Badly Run Club
Complaint
Jade Poisson
Country: United States
I can't believe I'm even giving this club 1 star. It deserves NONE. I am a previous employee of Lifetime Fitness who recently quit after 2 years of working there. Although I was not in a manager position at the club (I was a lifeguard), I got to observe all of the horrible things going on firsthand at there. When I first started working there, I thought it was great that I got a free membership along with working at the club. My whole family had been members there since it opened in our town.
One of the very FIRST thing I noticed was the bad morality and ethics of the club. The sales guys will walk around with families giving them a tour and give them totally wrong information. They say the pool is open 24/7 to kids and adults, which is not true. Then members come and take it out on the lifeguards for enforcing rules. Our pool was always FILTHY i will admit that. Unfortunatley our manager (I had 4 while working there for 2 yrs) is a Member Activites girl who has no idea how to run a pool. She frequently brings her daughter into work, can you get any more unprofessional?
We don't have a permanent maintenence guy so our stuff (whether its in aquatics or not) rarely gets fixed. Instead we have to share him with a club that is a 30-45 min car ride away!
The lifeguards who I worked with were horrible. They thought they could just sit on their butt and do nothing. Many times they would come in hungover. On a few occasions some even came in drunk or high! And my boss was rarely there for her scheduled shift so there was nothing I could do.
I would try to call the General Manager of the club down a few times (because members were complaining) and it would take him sometimes more than 30 min to get down to the pool! By that time the members were on there way to cancel their membership!
Also, and this was a big one. It was widely known that certain employees and Dept. Heads of the club were sleeping around! And these people had families! People would just tell me that was the "real world". I am APPALLED!
Frequent times cleaning out the spas I would find USED condoms! Things I would find in there would make me nautious. As a lifeguard, I can understand cleaning the pool, but we were made to scrub toilets, fold towels, and cater to the member's every need. This would be fine, except it was NOT in my job description when I got hired. I brought this up to my boss, and she said that if I felt that way I could just quit, because she had so many other lifeguards to hire! She threatened me, regardless I did not quit because I needed the job. I was also paid $8/hour starting off and was told I would get a raise in April (I was hired in July). No raise EVER happened after working there for 2 yrs.
Many lifeguards would call in "sick" and not show up for their shift. They would not get punished by our boss at all! And in turn, we would have one less lifeguard for the day, which would make it extrememly hard to keep the members safe (in the summer there would be up to 100+ people JUST in the pool) and the pool deck clean. I have been left outside (in 115 degree heat) for almost 2 hrs. We are supposed to be out there for 1 hr max in the summer.
About my 4 different managers. The first one was fired because she was stealing money from the club. The second one walked around the pool deck and flirted with members while his PREGNANT girlfriend sat on a chair and tanned. Our 3rd boss was another members activity girl who would make us do ridiculous chores if all of OUR cleaning was done. (like go upstairs and clean the workout equipment etc) There is a whole department for cleaning at Lifetime Fitness (called Operations) this is THEIR job, not the lifeguards!
Also, many of the club's sales guys and dept heads are clueless about the pool hours and rules. The front desk would tell members that the pool was open till 8 pm, when it really closed at sunset. Members would come with their kids and be FURIOUS.
I don't blame ANYONE for canceling their membership to this club. It is run by BAD people who only care about money. They could care less about members. I encourage anyone who is reading this to go right now and cancel your membership. Don't give Lifetime Fitness your money, because they clearly do NOT deserve it. This place is filthy and disgusting.
One of the very FIRST thing I noticed was the bad morality and ethics of the club. The sales guys will walk around with families giving them a tour and give them totally wrong information. They say the pool is open 24/7 to kids and adults, which is not true. Then members come and take it out on the lifeguards for enforcing rules. Our pool was always FILTHY i will admit that. Unfortunatley our manager (I had 4 while working there for 2 yrs) is a Member Activites girl who has no idea how to run a pool. She frequently brings her daughter into work, can you get any more unprofessional?
We don't have a permanent maintenence guy so our stuff (whether its in aquatics or not) rarely gets fixed. Instead we have to share him with a club that is a 30-45 min car ride away!
