crew member

shift leader

restaurant manager

team member

assistant manager

Engelmans Bakery

Every store location is different. I understand that. I helped out at a few during my time working for this company. However, the store I was trained at was successful the crew shift and general managers ensured that. We were a team. A work-family if you would. Our shifts ran very smoothly everyone did their part our drive times were good and our store was immaculate. It was perfect. We worked our butts off I got a couple raises in the time I worked there as did most the people because we did so well. Then unfortunately due to some personal reasons, I had to move and transfer to a new location. It was a not nearly as busy location so I figured it may be easier right? WRONG. It was a literal shock. They didn't follow standards or procedures, the managers were very lazy and mean to a majority of the crew. It was a horrible toxic environment. (I.e they had a messenger account and would demean workers in front of the rest of the crew. Like cats and dogs they would fight it out and it got ugly numerous times)  We went through so many staff during the very brief time I was there because they couldn't handle the bullying and how horrible the shifts were left for us. They SUCKED at cleaning. They NEVER calibrated machines and left the store a DISASTER EVERY SINGLE SHIFT and would proceed to yell at you if you were stuck behind to clean up their mess for the shifts prior including the baker shift!! (Mind you this would take two hours) just to get it to an "acceptable" condition but nowhere close to the store I started out in. That being said I feel as though every company ESPECIALLY one that serves food and beverage should be consistent as far as the delivery of products, taste, and all-around quality and should be very clean but this location was anything but. I brought it up to a few people above management and they dismissed it. I LITERALLY CLEANED BLACK MOLD OUT OF THEIR FROZEN BEVERAGE MACHINE. Not including other sludge that could have been something out of a sy-fy film. I would have to use hot water to clean hardened masses of sugar off the counter that didn't make it into people's cups. They would brew pitchers full of espresso to pour into guests drink to cut corners, THEY NEVER KNEW HOW TO FULL CLEAN THE DONUT RACK AND REFUSE TO. I would literally har to find a sharp blunt-edged object to PRY off the old frosting and glaze not to mention scalding hot water to hopefully loosen the cemented on donut frosting and melted sprinkles. SO many horrible things happened there I.e the assistant manager would be late almost every day and on a few instances over an hour late to open the store, or how they would make you help put away truck even on second shift when they already expect you to have everything done and perfect by yourself. We weren't busy enough to consistently have two people working shifts together at night but let me tell you when we were actually lucky and did, both people spent their shift doing their best to clean and help customers and would just get out on time. But that was if you got a strong person working there. As I said previously we went through so many people and they trainees were sent primarily to the second shift, now add that to the rest of the things they expect you to do. (this place had many others including myself in tears numerous times with how stressed and horrible the store was left for us and how poorly we were all treated.)  When I brought this up to my both of my manager's superior he was upset but all they received was a slap on the wrist. As they did multiple times throughout. This store could probably get away with murder. However, for me, the last straw was when the assistant manager verbally attacked a new girl for not making cold brew her first time alone. He literally said she was RETAR***. And to make this long story short I got very upset and stood up for her told the person above his boss what had happened, and next thing you know the following week I WAS SCHEDULED 5 HOURS AS A FULL-TIME EMPLOYEE out of spite. When I came to check the schedule and saw that on my day off I was beyond mad and hurt. and instead of making a big deal, I then emailed my Regional Supervisor, who was a good friend, saying goodbye and that I appreciated him, turned in my shift leader badge, and stuck a post-it note top my store key that just said goodbye.
                   So all in all it was a great beginning to a terrible end. 
So before you try to work for this company go into your local Dunkin and ask a worker seriously if they like the store they work for before taking the job. Not all stores are like this. Not all managers are like this. And I hope you find a place that treats you well and you can have a work-family as I was so lucky to have before having to transfer. Transferring to that location will always be a regret of mine. Good Luck.

