Pros
It's a job, anyway. In this economy, most are happy to have a job at all. I was really glad to get something because I don't qualify for retirement. I was a stay-at-home mom for 25 years, and had a seizure disorder, so at a job wasn't possible. Even after I go on Social Security in a year, I will have to work.
Cons
1. I have been threatened by team leaders, and bullied into taking a lower pay position because I am "slow". That means I am not able to scan 100 items in 100 seconds. I've been called excessively friendly. The motto is "fast and friendly", but it's not friendly at all. It's courteous, but not friendly. The only things Meijer wants me to say are: a. How are you today? b. Did you find everything you wanted to find today? c. Do you have coupons or bottle slips? d. Thank you for shopping at Meijer. These are marks of courtesy, but not friendly. I work in a small town, and know people because I grew up here. Besides this, I have lost some of the strength in my hands due to age, which makes the two-hand scan close to impossible. . 2. In the five months since I started working at Meijer, I've been scolded many times for mistakes I made or for being a minute late even when I had a good reason and told my team leader. Conversely, I've gotten a positive comment about something I did only one time. ONCE! That's discouraging, and makes me worry about losing my job. When I talked with the team leader about my performance as a cashier (you can see—I was demoted. They say I wasn't, but I was.), the team leader said my scanning rate "wouldn't cut it". I asked what the consequences might be, but he wouldn't tell me. It was a veiled threat that if I didn't start scanning at a rate of 100%, I would be fired. 3. I work in the general merchandise, straightening stock and keeping things tidy. There is one person doing this job for each shift. I understand the need for customers to see a neat, clean store. However, people, when they hear I work at Meijer, always tell me they would like to see more open lanes. 4. I am sometimes called to run a lane when things get busy. I don't mind that, because I enjoy helping people. When that happens, I still have to complete all my work within the alloted hours. If the time I spend running a lane is more than one hour, or the time I have been scheduled to work is somewhat short, it makes it really difficult. 5. The union. I'm not really a union kind of person. However, when I know my rights in the workplace have been violated, I do want to know to whom I should register my complaints. No one has ever stepped forward to say, "I'm your union rep." Wouldn't that have been the friendly thing to do?