assistant buyer

inventory control specialist

cafe assistant

baker

cake decorator

Costco Wholesale

I started costco at a delicate time in my life and i have to give them credit that costco helped me develop and growth and helping give me the time to find myself and become the hard work and confident worker i am today. The pay and the pay rises are amazing once your past the three month probation period. The holiday pay and benefits and pension plan are very generous compared to most companies with entry level basic jobs like this but honestly there was so drama. 

The store i worked at everyone was shady and rumors spread like wildfire it wasn't even funny. so many people were trying to throw others under the bus professionally and socially. Literally the department managers are trying to screw the others over with the warehouse managers and it's like whats wrong with you. I was lucky to have a manager i did for the last year at costco cause she made things so much better for a lot of us and we honest about what was going on and how she hated the changes that were forced on us which were the worst thing. The management and how they handled doing new things. Like for example they would get an email saying we couldn't do something 'give cups for the drinking fountain' or be something equally stupid and if you forget and did it cause you were off the day they started the new thing you'd get into trouble or yelled at just cause. There were also certain time we were put on the line of health and safety. Like I almost emailed HR because our warehouse manager wanted me to do something and it could have potentially lead to food contamination if i had done it. You can't expect me to go against the food hygiene training you taught me just cause you don't care and want sales. 
  
I will say. As negative as the experience has been. I learned how to make foods like pizza and such. I became more confident socialising after being a anxious and quiet person. I enjoy some of my time and had laughs. The vacation days were generous so i got to enjoy being paid for doing nothing and coming home with money in your pocket. If your looking for an inbetween job it's great just remember to be nice but not bother with making friends and avoid the nights out unless your keen to go watch some drama and just hope your not in the middle of it. 

There were so many awful customers but i will say i have a few i can talk to who were genuinely nice and easy to serve that made the day better a little bit. 

The shifts were good. Our manager was good to help especially if you needed certain hours she'd make sure you studying could be worked around and did it really well. I just hated getting up early for the 7ams but i'm not a morning person. You'd have to work at least a 4 hour shift but you could only work a max of 8 and 1/2 hours which was a win. I was work 38-40 hours cause i asked for more even on a 24 hour contact i could easily get more if needed it was only January and February to sometimes march part timers hours were completely cut to the 24 which sucked for the loss of pay.

All the staff that worked at Costco Wholesale were generally very warm and welcoming to all new members of staff. I never felt antagonized by my fellow coworkers/supervisors and generally had a lovely time working there. 

The only thing stopping me from giving it five stars reviews all around is due to a lack of communication between upper management could sometimes lead to frustrating situations for me as an employee that can make you feel unappreciated. Here's an example:

I spent a lot of the time on the trolleys as I have moderate social anxiety and was generally trusted to work hard consistently without being checked up on. My shift ended at 10PM (The store had shut at 9) and at half 9 a supervisors comes out and pleads with me to come in early the following day (6AM) as there's a corporate visit the following day. 

Despite the fact I was under no obligation to take this shift by law or in the Costco employee handbook being under 11 hours rest between 8 and a half hour shifts also keeping in mind it took me around an hour to an hour and a half to travel each way to and from work as well. I decided to take it to help them anyway as I was supposed to be receiving 1.5x pay for that subsequent shift. When I didn't receive my 1.5x pay for that shift come payroll, I went to the office to ask and they flat out denied that under any circumstance I should be getting paid 1.5x for that shift despite it clearly being stated within the handbook and being guaranteed it by other employees.

I'm sure this is very probably just a clerical issue or something of that nature, but that doesn't excuse the fact it's both demoralizing and demeaning for people to intentionally/unintentionally not recognize your hard work.

Costco on a whole is a good company for customers but not staff.

