sales representative

route sales representative

loader/unloader

management trainee

service manager

Cintas

A typical day working for Cintas will start between 5:30am and 7:00am. You'll have two check ins with your service manager each week plus a weekly development/staff meeting. You're expected to be at your first customer by 8:30 each day. You'll have a list of customers to see each day and, provided you don't finish *too* early, you're in charge of your own hours, really. You can work between 35 and 55 hours per week depending on what route you have. Though, Cintas doesn't consider you 'at work' until you log into your first customer. If your first customer is 2 hours away and you leave at 6:00am, you don't actually 'start' working until you arrive at the customer's location.

The good:
- There's a lot of autonomy. You aren't in the office all day.
- There's a possibility of good money depending on where your route is/how much volume it does.
- Qualifying employees received a one-time cash bonus after Trump's tax cut.

The bad:
- You're encouraged to look for sales opportunities and grow your route sales volume. However, once or twice per year, Cintas likes to cut up big routes and make new, smaller routes. You might spend 18 months growing your route (which means growing your paycheck) only to go through a route split and lose 40% of your revenue.

- The pay structure is kind of convoluted and changes regularly. When I started, we received a bonus for our First Aid, Safety, and Training sales as well as residual percentages for our AED service agreements and Eyewash sales. My second year, they took away our training, AED, and eyewash bonuses; about $250/month. Third year, they gave AED and eyewash back but half of what we were getting paid originally.

- Your pay raises are base pay raises. Your commission percentages don't change. You start out making $311/week in base pay. If you max out your performance raise, you get 6%. Your base pay goes up to $329.66/week, an $18.66/week raise. $970/year.

- The KPIs for First Aid, Safety, and Training are based on a Baseline Value (BLV). The BLVs are reconfigured every new fiscal year. They take how much you sold last year and add a percentage for this year.
For example: Last year you sold $100,000 in first aid items. They would take your $100,000 and add (hypothetically) 8%. (I say hypothetically because it's always based on nothing. They pick a number out of the air. It'll always be greater than 6% though because Cintas insists on >10% year over year growth. So, this year, your first aid BLV will be $108,000. However, to achieve your KPI, you have to do 105% of your BLV. This year's BLV will be $113,400. Last year you were selling $8,333.33/mo. This year, they expect you to sell $9,450/mo. That's an extra $1116.67 every month you have to find.

- Your pay raises are tied to Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). There are 7 KPIs. You have to get 15 per quarter to get a 1% raise (called "achiever's club") and 60 per year to get a 2% raise (called "winner's circle"). Cintas sizes each KPI so that only 40% of their 1200 SSRs achieve each KPI. Only 20-30% achieve Achiever's Club/Winner's Circle. There are SSRs who get 6% raises year over year, but they're rare.

- SSR turnover is sky high. Cintas doesn't care. Every SSR who leaves is given an exit interview but I've never seen anything come from corporate that didn't directly benefit corporate.

- You have a lot of paid time off and vacation given to you. However, it is difficult to use. If you want to take 3 days off, you're expected to work 2-3 days ahead of schedule before you leave because no one will be covering your route while you're gone. You have to take 5 or more days of vacation before they'll even consider having someone cover your route. Even then, there's a good chance that you'll leave 2 days ahead of schedule and come back 1 day behind schedule because your route only got covered for two days while you were gone.

- The training pay is trash. If you don't get a route quickly, your pay will suck. However, if you rush your training and jump right out onto a route, you'll feel inundated and discouraged on route.

- My location was chronically short staffed. We'd occasionally be 'fully staffed' only to have another rash of SSRs leave, leaving the location to jump through hoops to cover several routes at the same time.

- Your service manager will, very likely, be running another SSR's route. Often. With turnover what it is, plus vacations; Service Managers are often the only people available to cover routes.

