Working For Kelly Girl Service

 My Story #36:
Ronnie W. Wolfe

Working For Kelly Girl Service

After graduating from Fugazzi Business College, I had a promise given to me that as long as I live the college would have a job for me. Upon my graduation, they put me in contact with "Kelly Girl Service." Can you imagine that? Of course, I needed the work, so I began to work for them. I took shorthand, typed letters, filed cards and statements, made copies, typed reports and did general secretarial work. I was one of only a few men who worked for Kelly Girl Service.

Then the name was changed to Kelly Services, because more and more men were getting into that kind of work. That name was a little easier for me to tolerate.

The work was mostly temporary; so, from week to week or month to month (and sometimes day to day), I would work for different people doing different things. Once I sat in a lawyer's office all day just to answer the phone while he was in court. The phone did not ring even once. That was one boring day.

I was paid at one time about $1.65 per hour for the work. That was the "going rate." Once while working at AAA Worldwide Travel, I was working through Kelly Services. The lady that I worked for asked me how much Kelly was paying me, and I told her around $1.65. She said she was paying them $2.50 per hour. I told her she could not hire me full time unless I had not worked for her for six months. She said "You're fired." So, she fired me for six months and then hired me back for $2.50 per hour. I was a happy camper.

Even later, when I was teaching and working at Lexington Baptist College, I used Kelly Services to supplement my income on a part-time basis. Those were the days!