SEARS CENTER KEEPS UP HIRING INTO NEXT WEEK

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, April 9, 1993                   TAG: 9304090214
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: A-7   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: GEORGE KEGLEY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium
SEARS CENTER KEEPS UP HIRING INTO NEXT WEEK
Sears, Roebuck and Co. said Thursday it will continue hiring into next week, pushing to supplement the work force at its telecatalog center in Roanoke, where operators can't keep up with customers' calls.
Telephone orders flowing into Sears' Roanoke center have tripled since last week, when the company began a sale offering 30 percent discount on catalog merchandise.
About 44,000 calls were taken Wednesday but another 21,000 were abandoned for lack of personnel to handle them, said Charlsie Pafford, human resources manager. Abandoned calls are those where customers hang up because the company cannot answer them fast enough.
Pafford said the high abandonment number is "why we've got to have these people."
Before the sale began, the center was taking 20,000 to 25,000 calls a day, she said.
Nationally, Sears' six telecatalog centers are taking 1 million calls a day, double the normal rate, and they're adding 4,000 "phone consultants" to handle the suddenly greater volume, according to Mary Lou Builder, a company spokesperson at the Chicago headquarters.
The company hired 80 people in Roanoke on Thursday and the center will be taking job applicants today, Saturday and next week, Pafford said. About 240 have been hired and 600 or more are needed to handle the greater volume, according to Tom McVaney, manager of the Roanoke center.
The company on Thursday began advertising, seeking immediate help for temporary positions. Sears said it will pay $5.58 an hour for 16 to 40 hours a week. Applicants can apply at the center at 3645 Thirlane Rd. N.W., or to the Virginia Employment Commission at 1202 Franklin Rd. S.W.
The center's training has been streamlined to two classes so the applicants will quickly learn how to take orders, she said.
Four of the company's former telecatalog centers, at Greensboro, N.C.; San Antonio, Texas; Louisville, Ky.; and Tucson, Ariz., have been converted to product service centers offering appliance maintenance, Builder said.
Meanwhile, the Sears Merchandise Group, the company's division operating its retail stores, said Thursday it plans to convert about 350 former catalog sales stores to small retail outlets by the end of this year. They will be operated by independent dealers and sell appliances, electronics and lawn and garden equipment.
Nine Virginia stores are to be converted: in Grundy, Leesburg, Marion, South Hill, Staunton, Warrenton, Williamsburg, Wise and Wytheville.
The new retail dealers will display durable goods but also can order other merchandise.
The new stores each will have 3,000 to 5,000 square feet of selling space and will be owned by independent dealers who will operate on commission for merchandise sold.
Each store is expected to generate about $1 million in revenue annually, the company said.

by Bhavesh Jinadra by CNB