GaryJon I am really sorry for the difficulties you had in finding the uniform stores. When I did my course we had to go during our training (and not before) and my trainers I remember gave us some maps. It would be a good idea to send a simple map together with the First Steps To Excellence books. It takes nothing, and BA waste so much paper every day that one piece of information like this is worth an extra sheet of paper per new recruit, and it won't make a huge difference to the earth but it will to people like you!!
I will try to talk to the bosses about this, Uniform Stores is quite easy to find if you know the Gatwick/Crawley area, but if you're not familiar with the area it can be difficult.
Guys do not take any s*** from our colleagues in the store, they always try to give you what they have rather than wait for the proper item to arrive. I had to
BUY a size 4 pair of trousers as she refused to swap a size 6 she had given me when size 4 weren't available at all - sizes 2-4 hadn't even been thought of and produced yet!! I got really angry as she kept saying that size 6 was my size when I looked like a woman with a huge nappy!!! So just tell them you'll wait for whatever item they don't have in stock. Any items with labels taken off can't be returned, and same for shirts if you remove the packaging.
I find it astonishing that our groung staff don't know where the store is....as for the "receptionists" at the entrance of JH they wear the uniform but I don't think they're employed by BA. They are from some security company and have to wear the BA staff. At weekends you see "normal" securicor employees watching the door/solving id problems etc. Also you'll see, it can be quite frustrating, they live in "another world", they should take care of lost uniform items (left on planes etc) and when I looked for my scarf they told me to go to N terminal to Lost and Found....yeah right!!
Good luck guys and if you have ANY problem, do call BA!!! Call the recruitment people (Human resources-you must have their number in your email/confirmation letter) and
let them know!!! If you report something it might help other new entrants after you
Happy course everybody
FBW
