location of every shop before I accept it.

Hard work builds character and homework is good for your soul.

I am surprised. Although I have had some bad experiences with JMR, especially with Nikki and sometimes with Frank, Paula has always been responsive, reasonable, and flexible with me.

@ShopperFun99: Did you tell Paula why you were asking her to cancel? After the citation, did you try to contact Paula again, or did you contact Frank and someone else?

@MFJohnston: It is not always possible to verify whether one would be okay with a location prior to a visit. Sometimes, a previously visit location has worsened since the last time a shopper visited that location/area. Other times, undesirable/unsafe conditions may have arisen on the day of the shop. Sure, there are areas that have been undesirable/problematic for a long time and those are easy to research, but it is not always possible to find out before a shop.

I've never had any issues with Nikki or Frank. I do like working for them when the occasion arises.

I have had minor issues with Nikki. I have had to contact Frank to get payment, sometimes I was promised expediated quick payment which I did not get, hence the contact. I always did end up getting paid so no problems with frank. Paula I had agreed to do some phone call storage shops. Well I got laryngitis (loss of voice) and thus could not complete the shops. I relayed this info and she confirmed she understood and would cancel shops. Instead she doesn't cancel and then citations and deactivates me with a comment to not reactivate me. I don't care but would never work for the company again anyway. With JM Ridgeway there fine until you have an issue then there not.

Shopping Western NY, Northeast and Central PA, and parts of Ohio and West Virginia. Have car will travel anywhere if the monies right.

Trouble is because of the nature of the business some schedulers develop a zero tolerance policy to people who cancel or flake. Some of these guys get burned every day.

@OP: i don't know if it was unfair, exactly. It was definitely unfortunate that the situation went sour. I don't know just how far schedulers can go with any one shopper before a project becomes at risk. For example, do clients ever demand an earlier completion date, which impacts on shopper leeway and scheduler ability to work with the shoppers? I do not know about those things, which as far as I am concerned exist in a murky grey area.

Anyway, I hope your future shop experiences will be better as in clearer, smoother, acknowledged, and paid.

Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished. - Lao-Tzu

Yes!

@BuffaloNY101 wrote:

With JM Ridgeway there fine until you have an issue then there not.

@Shop-et-al. I do agree with you on the fact that schedulers do have to sometimes stop working with a shopper if they became a risk. I'm just curious why the scheduler did not simply remove the assignment if the OP said they were not going to complete it?

In my humble opinion, if the scheduler does not remove the assignment on the shoppers account (that they know the shopper is NOT going to complete), they go overdue, then they give a demerit/citation, and THEN finally removeremove, they are only hurting themselves. If the scheduler would have simply removed the assignment, she can still give a citation if she sees fit, but she can then move on to find another shopper to complete the assignment in a more feasible manner.

Just my opinion as a director/manager of our scheduling and editing of our team at ACE. DO NOTE: When we have a shopper that cancels (for whatever reason) PRIOR to the due date, it is no harm, no faul. We simply unassign the shopper and thank them for letting them know and hope they have a great day. LOL

Deva Roberts
Director of Operations
shoppers@acemysteryshopping.com
ACE Mystery Shopping
[ace.shopmetrics.com]
[acemysteryshopping.com]

Oh, my. I did not mean to imply that the shopper was a risk. I only wondered if circumstances changed and if this made it necessary for schedulers to curtail leeway that they usually can work with on projects. Oh, my.

Good to know that you and ACE are reasonable!

@SchedulerDeva wrote:

@Shop-et-al. I do agree with you on the fact that schedulers do have to sometimes stop working with a shopper if they became a risk. I'm just curious why the scheduler did not simply remove the assignment if the OP said they were not going to complete it?

In my humble opinion, if the scheduler does not remove the assignment on the shoppers account (that they know the shopper is NOT going to complete), they go overdue, then they give a demerit/citation, and THEN finally removeremove, they are only hurting themselves. If the scheduler would have simply removed the assignment, she can still give a citation if she sees fit, but she can then move on to find another shopper to complete the assignment in a more feasible manner.

Just my opinion as a director/manager of our scheduling and editing of our team at ACE. DO NOTE: When we have a shopper that cancels (for whatever reason) PRIOR to the due date, it is no harm, no faul. We simply unassign the shopper and thank them for letting them know and hope they have a great day. LOL

Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished. - Lao-Tzu

@Shop-et-al. Oh yes I completely understand!

Deva Roberts
Director of Operations
shoppers@acemysteryshopping.com
ACE Mystery Shopping
[ace.shopmetrics.com]
[acemysteryshopping.com]

My experiences with JM Ridgeway have been fair over the last 12 years. Nikki can be hot or cold on some days, yet I find her to be both very responsive and effective in how she does her job.

Frank is just weird. I don't know what else to say. I'd rather reason with an angry Nikki operating on no coffee and in the middle of an SEC football game than deal with Frank.

I did a shop for them and it was denied because I was supposed to call the location which I did and the scheduler said I was to call the call center. I offered to send her the information as to I where I was to call but they never re-contacted me.
It wasn't worth the $4 they were paying to try to keep up an conversation with the scheduler or editor.

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JM Ridgeway - Unfair Treatment

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