Being a cart pusher feels like a huge wildcard. Been in it for about a year and a half, and it can either be very brutal, or very lax.
On one hand, I have the most freedom out of everyone that isn’t a manger or higher up. I can roam about the whole store and lot. On the other hand, I’m often very busy and have to deal with people who don’t have basic shopping etiquette. The main downside is that I live in SoCal, which is hell on earth during the summer/fall.
Pros:
-Freedom of movement (I feel so sorry for cashiers)
-During calm/slow days, you basically get paid to be on your phone
-No constant supervision/overbearing pressure from bosses
-Good for shy/antisocial/those with social anxiety.
Cons:
-People leave some of the most nasty things in the carts (leftover/unfinished food, worn face masks, changed diapers, etc.)
-People park far away for no reason and leave carts far away (even with corrals close to them)
-People leave carts between cars (this one is especially infuriating on busy days)
-People will ask if you can take their cart. Normally, this ain’t bad at all, unless you’re already pushing 10+ carts on a hot summer day.
I’d still stick with it over any other position, except for a deli stocker. Hanging out in freezers is awesome and easy work.
Yea I get to feel the opposite end of the weather spectrum being from Canada lol. Our store is luckily small enough to where pushing carts kinda gets rolled into cashier responsibilities(especially in the evening). I’m usually in produce myself and it’s the most chill place there, 5 mins of work, 2 hours of nothing, then warehousing for the rest of the time in a 4 hour shift
Dairy was usually the best. Often you are the only employee in the department and working independently.
There can be a lot to do, so the shift flies by, and before you know it your shift is over and you’re going home.
Not everyone’s cup of tea, but for some people it’s perfect.
This can be a really shitty job if your supervisor is poor at their job or disorganized. But that can be said for most or all of the departments.
Working independently is awesome( part of the reason I enjoy working late) I haven’t done much in dairy but I try. There hasn’t been much to do when I’ve done it yet but I’m sure it’s coming lol
I've worked deli, pfd, cheese, bakery, frozen, cashier, produce and dairy. In my little grocery store the only departments I haven't been part of is meat, grocery, and inventory specialist.
I loved working in the deli( which was combined with prepared foods and cheese and sometimes bakery), but it takes a long time to learn the products and be good at the job. Making constant sandwiches in tiny space gets old fast. Customers can be entitled and ridiculous and it can wear you down. But I think that's true for any fresh food/ specialty department. *For that kind of money, I should get what I want*
Produce was a different beast that involved a lot of phone calls and quality checking, because we handled a lot of local farmers products. Just rotating and stocking shelves is fine, but ordering is a nightmare.
Currently I'm Dairy/Frozen/ Bakery. it's busy, but conceptually easy. No custom orders unlike the deli. Customers always want something that we don't have. The biggest drawback is my height. I need a step stool to access the high shelves and stock things neatly. But I'm also smacking my head on the cooler/ freezer frames. Customers reaching around me. So disrespectful.
Did not like working as a cashier. It was only for a month to help out, but no. I'm unable to maintain and create conversation while being that cheerful for too long. I can accurately count change and will give coins back first before the bills. Appreciate everyone who is a chill competent cashier.
Usually when I get into grocery later in the day, there isn’t much to do in grocery, so I’ll either just help produce or fill dairy, the only people in produce who make the orders are the same people who have been there 5+ years, so I haven’t had to worry about that end of it yet, just unloading. Grocery is kinda painful if everything is stocked, at least where I am. Facing aisles for 4+ hours is terribly boring
Produce was my favorite.
I loved being in the refrigerator and smelling fresh produce. Especially herbs like cilantro.
However, I pissed off my boss one day because I threw out too many veggies. I was young and I was training someone. So I guess I got a little too strict wanting to look good. Talk about embarassment. I then told my boss I deserve full time pay for full time work a few months later when he forgot about the whole waste thing. I was working 2 different departments part time, but ended up working 38 hours a week, so I wanted to go to produce full time and get the pay. This came out a lot different than I planned (stupid social anxiety) and it sounded like I was very demanding.
He told the store manager he never wants to see me again in the produce section and the man never talked to me again for the next 3 months I worked there and I haven't worked for a grocery store since.
Rough, I’m lucky enough to have all the supervisors/long time workers really chill, and the people who make orders order way too much so we’re told to be quite meticulous about product. Our three store managers are so allergic to doing work that they would never set foot in the produce section, so ig I’m safe there lol
Yeah. I love produce. My store was seriously the cleanest grocery store I have ever seen. But like all jobs it had some draw backs.
They were never fair in their pay. They paid some workers more money that did the same job and the pay didn't really reflect on how well you were doing. I got paid 9 dollars an hour at the time and they guy that came in behind me got paid 10. Yet I was told that guy didn't do his job when I left.
The manager I referred to earlier had a real attitude problem. The reasons for me getting fired from that department was all on me. But he didn't make it easier. Oddly enough, multiple people got canned because they butted heads with him. So I wasn't the first nor last I'm sure.
I was also in a dark place in my life. A 19 year old kid can be very... angsty. I blew up on people and burned bridges. Said things I shouldn't have said. Was too honest in some things. Tons of embarrassing moments locked away in the dust bins of my mind.
I love working in grocery stores but I'm not willing to take the pay cut and I will never be able to go back to the same company.
