EDJ Associates - Grant Management Center Assignment
by John A
Naomi Pizarro, of EDJ Associates, called me on Tuesday, 12/7/10, about my availability for an assignment. On Thursday, 12/9, I was offered an assignment via email, ("contract position Data Entry /Short Term Employment opportunity"),
text of email:
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John A / Data Entry-Admin Assistant Short Term RE: Assignment availability
Naomi Pizarro
To:"johna@johna1.com"
Cc:HR
Sent: Thu, Dec 09, 2010 11:00 PM
Hi John,
We are very interested in pursing you but we need to confirm you're able to respond to
the questions below. Could you please get back to me on these as soon as possible?
Thank you.
Thank you very much for your interest in this contract position Data Entry /Short Term
Employment opportunity and for contacting EDJ Associates, Inc. What time would you be
available for a phone discussion today?
This position is going to be at an hourly rate of $13.00 can you please confirm this rate
will work for you?
The hours are 8:30 - 5pm, Full-time 40 hours a week on Short Term Basis. Are you
available for these hours?
This is a temporary employment position, there are no benefits for this position and is
short term through approximately the end of February, there is a possibility that based
on work flow the assignment could be extended.
How soon can you start? We'd ideally have you start this coming Monday, December 13th.
This position is in Crystal City, Va and metro accessible.
Thank you for getting back to me as soon as possible, you may reach me at 703-395-9748 if
you have any questions.
Naomi Pizarro
HR Consultant
EDJ Associates, Inc. | 13873 Park Center Road, Suite 301 | Herndon, Va. 20171
________________________________________
From: johna@johna1.com [johna@johna1.com]
Sent: Wednesday, December 01, 2010 10:24 AM
Subject: Assignment availability
Hi,
I am available for temporary assignments. I am proficient with MS Office, Database Integrity, and certified in Enterprise Content Management and Electronic Records Management.
Thank you!
Sincerely,
John A, ECMp, ERMp
Data Analysis Specialist
202-538-3302, johna@johna1.com
Certifications at www.johna1.com
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end of email text
I sent an reply email with positive answers to the above questions. I spoke with Naomi Pizarro via telephone, and she asked me to take 2 skills tests online. On Thursday, I took 2 Prove It! skills tests online, a Data Entry test and a Microsoft Excel test, with my Netbook PC at the Library. I scored 8774 kph on the Data Entry test, and 90% (27 out of 30 questions right) on the Excel test.
On Friday, I received a voice mail message from Mr. Kerry Milstead, he sounded nervous, and said that I had until that afternoon to call him back, or he would have to get someone else for the assignment. I called back after receiving that voice mail message at around 10:59am. Kerry Milstead repeated that the assignment was a Data Entry assignment plus binding and filing HUD applications. Kerry Milstead asked me in depth about my PC/Data Entry skills and experience. He then said I would receive temporary employment offer emails from Yolonda Harris.
Below is the first offer email I received:
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Offer of Employment: John A
Yolonda Harris
To:"johna@johna1.com"
Cc:Kerry Milstead , Keith Royal , Denice Hairston , HR
, Naomi Pizarro
Sent: Fri, Dec 10, 2010 06:01 PM
Offer Letter John... (175KB)
Good Evening John,
Please see attached your offer letter for temporary employment with EDJ Associates, Inc. If accepted, please respond to this email by 4:00 pm Saturday, December 11, 2010 , sign the attached letter and bring the original with you Monday, December 13, 2010.
We are all very happy to welcome you into the folds of the EDJ Family! If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. I can be reached at (703) 597-3432 anytime this weekend.
Directions:
EDJ Associates, Inc.
HUD-GMC
Century One
2461 South Clark Street, Suite 430
Arlington, VA 22202
(703) 415-1700
Crystal City is the nearest Metro station to our office. It is approximately one half mile north of our office. The station entrance/exit is on the intersection of 18th Street and South Bell Street. Next walk south on South Bell Street until it ends on 20th Street. The Crystal City Marriott is on this corner. Next walk right on 20th Street for one half block and then walk left (south) down South Clark Street and passed Chili's restaurant. Our building is across from the Hilton Crystal City on the left.
If you are driving, there is limited street parking and garage parking available (but expensive). We are a few miles south of the Pentagon off Jefferson Davis Highway near the intersection of 23rd Street.
Yolonda Harris
Director of Administration and Support
EDJ Associates, Inc.
13873 Park Center Road, Suite 301
Herndon, VA 20171
yharris@edjassociates.com
Phone: (703) 738-9150
Fax: (703) 738-9149
www.edjassociates.com
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end of email text
Below is the second offer email I received:
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Request for References, EDJ Application and EEO-1 Form - Administrative Assistant - HUD Contract
From: Yolonda Harris
To:"johna@johna1.com"
Cc:Kerry Milstead , Keith Royal , Denice Hairston , Naomi Pizarro , HR
Sent: Sun, Dec 12, 2010 07:00 AM
Equal Employment O... (54KB); EDJ Employment Ap... (1.0MB); Job Description - ... (28KB)
Dear John:
Thank you for accepting our offer, we look forward to seeing you Monday morning!
I have attached a copy of the job description for the Administrative Assistant (Data Entry and Production) position for your reference.
We'd like to also ask that you please complete the attached application and EEO-1 form and provide at least 3 professional references who've supervised your work. Please either email me or bring with you Monday morning.
Please email me if you have any questions.
Thank you.
Yolonda Harris
Director of Administration and Support
EDJ Associates, Inc.
13873 Park Center Road, Suite 301
Herndon, VA 20171
yharris@edjassociates.com
Phone: (703) 738-9150
Fax: (703) 738-9149
www.edjassociates.com
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end of email text
I downloaded the forms attached to the emails, filled out the forms with my Netbook PC, emailed back the filled out forms, then printed out and signed the forms.
I brought the signed forms to the assignment on Monday, 12/13/10. I arrived at the assignment at around 8:15am, and was well-dressed with a business suit.
Interestingly, there were only black men at the Data Entry assignment. After meeting three black men at EDJ Associates, I then sat in a conference room, and a black woman and a fourth black man were brought in.
Then the caucasian Kerry Milstead arrived, I was moved to a second conference room by myself, and the woman and man whom I was with were moved to a third conference room. Then a fifth black man was seated across from me at the conference room, that was without any PCs.
When Kerry Milstead visited the conference room I was in, I asked him if the assignment involved Data Entry. He said that it was production work, and then "persons would be selected for other work based on what they were good at". I asked him if he had seen my resume, he said yes, and didn't seem to think my work history was relevant.
After Kerry Milstead left, as I was sitting in the conference room not doing anything, I started to write about how the assignment had started, with a pen and paper I had available.
Then the nervous, casually dressed, Kerry Milstead returned to the conference room, walking with and surrounded by 4 or 5 black men, and asked to talk to me outside the conference room. Outside the conference room he said I wouldn't be needed for the assignment that was supposed to be an "Administrative Assistant / Data Entry / Production" assignment, and that I would be paid for transporation, and would recieve an email from Yolonda Harris.
Outside EDJ Associates' office I passed a security guard near the elevators. On the first floor of that office building, (as I was putting on my coat, packing up my paperwork, and resetting an appointment for the next day, Tuesday, via cellphone), the security guard asked if I needed help with transportation, and inexplicably, if I understood that I wasn't supposed to go back to the EDJ offices. I said I didn't understand why it was thought that I would want to go back to EDJ's offices. I then walked out of the building.
The EDJ assignment that was supposed to last for 10 weeks turned out to be fake, and only lasted for 30 minutes.