Pros
Great co-workers
Consistent opportunities to learn at twice-monthly trainings & casually with coworkers during shifts
Free product from trainings
Herbalism apprenticeship
Great for getting herbalism education AND experience
No pressure to *sell*; we were just supposed to help.
In a word: the learning here is amazing. Think of it as a paid internship and its great.
Cons
A stifling amount of micromanagement at times
No upward mobility in position after apprenticeship finishes; very little upward mobility with pay
The mistrust of employees becomes palpable. I don’t think anyone is doing it maliciously, but there is some scarcity from past experiences (I’m told; take it with a grain of salt) that still seems to trickle into everything
Weekend work with schedules that were usually locked in (instead of rotating) so some people worked every weekend
Ownership said they wanted wellness counselors to make a career of it, but only paid $14-16 AFTER your apprenticeship is done. Not a livable wage=not a career.
High turnover for wellness counselors (very few people stayed over 1-2 years)
Counselors were not to sit while clocked in
Poor communication between tiers of employment (on the floor to midde to upper management
I experienced some misogyny when hired. (Asked multiple times during my second interview who would be taking care of my kids during shifts, who would be doing child care during early morning trainings, etc. My husband *never* would have been asked that. Also: none of your business. I am a grown adult; trust me to show up for my job. Full stop.)