Ford Fusion... Are You Kidding?

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How dense can one be here? Get the message. It couldn't be made any clearer. Be happy with a Fusion or leave the company. Otherwise, go ahead and be aggressive with your demands about your leased car selection. I know, DEMAND to speak with Dick Clark. Don't give up until you succeed. Let me know how far that gets you. Out the door I suspect. Assclowns?
 






Anonymous said:
... I would say most people WOULD NOT put up with a job that has so many challenges with an emloyer that demands so much and is willing to give so little. They would get a better degree to do something safer, with better hours and more worthwhile.
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Then why don't YOU? YOU have the solution that is just as evident as the nose on your face. Nobody has a gun to your head forcing you to put up with Merck's lousy fleet car do they? Quit being an assclown about demanding something you have no control over and instead, do something you do have control over, ie "get a better degree to do something safer, with better hours and more worthwhile." It really is that simple. Otherwise, please do your job for Merck and STFU.
 






Anonymous said:
...edited... What do you think a trucker earns to just haul crap from point A to point B for eight to ten hours? I will tell you about 60 to 80 thousand a year. (I am 88K plus whatever godforsaken bonus Merck decides to throw at me - SP here with 11 years under my belt in specialty - we lived for a BONUS!) Now we are expected to drive like a trucker, haul like a deliver man, cater, have incredible people skills, be knowledgeable in all FDA, clinical and disease-specific areas, BRING VALUE! (LOL) attend quarterly meetings away from home, be a computer wiz, write reports and give presentations, self-train and put up with being "coached".
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28 years under my belt here. In a good year with bonus I make very decent income. I thought about the simple life of a truck driver or a GM factory worker, with OT, making just as much. But then I know I would go crazy doing repetitive boring tasks. This job has more pros than cons right now. It definitely keeps you on your toes, especially as a hospital rep and have to read up on even more journals. At least it will delay the onset of Alzheimer's with all the multitasking going on. My advice is to enjoy the fun parts of your job and try to ignore the nasty parts which you and I cannot change anyway. Dick Clark would not care a bit. The Fleet people is more concerned about staying within budget and escape the next round of layoffs, not you in the snow country and a bad back. I am retiring in a few months. I am going to take a lump sum, move my 401K, kick back and relax. Merck would not miss me and why should I?
 






Anonymous said:
wah, wah, wah...I'm a spoiled brat and I'm going to hold my breath until you give me what I want!

Demand? You're such an arrogant a@@ that you don't have a clue for the real world.

Snap-

you're replaced.
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Fine, I wish I had the package and could move on to a MORE worthwhile position where I actually worked 45 hours a week and was not on the road for days at a time. Many of of the severed SP reps walked off with 50K plus and a new job. You are a complete asshole and I seriously doubt you have a clue. I would bet you are some Ken or Barbie with partners who is able to work fours a day and pick your kids up at 4:00 from school. F>>>U!!!!
 






Anonymous said:
Fine, I wish I had the package and could move on to a MORE worthwhile position where I actually worked 45 hours a week and was not on the road for days at a time. Many of of the severed SP reps walked off with 50K plus and a new job. You are a complete asshole and I seriously doubt you have a clue. I would bet you are some Ken or Barbie with partners who is able to work fours a day and pick your kids up at 4:00 from school. F>>>U!!!!
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Sorry-you're the one without a clue.

Redraft your resume and go out and find another job. There was no promise of anything here. Nor is there any promise at any other job. Go look Cafepharma for any of the other companies. It is all the same stuff.

Stop your whining and go do something about.

Damn a@@hole that wants a freebie from the company first.
 






