this post was submitted on 21 Sep 2023
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Work Reform
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A place to discuss positive changes that can make work more equitable, and to vent about current practices. We are NOT against work; we just want the fruits of our labor to be recognized better.
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- All workers must be paid a living wage for their labor.
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- Higher wages for underpaid workers.
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I've asked local Costco workers what it's like working for Costco. They say the company treats them very well.
I work in a Costco. They treat me very well. Far better than the Walmart I worked at prior. Pay is far better too. As an example, I helped run the night shift as an Overnight Support Manager at Walmart. My topped out pay in that role was 50 cents an hour more than my starting pay at Costco. Now, 18 months later, I make more as a frontline grunt at Costco than I did in that management role.
3 years from now, as a frontline grunt, I'll be making more than the Assistant Manager I worked under at Walmart.
I found your comments weird but the Wal-Marts in the US appear to be garbage.
Just read that average ASM makes $40k a year. The Wal-Mart Canada average salary is $60k. All of the ASMs that I kneel about at the store I worked at made over $100k.
The amount of other shit that you have to do and the long hours makes the US ASM position very unappealing.
The Wal-Marts in Canada also do not have a top threshold for wage. You continue you get you little wage increase each year.
Costco Canada does have a wage cap based on role in Canada. It's only 3 dollars above min wage here. But you reach that 3 dollars much faster than you would at Walmart
My ASM showed me his contract. It was for 55k/year. He expected to see a 6k bonus as well. That's it, and yeah, his hours were and are shitty. He works 10-11hrs per day on average, 6 days a week. One stretch he worked 23 days straight.
At Costco Canada, and I'm reading this straight out of the Employee Handbook right now, my wage will top out at $28.45/hr, as a front-line employee. Every 1,040 worked (26 weeks @ 40/hrs per week) I am getting a 1$/hr raise. Those amounts are set and not discretionary. There are 8 steps from starting wage to topped out and I'm at step 3 atm. This means that in roughly 30 months I will be making $28.45/hr.
When I reach 12,000 total hours worked I also start getting a payout of 3k every 6 months. I keep trying to convince my ASM to quit Walmart and sign on with Costco...
Everyone who can should shop there, max markup is 14%, they stand by their products, generous warrantees AND they treat their people very well
Any work reform, pro Union, ethical consumers out there should actively shun Walmart, shove a finger into Amazon's ass, and shop Costco when possible, support an ethical supply chain
I feel this story buries this: Costco above other stores is a step up from most careers
I bought a router from Costco once and a week later they mailed me a check for $20, explaining that they lowered the price on the item after I bought it. Like, who does that? They have an amazing return policy too. Costco is awesome. If you drive a lot, then just the gas savings alone will cover the cost of membership. If you do most of your shopping there then the executive membership rebate at the end of the year will cover the entire cost of membership plus some extra money.
Edit: oh, and they sell hearing aids and hearing aid batteries at cost, which can save people who are hard of hearing thousands of dollars. Literally thousands of dollars on a one time purchase. For example, they have the top of the line Rexton hearing aids for $1499. Those cost $6,500 at any normal audiologist office.
Their membership fee is $60 which I cover in a few cases of beer. I pay what I paid for a case of beer ten years ago at Costco. They don't have everything, but what they do have is often a much, much better value than any other store I've shopped at.
They also only carry good brands, unlike the shit you'll find at Target and Walmart. If Costco carries it, it's almost certainly high quality.
I have a close friend from high school who has worked there for 15 years now, she said she never thought Costco would be more than a summer job between college searching but she's happy there and they treat her well. Nothing wrong with that
Well it's nothing wrong with working at a company who treats their employees well, it's sad that there are so few companies that we can name off the top of our heads like Costco in the US. What's sadder is how poorly the teachers in this country are treated.