Impersonal Bank. Cross your "T"'s and dot your "I"'s. - werkgeversreview Customer Care Representative bij First Niagara Bank

Something you will get asked a lot by customers is, "Why do the faces around here change so much?" Because First Niagara doesn't care about their employees. They are based out of NY and they fire employees frequently with NY HR staff over the phone, that doesn't see that the employee has a good work ethic/is good with the customers/ brings other things to the table that balance out the staff...small banks keep their people- they give their employees warnings and write-ups before carelessly tossing aside their people... not sure about big banks. Medium sized banks are just finding ways to cut back on expenses (First Niagara). I've seen files made on an employee who was otherwise a good employee- but not strong in sales, but knew most of the operational stuff and was not lazy. (yet, there are employees at other branches that make no attempt to sell anything, and are not very professional, and are still there. I'm sure it's just a matter of time though...This employee was pin-pointed, and when she was fired, several other branches chose an employee to fire (it was like an unsaid requirement). And the bank decided to begin their restructuring not shortly after which included vague emails sent to employees from the president about bringing the employee closer to the customer (in other words, let's get rid of some of these middle positions, so we can save money-great way to scare all the managers away!!!). Most branches in my area are understaffed 2-3 people; most of the managers fled for the sake of hoping to keep an income, or perhaps leaving the pressure of having to run two branches and maintain sales goals. An employee can get fired at any moment for making a mistake. I've heard of a guy getting fired because the manager would not work with him leaving early for two weeks to pick up his child from daycare. I've seen someone fired because they didn't send an email. I've seen people on final warning, because they made teller mistakes that they otherwise would have not made if A) either management was in place, or B) Management knew what they were doing....But who takes the blame when the manager doesn't know what they're talking about or the proper order to handle things? The unsuspecting teller who asked how she should handle the situation. This idea of creating less management and supervisor positions combined with HR having the role of relieving employees of their positions is a bad mixture. There is no one to stand up for the employee who is not worthy of being fired. You want to know why some people still have their jobs (A: they know how to bend over and listen to their manager, even when their manager is wrong. They will volunteer to watch other employees and take down their lateness record- to the point of sick enjoyment, and they decide to add a few minutes to each lateness to make their fellow employee look worse...If you are late here and there by 5 minutes, watch your step. You create your schedule in the ADP system, there is no clocking in and out, unless you have a "cool" manager; your lateness will be documented and exaggerated. Do yourself a favor in a work environment of perfectionists and sales people faking it to make it (write down everything!, write down when you get to work, when you leave, how long your breaks are, document everything, document stuff on everyone else, not to throw them under the bus, but to protect yourself. If you make a mistake, document EVERYTHING, and EVERYONE involved. I have worked at multiple branches. Some have a lot of nice, professional people who like dealing with other people and make each other look good instead of throwing each other under the bus. Then there are employees scattered here and there that will document your mistakes (even though they have their own mistake-skeletons in the closet); that will push you out into the spotlight of the all-seeing eye of HR, the audit department, and upper management, instead standing up for you. If you want to brave working here, be cautious. Consider if your position could be a middle position that might be eliminated. Go into the branch you're interested in a few times, and observe the manager (maybe talk to him or her and gauge their personality); observe how the other employees work together- but still don't trust them, protect yourself! Planning on being behind the teller line? That is the easiest place to get fired. Do they have a teller supervisor or branch manager who will be able to train you? If no, stay away.