Pros
The specifics pertains to my location on Coursey and Hickory Ridge. Making connections with customers and especially the regulars who I've gotten to know even better. I love making coffee and working on my latte art skills. The competent coworkers make for some good conversation. Being able to choose my hours (I work mornings) so that I am able to have another job. Being able to work as many hours as I need (yes even overtime) and pick up shifts at other locations when I need more money that month. You make tips....typically only $1 per hour but it's something. If you apply you are guaranteed to get the job.
Cons
Pay starts at minimum wage (currently $7.25) no matter what kind of experience you have. I've worked in coffee for over 5 years and was still only paid minimum wage. In my interview, we spoke about me becoming a lead after I was done with my initial training and I was told that is when I would "really be making the money" come to find out it's only a $0.50 raise which is a joke. I feel like I was tricked. Oh and I also found out that a lead is only paid that extra premium when they are considered a lead on shift. So when a manager or another lead is on shift you just go back down to your minimum wage pay. Like is that even legal?? I've worked at other coffee shops where the starting pay is over $8. Also since the pay is so awful no one really wants to work that hard because they are not compensated for the hard work they are capable of. Oh and not to mention we are understaffed every shift.......yes I mean every shift. Manager has spoken with upper management and they don't seem to care about helping us find more people or sending us help from other locations. This has lead to us hiring anyone who applies because applicants are hard to come by and then we end up hiring people who are lazy, rude or incompetent. It's made for some very difficult and extremely tiring days. Besides the pay and being under staffed there are several things in the shop that are way overdue for an upgrade. Most of the time upper management will send in a maintenance man to come fix whatever it is but when your espresso machine was bought refurbished and is now over 20 years old it's definitely time to update when things are no longer working properly. The company as a whole is very cheap, in paying people and making sure things work properly. There are many floor mats meant to relieve pressure that are tearing and falling apart, several parts of the espresso machine that do not work properly but are still used constantly, the tamp is the wrong size, the blenders we use leak, several of the sauce pumps leak constantly, the bagel slicer is basically in shreds, etc. I can understand some of the smaller things being passed over but when your espresso machine which is basically your whole company is not working properly and needs to be fixed continuously it's just time for a new one. Oh my and what really yanks my chains is the fact that upper management expects us to have espresso shots pulled at a certain length of time and then also have those drinks made and out the drive thru window under 3.5 minutes when all we have to work with is a single espresso machine. When most cars order more than one drink it's nearly impossible to have drinks made that quickly. The only reason I currently still work here is because I need the extra money and I job to hold me over until I move out of state. There is no way I would have stayed at CC's as long as I have (3 months so far) if I wasn't moving out of state at the end of the year.