"Rich DeVos is uniquely qualified to explain why Compassionate Capitalism can lead to financial success for the individual, the community and the nation. By his own lifetime achievements, Rich has proven why compassion for all of one’s fellow citizens is a mandatory key to success."- Gerald R. Ford, Former President of the United States·  

Dan Bailey from Amway’s Rules and Conduct department advised us on repeated occasions that we had to get a signed servicing agreement from Kerry and Chris and pay them a percentage of our bonuses. He also told us that we had to buy back all the tools that members of our group who had quit were attempting to return. That was ridiculous. I was not aware of a single case where someone was charged a servicing fee for having their upline service their own downline. Whenever someone quit, you simply worked with the next person they had sponsored as a course of business. Kerry and Chris were free to unethically rape and pillage the group for meeting funds and take the small tool break that we had been receiving.

They were financially better off without us. They also had the benefit of ongoing income from our organization. We had spent what seemed like a lifetime trotting the globe to build it, and they were going to just step in and reap the benefits! We had no use for books and tapes from a business perspective, and we had no intentions of ever supporting or building The Business again. We had bought them all from Kerry and recommended he repurchase them, as he could re-sell them into his own group or return them to Zack, who made many of them for pennies on the dollar. I requested, actually begged, on multiple occasions by fax and certified mail that either Zack or Kerry just take care of this. There was no net cost to them. We just wanted to get on with our lives, or at least try to start a new life.

It appeared that Kerry thought he could blackmail us into signing anything. We made Dan Bailey, Zack, and Kerry aware of the fact that we were destitute. We were close to bankruptcy, and I was still unable to land a job. If Amway cut off our income, we would certainly go bankrupt, lose our medical insurance, and most likely our home. How far would they go? I was not impressed with their complete lack of damage control, if for no other reason than to keep their dirty little business hidden in the dark. We might have just gone away had they let us. The first pound of flesh they had taken by stealing our dignity was not enough. We were still far too healthy for them to stop the torment. When we thought it could not get any worse, it was just the beginning.

One of our downline Silver Directs quit The Business and called us. Thank God, Kirk and his wife finally came to their senses. They had lost a large sum of money and a vast amount of time away from their only daughter. They quit after going to a seminar where Zack’s next Directs’ trip was announced and promoted. The Diamond on stage was talking to Directs when he did the promotion. (Remember, the Directs were supposedly the first level of big income earners. The organization thought they were making from as much as $54,000.) The Diamond told them that they all needed to get to the near week-long meeting in Miami, no matter what. All the leaders would be there. He told them that if they needed to get a second, third, or fourth job to pay for it, they should do whatever it took to get them there. It also had to be booked through the trip planner picked by Zack. How much blood could they suck out of those people? They were supposed to be working The Business and were told to go get multiple jobs to pay for yet another seminar? That was the final straw that blew Kirk right out of The Business.

I had my resume done professionally and sent out a large number of them for many different types of business. I thought that it would only take a few weeks to obtain a good, professional position. I had to camouflage the past nine years with Amway and describe it as business ownership. It was strange that I was out but still had to hide Amway. That dreaded "A" word! It was like a skin disease, I could not cover up or hide.

I studied interview questions and techniques at length. I was very well prepared. With global business and public speaking experience, I knew I would be working soon. I felt both excited and apprehensive about this at the same time. I dressed well and presented a good appearance at every interview. I wore my typical Amway warrior’s uniform—a freshly pressed dark suit, a white cuff-linked shirt, and a red power tie. I did well in the initial interviews and immediately made it to the second or third interview phases for management and pharmaceutical sales jobs. They looked at my resume and smiled and all of them said, "Let me ask you the obvious question... if Jacobs Enterprises (my Amway business’ name) did well, why are you applying here?" I developed a response that was honest and explained that, after almost a decade in business, I had discovered that my partners were corrupt.

This was not enough to overcome my two major interview challenges. The first was a question that literally froze my mind and left me unable to speak for a minute. On two occasions, I was asked to explain any exceptions that I had made in my business and how it worked. I could not even comprehend the question. I had made no exceptions. Everything was done exactly as prescribed by the system. I could not think of a single instance in nine years. I was certain there were a few, but it was as though I could not understand the question. It was as startling to the interviewer as it was to me, since I was doing very well until that point on each occasion. I did not recover well either time, because I could not even fake an answer. To this day, I remain uncertain as to how to answer that question.

