warehouse associate

sales support representative

truck driver

counter sales representative

driver

Ferguson

I was excited to start a career with Ferguson given the sales pitch they gave me during my initial interview.  Throughout the hiring process management promised all sorts of wonderful things which they sold me on.  Be warned, what sounds too good to be true usually, and almost always, is.  After my first week on the job things quickly, and steadily, started going downhill.  If you’re looking for a company that provides professionalism, organization and a comfortable working environment then I suggest finding somewhere else to work because you won’t find it here.  

I soon realized management, and the interviewers, have honed their skills into deceiving many perspective employees into getting hired here.  How do I know?  Because I witnessed, first hand, the same sales pitch that was used on me being spoon fed to other interviewees.  The same lines were used and the same promises were made as though they were reading from a script.  These people are very good at making all sorts of promises like: We value our employees and provide a healthy team-work environment, we promote employees so that they have upward mobility, we offer a great benefits package and training, we offer an ample amount of overtime.  The list will go on and on but let me tell you nothing can be further from the truth.  They will never come through on anything they say after you’ve been hired.  Their focus is to get you through the door, fill the gaps they need filling, and use you for whatever they want.

Management is the worst I’ve ever seen with a disgusting “machismo” type attitude.  They walk around acting as though you are beneath them.  They will micromanage you from a distance by using their most trusted employees to do their dirty work and you’ll never know it.  Those same employees will report back to management on everything you do so don’t get comfortable.  The turnover rate is very high and the environment is volatile, depending on your location.  

Only managements favorites are usually offered overtime and the team-work here is nonexistent.  Gossip, rude behavior, vulgar language, backstabbing and cooler talk runs rampant.  Most of the female employees are responsible for the unchecked gossip that goes around.  Management isn’t interested in correcting, or improving, anything just as long as the work is being done and the bottom line is met.   

If you are unable to fall into the company “clique” or if you’re disliked, in any capacity, then your days are numbered.  They will find creative ways of making your life miserable and uncomfortable.  You are not considered an asset and never will be.  Everyone is treated as a number and easily replaceable.  I have seen employees come and go, at the drop of a dime.  Any decent person that does work here, which is far and few between, usually keep to themselves.  They refuse to speak up or suggest improvements for fear of being singled out and losing whatever employment they are clinging onto.

The training is beyond ridiculous.  It’s very disorganized and they have a difficult time training people properly.  You are expected to perform the entire job within a matter of 2, sometimes 3, weeks with the miniscule training that they actually do provide.  If you make any mistakes you are rudely punished for them and are made an example of.  The company uses antiquated computer hardware and software systems which makes your job that much more difficult to complete.  It’s a very unrealistic mindset and culture with no upward mobility.  The people that do receive advancements are the ones that have it in good with management.

I wouldn’t put too much credence in many of these positive reviews because I can tell you first hand I experienced “0” of what these people are reporting.  I wouldn’t be surprised if many of these positive reviews are false-positives left by company trolls to boost their ratings.

The pay is lower than the national standard.  If you’re not working overtime then you are earning just enough to get you through to your next paycheck.  Their benefits package is mediocre and their 401K is a joke.  

My advice, only take a job here if you are so desperate that you have no other choice but then start looking for a better opportunity ASAP.  Once you find something, run as fast as you can and don’t look back.

First off let me say that most of this review is directed to corporate and not specifically the Appleton, WI location. I have been driving truck my entire life and thought I would give this company a shot as it was recommended to me by a friend. this review is for a delivery driver position.

1st- THE GOOD: the hours are very flexible for drivers, for the most part you can work whenever you want (within reason) and they dont care, as long as you come in everyday, do your job and keep all of your customers happy. If you have appointments or need time off they are extremely willing to reschedule things to make sure you have time off. 90% of the time if you need time off its not a problem. Drivers are allowed to wear shorts but make sure you have steel toe boots (they check frequently). All of the trucks are automatic and very new. Usually they get new trucks every couple of years which is very nice. Depending on what route you have,  you could work anywhere from 6-10 hours a day but will always have the opportunity to get your 40 if you fall short. You will always have the same daily route so after time you can dial things in and know how to budget your time better. Pretty much everyone is a team player and always willing to help out if you ever need help which is huge. Management at this location is great, they are always willing to help or answer your questions and if there is a problem they address it immediately. Pay is not bad, they are very competitive to other trucking companies. No late night hours or weekends either

