cashier/clerk

donation attendant

unloader

relief manager

sorter

arc Thrift Stores

I highly do NOT recommend this company. The workload was either overwhelming or there was hardly anything to do. If it was overwhelming, they would tell people to ask for help, but then yell at them when they did. If there was not enough to do, they would tell you to go work in other areas, then yell at you when you didn't meet your daily goals. When I say yell, I mean yell. I only have personal experience from one store, but from talking with the other employees, the other stores aren't any better.
It was very stressful to work there because the managers love brown-nosers, don't want to deal with store problems brought up by employees, and don't do anything about the people who show up late or call out every other week. On the flip side, they like to harass people who work themselves to death, complain when people who are usually punctual show up late or call off because of a good reason, don't listen to other people's ideas, and stick their noses into things they clearly know nothing about. Hardly a day went by without this happening.
Their managers are not professional at all. They do not know how to separate work from their personal life. They will literally yell at people for no reason other than they are "in charge," and do not ever listen to the department heads. They think they know what is best even when they are very clearly wrong, but they will still pull their "I'm the boss" garbage and make things go their way. They do not know how to train people, but will just throw them places and expect them to know everything. The time I worked there, I saw different management, but they were almost all the same.
This workplace took a massive toll on my mental and physical health. I now have depression because of the constant harassment of my old boss/es. I wanted to put through a harassment claim, but the boss was very good at acting in front of the higher ups and no one would have believed me.
Even though they put you through h*ll, they do have great benefits (except for the health insurance, that is just garbage). They have plenty of paid time off, they have limited personal time, but there is no end to paid time off. They have good vision and dental insurance, 401K, and a way to get life insurance. However, these are only for full-time employees, so cashiers only get paid time off.
The workplace is a thrift store, so it is unsurprisingly dirty and there are plenty of disgusting things people have found there. The people are foul-mouthed and unprofessional. It's not their fault because management is no help. Some people are team players, but some are just gossipy backstabbers. The company statement is that they are helping mentally and physically challenged people, and that is great. They do support plenty of groups built for those folks, as well as hiring them, but they forget about the people who actually work their butts off. Sure there are disabled people who work and work hard, I was blessed with working with a couple of them, but the company gives them all more benefits for less work. The company does not have a good grasp on the limits of the disabilities. Some of those disabled people hardly work, yet are treated better than the disabled people who DO work. I worked with one individual who was constantly stressed out because the bosses kept moving around this person's work, and the individual never knew what was expected of them. I never liked how they treated people there. Some people were on pedestals, while others were treated like less than dirt.
Because of everything above, I do NOT recommend working here. If you really do not care how you are treated, and you are just there to get your work done, get paid, and not talk to anyone, you will (hopefully) be just fine. Other than that.... don't put yourself through this.

This company isn't a company where management recognizes growth for their employees. If they do, it's not until that individual is almost out the door. Work is stressful as it's all about numbers. I've learned that my position isn't important and valued. At times buttons are given out. Yes, thank you for the $10.00 buttons, however getting a pay increase with the work we do would be much better incentive for people to stay and work harder according to what ARC requires. There is money within the ARC Organization, it's just not being used on the employees but into opening other stores. Don't tell me ARC cannot give decent raises. They choose not to.
When it comes to management it's the worse thing I've experienced in terms of professionalism, values, morals and helping others to grow and to be developed. The attitude of I don't care definitely exists on a regular basis. It's hard to want to talk to someone in upper management because I feel I'm not heard or listened to. If an individual does bring something up nothing gets done. It's as if  you never brought it up. What is management for then?
The hardest past of the job it continuing to work harder to push out numbers daily weekly monthly and not getting much recognition or appreciation. On top of that, not getting paid what one is worth. With the kind of work that ARC expects the company to do is at the lowest of the totem pole, that's very, very sad and oh so disappointing. The sad thing is some of us work really hard while others take the job as a joke. I don't see a whole lot team playing here, just what can get by with or as little as I can do ATTITUDE. It's really becoming a real joke to work here as long as I've worked at ARC fort the last 2 years. Things haven't improved but have gotten worse. I would say that anyone that has an interest in applying, DON'T DO IT!  You may not last very long. The most enjoyable part of the job is 30% we get off items and that there is always work to be done. I DO NOT like idle time. This job is good for job security and keeping busy all the time.  Speaking and talking getting to know the customers that come in on regular basis is very liberating for me.
Due to so much chaos at ARC, I'm actively seeking other employment where I feel valued, appreciated. Where I can grow within the company within a timely fashion and be utilized for my giftings and talents. I want to make a difference in others, that's what brings total satisfaction and joy to my life.
Thank you, for this time to allow me to be open and honest. I hope this has helped and moving forward things can possibly change for the sake of the people that work for this company and possibly future employees. It could have the potential to being a great place to work but so much needs to change and be consistent within that change.