Dunkin Donuts is a company dedicated to customer satisfaction and quality control standards that allows for upward mobility as long as you are willing to work for it. It is an easy job to learn and can be fun and inviting as long as you are able to put forth the effort.
On my typical day I would come into work about five minutes before my shift and immediately stock the ice caddy and then open my drawer at the cash register. Unless it was a morning shift then I would be working at getting coffee, ice coffee teas latte's, baked goods and making sandwiches as well as many other oven made goods. You get used to the proper way to make a cup of coffee and sandwiches as well as the most efficient way to do anything else in the store rather quickly our of necessity. You pretty much deal with every aspect of the business except for actual logistics handled by the manager, especially when you are a closer of the restaurant. After awhile you will start to notice repeat customers that tend to order the same thing and you will learn to prepare their order as soon as you see them in line while making current customers order so that they can have their favorite drink or meal before they even get to the front of the line which was a huge factor in the success of my manager who greatly encouraged this practice and made him a very effective though overworked manager. As the day started to wind down you would create a mental ordered checklist of everything you would have to clean at the end of the day as well as other tasks like checking fridge temps, rotating product according to date as well as weekly and daily cleaning schedules and practices that you logged down into the red book that kept track of all the things that are expected of you. Ovens, hot cocoa machine latte, espresso maker coffee pots donut case etc. etc. all had to be cleaned and you developed a routine over time that allowed you to get everything done while still serving any customer that happened to come into the restaurant. At the end of the day you would count out and then close the draw and deposit the amount into the safe then leave after everything was cleaned and stocked for the morning crew the next day.
What I learned at this job besides the ins and outs of how to run a Dunkin Donuts, aside from a logistical standpoint, was the interdependence within a workplace and how important it is to do your job correctly so that the next shift wouldn't have to pick up your slack. When I first started closing I would get reamed out for forgetting to stock any small thing and one time I forgot to empty out the ice coffee that was remaining, which I got a warning for but what I really learned from was the additional amount of work the following night that took me about 15 to 20 minutes longer to do because the morning shift had to make up for my mistake. I learned to do my job properly and effectively and that even when there was down time and it seems to most people like there really isn't much to do, there is always something you can do to make your life easier, the time go by faster and your superiors and customers happy.
My managers were genuine and nice people who seemed to be a bit over worked and underpaid, but they took it in stride, had a generally positive outlook on life and approached their work with passion. My coworkers were usually all hard working competent and friendly on the whole with the exception of one coworker who was infernally lazy but was later straightened out by the manager and soon picked up the work. It was a happy fun welcoming atmosphere and I was sad I had to go.
The hardest part of the job was the two weeks before inspection.
My favorite part of the job was serving the customers, who occasionally joke and tell stories and talk to me while I worked as it was a small town with some very chummy folks. My favorite was a Vietnam era pilot whose name was "Casper" who used to tell me stories of flying the reconnaissance missions over enemy territory as I cleaned the counters, rotated out old coffee and brewed new coffee and prepared the ice coffee station for cleaning, sometimes I would have to cut him off but the people were the best part of working there and not just the customers.

I was working well over 60-hour weeks while balancing high school, college, and sports. Being a shift leader meant for me to do everything on my own, I basically took the manager's position for a pay of a shift leader. I didn't mind because the paycheck was good, but not nearly enough to how much I should've made. I decided to quit after realizing I was getting severely underpaid. It sucks because I actually loved my job, I wouldn't mind being a manager and getting paid like I should. You do have to be on your feet at all times, fast-paced, quick movements/learner. Do not do this job if you hesitate, can't learn multiple tasks to do within a week (we have new items all the time to be made), can't lift heavy things (we have to restock everything- regular employees too), and if you don't naturally have good customer service (you are around grumpy customers who want coffee...). The dress code is fine, I didn't like wearing the hat because I couldn't see over the end of the cap. I had problems with some of the employees because they were always dragging their feet, had horrible customer service, and were extremely lazy aka SLOW, so I had to take over their job while doing mine- all the time. The only time that I didn't have to do everything alone was when I did morning shifts with several other people including managers which was great. The afternoon shift and night shift sucked because they leave usually 2 people only. You have to be quick as well, there is a drive-through timer and you have to sometimes prep food, check the customer out, make several drinks warm and cold, and grab donuts all at once. For the night shift, you and your closing partner have to clean dishes, mop/sweep the dining area, wipe everything down, switch out the milk, sugar pumps, food prep area, and donut case, empty out 5 huge bags of trash, restock sugar pumps/ cups/ lids/ freezer for the food. You have to clean out the milk, hot chocolate, expresso, and coffee machines. Then at the end of the night, you have to mop everything and make sure it's super clean for the morning shift. There's way more, but you get the point. Closing sometimes takes hours and sometimes I wouldn't get home until 11 pm (we closed at 8 pm). The night shift is by far the worst shift, morning shift is good because you have a team and you leave early (its the easiest, you just simply clean and leave), afternoon shift isn't too bad, you just leave and make sure its clean. I learned a lot of great skills to carry on with me to higher forms of employment now that I am much older and out of high school. I'd recommend it to someone who always strives to better themselves and can take on challenges. Trust me, I've seen so many people- teens and adults- only last at our location maybe 3 days then quit. It's not for everyone, you either like it or don't. I struggled with my mental health throughout me working there, but I look back and say wow I can't believe I did it. I did it my whole senior year of high school and id do it again. Just don't think its an easy job, do not go into it for free food, I honestly thought I was going through a Navy seals army test every day I went there. My ankles would be absolutely swollen and id be drenched in water (from cleaning dishes from the prep station), coffee, sugars, milk, donut powder, and trash when id get home at night. Every time I go into a dunkin I always tip, because really I think it's one of the hardest jobs out there. 