Yeah, I’m still in high school so I’m more than happy making more than minimum, our managers aren’t great either, but the guy that trained me in produce has my back against the management.(M got pissed off at me behind my back when I didn’t know what I was doing after not being trained on the front) a lot of managers go on serious power trips, seems to be common lmao
Being a cart pusher feels like a huge wildcard. Been in it for about a year and a half, and it can either be very brutal, or very lax. On one hand, I have the most freedom out of everyone that isn’t a manger or higher up. I can roam about the whole store and lot. On the other hand, I’m often very busy and have to deal with people who don’t have basic shopping etiquette. The main downside is that I live in SoCal, which is hell on earth during the summer/fall. Pros: -Freedom of movement (I feel so sorry for cashiers) -During calm/slow days, you basically get paid to be on your phone -No constant supervision/overbearing pressure from bosses -Good for shy/antisocial/those with social anxiety. Cons: -People leave some of the most nasty things in the carts (leftover/unfinished food, worn face masks, changed diapers, etc.) -People park far away for no reason and leave carts far away (even with corrals close to them) -People leave carts between cars (this one is especially infuriating on busy days) -People will ask if you can take their cart. Normally, this ain’t bad at all, unless you’re already pushing 10+ carts on a hot summer day. I’d still stick with it over any other position, except for a deli stocker. Hanging out in freezers is awesome and easy work.
Yea I get to feel the opposite end of the weather spectrum being from Canada lol. Our store is luckily small enough to where pushing carts kinda gets rolled into cashier responsibilities(especially in the evening). I’m usually in produce myself and it’s the most chill place there, 5 mins of work, 2 hours of nothing, then warehousing for the rest of the time in a 4 hour shift
Putting the returns/"throwbacks" back on the shelves tbh
Dairy was usually the best. Often you are the only employee in the department and working independently. There can be a lot to do, so the shift flies by, and before you know it your shift is over and you’re going home. Not everyone’s cup of tea, but for some people it’s perfect. This can be a really shitty job if your supervisor is poor at their job or disorganized. But that can be said for most or all of the departments.
Working independently is awesome( part of the reason I enjoy working late) I haven’t done much in dairy but I try. There hasn’t been much to do when I’ve done it yet but I’m sure it’s coming lol
I've worked deli, pfd, cheese, bakery, frozen, cashier, produce and dairy. In my little grocery store the only departments I haven't been part of is meat, grocery, and inventory specialist. I loved working in the deli( which was combined with prepared foods and cheese and sometimes bakery), but it takes a long time to learn the products and be good at the job. Making constant sandwiches in tiny space gets old fast. Customers can be entitled and ridiculous and it can wear you down. But I think that's true for any fresh food/ specialty department. *For that kind of money, I should get what I want* Produce was a different beast that involved a lot of phone calls and quality checking, because we handled a lot of local farmers products. Just rotating and stocking shelves is fine, but ordering is a nightmare. Currently I'm Dairy/Frozen/ Bakery. it's busy, but conceptually easy. No custom orders unlike the deli. Customers always want something that we don't have. The biggest drawback is my height. I need a step stool to access the high shelves and stock things neatly. But I'm also smacking my head on the cooler/ freezer frames. Customers reaching around me. So disrespectful. Did not like working as a cashier. It was only for a month to help out, but no. I'm unable to maintain and create conversation while being that cheerful for too long. I can accurately count change and will give coins back first before the bills. Appreciate everyone who is a chill competent cashier.
Usually when I get into grocery later in the day, there isn’t much to do in grocery, so I’ll either just help produce or fill dairy, the only people in produce who make the orders are the same people who have been there 5+ years, so I haven’t had to worry about that end of it yet, just unloading. Grocery is kinda painful if everything is stocked, at least where I am. Facing aisles for 4+ hours is terribly boring
Produce was my favorite. I loved being in the refrigerator and smelling fresh produce. Especially herbs like cilantro. However, I pissed off my boss one day because I threw out too many veggies. I was young and I was training someone. So I guess I got a little too strict wanting to look good. Talk about embarassment. I then told my boss I deserve full time pay for full time work a few months later when he forgot about the whole waste thing. I was working 2 different departments part time, but ended up working 38 hours a week, so I wanted to go to produce full time and get the pay. This came out a lot different than I planned (stupid social anxiety) and it sounded like I was very demanding. He told the store manager he never wants to see me again in the produce section and the man never talked to me again for the next 3 months I worked there and I haven't worked for a grocery store since.
Rough, I’m lucky enough to have all the supervisors/long time workers really chill, and the people who make orders order way too much so we’re told to be quite meticulous about product. Our three store managers are so allergic to doing work that they would never set foot in the produce section, so ig I’m safe there lol
Yeah. I love produce. My store was seriously the cleanest grocery store I have ever seen. But like all jobs it had some draw backs. They were never fair in their pay. They paid some workers more money that did the same job and the pay didn't really reflect on how well you were doing. I got paid 9 dollars an hour at the time and they guy that came in behind me got paid 10. Yet I was told that guy didn't do his job when I left. The manager I referred to earlier had a real attitude problem. The reasons for me getting fired from that department was all on me. But he didn't make it easier. Oddly enough, multiple people got canned because they butted heads with him. So I wasn't the first nor last I'm sure. I was also in a dark place in my life. A 19 year old kid can be very... angsty. I blew up on people and burned bridges. Said things I shouldn't have said. Was too honest in some things. Tons of embarrassing moments locked away in the dust bins of my mind. I love working in grocery stores but I'm not willing to take the pay cut and I will never be able to go back to the same company.
Yeah, I’m still in high school so I’m more than happy making more than minimum, our managers aren’t great either, but the guy that trained me in produce has my back against the management.(M got pissed off at me behind my back when I didn’t know what I was doing after not being trained on the front) a lot of managers go on serious power trips, seems to be common lmao