The lifeguards who I worked with were horrible. They thought they could just sit on their butt and do nothing. Many times they would come in hungover. On a few occasions some even came in drunk or high! And my boss was rarely there for her scheduled shift so there was nothing I could do.
I would try to call the General Manager of the club down a few times (because members were complaining) and it would take him sometimes more than 30 min to get down to the pool! By that time the members were on there way to cancel their membership!
Also, and this was a big one. It was widely known that certain employees and Dept. Heads of the club were sleeping around! And these people had families! People would just tell me that was the "real world". I am APPALLED!
Frequent times cleaning out the spas I would find USED condoms! Things I would find in there would make me nautious. As a lifeguard, I can understand cleaning the pool, but we were made to scrub toilets, fold towels, and cater to the member's every need. This would be fine, except it was NOT in my job description when I got hired. I brought this up to my boss, and she said that if I felt that way I could just quit, because she had so many other lifeguards to hire! She threatened me, regardless I did not quit because I needed the job. I was also paid $8/hour starting off and was told I would get a raise in April (I was hired in July). No raise EVER happened after working there for 2 yrs.
Many lifeguards would call in "sick" and not show up for their shift. They would not get punished by our boss at all! And in turn, we would have one less lifeguard for the day, which would make it extrememly hard to keep the members safe (in the summer there would be up to 100+ people JUST in the pool) and the pool deck clean. I have been left outside (in 115 degree heat) for almost 2 hrs. We are supposed to be out there for 1 hr max in the summer.
About my 4 different managers. The first one was fired because she was stealing money from the club. The second one walked around the pool deck and flirted with members while his PREGNANT girlfriend sat on a chair and tanned. Our 3rd boss was another members activity girl who would make us do ridiculous chores if all of OUR cleaning was done. (like go upstairs and clean the workout equipment etc) There is a whole department for cleaning at Lifetime Fitness (called Operations) this is THEIR job, not the lifeguards!
Also, many of the club's sales guys and dept heads are clueless about the pool hours and rules. The front desk would tell members that the pool was open till 8 pm, when it really closed at sunset. Members would come with their kids and be FURIOUS.
I don't blame ANYONE for canceling their membership to this club. It is run by BAD people who only care about money. They could care less about members. I encourage anyone who is reading this to go right now and cancel your membership. Don't give Lifetime Fitness your money, because they clearly do NOT deserve it. This place is filthy and disgusting.
Comments
Life Fitness Corporate Headquarter
VIA EMAIL
Friday, August 05, 2011
Please accept this formal complaint concerning the unsafe spinning bikes currently used at Life Time Fitness center spinning studio.
Often and again, since I joined your Gym here at Berkley Heights, I, as well as many members have experience total unsafe spinning bikes such as loose pedals, broken SPD clips and broken bike seat clips. And again this morning, I had to walk out from the 8:30 am class because the remaining available bikes were unsafe to ride and with a broken clips. The recurrences of these conditions become intolerable.
When I reported this incident to the facility manager (Paul Russo), he treated me quite badly because I interrupted his abs workout. He was basically screaming at me from the top of his lungs in front of many members, physically blocking me from going home. I do not appreciate the sarcasm and the threatening demeanor in that you facility manager expressed. I will be tempted to call the local authority should your facility manger Paul Russo treats the way he did this morning. I ask you to take immediate action in this regards especially when a consumer like me and many others expect safety at your facility when they voice their concerns.
Plus I think I saw Russo back in the club the other day. Sniffing around for his old job no doubt.
the building is nice...given that most families are paying between 200 and 400 per month, it ought to be.
for the $$ i need to see genuinely happy, top quality staff -- learning that lifeguards are scrubbing toilets is just terrible -- in no small part because cleaning a large facility requires specialized workers, just as guarding a pool does, and the club's cleanliness suffers. I see it though -- but I assumed the kids hired here were earning around $15 or $20 per hour.