Work-life balance
Work-life balance at Dunkin' Donuts is almost nonexistent. The hours are so inconsistent and trying that you can never make a safe bet on what your day is going to look like. One week, you're working 7 days with about 5 or 6 hours each day, another you're working an 8 hour shift that ends at 10, to wake up at 6 am the following day, except the overnight guy is late so you need to stay some time extra to wait for him and so in reality you only get minus commute and waking up on time about 5 or 6 hours of sleep? Its ridiculous what they expect from you.

Pay & benefits
My pay and benefits at Dunkin' Donuts are bare minimum. It's 50 cents over minimum wage, and not that many places even pay minimum wage anymore. To compare, the average fast food restaurant pay about 10, maybe 9.50. Seriously not worth it, especially with how many people come into Dunkin' a day.

Job security and advancement
In terms of job security at Dunkin' Donuts, I think it's trite to say the least. In the short time I've worked here, I've seen so many people come and go its insane. We're in a constant shuffle of people because absolutely no one wants to work here. People quit for multitude of reasons but here's a few I've personally seen: problems with management, problems with co-workers, better job offering, and even just flat out getting sick of the job entirely. Of these, only one or two left in good terms, because Dunkin' is a bridge when burnt loses you nothing.

Management
In general, managers at Dunkin' Donuts are quite a mix. On the one hand, they geniunely seem to try to solve problems, but on the other hand, they fix all the wrong problems. The biggest problem I've seen personally, is morale. Most of the people hate the job and the people, this could refer to co-workers, customers, etc. Yet instead of solving these problems, by say firing problematic people, promoting mental health, giving breaks, days off, fixing schedules, management seems to just ignore that problem and fire people who disagree with them.

Culture
Collaboration with my colleagues at Dunkin' Donuts is also quite hit or miss. I've met some genuinely great people since I started working here. They've been great at their job and have shown me nothing but support as I try to learn coffee. However, there are also horrible horrible coworkers. Some of whom are so bad, I had to request my schedule be different than theirs. I've never had this kind of problem before in my life, yet management ignores that 60% of this person's coworkers no longer wishes to work with them, ignores that this person in particular has made threats of assault to another coworker (going so far as to show up on the door step, and having to be escorted out by other people in the store).

Overall
My experience working at Dunkin' Donuts has been one I will not soon forget, for all the wrong reasons. I have never been more insulted, sleep deprived, stressed, unhealthy, emotionally exhausted and distraught as I've been since working at Dunkin'. There is no reason to work at a place like this unless you truly need the money immediately, and even then, there are better places that are always hiring. Don't waste your time, strength or mental stability.