The second problem was even more disturbing. I was becoming increasingly more negative, because in Amway, there were never any "problems." We only had "challenges or opportunities for growth," but I had to admit that I was having problems. The challenges I faced on repeated occasions were internal. I did well in a first, second, or third interview. I answered most of the questions with the appropriate response, and from study, I could actually anticipate the next question. I even knew other questions they should have asked me. The problem was an unexplainable boiling rage that I experienced in the middle of interviews. I was saying all the right things with good posture, good eye contact, positive comments, and I was really hoping I would get the job. Another part of me was screaming at the interviewer with rage. This was where the brainwashing, or thought reform, really came to the forefront.

I wanted to jump across the desk and just kick the snot out of the little preppy punk who was interviewing me. He wanted to give me a J.O.B. and pay me as little as he could, so I could be Just Over Broke, be a Jack Ass of the Boss, Jerk On Board. He wanted to control my time and income. Controlling my time and income also controlled my life. He wanted to take my freedom away from me. He wanted to control my time away from my family. There were moments when I wanted to slap him right out of his seat. Imagine doing an interview and trying to smile and answer appropriately when, for some reason, something deep inside screams and wants to beat the guy unconscious? I was so tormented by these conflicting emotions and inner rage. Kathy asked how I did after each interview, and I could only shrug, hoping that I had done well enough.

A local, upscale, grocery store was hiring management, and it looked like a great place to work. They had a chain of family-owned stores that had grown to a billion dollars a year in sales, and I wanted to have a future there. Thankfully, I got to the third interview with flying colors. The manager was a gentleman named Mike, and we really hit it off. I would have enjoyed working for him. His team of leaders sincerely seemed to respect him. I met with him and his boss for a final look over. I was asked the dreaded ‘exception’ question and completely blanked out. I mumbled through a recovery. It had been going so well until then. I was one of those in the final consideration for the position. I was still hopeful and waited almost two weeks for an answer. I called Mike, and he told me that I just wasn’t the right fit for the job, so they gave it to someone else. I thanked him for his time. I went downstairs and put my fist through the wall.

I was not a fist-through-the-wall kind of guy. I was unable to see myself as the man of the house, because I could not even get a stinking, lousy J.O.B and provide for my family. I was worthless. My mind was tormented with a raging stream of conflicting thoughts, feelings, and emotions. I did not know who or what I was. I felt no normal emotions. I wondered if I would ever become the same man that I was years ago. I could not even conceive what happiness felt like. I literally could not remember the emotion. I did not know what thoughts were truly mine.

I needed help. I went to my family doctor. I was beginning to suffer from both physical and psychological problems. The skin on my hands was actually peeling off until they bled. I was developing an ulcer and drank antacid like water. The nightmares and false heart attacks were becoming more frequent and increasing in severity. I could not think and could barely carry on a conversation. While waiting for him in an exam room, I read a poster on the wall. It listed all the signs of clinical depression. I had them all. I explained our entire situation to him, and he was very reassuring. He prescribed an anti depressant medication that would knock me out at night. Although I was able to sleep at night when medicated, my waking moments became more and more tormented. It was clear to me that I was not in control. Kathy was growing weary from the unending stress, and the fact that not only had we lost all of our friends, they actually hated us. Kerry refused to sign a trumped up "servicing agreement," even though there were a handful of our downline distributors that picked up from them. Amway went to direct fulfillment, which meant that all distributors could order products directly from Amway. They would also be paid directly, so there was no bookkeeping now. All Kerry and Chris would be doing, essentially, was selling tapes, books, videos, and seminar tickets to the group, as well as doing training sessions that created a profit for them.

I have never heard in a single instance where a distributor in the Yager organization was forced to sign a servicing agreement. In fact, almost all of Dexter’s Emerald and Diamonds picked up from someone other than their direct sponsor. For example, an Emerald would pick up from the next upline Emerald, and a Diamond would only pick up from the next upline Diamond. I now knew that was done to conceal the secretive tool breaks at the Emerald level and the huge income at the Diamond level. I informed Dan Bailey that nearly every Emerald and Diamond in the Yager organization was supplied by someone other than his sponsor without a written servicing agreement. I made him aware of many of the same long-term situations in Zack’s, Kerry’s, and my own distributor organization. Regardless of the above, he wouldn’t relent. He and my upline seemed to be in a collaborative effort to destroy me both personally and financially. I felt like an isolated target of their silencing machine.

I told Dan Bailey of the above, but it made no difference. I seemed to be the target—no, my family and children were his apparent target as well. I made all involved aware of the havoc they were wreaking on our lives by the ongoing spread of these rumors and this economic pressure. They wanted me to "sell" The Business. The sale was a joke, as they had always had the massive tool income from it anyway. What they really appeared to need was my signature on a secrecy/confidentiality agreement. 