- Promotion: Cintas likes to promote from within. However, they do this by making you, essentially, do the job you want to be promoted to do *plus* your job for as long as possible. If you're an SSR and you want to be a service manager, you'll have to go through a development plan. That plan will have you doing all of the Service Manager's scrub work on top of doing all of your regular SSR work. If you want to transfer into a different department, you have to network extensively into that department so they know who you are. When jobs are posted internally, 99% of the time it's for a person who is already identified for that job.

- Your experience or education doesn't matter at Cintas. The most important thing to Cintas is that you bleed Cintas blue and don't make waves. "Being negative" = anything that isn't inline with Cintas orthodoxy.

- Having said all of this, it isn't a bad job. However, it's a 2-3 year job and not a career. Take advantage of the good aspects and either promote/transfer/get out.

I discovered I was the 5th rep in my territory in as many years. I'm finding that most reps typically last 1 year. The first 3-4 months are training. Then you have a few months to become successful or you are put on a performance improvement plan. The territories, and reps that are successful are generally in busier territories with new restaurants constantly opening, and also constantly fed hot leads. Sometimes just a matter of luck! These reps can do well if you're fortunate to land in one of these busy territories. They are few and far between. I worked long hours, and I made tons of phone calls during phone block begging people to meet with me in order to meet the required "16 New" appointments per week, make 50 cold calls/week, fill out report after report, and come up short on sales numbers. I have been in sales for 12 years. 1 with Cintas, and this is the first time I have never made the required number. It's also the hardest I've ever worked for such low pay. I was told I'd make 75k first year, and over 100 second year. I think only a handful of the several hundred reps make that much.None that I met. Those are the busier territories i'm referring to. The sales numbers are highly un-realistic for most territories which is why turnover is so high. These arent bad sales people! It's the system at Cintas! It's very old school sales. It's what I imagined a used car salesman to be like. I'd say they are pretty similar. I'd say this is a decent place if you're right out of school, or a 1st time sales person trying to get the required sales experience needed to move on to a better company but this isn't the place you stay longer than 1 year. The co-workers are really nice people, but they feel extraordinary amount of pressure. Most are extremely unhealthy, and destined for heart attacks due to the extreme amount of stress placed upon them. I see many of them eat poorly, miss exercise in favor of 60 hour plus work weeks, and drink heavily. Mostly due to stress of the job. many 40 yr old with heart problems! No lie!  I wish I could help them! I've also seen many un-ethical sales being done on their part and managements part in order to meet sales numbers. They will do whatever it takes to meet their number to keep their jobs. I've seen many hard working business people and restaurant owners being taken advantage of by Cintas sales reps.  I don't think Cintas sales reps are bad people for it. I believe the system at Cintas puts that pressure on them to do whatever it takes. Kill or be killed without any regard for what you're doing to business owners. Management is extremely micro-managing. Report after Report after Report. You get the idea. It's suffocating to say the least. I get text messages on weekends, late at nights after 9pm asking about sales numbers, where I was, who I was with. It's overwhelming, and again probably due to the pressure placed on that manager. They are probably not bad people but keeping your job here is a job in itself. It's a torturous cycle that will result in many health problems for good people. There is also some kind of brainwashing going on here. People call it drinking the "kool-aid." You are told from day 1 that there is only one way that works. Only one way to success, and its the Cintas way, and you are to follow the Cintas Bible. There is no free thinking permitted here. If you are a free thinker with a strong mind, steer clear of this place. They love getting young people out of college so that they only think the 'Cintas way." It's bizarre! I am in no way bitter or upset. Just trying to give the most accurate analysis I can to sway people into another company if the option presents itself. If you have no other choice at the time, take the position and immediately start looking for something else in Medical Sales or Pharmaceutical Sales if you want to be in sales.

