When we called James Metz, who had been among the 100 or so downtown RadioShack employees laid off 20 days ago, he hadn't heard that Jim Gooch, the chief executive officer responsible for the downsizing, was himself terminated Wednesday.
Metz sounded neither optimistic not pessimistic, but he did say that help-desk software techies were in demand. The Crowley resident has been contacted by two local employers and interviewed with one, a financial firm's Arlington office, after we wrote that the software specialist had lost his job on Sept. 6.Unlike Gooch, the 38-year-old father of three didn't walk away with a multimillion-dollar parachute. RadioShack gave Metz one month's severance, but he's not in the least bitter and doesn't feel he was treated shabbily since he had only worked for the retailer less than a year.But he thinks Gooch has a leg up in finding his next opportunity."Once you are CEO of a company, you can probably get a good job elsewhere," Metz predicted.Walmart hiringWalmart has opened a temporary hiring center for applicants interested in working at its new Neighborhood Market in Colleyville.The retailer is planning to hire 90 full- and part-time associates for the store at 4904 Colleyville Blvd. The store is scheduled to open in early November.The hiring center is at 5005 Colleyville Blvd., suite 203. It is open from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.Those interested can also apply online at www.careers.walmart.com.Store manager Steve Chapman said employees are needed in all areas of the store, including supervisory positions.Opening-day specialSalata, billed as the next-generation salad bar, opens Oct. 10 in Sundance Square, offering its signature salads and wraps for $5 that day only."By offering our signature dishes at a lower price, we are hoping some of our new neighbors will come in and give us a try," says Berge Simonian, co-founder of Salata.The store is at 520 Commerce St. in downtown Fort Worth.Home as investmentAttitudes about buying a home in today's market are changing, a Texas Trust Credit Union survey shows."Dallas-Fort Worth area residents no longer see home homeownership as the American dream," says Richard Whitman, vice president of mortgage lending at Texas Trust, based in Mansfield. "Instead, they're coming to see it more as a financial investment designed to grow their net worth."Texas Trust took its data from an August online survey in which 1,719 homeowners and renters in North Texas responded.Among nonhomeowners, 83 percent said they are interested in buying a house within five years. Of those, three out of four said their main motivation is financial, not emotional, Texas Trust said.Only 22 percent said they wanted to buy a house for the personal pride of home ownership, and 28 percent said they see home ownership as an investment in their family's future.Sandra Baker, 817-390-7727sabaker@star-telegram.comJim Fuquay, 817-390-7552jfuquay@star-telegram.comBarry Shlachter, 817-390-7718barry@star-telegram.comHave more to add? News tip? Tell us