Thank you

If you get fufillment from helping special needs individuals and low income citizens then you can earn a fulltime wage doing something that is greater than yourself; it's rewarding in that respect.

It's the only Corporation that I have ever heard of that will rehire terminated employees that qualify, after 3 months. Which to me makes it sound like its hard to keep employees and hire new ones worth their salt.

Sometimes feels like a half way house of employment for those returning to the workforce after suffering incarceration or other legal or financial trouble.

The weekly Saturday sale is a free for all, crowd collecting mess that always feels like we're understaffed for.

Little or nothing can be done or is done to combat shoplifting and price tag switching. So if your making your numbers (pricing the requires number of donations) and your sales are suffering its still your fault.

There are dishonest clientele and co-workers as well as nice clientele and coworkers. But the negativity always outweighs the positivity. And that affects morale. I've never met a group of people before that are so unhappy and angry with what they do for a living. 

If you're not out in the front of the store dealing with and ringing up disgruntled or dishonest customers then you're in the back of the store attempting to price the mass of donations that is required of you everyday. Making numbers requires a fast pace and often depends on the speed of the co-worker doing their job ahead of you. And the worst part is the numbers required increase every year. Be prepared to sweat. Be prepared to feel run down. Be prepared for "it only gets harder from here forward".

If youre lucky you have great management. But not all are as good as the next. Like with any job you need to accept change even if it makes you feel like you're taking it on the chin. 

I highly respect the arcs mission and everything they do and provide for special needs people. But that mission will also distract you and hamper your succesful completion of daily duties. 

Overall not recommended as an employer unless you qualify to be an ambassador.

Many employees apply here out of necessity, but the work environment can quickly become exhausting and discouraging. Management expectations frequently changed without clear communication, creating confusion and making it difficult for employees to consistently meet performance standards. Staff were often held accountable for expectations that had shifted from previous instructions.
Workloads and productivity quotas often felt unrealistic, particularly given ongoing staffing challenges. Employees were frequently expected to perform duties across multiple departments while maintaining high production expectations. The resulting pressure created significant stress and negatively affected morale.
Prior to the store's grand opening, a large number of employees were hired to prepare the sales floor. Shortly afterward, staffing levels were significantly reduced while productivity expectations remained largely unchanged. This left remaining employees responsible for a substantial workload with limited support.
Management meetings often focused heavily on performance deficiencies rather than employee development, recognition, or problem-solving. Communication regarding expectations and workplace concerns could be inconsistent, which contributed to employee frustration and low morale.
Job security was a frequent topic of discussion, and employees were regularly reminded that there were many applicants available to fill positions. These comments, combined with demanding performance expectations, created an atmosphere that many employees found discouraging rather than motivating.
Employee concerns and workplace issues did not always appear to receive the level of attention or follow-up that staff expected. As a result, many employees felt unsupported when raising concerns or seeking assistance.
Overall, this workplace may be a good fit for individuals who thrive in a fast-paced, highly demanding environment. However, those seeking clear communication, consistent expectations, supportive management, and a collaborative workplace culture may find the experience challenging.

Your job as a cashier is to work the floor, which means putting away clothes, sorting clothes, facing them the right way, putting things away that are brought up to the front, organization, cleaning up messes of stuff left behind,  cleaning up messes along the way, answering the phone if at the register, making announcements if possible/ you are comfortable and helping customers at the register. some day it is harder than others, but what is the hardest for me is the constant changing of things when management switches stores, and how flip floppy they are with the rules and how people are not trained the same way and communication can be scarce. I have learned how to be an excellent cashier, and different name brands and stuff that is considered good quality, plus I get access to nice stuff when it comes out and am able to get it discounted. but I feel I am not paid good enough for all the hard work me and my coworkers do , and feel as if corporate is always out to get our jobs one way or another. told the cameras watch us and we have to be incredibly consistent. Sometimes when a coworker is injured, they are belittled and their needs are not met by the supervisors/ management. they are incredibly hard on employees in the back as well, while also pushing them to a point where they seemingly don't do a good job just because they want to make their numbers.

*From getting yelled at because my fiance was late, while he would get a free card.
*Receiving calls from other employees (a regular employee not management) about them having a discussion w/management about my job performance.
*Getting told not to talk to a specific coworker when at that exact time another employee (a favorite one) was gossiping with that exact same employee I just got told not to talk to. (I was near but not a part of their conversation).
*All supervisors rotate to work on Sundays, except the favorite ones.
*All supervisors work on sales days , and can not request time off on sale days, except the favorite ones.
*Getting your schedule switched to the exact opposite of what you need after discussing it with management on several different occasions, out of despite from management, ex.  if they know you can't work on Mondays they will schedule you on Mondays on purpose to give you a write up if you are not in "good standing" with Management.
*I got called in to the office, I was given a list of all the other stores and was told to go and look at the other stores so I could  transfer to, and to let them know ( I never asked/commented on switching stores).
*Management speaks down to employees, a lot of public shaming, and the good employees never get recognized.
Job advancement is based on how good of a a "teachers pet" you can be, not on how well you can do your job.
*I got called down and disrespected by my manager, leaving me no option but to be disrespectful back or to walk away, I got a bad review and can no longer work, or want to ever work for the company, for walking away instead of being disrespectful back. 
*After 3 attempts to correct my address with corporate (went in person) I never received my w-2's, it was easier to get them from the IRS then from The Arc.