Now onto the bad: 
they preach about safety and they sure mean it. You have to use the ferguson approved hard hats, gloves, safety knives, wheel chocks...ect... it's overwhelming to the point where it's too much. The phones they give to the drivers are 10+ years old and barely work. The batteries dont hold a charge and they install a "child lock" so they know what your doing on it at all times (messages, phone calls, browsing history, ect). When delivering packages they always want a picture and signature upon delivery (understandable) but most of the time small businesses have nobody around so a signature is not possible. they will complain about this constantly and tell you to figure it out. Be prepared to haul an insane amount of pipe in a box truck. Most of the trucks are curtain box trucks so half is for pipe and the other half is for boxes/skids. 
The most important part of this review: cameras. Be prepared to be watched 24/7 and I mean it.. you can't say or do ANYTHING within this company without them knowing. They have forward and rear facing cameras WITH audio recording. The lytx cameras watch every single move you do within your day and will record you if you "mess up" and then narc you out to corporate. After too many "incidents" you get written up. They have the sensitivity on the camera turned up as high as it goes so be prepared to be recorded alot. If you eat/drink your caught, if you speed your caught, if you accelerate/brake/turn too fast your caught, if you follow someone too close or pass the yellow/white line your caught. But MOST IMPORTANT: if you move the truck without your seatbelt OR pick up your phone while the truck is moving: your terminated. They have a zero tolerance on those 2 things so be prepared. They also have geotab gps in all of the trucks so they know everything about the truck. Where you are, how long you've been there, how long you've been idling, ect. So be prepared if they ever call you out, be honest because they probably already know the answer. Also they have been installing idle timers in the recent new trucks they have been getting, it's set to 2 minutes to be prepared to dress warm in the winter because the trucks shut of constantly and corporate won't budget to let them run longer. 

The consensus of this review is if you can deal with all of the camera and corporate bs it's honestly not a bad job at all, but you need to be on your A game every day, because if you slip up corporate is NOT afraid to replace you. So think long and hard before applying here.


I would not recommend applying for work here.  I initially had a positive experience interviewing with the hiring manager.  I was hired as a driver and while the person who interviewed and hired me is technically the boss I learned that the dispatch manager is the dominant personality of the two and the hiring manager is soft and would defer to the person who is technically below him.  The dispatch manager did not do a very good job hiding their feelings that they did not care for me and had wished the hiring manager had not chose me.  There was no one in charge of training.  The two of them would continue to do their daily routines and ignore the new person.  There was no plan, no standard, no measurable metrics by which to judge the new person.  The only time there was a measured empirical metric was my forklift training.  The two of them pointed to a forklift and said "go practice and we will test you on it later."  I then drive around outside in the cold waiting for someone to come get me to test.  Days go by and no one checks on me, no one trains me how to do it, no one asks if I have any questions.  I finally say can we do the test?  This is the only time there was a measurement to judge by.  The hiring manager runs an example of the course and had a time of one minute and one second.  I ran the same course and smashed his time by completing it in 38 seconds.  He then has the gall to say he was concerned by my forklift ability.  I just got done beating him and I am the rookie!  The dispatch manager then says grab the keys we will go for test drive. There was no standard explained.  He did not define how I was to be scored or explained what would be seen as success and what failure would be.  We made a delivery and I used my defensive driving skills as I am a licensed CDL driver in the state.  The delivery was made in a safe and timely manner and the truck was returned intact just as when we began but he informed me he had failed me and they would be letting me go.  It was clearly subjective based on his personal feelings and not based on measurable metrics.  Based on the dark circles around his eyes and his behavior I would guess he is a recreational marijuana user and my more straight laced approach bothered him.  If the road test had definable rules and objectives like the fork lift test the truth is I would have excelled at that as well.  Ferguson Lenexa is a good ole boys club that does not know how to train and they put there personal opinions above results and what would be good for their company and customers long term.  DO NOT apply here.

First off the most important thing to know about this job is there is not set time for anything. They make you come in early sometimes , Go to lunch at anytime that they want you to and you’re never getting off at the same time you were the day before. Contrary to anything they mention during your interview overtime is mandatory. Period. Day shift is 8:00 to finish, you pick orders all shift, The amount of orders dropped is absurd and they dont cut orders off till 5 which is the “supposed” time they are supposed to get off. Makes sense right? Some days they did not get off till 10:00 at night. Night shift is 1:00 till finish, you pull half your shift then load an oversized quantity of products onto trucks that managrment know won’t fit so it consumes time to try and make it fit. Also they make the shift under staffed and expect you to load a whole floor worth of orders in 2-1/2 to 3 hours with three people. Some nights they didn’t get off till 4:00 in the morning. Management is incompetent and regardless of them trying to sound like they’re helping you with any issues you might have pulling or loading they just want to get on your case in every little way. They do the bare minimum of training and expect for you to pretty much know everything after about a week and a half. They send you off to find something in some locations of the warehouse or outside in the pipe yard and if you have trouble finding it they tell you it shouldn’t have took that long to find it. Also don’t expect any type of schedule compensation for anything you want to do outside of work, This includes school, another job or just a life in general. They even go as far as to try and make everyone in shipping come in on there day off and clean. Overall the pay is okay and if you like tons of overtime during the spring/ summer time this job is right up your alley. Just don’t expect it to be laid back at all or to have any knowledge of what time you go to lunch/ get off. The Pay is 13 an hour for inside shipping and 14 an hour for outside pipe yard. My recommendation is if you come to Ferguson AVOID SHIPPING AT ALL COSTS. Go literally anywhere but shipping.