Anonymous said:
28 years under my belt here. In a good year with bonus I make very decent income. I thought about the simple life of a truck driver or a GM factory worker, with OT, making just as much. But then I know I would go crazy doing repetitive boring tasks. This job has more pros than cons right now. It definitely keeps you on your toes, especially as a hospital rep and have to read up on even more journals. At least it will delay the onset of Alzheimer's with all the multitasking going on. My advice is to enjoy the fun parts of your job and try to ignore the nasty parts which you and I cannot change anyway. Dick Clark would not care a bit. The Fleet people is more concerned about staying within budget and escape the next round of layoffs, not you in the snow country and a bad back. I am retiring in a few months. I am going to take a lump sum, move my 401K, kick back and relax. Merck would not miss me and why should I?
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Good for you. I am 15 years from retirement and know the industry will implode before I get "mine". Some bad choices on my part have left us with very little than just struggling middle class. I sure do not need to put myself at risk in deep snow or ruin my old back with some crap car since I have many more years where I need work. I am equally upset over the lack of equitable pay for the SP reps that are just as successful as their Merck counterparts (some more advanced), the wishy-washy tuition reimbursement, the stupid head in the sand mentality over access and "value", and the lack of bonus here.

SP, at least took care of us with tuition, huge bonus/commission/stock and even a second annual company bonus that usually was around 11K for any reps at the top. If you were in the top 1/3 at SP, you could easily make 40K in extras not counting better car choices and tuition. SP was a much smaller company and NOW Merck has THEIR pipeline which tells me how little Merck actually cares about their saleforce. We truly are pawns/a number here and nothing more regardless of the friendly caring "talk". If I add up all these REAL loses, it is about 30K annually.
 












Anonymous said:
Good for you. I am 15 years from retirement and know the industry will implode before I get "mine". Some bad choices on my part have left us with very little than just struggling middle class. I sure do not need to put myself at risk in deep snow or ruin my old back with some crap car since I have many more years where I need work. I am equally upset over the lack of equitable pay for the SP reps that are just as successful as their Merck counterparts (some more advanced), the wishy-washy tuition reimbursement, the stupid head in the sand mentality over access and "value", and the lack of bonus here.

SP, at least took care of us with tuition, huge bonus/commission/stock and even a second annual company bonus that usually was around 11K for any reps at the top. If you were in the top 1/3 at SP, you could easily make 40K in extras not counting better car choices and tuition. SP was a much smaller company and NOW Merck has THEIR pipeline which tells me how little Merck actually cares about their saleforce. We truly are pawns/a number here and nothing more regardless of the friendly caring "talk". If I add up all these REAL loses, it is about 30K annually.
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So move to another company and get a better deal. Plain and simple. Better car, salary and bonus in any biopharma hybrid or straight biotech company. Even equipment rocks with reps cleaning up with double your present take home. Stop complaining and make your like happen. Stop the juvenile whining you have plenty of years ahead of you to make big money.
And dont use the economy BS, good people are getting hired.
 






Anonymous said:
...edited...SP, at least took care of us with tuition, huge bonus/commission/stock and even a second annual company bonus that usually was around 11K for any reps at the top. If you were in the top 1/3 at SP, you could easily make 40K in extras not counting better car choices and tuition. SP was a much smaller company and NOW Merck has THEIR pipeline which tells me how little Merck actually cares about their sale force. We truly are pawns/a number here and nothing more regardless of the friendly caring "talk". If I add up all these REAL loses, it is about 30K annually.
Click to expand...

Merck is always cheap in bonus and pay versus probably SP or Pfizer. The trade-off was a rich pipeline and less hostile work environment. Now all the friendliness is gone and we have to acquire companies to have a decent pipeline. I don't know where are our brilliant R&D people these days. Tuition reimbursement was very generous in the past. Then they went cheap and made it difficult. For a few years we were adding so many reps that I thought we were going to self implode. I agree if Merck is ruthless as Pfizer towards their people, they should raise the pay and increase the bonus. My guess is Mother Merck would not do it because others are standing in line for your job. Mother Merck is now used to hire them, work them to death and simply replace them.
 






Anonymous said:
After reading this thread I am ashamed of what must be a bunch of spoiled brats now working as reps for Merck. Your inflated incomes have obviously caused you to radically overestimate your importance. That bubble needs to break.
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Spoiled?? I'd say independent and smart. One very odd thing happened this time when the message came through that we were replacing the vehicles at 65K--I received a message from my ctm that if I did not place the order by the deadline, an order would be placed for me??? Previously, your "punishment" for missing the deadline was waiting until the next order cycle. Could it be that snake-in-a-suit Bobby Mac wanted to impress Adam and Dick with proof that the reps are very happy with his decision to by the fusion--the most orders in the history of mother????
 






