Pros
The pay is higher when compared to most retail stores, but Lidl's biggest competitor Aldi pay some of their store assistants almost £9 an hour on a starting wage - £2 more than Lidl do, which is unfair when both stores run identically. There are also extra hours if you want them, though over the last few months that is starting to seem rare.
Cons
Where do I start? Over-all the company is terribly run. Not a day goes by without something major going wrong that is completely out of your hands. The delivery driver will drive off with half the stock because he is on a curfew for the Police, or he'll be 4 hours late meaning everyone will have to stay past midnight, or he won't turn up at all, or the baler breaks, or the delivery is wrong, or someone has to get sent home early because the productions is low, or the hako breaks, or the chiller breaks, ect... you get the idea. The staff in these stores are completely skeleton too. You only have 3 people on a close in some stores which makes it near impossible to be able to leave on time, especially on a Friday night when it is usually busy - and it seems to take forever the District Manager to hire someone new but it is a relief when they do. Even on a part-time contract a social life feels hard to keep as the rota will change constantly and you'll always be kept behind. New starters will not be trained either. You are told you will have a "Buddy" for upwards of 3 weeks who will help you get to grips with working for Lidl, yet this simply doesn't happen. I found myself getting all of the early shifts starting at 5am and being placed on a till for 10 hours or more, and this went on for around 9 months until someone new started. New starters do not get trained, only put on a till and they have to figure everything else out for themselves. Management are also very lazy in some stores and some new deputy managers and duty managers will happily stab their colleagues in the back if it means making themselves look good and getting them in the race for a possible promotion - so be ready to have to hold your ground when it happens. Promotions will also only happen if your "face fits". If you happen to be a very good looking female you're in luck - and if you happen to be a male who likes a bit of "banter" and will willingly sell their soul to their store manager you are also in luck. These are the types of people they want running their stores. SIckness is not taken seriously at all. Be prepared for everyone to pass around you sick note and have a good read of it. There is NO privacy, though I found HR to be very helpful in these types of situations. You will also receive no double or extra pay during bank holidays unlike other retail stores. Breaks are also not mandatory. They "say" everyone will receive a break, but these breaks are only 30 minutes during a 10+ hour shift - though it is not an unusual thing to see people go without a break at all. I myself have worked an 11 hour shift without a break or even being given a chance to drink some water. Recent production targets are also hindering Lidl. They are trying their best to save millions upon millions, which means all the stores are being squeezed. People are being sent home early all the time because the store hasn't hit it's target and I find myself being shouted at by managers to clock-out, even though I have to continue working for another hour or more without pay. This is simply to minimise the cost of Lidl having to pay you and to make the managers look good. It's a case of do more work, with less recourse. I know this is long-winded, but I honestly could go on and say more. Just don't bother working here. The business runs on salve driving, intimidation and dehumanizing management to the point they don't even see you as a person anymore, just a name on a rota with numbers next to it. I don't plan on being here much longer myself.