Pros
I worked for both corporate owned and franchised locations and to be completely honest, the franchise store were much better run that the company stores. I worked with some great General Managers and I've worked with some people who let a tiny bit of power go straight to their head. It really depends on the store.
Cons
Quality of life is low. Poorly written manager schedules leave you frequently sleep deprived. I would work a close mid open at least once a week in spite of the company guidelines given during orientation stating this is to happen only in extermis. 60+ hour weeks are common. Stores run for months with 2 managers. Bonus is based on sales over last year but consideration is not given for mitigating circumstances. Deferred maintenance seems to be the norm. I worked at one store that flooded in the kitchen every Sunday for a year before we were allowed to have more than Roto-rooter look at it. Unsafe and sometimes unsanitary conditions are allowed to go on because they are too expensive to fix. Managers are expected to do landscaping and repairs in their "spare time".
