The real problem with this company is the management. While I can't speak about the going-ons at the corporate level, at the stores, nearly every decision is done on impulse with no real thought put into them. Things like completely rearranging a store several times a month, constantly raising prices to the point where the company prices itself out of an already wealthy market, and purchasing items that clearly never have nor ever will sell...these all are common occurrences that don't benefit the store.
Management here is just micro-management. Managers at all levels are obsessed with cutting labor costs (which is understandable), but they micro-manage every employee in hopes that by telling them how to do their jobs, they can get things done faster. Time spent listening on how to do a job is time spent away from the job.
There is a complete lack of communication amongst all managers. Managers get shifted from department to department, and sometimes store to store, so frequently that often important information such as vendor info, employee schedule/time-off requests, and basic operational procedures never get passed on to the next manager. Telling a floor manager about something that needs to get done is pointless because it never makes it up the chain to the manager who can actually get it done.
The thing that really bothers employees is that management does not care about it's staff. Asking for time off feels like you're committing a sin, as management will sometimes ridicule and guilt-trip you for doing so. Also, breaks don't exist. Just leaving your department to get water feels like you are escaping prison. And forget about getting a raise based on performance. Getting a raise is all about who you know and how good of a relationship you have with the manager. You can be a top employee that simply isn't on a "good or bad side" of a manager and you will never see a raise. Do you have a great idea for how to bring in more business? Forget it, they don't want to hear it from you.
The worst part about working here is that stores are always short-staffed. Management will try and squeeze as much work out of as few employees as possible, then question why things didn't get done. It is a very stress-filled environment.