A typical day at work began at 5:30am until 2pm Monday through Friday. I worked there for almost two full years and there was really nothing good about the job in all honesty, besides the work schedule and weekly pay. There are a total of three shifts. I worked first shift, hence an early start and end to the day with weekends off. When i was first employed at Cintas I was a bulk folder. For eight hours each day, i folded bundles of towels. Not exciting or enjoyable whatsoever. Big carts of towels would be dumped in front of you on a table and you folded bundles of towels as fast as you could to reach your numbers because you were on incentive. All Cintas cares about is numbers. Most of the time the towels that needed to be folded weren't even clean, soaking wet, or torn to bits. Extremely unsanitary because these towels were coming from hospitals with god knows what type of germs on them. Cintas also offers room for "career advancement." Basically, if there is a job opening you would apply or tell your supervisor for consideration. If you got the new job it was considered a "promotion." Most of the time management would make you feel like you were getting the new job/"promotion" only to announce it to someone else making you feel confused and let down. My second job at Cintas after a "promotion" was quality assurance. I enjoyed it a little more than folding but it was still extremely hard labor for low pay. Initially, i worked with a "partner" (Cinta's version of coworker). After a few months she was "promoted" to a new position. I was left alone to scan and inspect enough garments to fill up three semi-trucks daily, within a scheduled time frame. To my dismay they never hired a second person to replace my partner. I was left alone for a year doing a two man job without any consideration or offer of a pay raise, which was extremely unfair because every shift that worked in quality assurance had two people working together. Management walks around dictating everything and clueless if anything in the plant stops working or goes wrong. Management does massive layoffs right before the holidays because they "do not like someone." Partners as well as management were extremely nosey about other people's personal lives, creating inaccurate gossip and rumors until eventually random partners from other shifts, as well as management, would come up and ask to confirm if what they heard was valid. Corporate would visit the plant occasionally to see how the plant was doing in their numbers or to fire someone, and it was the only time management ever wanted to work or deep clean the plant. The plant was filthy, bathrooms were always disgusting. Overall, Cintas is a horrible place to work. Hard labor, extremely low pay, bad work environment/culture, high turn-over rates, gossip/rumors about EVERYONE. Little to no room for advancement or pay raise. Cintas claims they have family values which is entirely false. All Cintas cares about is making their numbers. You are just a number working there and you can easily be replaced by a foreigner who barely speaks English.

Horrible Management, only favored certain managers that had been there for years and had worked their way up through the company. Don't come in as an external unless I referred you, and knew you'd be the biggest blessing to the company. I'm usually right when it comes to talent.
A typical day at work consisted of EMAILS. That's about it. Unnecessary emails. No collaboration between managers that all manage the same team and when there was, don't be surprised to be the odd ball out if upper management is trying to get you to quit. It's pretty obvious they tell said managers to leave the odd-ball out. I could be wrong, don't get me wrong but the whispers when you walk by and the closed door conversations pretty much gave it away. 
Some managers were kind no matter what, which  was appreciated. After all, "One team, one goal" right?! 
Just simply being kind from one human being to another should be ingrained in everyone and I'm pretty sure it was until everyone was in fear of losing their job if they spoke to "said person". Thus creating the crappiest culture for multiple people in the building. 
The hardest part of the job is asking for help without being made to feel like an idiot. Management says come to me if you have a question, but then when you ask them a question they repeat it back to you multiple times with disbelief in their expression like how do you not know this?! Well maybe because I never was trained on it? That's why I'm asking you now right? 
The most enjoyable part of the job was in the beginning when there was different management, when managers were allowed to speak to each other and actually laugh and smile without fear of "you know who seeing...". When people could be kind in their genuine way without being in fear of being treated the way this person feels lately.
Also, when you actually get to be a part of your team outings with your technicians, so they know it's not all about work. We care about them as people too and we truly thank them for their hard work they do each and every day to take care of our customers! which is the most important thing at Cintas. Our Customers!!! Oh wait, but then they stop inviting you to those too. So your own technicians don't even think you care about them or want to spend time with them...not in a work setting.
If someone recruits you to be a part of this company, I'd highly recommend turning and running in the opposite direction. Oh and forget being a single parent and doing this job. They couldn't care less. 
I hope this truly helps you make the best decision of your life by staying Far Far Away.
One last thing, really bad that the HR had to be puppet for those horrible people because she was so scared to be honest with her boss about how the GM and her Sidekick acted in fear of losing her job. I saw she had a good heart.


