merchandise processor

sales associate

retail supervisor

custodian

material handler

Goodwill Central Texas

The good: Most regular employees, many supervisors and some managers are great people who come from all sorts of diverse backgrounds and share a genuine desire to help people, which GCT indeed does through providing education and work opportunities for those who otherwise would have trouble obtaining them. There are definitely many opportunities for advancement, schedules can be flexible depending on your manager and you will have fun with your coworkers while learning and improving skills such as merchandise processing, data entry, handling pallet-stacking equipment, creating boutique displays, mastering time management and much more.

The bad: Retail managers are constantly under tremendous pressure to maximize revenue no matter the cost to employee morale and customer relations. So many customers complain to me regarding our increasingly ridiculous pricing and I am constantly having to explain both why prices have risen and who is dictating this (see below). As a Team Lead and even as a manager you have little to no real discretion regarding pricing, store layout, or product placement even if you know and have demonstrated through revenue gains what works for your particular store.

You have to be careful around your supervisors/managers because so many lack integrity and will say one thing to your face and another either behind your back or through group email, and they are often quick to throw anyone they can under the bus to save themselves, regardless of your reputation and productive value to the company. For example, one time my most recent manager gave me an order which conflicted with what her boss specifically told me to do and when I informed her of this she told me to do it her way, which I did, only to later be blasted by her in a group email, which included said boss, for not doing what he told me to do! You are easily replaceable (and you will be reminded of this) given the fact that so many people with criminal records or disabilities or who lack job skills often can't find other work, and with such insane employee turnover it's easy for GCT to brag about how many jobs they've created while not mentioning how many employees were fired or driven out of theirs to inflate these stats.

Customers are mixed: some are rude, demeaning, threatening and downright thieves while others are genuinely kind, supportive and understanding of what we put up with. One time a customer so obviously under the influence of drugs (they come every day) threatened me with violence when I merely asked to see his receipt to validate his purchase of some furniture, as per my job requirement, and when I called for my manager while leaving this increasingly hostile situation to call the police he told me "no, you're not" and made me stop. Another time after said manager told me to change my pricing on a particular item and I had agreed and complied, he later got in my face and accused me of both not doing this and when I repeated back to him our prior discussion, of calling him a liar; this was done not only right below the camera but with the entire warehouse of employees watching, and even in front of a door donor waiting for a receipt and a customer at the storefront door trying to get my attention to help him with some furniture! Needless to say, having both a disability and PTSD I was traumatized for a good while by this particular incident, which leads me to...

The ugly: our current VP of Retail has a well-deserved reputation from his stint as a District Director for his bullying practices which are mainly directed toward managers, who in turn take out their resulting passive aggression on their employees. While he has never directly harassed me he has indirectly tried through others who've tipped me off to certain communication from him. While he may very well be good at driving revenue for the company he has certainly fostered a culture of fear among those unfortunate enough to have encountered his "difficult" personality, and many managers could tell you off the record (as they've told me) of his tirades and verbal abuse behind closed doors in their meetings.

As for why I haven't gone to HR for any of this and other experiences I've been subjected to, as mentioned I have a disability and need my job and thus fear retaliation, and our pitiful compensation given our relatively high cost of living in the Austin area makes affording a lawyer not an option. Also, truth be told HR really exists solely for the benefit of the company and only works for the employee when solving said employee's issue will provide the most financial benefit to the company; those individuals higher up the career ladder are seen to deliver more in revenue than those below and are thus afforded a higher level of protection.

To current/former employees of GCT reading this, just know despite all the negativity, pressures, propaganda and scare tactics you deal with on a daily basis at work, you matter and are appreciated. Many of you know what I've said here is true based on your own experiences while some of you know but will remain in denial, perhaps as a coping mechanism. Some of you may fortunately have been shielded to an extent from all of this nastiness as I was before I promoted. To those who are thinking about working here, you would certainly "do good and be great" as GCT does indeed help people, but it's your chance to take.

Please share.