First off they didn't have me sign an NDA or turn in 2 forms of id for I-9 purposes and they don't have anyone's Food Handlers licences on file. They wanted me to do their online training but never allotted any time to do so during work hours and so they wanted us to complete training at home on our own time. I was working 10 to 12 hour days, going home eating, watching 1 to 2 hours of training videos then passing out for sleep and it still wasn't fast enough for them. They would have me clock out for meetings and have me drive to white settlement for cake pickups without gas reimbursement. The district manager would always show up at like 8-8:30 even when I'd call him at 4:30 with issues and he'd say he was "on his way" 2 weeks in he's telling me I'm doing awesome that that he wants me to take up the GM position during September, a full 2.5 months before I was originally scheduled to. Yet during my 3rd week the Ops manager and his boss had no issue telling me how horrible I was doing and complaining about things I either had no idea about yet or larger problems I was in the process of working on. They want donut pictures at certain times and I was even told straight up that if I'm with a customer, to tell the customer to hold on, then take my phone out in front of them and take the pictures. In the end I got fired which I'm not even mad about. I feel sorry for the next person who ends up as manager in training. Oh also during your 10 to 12 hour shifts don't expect a break and make sure to check your paychecks because I saw first hand an employee being shorted 23 hours on her paycheck. The base in store employees are amazing and wonderful and work 40+ hour work weeks with no offered benefits, and told they can take breaks but are then continuously chastised about restaurant cleanliness and drive through times and it ends up becoming a sad norm that no one takes breaks for fear of being talked to about issues within the restaurant. All of this is first hand true and as such is not basis for defamation. The following statement is speculation and therefore not based on fact and rather my personal opinion. I personally believed that I was being pushed to take on the mantle of GM before my training was completed because if there was an inspection or franchisee visit the blame could fall on me rather then the, what I feel, is poor management via upper management. Again. There are no facts or proof to this but based off of how I was treated and my experiences while employed here. Now I worked for the Burleson, TX store which is under Anju I believe which runs 8 stores I think. So this is not a reflection of all Dunkin donuts. The experience will differ from person to person, store to store, and even franchisee to franchisee. I don't recommend working for Anju however cannot speak to other locations. Dunkins as a brand doesn't seem horrible and with the proper management I think working at one would be doable and even fun, so don't write off working for ALL dunkins just based off my 1 review

A typical day in this role was unpredictable and often chaotic, not due to the nature of retail, but because of the lack of consistent support from upper management. Frontline staff and store managers were left to operate under unrealistic expectations without the necessary tools, training, or backing to succeed.

What I learned most from this position is how critical ethical leadership is to a healthy workplace. While the corporate training department was helpful, empathetic, and effective, their impact was limited because communication with them was quietly discouraged by district leadership. Store-level concerns were often dismissed, and employees were frequently degraded or spoken to disrespectfully. It’s disheartening when professionalism and empathy are seen as weaknesses.

Management at the district level created a culture of fear and silence. Many colleagues were warned about the risks of reporting unethical behavior, and retaliation was not only a threat, it was something several team members had already experienced. As a store manager, I was denied basic training materials and operational guidance, which made it difficult to meet expectations or support my team.

The workplace culture was toxic from the top down. Even when unethical practices were acknowledged by regional leadership, they were brushed off as "an old-school management style" rather than addressed and corrected. My team was repeatedly demoralized, with individuals being called "stupid" and talked down to, often in front of others.

The hardest part of the job was trying to protect and support my staff without the proper tools or authority, while watching a lack of integrity erode morale. The most enjoyable part was working directly with my team. They were passionate, hard-working individuals who deserved more than the environment allowed them to thrive in.

In summary, this job was a difficult lesson in how leadership defines culture. A company that does not uphold its stated values and code of conduct will eventually lose the people who care most. I would not recommend working in this district unless substantial changes in leadership and accountability are made.

A typical day at work in the afternoon is usually very fast paced at the start and it will feel like there is not enough people for all the food and the drinks that have to be made and it is very easy to be overwhelmed and feel frustrated at times especially with the occasional rude and impatient customers.  


As my first job I learned how to deal with customers through the register and the drive through I also learned how to use the register and how to close a store and the important things to clean and stock up on before clocking out.  


My manager was very nice and understanding, she was also very flexible when I needed certain days off from work.  


The hardest part of the job was the hours and how many days I needed to work considering it was my first job, Starting off I needed to be at work by 7 in the morning and out by 12 in the afternoon for the first few weeks so I was waking up and getting ready for work at 5 in the morning for my first job.  