I worked a very large rural territory as a Service Sales Rep for the First Aid division.

I absolutely loved my customers and the job - it was a source of pride knowing I was helping keep people safe - perhaps even saving their life. Selling was easy since I was able to build trust and listen to my customers' needs. I didn't mind working 75-80 hours a week because I felt like I was investing in future growth.

However, working for Cintas was awful. Management at my office was incompetent, unethical at times, and rigidly stuck to Cintas' corporate policies that simply did not work in rural areas. 

Cintas does everything it can to A: force SSR's to visit accounts every 4 weeks. Period. Whether they needed it or not. B: Never write a zero invoice. Ever. C: Cintas punished locations for losing too many customers. These three contradictory policies results in a lot of pressure to visit customer more often than they needed, sell them things they didn't want, and not get rid of customers who didn't fit the mold. It was a vicious circle.

What they did need was safety gear. But the warehouse manager would flat out refuse to order products for me, trying to argue I wasn't going to sell them - even when I had a request for them.

My territory was composed of small farms, machine shops, car repair shops, etc. I'd drive by 500 person manufacturing plants on my way to these places - but sales reps never came to my territory to prospect these large companies.

I was also required to attend a weekly meeting an hour from my house and up to 3 hours away from parts of my territory. Because of the number of customers and their geographical spread, I very carefully planned out every day of my week - then management would change the meeting the day before, and would reprimand me for missing it.

Management would nevertheless tolerate rank insubordination, inappropriate sexist jokes and comments, and (sometimes dangerous) pranks. Complaints to HR went ignored.

Although Cintas provides 2 weeks of vacation, I never took it because there was no one to fill in while I was gone - and getting even a day behind would've derailed my whole schedule. They did not cash out my vacation when I left, basically stealing 2 weeks of my salary.

One of the worst things they'd do to cover systemic sales problems was they'd pressure me to poach business from the uniform division - even though they earned the business and it would've only amounted to a shell game. I was made to feel like I wasn't being a "team player" because I wouldn't steal business from them.

In the end my supervisor questioned my work ethic during an 80 week, so I decided I no longer wanted to work my butt off just to fight management and found a better paying, lower hours job somewhere else.

Lengthy interview process followed by a very limited relocation package.
The role requires extensive travel, leaving you home only a few days each month.

This was the most controlling and micromanaged work environment I have experienced. Management exercised extreme oversight of daily work, including constant monitoring, mandatory attendance in your meetings for “visibility,” heavy interrogations about what you said during your mandatory and supposedly private feedback sessions with HR or directors, and frequent one-on-one sessions focused primarily on criticism rather than development. Boundaries between personal time and work time were not respected, and public humiliation was used as a management tactic.

Interaction with peers was actively discouraged. Autonomy was effectively nonexistent, and the role functioned more as an extension of management rather than an independent professional position.

Advancement or trust appeared contingent on total personal alignment with leadership rather than performance or expertise.
The culture strongly expects the job to become your entire life. Any indication that family or personal commitments take priority places you outside the inner circle. The position appears structured to absorb blame and shield leadership when projects or initiatives fail, rather than to empower success.

There were repeated instances of intrusive behavior, including pressure to disclose private personal information and excessive monitoring outside of normal working hours. Travel policies were restrictive and enforced in ways that limited independence and created unnecessary stress. Schedules were subject to frequent last-minute changes, making basic personal logistics difficult to manage.

The vehicle program was presented as a benefit but operated more as a mechanism for control. Personal use, routine expenses, and travel behavior were closely scrutinized despite the vehicle being partially employee-funded.

Last-minute travel demands were common, often requiring long drives on short notice. Expressing hesitation or concern was not well received.