Amway repeatedly attempted to steer me toward informal conciliation that would lead to binding arbitration. The BSMAA was written with a gag order embedded in it. Once you go into binding arbitration, you are no longer able to discuss the basis of your complaint with other litigants, or anyone else for that matter. Jody Victor, the mega- millionaire distributor who, by his own admission, helped craft the BSMAA, worked with Amway management and/or ownership to actually have it made part of the Amway application. Incredibly and unknowingly, one of the first acts a new Amway distributor commits is signing a document taking away their right to a trial by jury if and when they ever realize that they have been deceived. An attorney involved in current litigation with Amway advised me that it seemed to have been carefully crafted to also assure that there could never be a class-action suit brought against Amway or its kingpin distributors. That was a smart move, as a single, destitute former distributor seemed to stand no chance against an over-funded, legally advantaged Goliath.

I reviewed tapes of a leader’s only meeting where Jody Victor described the BSMAA and its purpose as follows:

One key area of promoting Amway versus other multi-level marketing businesses was the emphasis our leaders placed on the Amway Distributors Association Board. (ADA) This group was made up of many Diamond (and above that level) distributors that were voted into office to represent the distributor force on any policy changes. We were told that we were the only Company that had distributor representation on a policy board of this nature and that this protected our interests and futures. Each election, Zack would pass along a list by Amvox from Dexter as to who he was voting for. We were all to vote similarly, and consequently, the deck was usually stacked with Yager or Yager-friendly leaders. I was dumbfounded to realize that all these mega-wealthy distributors seemed to derive most of their income from the secretive, if not illegal, tool business and had just crafted a document that we were all forced to sign. The "risk reduction" BSMAA document limited distributors’ legal options for recourse if and when they realized they had been robbed and deceived. The very people who alleged to represent our best interests just collaborated with Amway and reduced their mutual risk, in the event we discovered the truth.

We could most likely go into arbitration, walk out with a huge settlement, but then never be able to speak of what happened again. We could never help all those who were doomed to believe in the same people we had trusted. We could not, in good conscience, take care of ourselves at the expense of many others. Perhaps we were foolish and should have looked out for our own welfare. If only someone had spoken up years ago, we would not be where we were at that very moment. I did not want to be the spokesperson, but I felt a deep sense of moral obligation and saw no other choice.

It looked like Dan Bailey was intending to cut off our income, even though we had been told again and again that the income was residual and could be passed down to future generations. The whole Amway sales pitch revolved around entrepreneurship and personal business ownership. Did I ever really own anything? If I could work for a decade and then have someone randomly just stop my income from ‘my’ business, was it ever truly mine? I think not.

I worked on networking with others in my research and discovered some shocking news about both Amway and its multi-billionaire co-founder Rich DeVos. He knew of the rampant tool abuses and deception that we fell prey to as early as 1983, and most likely long before that. I had trusted him and my upline with all my family’s future and nearly a decade of my life. He knew exactly the deception and abuses that we, and millions of other distributors, were going to be subjected to, six full years before Kathy and I became loyal, trusting Amway distributors. This whole situation was far worse than I had thought. It was looking like the Amway owners and senior executives were involved at the highest levels. It is clear that they knew what people like Zack and Dexter were doing, and Amway seemed to now be part of it. Why would Amway collaborate with those involved in the deception and financial rape of its own global distributor force? The answer was soon to come.

"We had two couples live next to us. They decided they were going to destroy us. They had made everybody who had bought that house that we lived in leave. They were the Mayor of the street. They had driven everybody away. Two years after they came against us with everything they had, all four of them were dead. All four of them were dead!" - Dexter Yager·  

My research continued as I dug deeper and deeper to find out how large this fraud really was and who the key players were. Through the Internet, I was able to develop a small network of trusted former distributors across the country that were eager to provide information. What I was to learn next broke my spirit. It was hard to believe, yet the facts are the facts. I found the following court documentation and comments on the web site at: Amway The Untold Story, which was researched and made public by web host, Sidney Schwartz. He discussed the ‘Cairns vs. Amway’ lawsuit, filed by a group of 77 distributor couples from multiple states in the Dexter Yager-Bill Britt line of sponsorship. The case was filed for abuses nearly word for word identical to the misrepresentation and fraud we were subjected to years later. Sidney Schwartz prefaced the documents by stating:

I have provided pertinent excerpts of the first portion of a court document listed as Exhibit "E" below. An internal Amway document advised the need to

"Eliminate the illegalities and abuses inherent in distributor (motivational) "systems" of non-Amway designed / produced audio-visuals, literature and rallies and seminars. "


"Problems" that Amway senior management was aware of were described as, 

"Widespread illegalities inherent in Amway distributor designed "systems" of tapes, books, and rallies. While most of these "systems" were conceived in the late 1960's and early 1970's as genuine "support" programs to help Amway distributors develop their Amway businesses, entrepreneurial "higher pin" discovered and developed programs for substantial, separate, additional income, under the Amway "umbrella".