I've been working for this company for over half a decade, and I have to say I'm repeatedly disappointed in the way this building is managed. There is a very large disconnection between the warehouse and the sales people/management up front. Sales people constantly making promises to their customers without fully comprehending the requirements to meet the demands, and when the warehouse crew is unable to meet an incredibly unreasonable deadline, they are scolded and blamed to no end. The warehouse the perfect scapegoat to every mistake, even when the warehouse isn't aware of it. There have been many times when orders for customers were written wrong, such as incorrect product/quantity, or even the date and place of delivery, and the warehouse some how always is at fault. Every response to a problem by management is a knee-jerk reaction (or in some cases, no reaction at all) that could have been avoided very far in advance. An example is hiring and training a replacement when the current employee of a critical position is set to retire many months in advance (which has happened in both the warehouse and the sales pit).

Do not work for this company if you do not intend to be on the fast track to the sales pit. You will be expected to work overtime, and then punished when you do, all the while being payed well under the average for other warehouses in the area. It is very clear that this business has no regard for their warehouse personal, and views them as disposable. 

However, do not confuse upper management with the managers in the warehouse. The managers that are in the warehouse are worked to the bone trying to meet the demands of the sales people, which includes putting in ridiculously long hours and working side by side with their associates to get the job done. Without them trying their best, many would have (and many have in the past) walk off the job due to the stress and frustration of this job without the compensation to match it. 

It feels like most major decisions are made by someone behind a desk in another state. This job is the definition of corporate America, where you work a lot to make someone else a lot of money.

This job used to be a leader in the industry, but things have really gone downhill since management changed. A lot of the great managers who knew how to get things done are gone, pushed out by upper management. The new leadership keeps promising to fix the staffing problems, but they’re only focused on certain departments. When new employees do come in, they don’t stick around because the management style just doesn’t work.

Training is a big issue too. People don’t get enough, and that leads to mistakes that other teams have to clean up. The company has introduced new systems, like the warehouse belt system, but it’s made things worse, creating more work and uneven task distribution between shifts.

The IT issues are another huge problem. When employees raise concerns, they’re ignored, and workers are left to struggle. Even when equipment isn’t working right, the response is to send people home early instead of fixing the root cause.

Staffing shortages mean employees from other departments are pulled in to help, but since they don’t have the right training, things get inefficient. It would be better if the company just hired more people and gave everyone the proper training they need.

There’s also no real room for growth here. Employees are sometimes reassigned to roles they didn’t sign up for, and it feels like a demotion. This creates a sense of frustration and makes people feel undervalued.

Finally, the physical strain on workers is too much, especially for pickers. Despite introducing a stretching program, it doesn’t help with the core issue of the heavy lifting.

In the end, there are so many issues that have been ignored, and management isn’t doing enough to fix them. If you’re thinking about working here, I’d recommend looking elsewhere. Even a job with lower pay but better conditions would be a smarter choice.


As an associate this is a good career to start out in, you get good benefits and I personally liked how much location management does to keep you engaged and appreciated. 
As a manager you are stretched thin, you are expected to do so much but your day is typically 13+ hours, it's sad to say but an associate makes more than you do, if you break your hours down. I recall during my initial interview I was told managers are "encouraged" to keep a good work/life balance and that we do all that we can to ensure you spend time with your family. This couldn't have been further from the truth, my first week in I was already working 12-13+ hours. The training plan is an ABSOLUTE Joke. It's just a checkmark for managers is all. The absolute worst is location management (the GM in particular) look, I get it, when you have a tenured person who has been there for years, it's bound that he will move up, but the GM is a perfect example of someone who has moved up and never invested into emotional intelligence (how to engage from a peer to peer side) as a managers we would make a decision and far too often we we have our ideas turned down, that manager style simply doesn't work anymore. People don't put up with that kinda of dictatorship, look all I am saying is avoid this place if you are considering becoming a manager, your peers are great but if you want to be micromanaged at every level and put up with bipolar conversations from the GM then by all means this job is for you. Lastly for executive leaders (IF you care to read this at all) just look at how many managers have left the location in the last year, at least 4, that should be alarming for executives, send the GM to get some leadership training, the guys needs it, he does great from the business end but zero from the communication end. I'm sure this will get swept under the rug as just a ticked off manager who wanted to get back at something but in all honesty I write this for all of you who are considering to work here. I would hate to have you go in this blindsided as I have. You have been warned. 