Overall, the environment was characterized by constant criticism, accusations, and a complete lack of trust. Although described as a hybrid role, flexibility for WFH was not supported.

Finally, this is not a true reliability role. Much of the work does not involve reliability engineering, data analysis, RCM, or coaching maintenance teams. Instead, responsibilities focus on surface-level inspections and non-technical tasks, with limited opportunity to practice or develop core reliability competencies.

This is from the perspective of a production supervisor:

First, there is nothing production about this job. They don't manufacture anything, I had to babysit the temps they would hire, had no say in any impacting decisions and ultimately just plugged holes for the workers that couldn't show up for work. Oh, and I had to be a security guard, emergency response team and maintenance worker just to keep the place running.

I gave this company two whole years of 110% solid effort which nearly always meant at least 70 hour work weeks (not including the inevitable saturday) performing grueling work. Always understaffed, every day was a nightmare logistically, and the work in the plant is tedious, monotonous labor for pennies. If you are looking at an hourly position, expect to make minimum wage and receive an annual pay increase of around $.20-.30. That's right, 30 cents an HOUR. After a YEAR.

The working conditions are brutal, at 25 years old I had to get prescription inserts for my shoes because my arches dropped from having to load or unload trucks for months (a job that I had no choice to perform because we seemed to never have enough staff for the job). If I didn't help while my workers were there, well then I had to finish it after they left. They don't pay overtime, but if you're salary...well you're in for it.

People die in this job, yet we are expected every day to "get the job done" and that usually means by putting our health in jeopardy. I was continually expected to stay after hours, alone, and run a wash floor. Protocol requires at least one other management type to be there. If they caught me running it alone, I'd be fired. If I didn't get things washed for the next day, I'd be written up and eventually fired. (which turns out to be how they push you out if they don't like you)

Management (Plant Manager, Manager Trainers, District GMs and others) treated me like I wasn't important to the company. I really wish I would have documented some of the things they said to my face when I asked for their help. No support. Zero chance for advancement as they groom only certain people for the important roles which they treat as stepping stones for future positions.

I think I was one of the few in management that anyone enjoyed working with simply because I didn't lie to my workers. Ultimately, upper management didn't like this and found a way to string a bunch of mundane, unimportant things to write me up for so they could document how poor of an employee I was before asking me to leave. They've done this to 4 others in my position since I finally had the sense to the get out of there.

Good luck and Godspeed. You're going to need it.

Decent company depending on the division you're in.  Some branches are more stable than others. 
First Aid and Safety is a division that on the surface, preaches about customer service/ loyalty, relationship building, etc but in reality, its all about sales...by hook or by crook.  They would much rather you tick off YOUR customer by stuffing their first aid cabinets with unnecessary overpriced items.  And if the customer complains about the prices, or items they didn't want/need, Cintas FAS will in most cases proceed to refund that customer and dock your commissions. (Pay is base + commission for items "sold")  And then there are these "contest".  These contest basically turn into a screw fest for unsuspecting customers where some SSR's basically stuff cabinets with a spotlight product. The product is usually something that the SSR should have introduced to the customer already but now they are given an incentive to put as many (insert product here) in a cabinet as possible.  The only time this is frowned upon is when the customer notices and complain, but there is no real accountability. "Oh look! Our cough drop sales rose 6000% during a random week in July! Gee golly!" Its a complete joke but hey, if you get lucky enough to inherit a territory with large offices with big budgets or large industrial businesses with high employee counts, you can be very successful.  If not, management looks at you as if you're not trying hard enough (Even though in reality you may be preserving a strained relationship with a customer;  all of whom are on month to month agreements).  Don't get me wrong, the job isn't a bad job but 97% of your experience will solely depend on what territory you are assigned and what the SSR before you did with/to those customers. 9 out of 10 times, you will be taking on a trash territory because most of the desirable territory will be run by people who've been with the company a while.  I could go on and on about the way business is done with FAS but overall, you have to be willing to deal outside of what I would consider proper business morals to be successful here.  You can't be overly focused on the actual service aspect or the art of maintaining relationships because that doesn't produce the instant monetary gratification that Cintas FAS needs.  
On a positive note; you get to take your vehicle home, you're off Christmas, New Years Day, Thanksgiving, and Black Friday for your birthday...but only if you're 3 days ahead of the schedule you're supposedly in control of.

