Pros
Pay is above average for our town. I have been at Sam's for almost 6 years, honestly I still love my job, my fellow associate's are great we have a really good team at our Club. I just do not enjoy what has become of the Corp or the management team I currently work for. It's similar at times to a mentally abusive relationship, as far as the tactics employed by both.
Kontras
SELLING PLUS MEMBERSHIPS! Plus memberships are the most expensive memberships we offer, 100$ a pop, and for some folks they do reap some benefits from them. Recently home office has decided to cut those benefits as well, we just don't advertise that. However we are constantly under threat of a "pink slip" if we do not meet our individual/departmental sales requirements. We literally have to constantly accost our members to purchase this membership or sign up for a credit card(GE Credit who is 95% of the time rude and uninformed). We are in a small town and see the same folks every week, however our sales expectations are put up against bigger clubs in wealthier towns with more traffic. Some of our members even threaten to quit their basic memberships b/c they are so tired of being harassed. Threats of a "coaching" or pink slip are constant & there are no clear guidelines on what exactly gets one. Reasons have varied from a facebook post made off the clock and away from the club about a manager, to an associate not giving a pen (Which the associate bought & paid for themselves b/c adequate supplies are not provided by the Club.) to a member, instead they found something else to give them. The member in passing, not even complaining, mentioned to a nearby manager they might want to get some pens for their associates. The original employee was then "coached." For a personal pen...yep. They rarely offer full-time positions. As an hourly associate the more you earn an hour the less hours show up on your schedule. (On a more personal note, after I requested more hours than the 15 that have been constantly showing up on my schedule, I was told the only way I will get more is if I agree to take a 30-50 cent an hour pay cut.) It seems as if management are intentionally finding reasons to fire our older associates who have been with the company for 20+ years. The insurance offered is a joke, it covers one of my prescriptions partially. Every year they raise the rates and cut the benefits. In the last year I have been chain called to the point I turn off my phone on days I have told them in advance I could not work. The last time, I was out of town & my phone was out of ear shot when I looked at my phone later that evening they had averaged a call about every 25 min. For about 3 hours or so. Currently I would not recommend this place for employment, unless you are looking for a short term seasonal job.