Pros

Pros:
-Great people to work with
-Interesting projects everyday
-Most people work very hard and are very bright
-There is a wealth of knowledge, if you know where to look and who to talk to
-Very cool to work on steam locomotives.
-If in railroad operations, it is a really fun job

Cons

Cons:
-Some employees slack off/make mistakes and are not reprimanded ever.
-Knowledge is power and dictates how far in the company you can go. Acquiring knowledge and skills scares some management as higher pay would be in order.
-Clicks/drama
-Pay is dictated by a antiquated pay scale. While it is hard to get rich in the railroad preservation business, it is another matter entirely to take advantage of good employees and not pay them a real living wage which is at par with the times.
-Gossip about other employees.
-Certain employees are favorites of management and receive preferential treatment.
-Very little upward movement in the company. One will have to wait for someone to retire or die or be there 10-15+ years to be able to move up in the company.
-While acquisition of contract work is decent, organization of the priority of the work is very poor. One day may have a rush on one project, then a rush on another with no real warning or reason.
-Management expects employees to produce more work if more employees are hired. This, while in theory is good, does not reflect reality. Most hired employees are not skilled at a trade like welding or machining which then means that the output of work does not increase at the rate needed. This has a dangerous effect of work stagnation which, in turn, can hurt the company over the long haul.
- Depending on who is being disciplined, levels of disciplinarian action are done with the favoritism of certain employees in mind. If you are a favorite, expect a light punishment.Show Less

Advice to Management

It will be very difficult, but if the company is to continue and be viable for years to come, these issues must be addressed.

I worked for a Ferguson distribution center for nearly 20 years and watched it go from a great place to work to a miserable daily experience. People were treated very unfairly, management would find every way they could to keep you from getting bonuses, write you up for the littlest of things like walking passed a piece of trash and not picking it up even if you didn’t see it. Little to no room for advancement, high turn over rate, hard to get time off but I’ve heard that has changed now, long hours, thick skin is a must and you must not be a person to get offended easily, management was unfriendly, unhelpful and hard to work with and the only reason I stayed as long as I did was because it was close to home, I was a single parent and I was actually making descent money, but ended up leaving due to a back injury. The management team I worked under before leaving was always out to get people, especially the ones they didn’t like to well. I know this because I was a supervisor for awhile and it was one of the most miserable positions to be because I always did my best to take care of the floor associates and the managers didn’t like that and I was told by the facility manager that I need to write people up more often and it didn’t matter for what reason, I couldn’t do it and was miserable the entire time I was a supervisor and the moment I had an opportunity to get out of my role I took it. The company itself finally did fire most of the upper management I worked under after I left and brought in a whole new management team. I’ve heard things have improved some, but not much.

This company will promise you the world, but blames you when you can not achieve it. They "train" you for 2 weeks, sometimes 3 before letting you go on your own. Most of the people training are not the most positive people in the DC and could care less about you as an associate. They look at that time as a kick back because it doesn't affect their bonuses. 

MOST of the management team is pig headed and think because it worked for them 10 years prior, its still the same today. They spend most of the time in their offices up front and do not help associates with problems. The stupivors they have now are not really smart and barely hit prod as it was on the floor, now they are all knowing!!! Its really a joke how this DC runs. 

This DC is consistently ranked amongst the bottom of the pack with other DCs in the network and yet corporate hasn't made any changes to the management team. Like in sports, when your team is losing, you cut the coaches, but here, they cut the PLAYERS... Completely backwards. 

Raises/Bonuses - Both of these are a joke, I knew 6 year associates that were making less than a dollar an hour more than new hires, but they state their raises are competitive against the market, WRONG. They will preach about how easy bonuses are to achieve, but when you walk in that room thinking your gonna win, you still lose. They blame you for that, never take into consideration that they do not care for associates. 

If you need a job, I guess you can work here, you rarely touch a Saturday and they have BBQ's, so I guess that is cool. Never get comfortable, you'll see the firings first hand. Get your money and go home

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Warehouse associate 479 salaries reported	$21.51 per hour
Sales support representative 241 salaries reported	$25.36 per hour
Truck driver 200 salaries reported	$25.95 per hour
Counter sales representative 122 salaries reported	$19.87 per hour
Driver 149 salaries reported	$20.51 per hour

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