Pros
-great, positive, and welcoming environment; all associates, coordinators, and managers are nice and friendly, and most customers are nice or at least easy to deal with -contrary to most retailers (particularly in malls), TJ Maxx and HomeGoods stores are consistently busy, even during these dire economic times -fast-paced and never boring; there's always something to do -very accommodating about requesting time off -not much hassle in switching shifts or getting shifts covered -get paid EVERY Friday! -great for first-timers (whether in retail or in the workforce), students, part-timers, or those needing a second job -part-time is up to 29 hours/week -more hours given to those with more availabilities -can start as early as 7:30 AM (10 AM on Sundays) and finish as late as 10 PM (8:30 PM on Sundays) -management is very personable and professional -willing to cross-train those who want to expand their skills -good about rewarding and giving positive feedback to associates -opportunities to advance for those willing to go the extra mile -employee discount (10%) and employee appreciation -nice merchandise to look at/which you would actually buy!
Cons
-pay isn't competitive, at least for associates (i.e. minimum wage to start) -no health benefits, at least for associates -employee discount is only 10% (especially given the two aforementioned items, I feel that this should be a larger percentage, like at least 20%) -get that week's schedule only three days before it starts (the Thursday before the start of the new week on Sunday), so have to plan things either far-enough in advance to get the time requested off 2-2.5 weeks before or plan the week that Thursday right before. However, after working for a month or so, your schedule becomes fairly consistent and predictable, for the most part. -can get hectic during peak times and become challenging to give every aspect of the position 100% -customers tend to be messy and careless in how they treat the merchandise, but this is expected in any retail job -occasional rude customer, but this is expected in any retail job -store is in San Jose, which has banned giving out plastic bags since 01/01/12, but many customers still don't realize it and expect to be given a free bag to carry their purchases