Not worth your time! - Anonymous Blue Beacon Employee Review

For managers there is no life outside Blue Beacon what so ever. They are on call 24/7 all year round. Managers are required to do surprise drop in visits on their on location to check on things, which I believe is a good thing except that this is the reason that they require the manager to live within 20 min from the location and many of the locations are located in ghettos and really sketchy neighborhoods. They only get 1 day off a week unless the location is having trouble in which case you work 7 days a week . They are required 48-55 hours a week but plan on doing more. I know several managers that frequently put in 60+ hours a week at least once a month. They claim to be a family company but if your children have sports games concerts or any other important events don't plan on being involved in that part of your children's lives. I know a manager who's father passed away and Blue Beacon said "sorry we still need you to come in to work today". They obviously gave him time off for the funeral but not to grieve. They have the highest turnover rate of any company that I have worked for or even know of. The General Manager turnover is pretty high about 10%-15% a year but the Operations Manager turnover rate in much higher, about 20%-30% a year. As for the bay employees the number is significantly higher, 40%-80% a year, and sometimes even higher. I attribute that turnover rate mostly to the low pay. They start out a bay attendant (washer) at about $8-$8.75 an hour with promises of bonus. The bonus is based on the amount of money made in a shift. They say that they offer a bonus to the bay attendants but to make any bonus at all is very difficult, and to even make half or full bonus is impossible. You would have to set record breaking amounts of sales for a shift. Manual labor for close to minimum wage is a joke and even if you were able to bonus a little which would maybe get your wage up to $9-$9.50 , you are so tired at the end of the day that you don't have the energy to do anything else, even if you are in great athletic shape. All employees are required to buy uniforms only available from the company and have the company logo on them. Blue Beacon requires that uniforms be in like new condition at all times. The employees are washing mud, grease, animal waste, and a never ending list of mystery substances that stain their clothing. The clothing must be washed after every shift so that it is clean for the next day, this really takes a toll on clothing and you find yourself being told your shirt, hat, or pants are looking faded, you need to buy a new one. This seems a little ridiculous to ask an employee that makes close to minimum wage to spend $250 or more a year on their required work uniform which is only bought to please the company. Managers bonus is most of your income so you have to make sure that your staff is top notch if you want to get as much bonus as possible. The problem with that, is no one sticks around long enough to be "top notch". If you are offered a Management position at a Blue Beacon and are not a current employee you need to be aware that even though you just got a location to run, you are financially responsible for the equipment. If there are major repairs and replacements that are needed they will come out of the General Manager and Operations Managers bonuses. They don't care that preventative maintenance was not done with the previous manager even if the parts are 15 years of and expected to go out soon. It may have been the fault of the previous manager or that it is just time for the equipment to be replaced. Either way if will come out of your bonus. If you have tattoos they will need to be covered. This is understandable but very miserable for the employees that are working in the bay. Long sleeves combined with a hat, this is a uniform requirement feels like torcher, and has caused some of their employees to get heat exhaustion and require medical attention despite that fact that they were drinking water. The wash bay easily reaches temps of 120 degrees or more and with the amount of water in the air there is just no escaping the misery. Some people think that it must feel good to work at a truck wash in the summer being wet all the time but the water it heated so it’s worse than being outside. The company offers benefits like 401K which they do match some of your contribution. They offer major medical but it’s expensive for a family and coverage is minimal compared to other companies. Vacation days for a bay attendant are only 1 week for the year and if you want any additional days off it is unlikely you will get them if the location is understaffed (which it usually is). Also the 7 days that you get must be taken consecutively and not parceled throughout the year. Management gets 2 weeks vacation which can be split up throughout the year. Just don't plan on taking too many days at once because they will have to fly in another manager for some of your vacation to keep an eye on things and yes that will come out of your bonus also. Nothing like having to pay your company so that you can go on vacation. Blue Beacon is trying to be more culturally diverse and hire many different races which is absolutely wonderful. Except that if you are Hispanic and applying and there mostly Hispanic employees currently working at a location, you will be passed up for someone that is African American, Indian, or Asian, even if you are the most qualified for the job. 20 years ago until about 5 years ago this company was great. Pay was competitive benefits were comparable to other companies and people were just treated like they had value and that they were appreciated. Now pay is lower despite strong profits, and people are treated like numbers or slaves. Overall Blue Beacon is a company that you should avoid no matter what position you are considering.