Goodwill hires many ex-felones and persons who have fewer opportunities for employment due to their backgrounds, lack of education or mental capacities. These employees experience tremendous pressure when goodwill managers require results that are impossible to achieve in an 8 hour shift. Each day they try to comply with new and altered rules that have been intermittently dispersed to a few. It becomes easy to break the rules due to lack of information. Goodwill then has ample opportunity to fire employees at will. These employees work way beyond human capacity and are paid less. Goodwill continues to convince them that Goodwill just isn't making enough money to pay more. Goodwill claims that their mission is to help folks who have not obtained a high school diploma by helping them obtain a high school degree up to the age of 50 years. This supposed mission statement claims they are helping their "employees" in this school. Unfortunately, the workers in their stores can't get to their school in Austin and have to support their families with their pay checks so can't afford not to work just to go to the few classes offered. Goodwill is not a charity as some people are made to believe. After a hurricane hit, donations were given to all Goodwill locations. The boxes were addressed to hurricane victims. The expectation was that the items would go free to the people affected by the hurricane. Instead, the donations went right to the sales floor so Goodwill could make more money for themselves and pay the high salaries of the executives and the lowered pay to hourly workers. Don't apply to this company it is a very bad place to work.

A typical day a work was arriving and relaxing while having coffee and sometimes some food before I clocked in. Then I got to work doing my usual work tasks ( with of course sometimes the occasional changes in my department ) while having my usual interactions with my colleagues and management. I learned how to cope with change properly because of my general mentality of being used to a constant routine with little to no change. I also had the privilege and experience of learning how to interact and socialize with people from different backgrounds, personalities and walks of life. The culture of my environment was very diverse and unique, along with typical, everyday politics and antics of a workplace setting. The hardest part of my job was during the month of October and the months following October when it became low staffed. During that period the few workers that were still there were having to either work more hours to do the tasks that other workers in place of them would have been completing. As well as me having to clock in earlier than my usual clock-in time to get to work due to lack of staff that would have been there before I typically clocked in. The most enjoyable part would be the colleagues that I developed genuine connections with both as colleagues and good friends. Also I learned sufficient adaptable skills and lessons that helped me to mature as both an employee and citizen.

I was hired on within a week of my hiring supervisor turning in her 2 week notice.  The spot was held nearly 3 months for someone on maternity leave, where I received little to no guidance.  She returned and was ill prepared to properly train me, or supervise in general.  I was thrown in with no assistance and it was a failure.  I was let go because I wasn't keeping up, but let go within 2 weeks of a positive review.  It was weird, and apparently UI thought so too as Goodwill's appeal of my approved benefits was denied.  I was punished for not teaching myself fast enough, and not correcting issues made by the previous case manager as fast as they expected.

I'd like to mention that I currently do the same work for a new company that provided PROPER TRAINING FROM A SKILLED SUPERVISOR WHO KNEW WHAT SHE WAS DOING and continuously receive bonuses and even train new employees.  There was no floating about for months while someone had a kid without guidance.

It was my first job in Texas after relocation, and it definitely left a negative taste in my mouth.

On a positive note, the facilities are great, my team outside of my supervisor were fabulous and really cared about our kids, and events and meetings were always kept positive and were very fun.  I hated that it just did not work out...as a culture Goodwill was great.

When I got this job I was excited to be working for this company that I thought was doing a lot of good. After having been there for a couple of weeks and seeing the amount of items and donations the company was taking in, how much of it was being thrown away or discarded, how much of it was being recycled and how much of it was being put out to be sold and how much the items were selling for I couldn't understand why I along with a handful of other employees I worked with directly were going homeless and hungry. This was a part time job I got to supplement my income during the slow season of my primary job with a moving company. Goodwill was paying me $8.25 per hour as a donation attendant and I wasn't allowed to stand still for five minutes and wait for donations to come in without being told to grab a broom and sweep or jump on the line and help the sorters or put price tags on items and take said items and place them on the sales floor or do something to keep busy. I understand not slacking on the job and that's not what I'm speaking to that said you get what you pay for and I was being paid for donation attendant not for donation attendant/sorter/pricer/sales/housekeeping. At the end of my 8 hour shift I would be more exhausted than when I would get off of work working  8 hours with a moving company and that just doesn't seem right. 85% of the items they sold came free to them and was all profit yet they paid us pennies. I just couldn't do it anymore.