Oops, my prior comment vanished. I just questioned the ethics of the "order or else" strategy of our fearless decider. Don't be fooled: a high participation rate does not = satisfaction with bm's choice, we just wanted to at least pick the color of the less-than-satisfactory car.
 






<<And dont use the economy BS, good people are getting hired.>>

I am a good rep, 4 time pres club, respect throughout my sales territory. Laid off by SP as were all my SP counterparts and several of my Merck counterparts. So, can't find a job, barely getting to a face to face opportunity to sell my self and my skills - why??

Answer - over 60, female - but in good shape - but over 60 - duh!
 






Anonymous said:
<<And dont use the economy BS, good people are getting hired.>>

I am a good rep, 4 time pres club, respect throughout my sales territory. Laid off by SP as were all my SP counterparts and several of my Merck counterparts. So, can't find a job, barely getting to a face to face opportunity to sell my self and my skills - why??

Answer - over 60, female - but in good shape - but over 60 - duh!
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But don't forget, IT'S A KID'S JOB. No matter how good you look, you are no longer a kid. I haven't found too many employers impressed by pharma sales person's skillsets either. Is it possible you could wind your career down with a CSO? I do wish you good luck.
 












The great pharmaceutical marketing machine requires front-line soldiers -- highly-paid hucksters who sway doctors into prescribing their high-priced brand-name drugs, even when dirt-cheap generic drugs do the job just as well. In the drug marketing industry, those front-line soldiers are pharmaceutical reps. The caricature of a pharmaceutical rep is a young, hot-looking blond girl, fresh out of college, with no medical training, who's good at memorizing sales lines and wooing male doctors with her physical attractiveness.
Why do pharmaceutical reps sell drugs in the first place? To pay the mortgage, of course. Or the student loans. Or to support a lifestyle with a nice car, trendy clothes and a house that's far more expensive than they could otherwise afford. Pushing drugs onto doctors, you see, pays good money. Well, actually "good" is a misnomer. It pays dirty money, because most of the drug pushing is based on lies, such as the lie that all the newer brand-name drugs are better than the older, generic drugs that treat the same symptoms. Truth is, the vast majority of new drugs launched each year are "me too" drugs that offer no new benefits whatsoever (and many actually introduce new health risks to patients).

Every system of profit-generating evil needs front-line soldiers. The Nazis had their punch card prisoner inventory systems sold to them by IBM sales reps (yes, it's an historical fact). Enron had its young, persuasive phone sales monkeys who pushed fictitious "energy futures" onto unsuspecting investors. And Big Pharma has its female pharmaceutical reps that peddle overpriced drugs to physicians and measure their "success" by what quantity of toxic chemicals they can help shove down the throats of children, adults and senior citizens.

It's all in a day's work. Some people, it seems, will do anything to pay the mortgage. As long as the money's good, their ethics are flexible.

Now, the funny part about this comic is not that pharmaceutical reps are compared with murderers and animal abusers. It's that the bimbo blond rep girl is so clueless about reality that she's still wondering if this is where she gets her bonus check. In the drug pushing business, it's all about the dough...

Will drug reps actually go to hell? That all depends on what you believe about the afterlife. But it is generally understood by people of all religions that there is some type of karmic effect that follows from our actions and choices in daily life. Most people agree that we should all strive to take up careers that create a positive impact upon others: educators, artists, inventors and healers, for example. Our individual choices have a ripple effect, and the way in which we choose to direct our energy and intention directly shapes the world around us.

If we are involved in constructive things (education, healing, compassion, etc.), then we help create a more positive world. But if we are involved in destructive things (defense industry, Big Pharma, disease mongering, etc.) then we inevitably share in the co-creation of a more destructive world with unnecessary pain and suffering. Pharmaceutical reps, by pushing whatever chemicals they're told to push, are essentially "chemical mercenaries" who place such a low value on their own honor that they lease it out to drug companies for a weekly check.

