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| That's me in green shirt with fellow Pizza Hut employees. |
Ermita was once considered as the premiere red-light district of Metro Manila. There were bars left and right like Firehouse, Superstar, Flames, etc. It's such an unlikely place to put up a branch of a then booming pizza chain but there it was, right at the heart of Sin City.
Before becoming an official Pizza Hut-Ermita crew, let me tell you first how I was hired by Progressive Development Corporation, hut's parent company.
The first step I took was an in-store interview, a second one at the home office and a written exam. Unfortunately, I didn't pass that last hurdle. I was crushed and sulked for a few days. After the initial shock subsided, I realized that there were other jobs out there.
A few weeks later, an ad appeared on the pages of the Manila Bulletin: The Araneta Group of Companies' security agency called Five Star was on the lookout for a new breed of security guards. The chosen few will be trained at the company's expense and will man select Araneta Center establishments like the Araneta Coliseum, Ali Mall, Farmers Market, Fiesta Carnival and of course Pizza Hut.
Since no licenses and extensive experience were required, I decided to try my luck. The screening was at the Aurora Towers, the same building where you can find the PH offices. I breezed through the written exam and passed it with flying colors. Only a few of us survived and made the cut.
My fortunes drastically changed during the interview proper. I don't know if I impressed the heck out of the HR rep but the lady did look at me with an approving eye. And as the interview dragged on, my fellow applicants couldn't help but wonder what's taking so long.
I felt that the said HR personnel had something in her mind and my hunch was proven right when she excused herself to confer with a colleague. She pointed to my direction and it was obvious they were talking about me. Upon her return, she asked if I'm really serious about this thing because if not, they can refer me to their fast expanding food business. Told her I am and that not too long ago my application with the latter didn't prosper.
Again, she excused herself and went into another room. It appeared they were pulling out old files. She came back with my previously rejected application and then asked if I'm still open to working as a service crew. It was a done deal the moment I said yes.
A couple of months later, I was still in limbo while waiting for that all-important call. Bored, penniless but nevertheless armed with a new found confidence, I went back to roam the city jungles hoping to land a job somewhere.
Lady luck smiled and I got a relatively easy gig at Plaza Fair, a popular but second-rate department store back in the day. I inked a mere five month pact but didn't mind because it was just a stopgap measure.
Barely on my second week of work as a sales clerk, I received a notice from the PDC administration office to attend the week long orientation for Pizza Hut new recruits!
The orientation was easy pickings for me but the actual training was hellish to say the least. I got my baptism of fire at SM City and hopped from one branch to another until the completion of our designated store.
On December 1990, I was among the pioneers who opened PH-Ermita.
Being a newbie, I was overshadowed by more experienced fellow crews at first but it didn't take that long for me to prove my mettle. Our acting store manager was more than kind enough to help me out. She took me under her wings and I didn't disappoint. I was subsequently voted as Crew of the Month twice in 1991 and then designated as crew trainor upon the new program's launch.
I was on the right track and had my sights on the ultimate prize: Promotion and become a part of the management team.
At that time, the compensation was quite lucrative. More than five figures in salaries and perks. It was really within reach and ripe for the picking until that unforeseen incident known as "The Anomalous Pizza Order Entry" came along.
The said brouhaha wherein a pizza was about to be delivered without an official order slip or docket as we called it triggered my transfer to another branch and eventual albeit unofficial resignation.
All that was required of me was to name the culprits and MTs here I come. I admitted to one thing and one thing only, I prepared the pizza order in question since I was stationed at the "maketable" and that was my only participation. I knew that a couple of my fellow crews were about to make some money out of it but sorry, I ain't no snitch.
Everyone involved, the CSR, rider/delivery guy and myself were questioned and we didn't wilt even under immense pressure. As a result, management couldn't prove a damn thing. No one was punished or axed. In local lawyer's parlance, "absuwelto," or so we thought.
In hindsight, I may have abetted a wrongdoing and should have sided with management. Maybe I was too naive back then. We all thought we could make a fool out of our superiors and still get rewarded in the end.
Things would never be the same again after that. Management started to crack the whip and showed us who's really in charge.
First, they installed a new set of managers in our branch. Then, they broke the core of our batch. Almost all of us were transferred to some other branches in rapid succession. Last but not the least, my quest hit a dead end and I had no other recourse but to leave and bid my managerial aspirations adieu.
