Vantaggi
First Alt is a large enough company that there is consistent structure and predictable fair guidelines, while small enough that everyone's opinion can be taken into consideration. The perks are great IMHO. 15% staff discount (on top of any sales offered makes groceries cheaper than Winco most of the time), free food when items are damaged or expired (I pretty much never run out of free bread, eggs, yogurt, coffee, cereal, canned tomatoes, apples, carrots, or potatoes). Tattoos and piercings are totally ok (vulgar or offensive tattoos covered though). The dress code is very reasonable (no open toed shoes, hair tied back, no bare midriffs, no offensive or political statements on clothes) and leaves a lot of room for self expression. Management is often very responsive and caring. First raise is in 6 months, and then once per year after that. Cost of living adjustment is once per year on top of that depending on your position. Merit increases are 1%-4%. Healthcare benefits for anyone working 28+ hours after 90 days, better benefits for 35+ hours. PTO starts at 2 weeks per year. Everyone gets a set schedule and at least 2 weeks notice before that schedule gets changed. Promotion most often happens from within, so people really have a good chance to move up if they want. Management is salaried, no overtime, but I've rarely had to work more than 40 hours on average (50 hours 1 week, 30 the next, etc). There is an all-staff survey every year to give feedback in many areas. Most staff get the opportunity to give anonymous feedback about their supervisor during their supervisor's eval. The company is small, owned by the community not shareholders, and run by an elected local board of directors. This keeps profits and vision local. They carry local and conscientious products, focusing on environmental protection, and supporting small businesses, fair trade labor, and local businesses. They compost all their food waste, use laundered towels instead of paper towels for cleaning.
Svantaggi
Starting wages for entry level positions are ok, typically less than $1 above minimum wage, though minimum wage is currently $12.75. Still, it's hard to keep up with the cost of living in Corvallis with those kinds of wages. To make a reasonable wage you pretty much have to get into management, there aren't a lot of well paid non-management positions. As a manager I make a wage that I can afford a small apartment by myself in town, but I'm never going to afford a house by myself. Upper management has a hard time efficiently and clearly communicating large change, and struggles between being efficient or letting everyone have an opinion. Customers can be really awful, especially since COVID, and that can be draining, but honestly very few awful customers compared to every other service job I've worked. The health benefits are pretty good if you work 35+ hours and only want to cover yourself, but are very expensive if you want to cover a spouse or kids. There are few positions that have any opportunity for working from home. There are some staff, both managers and floor staff, that get away with being unreliable, or having a bad attitude, just because they've been there a long time, and take a lot longer to see consequences for their actions (or inaction) compared to newer folks.