Page Parkes Photography Studio One to One Photography, Studio Management, Inc., Hold My Memories.com Company does not pay employees overtime, deceptive practices to customers and staff Houston Texas

This company has deceptive practices in hiring, employee pay, and in customer interaction and customer service. 

All of these companies are run by the same two people Dan Quinlan and Bob Eveleth.  It is common practice for them to push employees to make customers purchase a membership through one of their other companies known as Hold My Memories, when customers sign up for the membership they will be charged automatically later on to continue the membership regardless if they want to or not.  Customers only indication of this is a receipt that we give them attached to their paperwork. 

Some people who read it are in the know, but most people do not ever realize this fact and they also encourage employees to be deceptive about this fact. By the way they are taught to talk about the membership. 

This isn't all either. They lie about the quality of their products, they use cheap materials and charge made up prices that are so expensive that their own staff cannot even afford to purchase those products even when they have 50% off employee discounts.

Some customers think that the employees must get paid well since they charge outrageous prices. Well that is also not true.  They frequently change the way the pay is accounted so that they can screw the employees out of commissions.  They also never pay overtime pay.  They do the schedule in such a way, that they divide the weeks over multiple pay periods, so that if you work 48 hours in one week, 8 of those hours will be on a different pay period, and you will not get paid overtime for those hours over 40.  They use a semi-monthly system that they claim allows this, but it is still very illegal.

They also do not give their employees any benefits whatsoever, and they avoid following federal laws, by dividing each individual studio as it's own seperate company, So that they do not have to pay attention laws for businesses that have more than 50 emplooyees.

They do not care about customers, they care about dollars. They horrible to the staff and will fire them if they try to make a complaint or try to ask questions.  They prefer to employee uneducated younger people, especially young women, because I believe they think they are more easily maniuplated. 

I was actually told before that "we prefer not to hire men".  Although they do have male employees, but all in upper mangement and corporate.  All the women are in the lower positions. 

They are so devious in the way that they train staff.  They tell you that you can earn all these bonuses but really they prevent you from earning it.  They will also cut hours so low you have to find another job, or they will hire new people at a lower rate and cut all the hours of the people who have been their longest to avoid paying them more.

As a consumer I find their practices completely unethical and hate to know that my money was going to people that cheat their employees so they can increase their own profit.  Especially to a group of sexist men who purposely seek out female workers in order to exert some sort of male power trip over them and make them feel inferior. 

I also wanted everyone to know, since I have peered through the looking glass and seen everything with my own eyes and know now that their deceptive practices go way beyond the way they treat customers.

The vice president and president also employee an overwhelming amount of white people, there aren't any black employees.  I think it is an unspoken agreement with management, how can a company this large, all over the country and even in India, not have black employees?  NO black person has ever worked at the corporate office or in management, I have seen maybe ONE black photographer ever at one location. 

In the city of Houston alone, the demographics of this company do not reflect the demographics of the city. I refuse to believe that there are not any qualified black people to do these jobs. Picture People has had black managers and staff, but Not at this company. They do not really have anyone other than white people.

In addition to that I have also been around for some awkward quieted conversations, regarding black customers.  If I am complaining about a customer with an attitude who was rude, the first question from a manager or corporate offical, should not be , "Were they black?"  Or if a customer who is black makes a legitamate complaint, they should not be referred to as "ghetto".  Nor should customers be referred to as "ghetto" or "rough" because they are black. 

And that has happened more than a few times and one time makes me uncomfortable. 

We were at a meeting one time with all the upper people, Page Parkes, Bob Eveleth, and Dan Quinlan, looking at customer photos, and a black family came up, this was an actual client from the Memorial City location and the management laughed when Page made a remark about them looking "rough" "hard"  they didn't make fun of the white people.  Just that one black family.  It made me sick.  Why is it acceptable to make fun of the black customers? because it is a culture of white privledged people that own this organization. 

They should be ashamed of themselves for the things that they do everyday.  I only wish I was brave enough to say it to their face.  But maybe this will prevent them from getting away with it anymore.