Six years or more after this was written, in 1989, we were recruited and taught to recruit with that exact terminology. We were taught to recruit prospects based upon the fact that they would own their own business, and ‘we’ had just chosen Amway to act as our corporate supplier from the many companies we dealt with. Distributors were admonished not to hide Amway behind their upline group name.

Amway has stated that its stance on the system is that it must be non-coercive; however, these programs were anything but non-coercive! Amway knew it then and knows it now. I explained to senior Amway management, in writing, that in the Yager/Walters’ organization, the purchase of tools was mandatory. They appear to have not only taken no action against them, even though this information had been provided via fax and certified mail. In fact, Amway has lavished the worst offenders with enormous financial bonuses. Amway was knowingly rewarding the behavior of the greatest offenders with year-end bonuses of millions of dollars. Distributors were recruited en masse with the presentation that they had access to a system of success that had a 100% success rate. Once they were actively involved, the highest levels of Distributor leadership taught us to cut off support and assistance from anyone who did not buy into the system. If you wanted help from your apparently wise, wealthy upline, it was necessary to be willing to invest in ‘yourself’ and ‘your own business.’ It started out gradually, but we were soon coerced and manipulated into purchasing an unending array of standing order tapes, videos, books, CDs, and seminar tickets.

How far would this go? As a course of conduct and a specific, national pattern of business, distributors had been taught that there was no selling; we just bought from ourselves. We were taught many creative ways to camouflage the fact that it was Amway. We simply "owned" our own business and taught others to do the same. It was made very, very clear that there was no success outside of the system. We had to be on the tape-of-the-week plan, and we had to attend all rallies (seminars) to be considered "plugged in," in order to succeed. I am deeply shocked and saddened to find and read transcripts of tapes which reveal the fact that Rich DeVos had personal knowledge of fraud, illegalities and abusive practices. The quotes below are excerpts from the "Directly Speaking" tapes made by Rich DeVos. To his credit, these tapes were initially made and sent to the direct distributors to stamp out these abuses. The revelations of how much he knew in 1983 are shocking.

The quotes that follow come from a transcript in the Cairns lawsuit labeled "Exhibit "A", Directly Speaking, January 1983, Rich DeVos
Amway Cassette Series VA-2160.

Incredibly, despite multiple lawsuits, bad press and "hundreds and thousands of letters" flooding Amway, they would later make a statement to the effect that distributors who got ripped off by the deceptive, completely non-voluntary tools system were an unfortunate isolated incident in the Amway business. Further research revealed that a couple named John and Stacy Hanrahan filed a class-action lawsuit over typical, systematic abuses on July 20, 1994. They claimed that they lost money after being coerced into participating in the tool business and nearly got divorced after succumbing to the cult-like teachings of their upline’s system, which included Mega- distributors, Bill Britt and Dexter Yager. They filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of themselves and a group of distributors. The abuses they alleged were nearly identical to those of distributors that had come both before and after them.

Amway’s posture in this situation was mind boggling. Amway Vice President, Craig Meurlin, commented on the case in the 8/17/96 edition of the Philadelphia Enquirer. In considering the proposed settlement to the plaintiffs in the case, he stated,

That was ludicrous. This was anything but abnormal. This was typical of what was happening to distributors, and Amway had known this for over a decade. I was sickened by what I was learning. The 1983 DeVos transcript continued with Rich DeVos quoting an excerpt from a letter, a distributor had sent him.

The comment regarding keeping some information among themselves was interesting. As I later discovered in my extensive cult research, that admission became very meaningful. There was a clear distinction of tiers of knowledge and what distributors were allowed to know at each level. Entry-level distributors literally had no idea what was happening to them, as their seemingly successful, warm, and encouraging upline sold them on The Business and led them into the system. As a high-level Emerald distributor, I still had no idea what the true agenda of our upline was at the time. As a reader of this book, you currently know more about Amway than I did after spending personal time with Rich DeVos, Dexter Yager and nearly a decade working with the highest-level distributors in the world.

If Rich is right about this employer/employee relationship, the Diamond distributors could be liable for hundreds of million of dollars in back withholding taxes. He continued with,

From a second tape that he made, also called Directly Speaking, date unknown (probably Feb. or March 1983), Rich DeVos Amway Cassette Series VA-2160, Rich talks about a deluge of nearly identical letters he received in response to his first Directly Speaking tape.