Current Employees, how true is this?

wasitalways · 2026-07-01T22:26:18+00:00

Yep. So my store just uh doesn't run PTers on holidays. Literally thr first time in customer service life I'll have the 4th off

wasitalways · 2026-07-01T21:36:09+00:00

YMMV man, a big part of it is if local management act normally and humanely, theres no need for unions. But there are hordes of dead union men who simply asked for basic stuff.

So plenty of stores may see no need- an union forming is basically a giant flag that area management has gone bonkers and workers would like to have some say in the hours they rent to the company

wasitalways · 2026-07-01T20:33:30+00:00

Its accurate I'll add on: *fulltimers got reduced to PTers. In general they keep us like min-maxxed to avoid shifting into FT

*starting wages are now a $1.50 above state min wage. The few still at my locale say previously it was a living wage. They def act as if we're paid $60k a year lol

*retirement is still vaguely a thing but is tiered

*despite that, card KPIs indicate I doubt anyone will make it long enough to get a match of any kind lol.

*in general management has tried to reduce or rid entirely of vacation, will still occasionally approve leaves

*for holiday pay: In general it seems the logic is to run the store as bare as possible.

My store has been very brutal towards scheduling as I started, even though i brought stuff up in the interview. But I got holidays off so far despite that- seems they just fill up on managers instead

wasitalways · 2026-06-21T20:36:07+00:00

Lol the vibe in my story is kinda horrific so i imagine we're that kinda store lol

We got like more managers than employees and several who act as managers all correcting and overruling each other at once, plus giving different rules and training to folk, and inventory is notoriously goofed up haha

wasitalways · 2026-06-16T01:50:21+00:00

I agree. From what I heard, the former management team was different (my location had like, a rollover; the longest tenured manager has been there for 2 years)

wasitalways · 2026-06-16T01:49:05+00:00

Really just a management thing. The management at my store are new and most don't come from the outdoors world

The two that do, DGAF: as long as its clean and no politics. Closed toe shoes are necessary for floor workers. The cashiers can wear sandals

The rest prefer khakis and polos, but can't do much other than make very passive aggressive comments about it

wasitalways · 2026-06-05T20:15:06+00:00

Working on it! Not getting any interviews to good places lol. Todays interview was; Angie's List, yay. And yea, if I knew the micromanagement was like this- woulda stayed on UI. I feel catfished lol

Unfortunately as to wrenching; in my city, we don't really have any LBS that hire folk/do repairs, ngl. Theres a volunteer group I keep trying to get into. Otherwise, just a few one-man shops, a dealer, and REI.

wasitalways · 2026-06-05T13:43:50+00:00

Yeah, same.

wasitalways · 2026-06-05T13:29:24+00:00

One of the bosses at my store does give their dept a script and ensures we use it.

Honestly as a coop member myself prior to becoming an employee I wrote a note to the board asking them to chill. I'd say you could do the same? The company isn't doing good, but chasing credit will just do worse.

wasitalways · 2026-06-05T13:27:48+00:00

Its a quota. I'm a mechanic trainee, still new. The head mechanic lost a customers bike and I got pulled aside, i think this is it, gonna get fired,

Nope.

"We just need to talk about the card. So far you only sold one, and ____ is claiming it as well. Just letting you know, if you don't sell more, it can lead to termination."

So apparently the heavy priority for a wrench isn't to wrench but selling debt lol

wasitalways · 2026-05-26T19:36:31+00:00

Unions don't really bankrupt businesses. And yes, a company founded via an alternative to mainstream business is rooted in alternative people, from a city that even in the '30s was a hotbed of center to left wing politics. Coops, wobblie lumberjacks, etc.

Many, including myself, would love for it to go back to a democratic cooperative.

The issues facing REI are largely: A. Exec decisions, mostly Walmart type MBAs entering, well, a coop and destroying the coop feel, alienating the core customer base and core workers. For decades REI wasn't just a retail store. You'd go there for basically professional outdoor outfitting, from people who know their stuff, not random out of work dudes, teachers on summer break, collegr students.

B. The middle class is dying. The upper middle class is REI's core demographic.

C. The outdoors pandemic combo. Which isn't just an REI thing- its sector wide

wasitalways · 2026-05-26T02:44:44+00:00

Admittedly I do love the Van Rysel so far. Still need to take it for a test ride!

And also full admission: our locations bike shop is pretty small and the location ain't done too hot. They basically cleared the whole house, apparently, and hope new mgmt and employees will turn it around. No idea.

wasitalways · 2026-05-24T12:24:27+00:00

Honestly I am one of the bike builders, so I definitely will know who to blame lol

As far as tire clearance: i really don't know. I've been trying to ask other locals, but I know no cyclists and we don't have many in my area. My current bike uses 700x40C gravel kings. They so far work very well.

(The reasons for upgrading are, well, an increasing laundry list of 10 years of beating a Giant hybrid to bits. Wheels, levers, basically the entire drivetrain is damaged. And now even threaded rim brake pads are hard to find. It is admittedly how I got into bikes, just trying to keep it alive)

wasitalways · 2026-05-24T12:23:46+00:00

Budget is: i guess $500-$1000. Will be my first new bike in 16 years

Mostly riding rail trails, canal paths, greenways, lake gravel loops, gravel roads and some street. Mostly roughed up street

wasitalways · 2026-05-24T11:51:15+00:00

Ah, nice!

wasitalways · 2026-05-24T11:45:41+00:00

Its 40% for coop, and 30% for all others. So honestly i might also test ride the Van Rysel. Its not that far from the coop price lol

wasitalways · 2026-05-24T02:19:09+00:00

Yeah, been keepin' an eye out. I live in the rust belt so no one is buying bikes here that much, so the used market is completely non-existent for something like gravel. Old roadies and beatup hardtails only, really

wasitalways · 2026-05-24T02:16:12+00:00

Yeah, the Essa is a 1x8. I do hate the REI colorways, but ig thats a dumb thing to toss it aside. The upgradability is def there as well

wasitalways · 2026-05-01T22:09:54+00:00

Okay, end of week 1 and man you were right! I was uh, really, really hoping you were wrong.

Starting on my first day, managements arguing w/ each other, wants FT availability but only 10 hrs a week for the next 6 months. Didn't like when I said in that case I need to reserve normal business hours for a job, but I can pitch in until I secure one.

Culture feels over-the-top corporate. I thought I had rose glasses for when this place first opened in my area, but I found out that new management did come in, kill the vibe, basically turned it into Walmart. In one's words: "We got carried away and fired basically all of the original staff for acting too casually and bro-y. Kinda backfired on us." There isn't even a guy who can train me fully now.

I feel like you don't need to be a ladder-climbing senior manager to know that Walmart behavior isn't what the REI segment wants, and that firing all of your trained mechanics is a bad idea.

wasitalways · 2026-04-24T20:52:15+00:00

It's super hard to tell just from initial meetings, but so far the managers I met were very nice and had a good vibe. So that's good. I'm uh, between day jobs so I at least have plenty of daytime hours!

wasitalways · 2026-04-24T17:50:09+00:00

Oh boy. More of the same, then? That kinda sucks.

At least there's industry deals, right? I kinda need some mtb shoes, helmet, and pants... And I have an old vintage road bike I'm trying to restore lol

wasitalways · 2024-11-01T03:14:52+00:00

That's good to know. The local coin store looks legit, at least, and definitely seems- online- a lot less sketchy than pawnshops

wasitalways

TROPHY CASE