When the money is too easy, it's always a good idea to ask yourself why. There's easy money to be made in riverboat casinos, selling cigarettes to Asia and pushing drugs to doctors. Ever wonder why? Because they're all destructive industries that prey upon the financial resources of countless victims. Gambling, tobacco and conventional medicine all have systems of consumer exploitation designed to extract the maximum dollars possible. And any person who is part of that machine is partially responsible for the 100,000 Americans killed each year by prescription drugs, and the 2,000,000 who are injured each year.

For every grandmother who took Vioxx and died of a heart attack, for every grandfather who bled to death on the toilet after taking prescription painkillers, and for every child doped up on antidepressant drugs who put a gun to his mouth and pulled the trigger, there's a pharmaceutical rep behind the scenes who looked a doctor in the eye and told them that drug was perfectly safe.

Pharmaceutical reps can lie to themselves, and to each other, claiming, "it's only a job," but I do not think they can lie to the universe. Karma has a way of coming back around and giving you exactly what you truly deserve.
 






Anonymous said:
The great pharmaceutical marketing machine requires front-line soldiers -- highly-paid hucksters who sway doctors into prescribing their high-priced brand-name drugs, even when dirt-cheap generic drugs do the job just as well. In the drug marketing industry, those front-line soldiers are pharmaceutical reps. The caricature of a pharmaceutical rep is a young, hot-looking blond girl, fresh out of college, with no medical training, who's good at memorizing sales lines and wooing male doctors with her physical attractiveness. ...edited...
Click to expand...

As noble as you think other "constructive" professions are, interestingly enough, they all hire lobbyists to grab federal money. Teachers, physicians, plumbers, etc.

Drug companies are in for profit. But their products have saved lives. The cholesterol problem is not created by drug companies. Unless you can show me they all own McDonald's. It's the American lifestyle that cause high cholesterol. Merck did not create ulcer or acid reflux when it came out with Prilosec. It was the way people handle stress in life, how they live and eat that cause them to develop acid reflux and stress ulcer. Unless, again, you can prove Merck and the others create societal stress. Some drugs are incremental improvements, going from 4 times a day to once a day and with less side effects. Some are true breakthrough products. Timpotic lowers IOP which prevent many from developing glaucoma and eventually, blindness. Merck donates millions of our river blindness drug to central African countries for more than three decades now, distributed through UN. There is no money in it and not much for PR. Unless you say Merck spikes the rivers in Central Africa with this larvae for fun. People with debilitating RA had no option for years except cortisone which was problematic until Merck came out with one of the first anti-inflammatory, Indocin. It gave people quality of life back. Unless you are saying Merck planted a bug to cause RA in the entire world to start with. Evil Pharma is not always evil.

I am not defending the trend to hire good looking female reps with huge chest and zero knowledge to push products. That's a different story.

I have may be another dozen examples of products that have saved lives, restore function to people, or allow them to enjoy life again.
 






Previous over 60 female rep here - regarding winding down the career with a CSO:

That was my plan. Actually discussed with my DBM and RD prior to layoffs. They both told me I was "too good a rep" to be satisfied with CSO position. I knew my chances of getting another position in big pharma was slim to none due to my age and years of experience, but figured a stood a decent chance of landing a CSO gig.

Well, not true! The age and years of experience are more than "they" are looking for either.

Whats interesting, is that I would have to gross more than most are willing to pay to net more than my current "salary" (post taxes) from unemployment - that includes factoring in the sweet double subsidy I get on health insurance thanks to Uncle Fred and the Obama-man.

Still would rather be working....sigh.
 






To the above post:

Do you drive a car or are you getting around on a scooter or bicycle? Do you have any idea how many people are killed by automoblies????? What do you say we boycott the entire auto industry!!
 






