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Ocean State Job Lot

Engaged Employer

Ocean State Job Lot reviews

2.9

38% would recommend to a friend

(934 total reviews)
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Marc Perlman

35% approve of CEO

36% positive business outlook

Ocean State Job Lot has an employee rating of 2.9 out of 5 stars, based on 934 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have an average working experience there. The Ocean State Job Lot employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Retail & Wholesale industry (3.4 stars).

Reviews by job title

934 reviews
5.0
Dec 7, 2017
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

I was fortunate enough to get in last minute into their first ever organized internship program in the Summer of 2016. The experience was amazing! It was paid and full-time, so not only did I make good money over the summer, I received College credits and learned so much. I was a Recruiting intern working under the Director of Recruiting as well as the Corporate Recruiter (both were and are amazing mentors!). Once I got settled and understood their systems, I was able to make a BIG IMPACT. By the time the Summer was over, I had compiled data and analytics for our recruiting department as well as helped with organizing our centralized recruiting process. I would have never imagined being able to make such a big impact; especially at a company of this size. The interns were also able to learn about different departments outside of the one they interned in. Every week we would have an intern lunch where a member of a certain department would come in and talk to us about their role. We had the opportunity to ask questions and get valuable insight on the company's operation as a whole, as well as different career paths. I interned in the Summer, but was also able to come back during my Winter break. This was awesome because I was able to make some money for the following semester. The best part though is that whenever I voiced to my supervisors what I enjoyed doing, they would give me projects that catered to what I liked. I loved diving into the numbers and analytics, so they gave me a lot of cool projects where I got to explore my talents and interests. After I graduated college I did not plan on returning to the state of Rhode Island. After getting a job offer from OSJL though, I had to stay. It's been almost 6 months now and I love it! I've already received a promotion, more responsibilities and new challenges. I always feel like my input and ideas are not only valued, but implemented. It's refreshing to work with people who love their career, and want to put in the hard work to make the company better. If someone does an awesome job on a project or meeting, your hard work is recognized. An important aspect of a job right out of college for me, was to work at a place where I can learn and grow from the people around me. Working under a CHRO and Director of Recruiting that are so passionate about the work they do, the people they work with , and hire is such a pleasure. This is longer than I expected so I'll wrap it up. If you are not a part of our company and reading this , you may be thinking "well this person is in recruiting, so obviously this is just another tactic". Of course I hope this helps people make the decision to apply for a position with us, but more importantly this is the truth. Lets keep it up!

Cons

No one would believe my "pros" if I didn't put any cons. I would say that the free lunch could be better, but as my parents said "beggars can't be choosers". Other than that, the room I work in is a little colder than I would like, but nothing an extra layer can't fix.

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Ocean State Job Lot Response
8y
Thanks so much. As you know we are working hard in all our locations to be the best company to work for.
2.0
Dec 3, 2017

Poor career choice

Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Work with good hardworking people.

Cons

Management is poor. Poor Audit checks and Inventory is fully blamed on store employees, management will not push for employees to get a raise. Additionally, raises are preformance based, which means instead of every 6 months you get 25 or 50 cents. You could potentially get 5 or 10 cents. Full time hours are generally 37 hours. Pay is poor. Physical store cosmetics are old, dusty, aged. Ocean state donates only expired food, which is terrible. I am not happy to be here. I will not work for a company who treats their employees like idiots.

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Ocean State Job Lot Response
8y
We thank you for sharing your experience. We would love to connect and understand more so we have the ability to address cons as well as understand your advise to us. please call 401-295-7927 and ask for the Director of Store Operations.
1.0
Nov 29, 2017
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

My hourly co-workers were awesome. Great team spirit. Always busy - never a dull moment. Schedule was Monday - Friday 7am - 3pm. There is room for advancement if retail is for you. Good perks outside of work for employee's.

Cons

Pay is minimum wage but that's retail for you. Having to run the front end due to scheduling errors and call outs. (this happens multiple times weekly and for full shifts) That leads to not being able to perform job functions and in turn to failed audits. They (3rd one in 5.5 years) did not know how to make a schedule and dodged all customer service issues. ( for instance, hiding behind row's, peaking around the corner and watching and waiting as the dispute erupts; and waiting until the irate customer leaves and then to surface from hiding out) Failure to back up the front end on multiple issues like this and so I would step in to assist my staff. Sadly, employee relations does not relate. I had brought up several issues and emailed employee relations, and nary a soul did anything to assist me. (and I thought they were there to help - promises, promises) (My advice .........Get a union in here and maybe better management might be hired and the pay will be much better) My work was sabotaged routinely and I was bullied regularly for the last 10 months I was there. Not a pleasant work environment to be involved in. It's as though that when new management comes into play, if they don't like you, they will make your life heck until you quit or they fire you. Be prepared......

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Ocean State Job Lot Response
8y
Thank you for the detailed note. Thank you also for a location so we can address your concerns. We wish you the best of luck..
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Glassdoor has 962 Ocean State Job Lot reviews submitted anonymously by Ocean State Job Lot employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if Ocean State Job Lot is right for you.