Supervisor runs behind you to management for everything.
No restroom breaks. Management is robotic, you say your stressed from work, and they say there should be no reason
Explain the pressure of quotas, and they say you shouldn't stress, but come running out last minute with twisted faces.
Undependable management, 1 long lunches, always in office.
Its so easy to pad, or scribble in the numbers for the day by supervisors.
While all employee are sweating, breathing in mold and dust, and doing their part, Supervisors scribble in 4 hours worth of work like nothing.
Very, VERY unprofessional, and eye-opening to the "Career- Advancement Opportunists."  

if you want to work here just write your numbers in, and don't feel bad about it. Supervisors do it, and when someone like me who comes along, who keeps track mentally of numbers, questions upper management  about it, they say, "its fine."

 A multi-billion dollar company, that during the time of Hurricanes this year, took in donations that were SPECIFIED for those in need, priced the items for 3.99. THAT was ridiculous, and that was directed from the Store Manager.

Not non-profit, all about money.
Go work at McDonalds, or Taco Bell for more money.

And Store manager believes that "hierarchy" is the ultimate declarative statement and basically, i was told to obey.

I worked at the Lakeway location for almost 2 years for $9.50 an hour. That was with two raises. I gave a lot to this place and I finally hit my breaking point. They wouldn't give me my 30 min lunch break after overworking me the week before, and only giving me one day off. They expected me to train new employees when that is in the team leads work description. They had me doing all of the team leads work. After I submitted my two week notice not once but twice they offered to bump my pay, which never happened. So I tried to submit my two weeks a third time, then they made it so unbearable I quit so they wouldn't have to pay all my leave time saved up. they treat their employees like the gum on the bottom of their shoe. All they care about is money, money, and more money. The work atmosphere is always negative and always stressful. If you want more money maybe you should treat your employees like human beings and not robots. When we had managers that cared, we were making bonus every month and our store was in great condition. They bring in new management that has only worked for them for 3 months and every thing falls apart. Employees walked out left and right.

The most enjoyable part of this job was the people (staff) including clients seeking services. The hardest part of the job is compromising your well being because the benefits offered are mediocre at best. There is no PTO and sick days. They are all and the same. The rate at which you earn PTO is again mediocre especially for new employees. If you have worked here for more than 2 years, it is slightly better but again, not by much. The deductible for health insurance is so high that even working full time and earning a salary just above the poverty line would make it difficult for anyone to come up with the deductible amount. It's my belief that for this reason, there is a high turnover of staff. This is one of the most difficult things to endure at this agency. It is detrimental for workplace culture and equally detrimental to the clients being served. Immediate supervisors are excellent, supportive and care about their staff. There is a disconnect between the executive staff and the staff actually doing the work. If these few issues were addressed, this agency would be able to retain good hard working staff to the benefit of the agency overall and more important to the community it serves.

What is the best part of working at the company?
The relationships that I've built with my co-workers and some of the customers, is by far the best part of working at Goodwill! 
Remember to let people be the individuals that they are. And, be real, or honest in your dealings with them.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Getting behind putting out enough merchandise for customers to judge.
Staying focused on what is coming through the donation door, and the product on hand is the key to not letting yourself br overwhelmed.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
The environment, although challenging in also a bonding
 experience that I would never trade for anything. When we achieve our goals as a team, everyone feels  the care and appreciation that the managers and supervisors have for each of the staff.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Making sure that the store, including the outside are presentable for us to receive customers and donors. That includes, getting product to the floor, having enough supplies to stay ahead of demand, and ensuring that our areas are safe and neat to avoid delays.

I started this job right after receiving my bachelors of social work and have enjoyed working with the company. Leadership could better and it seems that it is heading that way slowly. Overall it was a great place to work at. My managers of my department were very supportive of all growth, only sad thing is that the company did not appear to be supportive of growth. COVID had an impact but the business did what they could. I did feel supported during this pandemic with their efforts. 

Furthering education is encouraged and supported but not entirely rewarded (unless you are looking to move up to a supervisor position or further). 

 Other than that, I loved my team. Each department seems to have their own little team but when we come together it is FUN. Because of this, you may not know everyone in the office but don't let that scare you. I would recommend this job for anyone. Such an awesome experience. 

Most enjoyable were the clients we had the opportunity to serve and working with a dedicated and awesome team. Hardest part is the obstacles that made it difficult to serve but that is bureaucracy. 

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Merchandise processor 396 salaries reported	$13.93 per hour
Sales associate 268 salaries reported	$13.87 per hour
Retail supervisor 83 salaries reported	$17.62 per hour
Custodian 51 salaries reported	$16.13 per hour
Material handler 44 salaries reported	$13.98 per hour

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