Pros
- Training is intense in a good way. I felt comfortable with operations within a couple weeks of immersion. - If you stick it out high-paying & high-reward positions exist within the company. Upper-level staff seems very happy with their roles. - Your staff will be family to you, as you'll spend more time with them than family and rely on each other for safety. - If you have good facility management your experience can be good.
Cons
- Very cult-like atmosphere among the workers. Lots of young employees who only spend time with other employees of the company, and anyone questioning management or otherwise expressing displeasure is met harshly. - Hours are entirely out-of-line for salaried workers with consistent 80-90 hour weeks through harvest and at least 60 through non-peak times. This is alright if tied to compensation, but I pretty consistently made less than $12/hr once averaged across hours (which is less than a laborer's starting pay). - Operations advancement has considerably less to do with your own capabilities as much as what holes need filled in other facilities. Plan on moving 3+ times in your early career if you want to move up. - If you have bad facility management plan on spending very little time with friends or family, as well as being available by phone and email during what little time you get.