ice cream maker

crew member

customer service associate / cashier

shift leader

ice cream scooper

Haagen Dazs

I felt like I was lead on in the interview with a ton of open-ended promises. The lack of communication between the employer and the employees. Every employee in that store can tell you that, when trying to communicate with the manager, you WILL be left on read. Also, I don’t even know when we actually open due to the fact that he does not tell us anything. Google says 11 however he schedules people at 11:30. If you are in school whether is high school or college, you will not be even making enough hours to be considered part-time. You must work a minimum of 15 hours per week (3 shifts a week), however, several employees only work twice a week or none at all. Monday-Thursday there will only be two employees the whole day. 11 or 11:30 (again not even sure when we open)- 5 and 5-closing. You MUST show a doctor’s note when you call out sick. You are NOT allowed to keep your cash tip, if handed cash tips it will be added in to the register. You also wont get a lunch or a break due to the fact that there is nobody there to cover for you, “breaks” is you eating really fast when the store is empty or running to the bathroom incase a customer comes in. The tasks are fairly straightforward, however there is a lot expected from you. As usual, there is a no phone policy (which is understandable) your valuables will be locked up in a locker with your own lock. Truly, the only problem is really just the management, ALL of the employees are kind and understanding. The employees usually teach and help out each other.

I have no idea where to start about my pathetic experience with this company. I was barely even properly trained, no, I should say I wasn’t really trained at all. I was expected to know every single thing inside and out by the end of day 1. I made like 2, LIKE ONLY 2, very very minor mistakes (i.e put syrup on in the wrong layer on a sundae) and was told off about it. Was brought to the back when I said I didn’t know how to make a frappe because I was never properly showed how. Then there were the very, very, long shifts. Was always out of there way after (like 2+ hrs after) the place, even the mall itself, closed. Day 1, had a 7 1/2 hour shift, I got no break at all whatsoever. So day 3 I was there, bright and early until late at night and only had a small break. 10 1/2 HOURS! Ridiculous! Then after only 3 shifts, 3 SHIFTS, I was let go due to reasons not my fault and because I was “expected to know everything inside and out after a few days” when really it takes time. Manager wasn’t even there over half the time to observe! Let alone train me! I was slowly getting the hang of it and feel like I was taken advantage of, and not given a chance. If you are considering applying to work here (at least the location I worked at), I DO NOT RECOMMEND. 

I was employed at Haagen Dazs from 1993 until it's plant closing in 1999. I thought I knew what "clean" meant until I began working there. The processes of breaking down/sanitizing all of the production lines each night was amazingly thorough, and subject to random swab tests by our internal lab for cleanliness. 

Keep in mind, this was a production factory that was not view-able to the customers, but kept as spotless as could be to ensure the output of a high quality and safe product.

I believe the management staff did an incredible job, as they not only had the responsibilities of successfully running a 3 shift factory, but had to work within the guidelines on a unionized workforce.

While I firmly believe that unions are important to protect the rights of the workers, the abuse and circumvention of those rights eventually forced this company to relocate that plant to a more labor friendly location.

I've learned a great deal in the area of proper cleaning/sanitation and preventive maintenance, all within tight turnaround times. Haagen Dazs have excellent G.M.P.'s, and treated us well with incentive bonuses and overall respect.

When I was not serving ice cream or coffee products to customers, I spent almost all of my time cleaning and organizing the shop. My boss frequently asked me to run the shop myself if he or his wife could not supervise. In addition to this, I trained new employees. 
I learned a great deal about how to work with difficult customers, how to prioritize my work, and how to keep everyone happy in the face of difficulty.
My boss and his family were very charming people. My boss, in particular, frequently related my job at Haagen Dazs with my major in college. He was a perfectionist and insisted on not only working hard, but on knowing why we were completing each task our job required of us.
My coworkers and I were all friendly. Work was usually very slow during the winter, so each of us got to know one another when there was nothing to do but clean the shop and talk.
The hardest part of the job was training new employees. They were usually around 15 or 16 and looking for a job with the least possible work.
My favorite part of the job was working with the customers. I always thought it was nice how a simple dessert could make someone's entire day.

Since 1961, Häagen-Dazs has been a leader in the ice cream industry. It has grown from a horse drawn wagon in the Bronx, NY to a multinational corporation. The vision of its original worker-bee, Reuben Mattus has been upheld through-out its history. Häagen-Dazs produces quality ice-cream from natural, pure ingredients from around the world. It is currently owned by General Mills and has an award winning public relations team. Häagen-Dazs’s PR team took initiative to support the honey bee depletion problem before any other company. For these reasons, Häagen-Dazs is a trusted and popular brand.

