Former cashier Peter Judge was often the last face shoppers saw before leaving a Phoenix supermarket. He always wanted to be the reason people came back.
His only son, Patrick McCarthy, told USA TODAY:
Judges do not greet customers when they return to WinCo Foods. Judge was fired last month despite his track record as an “excellent employee,” said McCarthy, who lives in Woodinville, Wash., near Seattle.
A judge’s job is point-based and he was getting too many points. McCarthy explained that the judge walked to work and used public transportation, which sometimes caused him to run behind schedule.
“He would probably have been five or ten minutes late if the traffic lights hadn’t worked in his favor to cross the street,” he said.
According to McCarthy, the judge’s holiday several weeks before his dismissal was clearly above his points level.
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The son wanted to help his father. He turned to the LinkedIn network and let everyone know that the judge, who didn’t have a profile at the time, was open to work.
‘I’m excited about his next step,’ said McCarthy. wrote in his post, went viral with almost 20,000 reactions. “This guy is the person you want on your team.”
overwhelming support
McCarthy, a husband and father of three-year-old and nine-month-old sons, may have something to do with losing his job. The marketing and communications expert was laid off from Coursera last month.
He also says he recognizes “the power of LinkedIn” when it comes to rallying around others trying to navigate “this very strange period of layoffs” at some companies. .
But McCarthy said he and his family had never received so much support.
“It’s a shock,” said McCarthy, 31.
Hundreds of people responded to his LinkedIn post.
“He loves seeing customers searching his lane for check-ins and renewals,” McCarthy writes. “He said to me, ‘I’m good at this.'”
McCarthy shared with his network of more than 500 contacts how his father was “shocked, overwhelmed (and) emotional” after losing the job he enjoyed for four years.
Responses ranged from advice on where the judge could look for his next role, to praise for McCarthy’s honest and thoughtful post in support of his father.
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Even LinkedIn’s own LinkedIn page reacted to McCarthy’s post.
“Pete sounds like a top notch employee! Please let us know as his journey progresses,” the company’s post read.
‘Incalculable support’
The judges were blown away by the unexpected popularity.
“The post itself was incredibly written, and I think that touched people’s hearts,” he said.
In the two weeks since the post went viral, Judge has spoken with several interested companies about potential opportunities, McCarthy said.
“The abundance of responses, opinions and support was not enough to understand,” the judge said. I’ve never been in a situation where I could get it.”
McCarthy’s father has since My LinkedIn account If he wants the perfect next opportunity.
“He’s sifting through all of this and trying to find his next move,” McCarthy said.
Job hunting is fraught with challenges. According to McCarthy, the judge’s years-old computer often freezes and “barely works.”
“The biggest hurdle in this job search is transportation, because you rely on your feet and public transportation,” Judge said.
Still, he continues to look for jobs that value his interpersonal skills.
“The most important aspect of my next role is that it’s going to be something I really enjoy,” Judge said. Because it’s what I love most and what I feel I can most influence.”