I worked for roughly three months as a General Lead Labor. A guy whom directed 3-5 employees daily in collecting donations, up loading and off loading trucks and many other functions I really need not go into detail. My experience with this company was very poor to say the least. There were lots of  OSHA violations and many general safety issues. A few examples are carts with missing wheels and broken bars that are sticking out, to improper lighting at night while loading donations into trailers. Not to mention no outside heaters for those that are forced to work in the back outside during very cold snowy days. The list can go on and if an OSHA representative were to look the building over they would find many issues. I made mention of this many times to the supervisors and management but nothing was ever done. 

There were also command chain problems between management and supervisors not communicating things properly between one another to even favoritism play. Some employees repeatedly got away with forcing others to do their job for them, to flat out avoiding the areas they are assigned. When addressed of the issue they use company policy in a manipulative manner that benefits them going to supervisors they know they can manipulate. In addition to all this employee's would falsely pass on information or hearsay about why people were fired, quit or laid off to customers.

I will not go into further detail..... I'll leave it at what was stated above. It is extremely rare that I have ever quit a job, this was by far the worst I ever had.

nothing but constant worry and stress about this job. Especially if you are a young man. They gave me a 5 man job to do by myself the busiest days so everyone else could have off. I had to do 2 positions by myself pretty much my whole time there. Once I decided to use that for leverage in a shot for supervisor position. All of a sudden I get fired within 4 days of an investigation by theft protection. I haven't stole anything. I never would have. They also wanted me to be silent about a small outbreak of the virus inside the store. The manager being affected personally by Covid-19 two times in a row and me still having to pay my own 400 for a test AND go back to work risking my life. Manager got paid every day she was gone (nearly 2 months) but when a former employee of mine got a stomach ulcer bad she couldn't use her earned vacation time to get it checked so she had to quit. This job is very mentally toxic. I got hired believing they care about the developmental disabilities. I had to stand up for one of their hired "ambassadors" hired through their program. It took them a month and me threatening leaving my position before they fired someone for calling him the R word repeatedly everyday. This store is also known to have racist workers because IVE WORKED WITH THEM. No room for improvement. There are already older people working here and they have seniority. You are just HIRED HELP. Nobody lasts more than a few months because they set you up for failure from day 1.

At the ARC, I drove around a DOT specific truck picking up donations from residential neighborhoods all around Denver. Once I was done with the route, I would call in to dispatch and see where they would like me to drop my load of donations at. Then, after discussing the location, proceed there and unload all of the donated goods I received. Once unloaded, call in again and see if they need me to help another route driver or head home. While here, I definitely learned the grasp of mapping out my routes in which I would start and finish daily. Also, it helped with learning new cities and routes that were ever changing due to construction or road closures. My co-workers were a great group of guys who would help out with moving you on the weekend. Great group of guys who cared for each other and about their jobs. But, once I broke my foot out on route, everything changed. Management was trying their best to get me to quit once I was off of workers compensation. The group of guys were upset or irritated because of how long it took for my foot to heal and started to shun me because of it. There are reasons as to what made this job enjoyable and terrible, but the best aspect was the food drive that I was involved in, raised over two hundred thousand pounds of food for everyone with disabilities around Colorado.

I used to kinda hate this place, 1 particularly cruddy store manager largely ruined the experience before I bowed out due to covid, but for the most part the staff is friendly, the profits serve a good cause (even if I wish they paid their people better - in the end, I'd think go back, if I could afford to; makes a great second/side job, at any rate), and the store is full of neat treasures and useful junk - "one man's trash" and all. Work can be super hard when staff is low (I typically call it "the Godzilla of retail", with, for example, production staff pricing, and cashiers putting out, some few thousand clothing items per day, not counting, like, all the tons of stuff they price/sell every day besides clothing); October - their busiest month, due to Halloween - with no people was a nightmare one year, but all in all, at least in the 2 stores with which I'm particularly familiar, it's a decent place to work. 

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Cashier/clerk 163 salaries reported	$16.17 per hour
Donation attendant 84 salaries reported	$16.86 per hour
Unloader 72 salaries reported	$16.84 per hour
Relief manager 22 salaries reported	$17.88 per hour
Sorter 36 salaries reported	$16.18 per hour

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