Pros
Working at Pacific Coast Producers was a polarizing experience, but overall I enjoyed the work, although, it was menial and monotonous. Coworkers and management were awesome, and were helpful throughout my stay. There is very little intrinsic or extrinsic motivation but what could you expect? The work was generally easy and required low levels of skill. Easy job for those in need of something temporary, although some employees seem to be making a career out of it.
Cons
MANAGEMENT Management is awesome on a personal level, but they are very disorganized. My shift was constantly changed and sometimes I was even called in when I wasn't even suppose to go. Now, I am not one to complain, but I did specify during my orientation that I had a pretty hefty course load (proctored exams, research papers, etc.). This wasn't a significant problem most of the time, except when I had scheduled exams that I had to reschedule due to inconsistent and fluctuating shift changes. After a certain amount of time you are given a performance review from the supervisors with no real constructive criticism, and without a logical prompt to really judge how well you did (is 'above average' a good thing? Is there a 'great,''excellent?' What could I do to improve? Communicate? etc). SYSTEM OF EMPLOYMENT I will admit, this is the first time I have worked a job similar to this, so I don't know if their system is standard practice. I had originally applied to another position within the company which I wasn't qualified for for various reasons. Either way, the employees are set up into 4 brackets, four being the lowest (general labor, clean up, etc.), two through three were palletizers and label techs , and one are forklift drivers. Pay is based on bracket, highest being one and lowest being four. Now here's the kicker, in order the climb the ranks you have to apply to a higher ranked position when a spot opens, but once that position is attained, it doesn't guarantee a consistent spot. You could be thrown back down to bracket four with your previous pay any time they wish. Sucks huh? Their system is based on seniority and rank, but not performance. Now, it is true that if performance is good, your seniority would increase after an allotted time. However, how was performance judged? Was it subjective or objective? Many people don't retire here, so there are many employees looking for that spot to open, yearning for the day, but ultimately working patiently based on empty hope. Imagine the employee dissatisfaction knowing that the only way you could climb the ranks in the company is until someone retires. That's a lot of patience, and some of those forklift drivers have been sitting in those seats for 30+ years, and it shows (insert glute joke here).