Pros
Outstanding benefits. No one getting hired right now is likely to retire a millionaire like the articles about people who got on young when the company was new. But the ESOP is still substantial and the health and dental benefits are significantly less expensive than what many people are offered through work (retail or otherwise). They are extremely open to employees who are interested in cross training to other departments, however you might have to bug them about it A LOT to get any forward movement on that front.
Cons
In all other respects, they are like any other retail establishment. Customers who go above simply "rude" to flat out abusive will be rewarded for their bad behavior. It seems no true conflict resolution is part of the training for management or lead clerks. They also abide by a blanket "drug free workplace" policy that, as always, means you will be working along side tweakers (who can easily pass a drug test in only a few days) and functional alcoholics who get away with being drunk on the job while those who prefer marijuana will either quit or get picked off in random drug tests. This is particularly interesting given that several of the states Winco operates in are weed legal. The final thing they share in common with standard retail gigs is the nature of scheduling. People will be fighting to get more than 20 hours a week during slower periods byt the store continues to actively hire new people. The net result of all of these combined is that good people constantly quit, turnover is high, and the bulk of those who stick around are challenging to work with on many levels.