Once you have been trained on all 5 stations by the above described personnel, you are left to fend for yourself, unless you become one of them, but still must watch your back.
This is serious work that has regulations that MUST be followed mandated by a number of state and local authorities.
You may be called upon to; sort cages of cylinders into two classes, help load or unload shipments, fill and service various types of chemical cylinders, being exposed to breathing in and physical contact to said chemicals (because safety protocols are half-assed, spoken of constantly, yet approached on a 5th grade level), be responsible for the inventory of parts, chemicals, tools, and documentation.
All the while the purchasing agent, friend of the plant manager holds off on the orders till he gets a shipping bulk discount, plus any number of shipping delays promote a lack of parts and chemicals, which management tries to blame production for work delays, prompting the reuse of parts and chemical, a big violation of regulations.
You will be held accountable for accuracy, and condition of the cylinder's cleanliness, and structural integrity, by which each "partner" is to be watchful for defects to the cylinder wall. Yet most "partners" are only concerned about quantity not quality, also backed by management.
A defective fire extinguisher can kill you, and those it is there to protect!
Management is the most worthless personnel at the facility, you'd expect them to care about refining the machinery, the process, and ensuring the quality of the product, yet they can't even agree on what is a condemned unit. They will override your certified decision to condemn for profit, and terrorize you that if it fails the authorities will fine and imprison you, not them.
If you have been certified and continue to research in the field, they try to undermine your confidence, I guess they feel threatened by intelligence, or are afraid you will uncover the rest of their dirty secrets. 
All in all I had mainly wished they had adhered to the corporate culture that they banter around with like a cat with a toy. there is nepotism, and favoritism, throughout the facility, every question you have the tell you to go online to an HR site, or to call HR which is another dead end, HR personnel are as useless, and backstabbing as the rest there is no confidentiality for your concerns.

What is the best part of working at the company?
The best part of working at Cintas is the culture of support and development. The company truly invests in its partners, offering strong training programs, clear expectations, and opportunities to grow your career if you’re motivated. The teamwork is consistent across the organization—people genuinely want to help each other succeed. There’s also a strong sense of stability and pride in working for a well‑respected industry leader, which makes coming to work feel purposeful and rewarding.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The most stressful part of working at Cintas is the fast‑paced, high‑expectation environment. The company moves quickly, and priorities can shift based on business needs, which sometimes makes the workload feel intense. But that same pace is also what keeps the work exciting—there’s always something new to tackle, and you’re constantly growing your skills. The environment pushes you to stay organized, think ahead, and operate with a strong sense of ownership. If you enjoy being challenged and thrive in a performance‑driven culture, the pressure becomes a motivator rather than a drawback.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Cintas has a professional, team‑oriented work environment where people genuinely support one another. The culture is built around respect, accountability, and a strong sense of pride in the work being done. Leadership promotes a “partners first” mindset, and it shows in the way teams collaborate and communicate. There’s a clear focus on development—whether through structured training, mentorship, or hands‑on learning—which makes it easy to grow both personally and professionally. Even on busy days, the atmosphere stays positive because everyone is working toward the same goals. It’s a company where hard work is recognized, and you truly feel part of something bigger.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
A typical Monday–Friday at Cintas is structured and steady, with clear expectations and a consistent routine. The workday moves quickly, but the set schedule makes it easier to maintain work–life balance. Most days involve focused work, collaboration with your team, and staying on top of priorities without the unpredictability of weekend or late-night demands. The fast pace keeps you engaged while still allowing you to disconnect at the end of the day.

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