It makes my blood boil all the more when i see good $$ being spent on running the spas when nobody is in them, and the dozens of televisions and screens installed on every machine and every wall -- that nobody is even using! In 2012, I thought Americans were past being impressed by throwing $$ out the window to look prosperous. Pay your employees instead.
Also, members who are not hiring personal trainers are definitely getting the shaft on the workout floor -- aside from adding those television screens (which don't even synch with iPhone/netflix, nor do they have AMC or other non-housewife channels), all the equipment added in the last couple of years has been for training customers. they have been replacing general equipment with trainer-only equipment, leaving less and less room on the floor for non-trainer members.
There is a slightly sleezy, depressed, unsupervised vibe from some of the salespeople and workers (others of the workers are top rate!) -- this should be a wholesome place held together by an ambitious staff with good pay, good management training and good health, with the tone being set by fine management. Last year there was no manager for almost a year -- what's wrong with this place? Anyway, if Paul Russo is the new manager, I hope this is the beginning of some positive changes around the club.
Their communication is horrible. Their "hotline" for Berkeley Heights during the hurricane...always 48 hours before.
They just don't get it...for a public company, they should only see their stock dive to oblivion.
In a word that preferentiality of treatment and not diverse environment specifically based on economical presence such behavior can not be won nor proven locally or federally.
In term of the Facility, it came a long way and it is now clean
As for the environment/Atmosphere the facility is very tense primarily because certain trainers and staffs are mandated to strongly target and sale products and services I was shocked to hear staff frequently question or try to sense my economical potentials and if I turned them down they get disappointed, rebellious and vindictive as Staff also frequently question, study and analyzed members that wear expensive clothing . Those with economical social and financial status frequently been approached…there goes the sound of the drum beats… and those who are not ignored or intimidated ( looked at side ways)
When it comes to sexual diversity the club is not diverse, frequently I hear comments either by members of staffs sometimes directed at others or me.
In conclusion, the club should revise their policies and make it simpler and more comfortable for those under the economical misfortune.
This manager Paul Russo ( the returned manger to Berkley Heights) is having all his staff following me even to the locker room and cafeteria just to see if he could implicate me with something and to dismiss me from the club. Let me tell you, you could watch me and try to implicate for all you want because I'm not doing anything wrong. I'm just an honest citizen of this United states of America and all the harm and harassment you been doing is being reported. I hope your company is watching what you doing cause it will cost them shame and public humiliation.
This manager Paul Russo ( the returned manger to Berkley Heights) is having all his staff following me even to the locker room and cafeteria just to see if he could implicate me with something and to dismiss me from the club. Let me tell you, you could watch me and try to implicate for all you want because I'm not doing anything wrong. I'm just an honest citizen of this United states of America and all the harm and harassment you been doing is being reported. I hope your company is watching what you doing cause it will cost them shame and public humiliation.
For many years since the club was opened I was harassed time and time again insulted and called names by either " the Elite local Princes" or Staff. Lifetime did nothing to help me. Even their manager Paul Russo attempted to beat me up when I complained, He was lucky I did bring charges against him. Often when I complained they gang up on me generated fictitious Local Elites as witnesses and contradict my story. This proves to you how much corrupt lifetime is. Recently they hired and corrupt ex-cop as from Texas as general manager to cover their hate trails, It's true the club is built like a country club but it is a country club that caters to certain groups far from your normal poor Americans, the Groups Lifetime Target are the one with lots of money, many of them are racist and Haters.
For many years since the club was opened I was harassed time and time again insulted and called names by either " the Elite local desired rich Princess's" or Staff. Lifetime did nothing to help me. Even their manager Paul Russo attempted to beat me up when I complained, He was lucky I did not bring charges against him. Often when I complained they gang up on me generating fictitious Local arrogant Elites as witnesses to contradict my side of the story, this proves to you how much corrupt lifetime is. Recently they hired and corrupt ex-cop as from Texas as general manager to cover their hate trails this guy prove nothing to me but fabricate fictitious evidence to lynch you as if we still live in deep south during lynching era , It's true the club is built like a country club but it is a country club that caters to certain groups far away from your normal poor hard working Americans. Lifetime only targets those that can consume and bring money to their facilities