BBB recently issued a press release warning consumers about their chances of getting ripped off by door-to-door magazine salesmen. But it’s important for teens to know that the young employees of door-to-door sales companies may also be getting taken for a ride – literally!

BBB received more than a thousand complaints about door-to-door magazine sales in the last year, covering 46 of the 50 states. Customers were often told a hard-luck story by the salesman, or told that the money was being collected for charity. The usual complaint to BBB was that the customer paid in advance but never received the magazines. But BBB has learned that the high-school or college-age salesmen are often victims, themselves. According to BBB spokesman Steve Cox, they may be "forced to work long hours, endure substandard living conditions and have their wages withheld from them."
 
A “Focus on Fraud” publication by the Arlington, Virginia Department of Libraries describes the scenario this way: “Certain companies may advertise for teen employment by offering travel and high paying jobs that require little effort. What these companies fail to tell the prospective employees is that their job will entail door-to-door selling of such products as magazines, books or cleaning fluid and that their hourly wage will be based on an estimate of how much commission they will make. The ‘travel’ part of the job may mean being transported to another state and being set up in a ‘flea-bag’ motel. A typical scenario may find employers dropping employees off in a neighborhood around 7:30 a.m. The teens may not be picked up again until 6:00 p.m. and, in some cases, the crew leader will collect all the money and then disappear, leaving the workers stranded with no money and in a strange state.”

So, if you see a job advertised on the Web or elsewhere that tells you about the easy money to made as a door-to-door salesman, beware! Always take the time to check any prospective employer out with BBB and your state Attorney General’s office before you send any personal information or sign a contract. You may save yourself from a rip-off or even a dangerous situation!