This year Häagen-Dazs is committed to spending 25MM in our 7 key markets (New York being one of them).  The Super-Premium ice cream category continues to grow and Häagen-Dazs is leading the way.  The are planning massive ad campaigns throughout the New York area this year utilizing TV, regional radio, billboards, buses wraps, etc., as well as updating our packaging design and increasing our commitment to both the finest ingredients and sustainability (gluten free, no RBST, no GMO, and more claims where appropriate).

This place has gone downhill. They hire pretty much about anybody and it’s usually young kids with no work ethic or motivation, but management fails to do anything about it even though they see. They fail to notice the hardworking, honest people and it reflects on their pay. Meanwhile, new employees get paid higher than those who have been there 2+ years. On several opening shifts the shop was neglected from the night before simply because the employees were too lazy to do certain tasks or couldn't remember. ( alot of the times there was no customers so we just stood around). On another note, management was very nosey with personal business. if called out due to medical reasons, you would be asked a whole bunch of questions, ( doctors name, reasoning, symptoms, etc). Most of the complicated work is left up to the “senior employee” and not the actual manager of the shop. Almost every week something goes wrong. ( freezer broken, ice maker not working, roaches, sink leaking ).   Although i learned a-lot from this job to help me with my future, it has also taught me how a business should NOT be run. 

Not only is this a physically demanding job (scooping hard ice cream, rearranging big frozen tubs) but the management at my location was extremely poor which resulted in many people quitting. There was never more than 2 people for night/closing shifts (which got BUSY) and for me, I personally worked my entire opening to mid-day shift all alone. Before I was given a 9-5 shift working all alone (I was the ONLY person that they expected to do their ice cream cakes, so I was the only one in the entire establishment that had to come in that early… and no, I did not get extra compensation for that) I worked 11:30-5 with no breaks. And for my 9-5 hours I took a forced break at 11:00 before I had to open the shop by myself because there were no other workers with me. There was so much more to it, but overall it was a horrible work environment and it took a toll on my physical and mental health. I showed how capable I was to the establishment, and I ended up feeling taken advantage of the entire time. This place truly wrecked my emotions. Everyone that has ever worked with me quit for a reason.

A typical day at work would usually consist of serving a whole variety of ice cream products, like sundaes, milkshakes, etc along with handling all cash transactions for each of my individual sales.  There was stocking, inventory, cleaning, and requisition duties as well.  This particular job has taught me the joy of customer service and having pride in my workplace, where my previous employer lacked some of these qualities.  I learned a lot about personal accountability and the dangers of complacency, both at work and in life.  My co-workers were generally fun to be around and all incredibly supportive.  If one person struggled, there was always help to be found.  The hardest part of the job was definitely related to the giant warehouse freezer.  Whenever there was a new shipment or retrieval of ice cream it could take some time to collect everything that was required, not to mention how incredibly cold it was.  The best part of the job was pretty much that I was almost always happy to be there.  I had no idea selling ice cream could be so much fun.

- A typical day at work would be dealing with store managers and discussing weekly promotions.
- I've learned the importance of customer satisfaction & the various product line that are promoted for all clients.
- There's very little management involved. The reason for that is because I'm an independent contractor for the distribution company. Hence I'm responsible for the daily sales, weekly inventory logs, and daily settlement reports. 
- Co-workers are always on the move in there straight trucks servicing clients throughout the five boroughs. 
- The hardest part of the job is driving. Weather conditions and dealing with everyday traffic. 
- The most enjoyable part of the job is meeting new people, promoting new frozen products, and sampling the products.

It's absurdly flexible if you talk to your managers, the store owner of the location I worked at owned multiple stores, so in the worst case scenario, you could always potentially have someone cover your shift if something came up or if you were sick. Sometimes you would be put on call on non-busy days. At the time I knew nothing about the work force, so I always had a negative attitude about the job, once I left and went to other jobs and saw how everything worked, it humbled me and made me come to terms that working at Haagen Daz is generally not that bad especially if you are looking to get some shorter shifts in the night during the week while going to school. 
The only potential problem, is being called in for favors on days you may not even be needed for, or the store staying open past midnight because it made a certain amount of money, or if you are someone who needs hours, being called off on a day its not busy.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Ice cream maker 13 salaries reported	$17.55 per hour
Crew member 5 salaries reported	$17.84 per hour
Customer service associate / cashier 9 salaries reported	$15.11 per hour
Shift leader 2 salaries reported	$18.37 per hour
Ice cream scooper 3 salaries reported	$13.83 per hour

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