I was hired from the end of October as part time 24 hours contract what’s they fail to tell you and everyone is they are giving you a probation period of three months where they can end your contract at anytime for any reason 

(basically they hire you as a 3month Christmas temp) and say because of cut backs and the payroll constraints we can’t keep you on 

I couldn’t believe it until I remembered my induction day where a lady’s who got the jobs son and friend were told the exact same thing after three months in January when the store isn’t busy anymore 

Your daily duties are always random never the same 

80% of the time they threw me out on trolleys in the pouring rain and wind when it was 1 degrees 
 Then the other 10% was doing your actual job of assisting on tills or cashier 

And the last 10%  would be go backs placing items back where they belong and folding clothing for 8 hours

The best thing about Costco was the money and few staff members who were nice but would also use you if you were new by asking you to take the bins out or fetch them some bags because they were lazy to move 

 the manger pretends to be friendly when your helping him but when it’s not going his way he is rude towards staff 

I missed one day because I got the rota‘s wrong because they keep changing them constantly without notice he then Interrogated me on the shop floor in front of everyone asked to check my phone to see the rota because he clearly didn’t believe me  

Also you can’t be Sick because they will hold it against you.

Costco is an excellent company to work for! The managers and supervisors are always there when employees have questions or problems. Anything from a shift change to getting things setup on a computer system, safety awareness for staff/members or giving you information and assisting you with job advancements. Everyone is very busy and somehow the job always gets done and done to near perfection. Being a part time employee, I was pleasantly surprised to hear that I would also get benefits. I wide range of benefits are offered to everyone! I also have had the opportunity to put money into a pension plan. Costco adds to the plan, which is fantastic. I am thrilled that I have paid sick days, again as a part time employee!! We are also offered family days where we can simply phone into work and let them know we are not able to make it in to perform our shift that particular day. Its a load off my shoulders and very comforting to know that if there is some sort of family emergency or if something urgent comes up, Im able to take care of my family matter and take the day off without being reprimanded! Also still in awe of the pay rate!! Sure, we start off just above minimum wage, however the fact that we are assured a pay raise after 1040 hours of work is just incredible. Works out to a raise every 8 months or so for a part time employee and sooner for full time employees. Not many people can say that they are guaranteed a pay raise each year. It really is unbelievable. Costco is the best company Ive ever worked for!! It is a very fast paced place to work, the day goes by very quickly and we have fun during our shift!

The job itself was very easy, if you're not in any way lazy, despite management stressing that it is a difficult job for some strange reason. Nothing there will challenge you mentally, you may even become brain dead, I would recommend studying or a puzzle out of hours. 

As long as you do what needs to be done, when it needs to be done, you can find yourself doing nothing for extended periods of time (I chose to move things around and watch TV in my down time). 

The customers (you have to call them 'Members'), were extremely entitled, which I understood to a degree as they pay to shop there, but they are also slobs, leave things all over the floor, leave food all over the warehouse and trash things and take things apart, also a huge lack of common sense, and if you're doing something and walk away from it for a second, they will ruin whatever it was, I promise. I never expected it and its truly shocking.

The management were very stressy and would like to get at you for things you either cannot do or expect you to do many many things at once and then tell you off for not doing something completely different. 

On the plus side I did a lot of lifting and moving of heavy objects and climbing steels (wasnt meant to but no one tells you off for getting stuff done) and also a lot of running around. 

The pay was very very low. It only worked for me as it was lockdown and I lived with my parents and everyone in my house works, wouldn't recommend living off a starting wage.

Do not work here for you’re own good, the management is poorly, there’s no organisation, rota changes every second. There’s no benefits in working here unless you stay for a year max! Instead you can work somewhere else and move up within the time, they always tell you it is possible to move but it’s not. In terms of the way everything is run I would not recommend eating anything except the bakery products from the cafe because the hygiene standards are way off the grid! It is not washed or maintained to the correct standards. THEY WASH AND MIX THE NON VEG WITH THE MEAT CONTAINERS! This is a huge and disappointing fact to the vegetarian and halal members. I have to personally say that is not right for their own beliefs

And on top of this the staff are not to be blamed for any of this because the time limit for the tasks to be done is not enough it is mainly due to the manager that has organised and planned the days schedule. In relation to the morning shifts when the manager arrives she clearly doesn’t notice the pieces of pizza and cheese stuck to the tongs. It lacks her visual representation of being able to see the errors and faults in her line of work, as this should be corrected immediately. They just really want to use you and keep you, also the management aren’t helpful at all the staff were the only people who are friendly to make you want to stay. As of this you feel more confident and able to tackle whatever comes you’re way. But even when you try to mind you’re own business the manager and super visor find a way to pick on you. Do not trust anyone.

