Pros
Starbucks was an awesome employer. As others have mentioned, Starbucks benefits are absolutely fantastic. Not only that, it's fun to interact with regular customers as part of your job. You can even sometimes take time off the floor to go visit with them, as long as it isn't too busy. Upper management was great; District Managers were consistently in all the stores. Employees were pretty competent about policy changes. Getting tips on top of a paycheck was great. At some of the lower volume stores, tips aren't that great, but they're still an extra income. If you want to promote through the company, you only really have to say the word and your manager will start grooming you for that position. I had one manager at Starbucks who rarely saw potential in anyone but besides that incident, promotions have always been easy and fair. Co-workers were really fun to work with and knew what they were supposed to be doing. Even when they fell off-track it was really easy to get them back on task. Respect was a huge part of Starbucks, not only for employees but for customers also. I always felt respected by my management team. I also felt like my opinion was heard by corporate when I had an idea or suggestion. Pay raises are mandatory per six months as long as your manager is on-task and you're doing the minimum job requirements. Getting a free pound of beans or a box of tea per week was really neat! This was very generous of the company; it was almost like a rewards program that encouraged one to drink and try the product they were selling, both at work and at home. I also loved how community-involved our Starbucks was. We were consistently offering free cambros of hot chocolate and coffee to local events. It was a great way to volunteer while still treating people to something they didn't usually indulge in for themselves. I had so much fun participating in events like 'Shakespeare in the Park' and 'Relay for Life.' Those were definitely high points during my employment with Starbucks.
Cons
Customers. You can get some really awesome customers and some really bad ones too. There were many customers that were consistently rude and difficult. Even though they regularly returned for their beverage, these customers were always snippy and downright disrespectful. I've had too many experiences with bad customers through this company to even begin to relate. I don't know what it is about Starbucks, but I feel like it attracts a lot of snooty people. By far, this was the worst job experience with customers that I've ever had, no matter my location. Also though, it was one of the best places for polite and friendly regulars. Management varies. This really sucks if you come from an awesome store only to find out the management team at your new store is lackadaisical. I've had the best management in my job experience at Starbucks as well as some pretty "eh" management. Even though there's a lot of benefits and "hidden paychecks," I still feel like the wage for both Baristas and Supervisors is low. Our manager worked about 40 hours a week which is irregular for Starbucks managers, who often work 60 hours + weekly. We worked our butts off in the store making drinks and trying our best to keep the environment clean and positive, but our wages were still too low to make a decent living. If I weren't married, I could not support myself on this income alone. Starbucks requires most of your time when you hit the supervisory level, so two jobs would have been out of the question. For the amount of work we are expected to do at Starbucks--'Offering Legendary service to all customers'--I feel the employees were underpaid, at least those who worked hard to meet the company's service goals. Employee gossip has also been bad at every Starbucks location I've ever worked at. It was really out of control and the managers did little to prevent this. Sometimes, it was even the management that initiated it. This really irritated me. It got so bad I stopped talking about co-workers altogether, even to management. Instead, I only said positive things about each person to discourage negative gossip and rumors from circulating the store. Also, cell phone usage on the floor, though prohibited, still continued. The management team did not set a good example by staying off their personal phones while working behind the counter. Therefore, I constantly had to chide baristas back on task for texting--or talking--on the clock.
