A Texas business owner who said the quiet part out loud when looking for employees is getting a reaction.
Walter Parsons posted a sign reading “Now hiring non-stupid people,” after a frustrating revolving door of hires who did not work out at his Pets Gone Wild Resort in Pasadena, Texas, according to KHOU.
It did not take long for a critic to call, he said, according to the Houston Chronicle.
“I said, ‘Ma’am, I’m sorry but (there are) a whole lot worse words out there that people are using that are offensive. I’m not going to take it down,’” Parsons said,
Parsons said some people who apply have not worked out.
“We’re trying to weed out the people that do come in. We hired one last week that lasted three days,” Parsons said to KHOU.
He said he has been trying more traditional approaches without much success.
He also said many employees fail to understand that he expects them to do work on work time.
“Repeatedly, ‘get off your cell phone, you’ve got dogs to watch. OK, put the cell phone up, go back out there.’ Twenty minutes later, she’s back on her cell phone,” Parsons said. “At least be as smart as I am.”
Do you think more businesses should put this sign up when they are hiring?
Yes: 98% (1352 Votes)
No: 2% (23 Votes)
He said they found the sign on Amazon.
“This was the very first one at the top of the page. We got a good laugh out of it. My wife says get it, and I said alright that’s fine,” Parsons said.
It was not fine to a woman KHOU identified only as Taylor N.
“What does it say to prior employees? ‘Oh, we think you’re stupid so we’re trying to hire somebody that we think is smarter than you?”’ she said.
“The fact that they felt so emboldened to put something up there like that, it’s disgusting, it’s distasteful and it’s unprofessional,” Taylor N. said.
Some customers who drop their pets off at the business have a better opinion of the sign.
“I just saw the sign yesterday, and I laughed because we knew it was Walter’s sense of humor, and we took it in jest,” pet owner Candace Reyes, a customer since January 2021, said to the Houston Chronicle. “I can see why some people might be offended, but you do hope they hire responsible people.”
Parsons said whether it was the buzz over the sign or just being visible, he has received three good applicants for his latest opening and will be taking down the sign, according to KHOU.
He said that quality matters in his business.
“Come through here and take a tour and take a look at the responsibility that we have. Would you put your child somewhere that wasn’t dedicated, that didn’t have smart people in it?” Parsons said.
Texas business under fire for ‘now hiring non-stupid people’ sign https://t.co/wjj6Z6ZAeS pic.twitter.com/zRxQ0JdG55
— New York Post (@nypost) October 31, 2022
He said objections to the sign are a sign of the times.
“Since COVID the society has gotten just completely out of hand. They don’t want their feelings hurt,” he said, according to the Sun Herald.