Anonymous said:
The great pharmaceutical marketing machine requires front-line soldiers -- highly-paid hucksters who sway doctors into prescribing their high-priced brand-name drugs, even when dirt-cheap generic drugs do the job just as well. In the drug marketing industry, those front-line soldiers are pharmaceutical reps. The caricature of a pharmaceutical rep is a young, hot-looking blond girl, fresh out of college, with no medical training, who's good at memorizing sales lines and wooing male doctors with her physical attractiveness.
Why do pharmaceutical reps sell drugs in the first place? To pay the mortgage, of course. Or the student loans. Or to support a lifestyle with a nice car, trendy clothes and a house that's far more expensive than they could otherwise afford. Pushing drugs onto doctors, you see, pays good money. Well, actually "good" is a misnomer. It pays dirty money, because most of the drug pushing is based on lies, such as the lie that all the newer brand-name drugs are better than the older, generic drugs that treat the same symptoms. Truth is, the vast majority of new drugs launched each year are "me too" drugs that offer no new benefits whatsoever (and many actually introduce new health risks to patients).

Every system of profit-generating evil needs front-line soldiers. The Nazis had their punch card prisoner inventory systems sold to them by IBM sales reps (yes, it's an historical fact). Enron had its young, persuasive phone sales monkeys who pushed fictitious "energy futures" onto unsuspecting investors. And Big Pharma has its female pharmaceutical reps that peddle overpriced drugs to physicians and measure their "success" by what quantity of toxic chemicals they can help shove down the throats of children, adults and senior citizens.

It's all in a day's work. Some people, it seems, will do anything to pay the mortgage. As long as the money's good, their ethics are flexible.

Now, the funny part about this comic is not that pharmaceutical reps are compared with murderers and animal abusers. It's that the bimbo blond rep girl is so clueless about reality that she's still wondering if this is where she gets her bonus check. In the drug pushing business, it's all about the dough...

Will drug reps actually go to hell? That all depends on what you believe about the afterlife. But it is generally understood by people of all religions that there is some type of karmic effect that follows from our actions and choices in daily life. Most people agree that we should all strive to take up careers that create a positive impact upon others: educators, artists, inventors and healers, for example. Our individual choices have a ripple effect, and the way in which we choose to direct our energy and intention directly shapes the world around us.

If we are involved in constructive things (education, healing, compassion, etc.), then we help create a more positive world. But if we are involved in destructive things (defense industry, Big Pharma, disease mongering, etc.) then we inevitably share in the co-creation of a more destructive world with unnecessary pain and suffering. Pharmaceutical reps, by pushing whatever chemicals they're told to push, are essentially "chemical mercenaries" who place such a low value on their own honor that they lease it out to drug companies for a weekly check.

When the money is too easy, it's always a good idea to ask yourself why. There's easy money to be made in riverboat casinos, selling cigarettes to Asia and pushing drugs to doctors. Ever wonder why? Because they're all destructive industries that prey upon the financial resources of countless victims. Gambling, tobacco and conventional medicine all have systems of consumer exploitation designed to extract the maximum dollars possible. And any person who is part of that machine is partially responsible for the 100,000 Americans killed each year by prescription drugs, and the 2,000,000 who are injured each year.

For every grandmother who took Vioxx and died of a heart attack, for every grandfather who bled to death on the toilet after taking prescription painkillers, and for every child doped up on antidepressant drugs who put a gun to his mouth and pulled the trigger, there's a pharmaceutical rep behind the scenes who looked a doctor in the eye and told them that drug was perfectly safe.

Pharmaceutical reps can lie to themselves, and to each other, claiming, "it's only a job," but I do not think they can lie to the universe. Karma has a way of coming back around and giving you exactly what you truly deserve.
Click to expand...

Brilliant post. . . I totally believe it. This is why I will probably get a Fusion and why my life really does suck. I sold my soul to these douchebag gold-digging companies and here you have it. Thanks for the wake-up called. You just made me feel a lot better about leaving even though I'm old. You're never too old to make better choices that make the world a more positive place. No wonder I come everyday with a bad attitude. Praise to you my friend for your wisdom and thoughtful post.
 






Anonymous said:
<<And dont use the economy BS, good people are getting hired.>>

I am a good rep, 4 time pres club, respect throughout my sales territory. Laid off by SP as were all my SP counterparts and several of my Merck counterparts. So, can't find a job, barely getting to a face to face opportunity to sell my self and my skills - why??

Answer - over 60, female - but in good shape - but over 60 - duh!
Click to expand...

Most to offer, least opportunities.
 






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