Pros
-Great products for crafty individuals -Employee discount goes up to 50% off a few times a year -Specialized jobs (framing or floral production) are fun hands-on positions
Cons
1) Michaels has an unbelievably poor concept for how much time it takes to complete tasks properly. I don't know anyone who is ok with being told "just make it work, every other store does." This is the reason why associates get burned out and bitter very quickly, and why work rarely ever gets done properly. More often than not, I feel like my job is DAMAGE CONTROL and cleaning up other people's messes. There is a lack of discipline for associates that do lousy work, because lousy work is as good as the store manager knows he will receive when 30 hour tasks are only actually allotted around one 8-hour shift. It has gotten so bad that managers are silently expected not to take their required 15 minute breaks in order to have more time to work. 2) Our store is TINY and its so jam frickin packed with merchandise that only one cart can fit down an aisle at a time. Merchandise is constantly knocked from shelves and the place is always a mess because it's too much of a hassle for customers to play Frogger through the store. 3) We run at bare minimum employee coverage every day. The other day, I was one of only THREE people scheduled to be in the building during peak hours (the operative word being "scheduled"; this was not due to a call-out). The checkout line was pure insanity, we were all on register, and no one was on the floor to assist with the customer service calls to unlock the huge array of locked merchandise. Needless to say, customers were getting very, very testy. This is a common occurrance with our store, and from the reviews I've read, it seems to be a company-wide issue. But hey, our priority is the customer... "we will give her a clean and organized store, and a fast and courteous checkout!" Um... how, exactly? 4) The pay is deplorable... Michaels constantly looks for cheap labor rather than keeping quality associates that have been with the company for a long time. Associate turnover is high because Michaels drives them out with their nonsense. 5) Policy changes all the time. There is no communication. As a manager, I often have things I have to communicate to my staff, but there is never any overlap with our schedules. The only chance I have is to stay 15 to 20 minutes after my shift (off the clock and unpaid). 6) Don't expect to receive any training. You are just a body in a uniform and your job is to make the company as much money as possible. 7) Enough with the coupons. Customers have come to expect them and get nasty when they can't use them because they don't have one and feel they are entitled, or because they can't use 10 of them at once. Spoiling the customer and then giving them whatever they want when they get upset is poor business strategy and is counterproductive. Why make rules and policies that are never enforced?