I was employed to start at 6am and finish at 2pm this quickly disappeared and was replaced with daily shift changes ranging from 10pm to 8am starts, no daily shift was the same.

Example 
Mon start 4am finish 12
Tues start 2am finish 10
Wed start 8am finish 2pm

During busy periods you will be asked to come back in the same day for your next shift (finish one shift at 10am and then be asked to return at 10pm the same day) It will play havoc with your body.

Although these were not mandatory is was made clear that you would be expected to meet the companies needs by lower management in order to be considered for promotion or continuation of employment.

My role itself was simply stock replenishment to be completed before the store opened along with any relevent merchandising required. Workers in this section of the store are pushed hard which doesn't match the starting wage offered. (Lowest in the store - standing at a checkout paid more).

After a 3 or 4years continuous service you will earn a decent wage IF you manage to last that long due to the constant change of shifts which never gave a good home/work balance.

If you do join Costco, my advice is to either get a role on the front desk, butcher's or a day shift shop floor role as you'll earn more for a easier role!

I'd happily go back to Costco in a different role, despite the hours/shifts involved I enjoyed the role.

It's hard to summarise working for Costco as you will have a different experience to others depending on which department you work for. 

For most, the departments are difficult to work in because of similar reoccurring problems such as short staff and reduced hours which leads to low employee morale.

There are many managers in each warehouse and whilst not all of them are 'bad', there certainly are a lot that lack in basic people skills and some are often promoted into management just because of out-of-work relationships etc. 

If you choose to work there whilst you study, or just for 1-2 years then your experience will be okay, depending on the dept. However if you join wanting to progress and make a career, you should note that most are promoted through 2 ways: Working in every department (Especially the shop floor) and/or becoming friends with one or more of the managers.

When joining the best advice would be to keep hold of your Employee handbook and study it carefully, and make sure it applies to employment law. 
Management can use the book against you for whatever reason and having knowledge of the handbook and basic employment law can help defend yourself. 

Hardest part of the job is simply this:
People can be very difficult and incredibly stupid.

For the short time that i was working at haydock costco i had problems.
With pay ie; not getting payed on time, not getting pay slips.
work hours ie; Not nowing when i was working from one day to the other and been told on a sunday that all your doing the following week is just sat,sunday.
Far to many managers working at that site (Haydock)
Stuff beed put in the dustbin that could have gone to the homeless food,toys,colthing,bottled and can drinks.
I was Shocked by what i was seeing and the way the management would treat there staff as it seems as as long as the work is carred out does it matter who does it as long as the sales are up at the end of the day.
Two week before the vist by the top boss, and ive seen this at other sites they do what they can to make it as clean as possable from cleaning the staff cantien from top to bottom and all so the shop floor and i think this does not give a true Value of how the business is working at that site. And after the vist it all goes back to how it was before the vist why do management do this.
A'm lost for words.
I Ended up leaving costco because the hours that i was told at the the beginning of my contract would be more that what i was doing with my old job 16hrs ended up been less alot less.
It Comes across as as a very lovely company to work for after walking round shopping there BUTwas i wrong Yes and i was Shocked.

As a part time merchandiser at Costco, the work usually starts mid afternoon and finishes at around 9pm over a period of 4 to 7 days (Part time hours). The

The first task would be to report to the supervisor to find out the plan for the day. Depending on what part of merchandising each employee manages, they will usually stay on a specific section and keep it tidy, safe, restocked etc. Some Costco stores are regularly short staffed so merchandisers rarely stay on a specific sections.

The typical Costco warehouse is in constant change, stock turnover is very high and products are always changing places to make way for new merchandise, or monthly special offers. Most co workers are very easy to get along with and everyone has a laugh. The management are also very easy to get long with but its dependent on what warehouse you're working in.

Overall its a good company to work for, you have a minimum of 24 working hours per week, the pay goes up with the amount of hours worked, good benefits package, and there is room to progress if you decide to make a career out of Costco.

Top Job Titles	Average salary
Assistant buyer 5 salaries reported	£36,893 per year
Inventory control specialist 4 salaries reported	£15.22 per hour
Cafe assistant 4 salaries reported	£13.78 per hour
Baker 1 salary reported	£14.75 per hour
Cake decorator 4 salaries reported	£15.25 per hour

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