Pros
The people you end up meeting and working with are really down to earth. They really help each other out, since the commission rates aren't that great, and you often make friends. The discount was generous, too.
Cons
Since it's a department store, many of the ways they treat their employees are very unethical. Getting rid of employees is a ritual practiced quite often, as the recession is settling in, they try and get rid of the people they pay the most to replace them with newer employees at a lower pay rate. Managers are nice until the feeling of superiority sets in, which their intelligence clearly doesn't match. They put the blame on the associates, and constantly expect associates to do more then they can handle, for example, taking care of the busiest department on the busiest day by themselves. Cutting costs for a company often leads to many sections of the store being left empty with no supervision. It often leads to managers scrambling around attempting to make what they can of the little employees that are present. Many of the managers speak in demeaning tones, and they treat the job as if there is no personal level-- losing a job is no big deal. They concentrate too much on statistics, such as opening credit cards and making sales, that many associates that work together often hog the registers, leaving the quieter associates to do the dirty work with no appreciation.