After training was done I started working in the night shift it was better at first but it brought a whole new set of problems, during the afternoon rush we only have two people working and most of the time I am working with someone who doesn't speak the same language as I do so I have to take care of the drive thru and the register customers at the same time while also making some of the drinks and food.  



This obviously takes a lot of time and some orders are very long which makes people leave the drive thru and abandon their orders and jumbling whose orders are whose at the drive through. Overall it was very stressful until I decided to stop caring and just tell myself to focus on one thing at a time and if a customer leaves because it takes too long that's their problem I am doing everything I can.

As I mentioned before this was my first job and I was hired with no interview what so ever so I had no idea what the job would be like or what my hours would be so after working for six days a week for a week or two I asked my manager if this is how it would always be and they reassured me it was just for training so I was happy, But I have been working here for almost two months now and I am still working mostly six days a week with most of those days being 1pm to 8pm and it is seriously starting to wear me down and has led me to finding a job elsewhere.

I really like the manager and the people working here and that makes it hard for me to say it but with the hours and the days I have been working I can't recommend this job unless you are experienced older and are experienced with work.

If you are like me and are on the younger side and looking for a first job I would say to stay away from Dunkin Donuts.

Also you get no breaks.

The most enjoyable part of the job was the people working their and the regulars who were all nice people.



Management lacks whenever the Manager is off duty. The shift leader does have responsibilities by enforcing protocol but productivity isn't there. 

You will always experience a set of difficult customers everyday. They'll request specific modifications to their orders that you have to fulfill. Sometimes the order or requests cannot be done because of some rules set by your manager such as adding more than the max amount of flavor in a coffee. Since Dunkin Donuts are independently franchisee owned, other stores operate differently and the customers complain about the inconsistencies.

You do have to work hard for about $8.25/hr as a start pay. Dunkin Donuts may have increased this. Your hours are calculated by a clock-in machine and are always expected to be on time. Workload is a lot but manageable. Duties include food preparation, stocking, unboxing, and cleaning. You will have to cater in-store and drive thru customers at the same time which can get hectic. One customer at the counter will be telling their order and the next second your headset is beeping because a drive thru customer has pulled up. After you've taken the in-store customer's order in the register, you take the drive thru order while making the first order all while also entering in the drive thru order in the drive thru register. So expect a lot of multitasking.

A job at Dunkin Donut's is more catered to clean and organized people that know how to get their hands dirty. Qualities learned from doing extensive manual work when growing up transition smoothly when working at Dunkin Donut's. Promotional opportunities are recognized by the manager and the shift leader. If you don't like being constantly told what to do then this is not a place for you. If you are a preppy high school valley teen then this is not a place for you.

Even if you are fit to work, you may be discouraged to continue work for the first two weeks. Which is ok. Pacing and multitasking here is a whole new experience. A good amount of employees are Hispanic. Current employees don't like new employees joining their shifts and current employees may trash talk among themselves about you in their native language (Spanish). As long as you show you are hard working and are able to pick up quick, the other crew members will start to have a liking for you. All the crew members I've worked with have treated me like family on and off-shift after I've worked for some time.

Not the best first wage experience, but up to 30% off discount for employees saves you a lot of money on food. Utilize this if you work there! Hot Beverages and a few donuts are usually free if you work there.

If you are eager to work and mention that you are free to work whenever, be careful as you will have weird hours that may affect your social life. It's advised to ask for specific hours. Expect to work weekends. Your only day off will mostly likely be a random weekday but for every week. Hours range from 4-11 am, 7-3 pm, 12-6 pm, 3-11 pm.

I took this job because I thought it would be good for some extra money. I was wrong. I was never welcome starting my first day. The work environment was hostile and the co-workers were like overgrown highschoolers.

I sometimes came in at 6AM with no breakfast and was yelled at because I would sip my free coffee. It was not usually busy.

There was no authority in the store, so everyone is trying to boss each other which resulted in arguments. There was absolutely no respect for the store manager either. The store manager was cheap and would dilute the iced coffee, so customers would think I did that. The manager was also rude and yelled at everyone infront of customers. He would also sit in the back office when there are crazy lines in the store.

Since I was new, I was not allowed to do the Baskin Robbins area or touch the register, and because of this, the crew got frustrated with me. I've been a cashier in all of my past jobs, so not using the register was annoying for me.

Every time I did a task such as cleaning the restroom, I was always questioned if I did it correctly by a regular crew member. I have cleaned restrooms in all my past jobs and go the extra step with cleaning the rim of the toilet, the seats, the handles, mirrors, re-stocking, etc.

When I am minding my own business and have about 10 minutes left before I clock, I always had someone watching my back. Even when I was drying donut trays, I had a guy yell at me I didn't need to dry them. I was fixing the front donut case and I was going to use them immediately.

The other co-workers would get their hours cut, and they would blame me and the other new people. So I never felt welcome, and never felt comfortable. It was a hostile work environment, not exaggerating. When it came to tips, I occasionally had a few dollars stolen from my pile. Tips are split between all the people working in that shift, and they didn't want to split it with me. I felt like I was working with a bunch of high school bullies. I worked as fast as I could, had a real smile and was polite.

Cleanliness was an issue for the store I was working at too. The iced coffee was left to cool without a cover, so all of the hair and dust would go into it. There was also dark mold growing under a shelf because the iced coffee dispenser was leaking and everyone refused to clean it...except me. The people who made the donuts never wore gloves.

A job like this is not appropriate for students because a lot of people who work in this business are not understanding of higher education. Which is why I was scheduled to work as early as 6AM.

If you are someone who has worked cashiering jobs in the past...you are better than this. It's time to move up or stay on the same level.

The only nice thing about this job was some of the customers. Getting a positive complement of the drink you made or how fast you were with packing donuts is always good.

Other than that...nope.

Working at Dunkin' has been an exciting and fulfilling journey for me. As an employee at one of the most renowned coffee and donut chains, I've had the opportunity to witness the magic that happens behind the scenes. Here's my review of working at Dunkin' based on my personal experiences:

Pros:

Welcoming and Supportive Environment: Dunkin' fosters a culture of inclusivity and teamwork. From day one, I felt like a valued member of the team. My colleagues and managers were friendly, approachable, and always willing to lend a helping hand.

Fast-Paced and Energetic Atmosphere: Dunkin' is known for its bustling environment, and for those who thrive in a fast-paced setting, it's an exhilarating experience. Each shift brings a unique set of challenges, ensuring that no two days are alike.

Opportunities for Growth: Dunkin' provides ample opportunities for personal and professional growth. Whether it's through training programs, promotion opportunities, or cross-functional roles, the company encourages its employees to reach their full potential.

Free and Discounted Goodies: As an employee, one of the perks is the access to free or discounted Dunkin' products. Whether it's a freshly brewed cup of coffee, a delicious donut, or a mouthwatering breakfast sandwich, there's always something to satisfy your cravings.

Cons:

Demanding Workload During Rush Hours: Working at Dunkin' during peak hours can be intense. The constant flow of customers and the need to maintain efficiency can be challenging, especially for newcomers. However, with time and experience, one can develop the skills needed to handle busy periods effectively.

Varied Work Shifts: Dunkin' operates during early morning hours and stays open late into the evening. This means that employees may have to work early mornings, weekends, and even holidays. While this might be a downside for those seeking a more predictable schedule, it can also provide flexibility for some.

Physically Demanding Tasks: The job at Dunkin' involves standing for long periods, lifting heavy boxes, and constant movement. This physical demand can be tiring, particularly for those who are not accustomed to such activities. However, it can also serve as a source of exercise and fitness for individuals looking to stay active.

Overall, my experience working at Dunkin' has been positive. The friendly work environment, opportunities for growth, and the joy of serving delicious products to customers make it an enjoyable workplace. The challenges that come with the job can be overcome with the right mindset and support from the team. If you're someone who thrives in a fast-paced environment and loves the aroma of freshly brewed coffee, Dunkin' is a great place to work.

Disclaimer: This review is based on my personal experience, and individual experiences may vary.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Crew member 4651 salaries reported	$14.59 per hour
Shift leader 2375 salaries reported	$15.87 per hour
Restaurant manager 1319 salaries reported	$54,776 per year
Team member 1403 salaries reported	$14.45 per hour
Assistant manager 730 salaries reported	$18.00 per hour

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