Pros
While done on a case by case basis, Enterprise is known for their flex hours. Every week MT's and MA's are given a half day off, but that can be split however you want (as long as it does not affect the branch negatively). Parents may be able to choose to leave an hour early each day instead of taking the half day. Like to have a nice siesta? 2 hour lunches every day. Also, Enterprise solely hires from within. Therefore, any holes filled by turnover/termination are filled by Enterprise employees, which is always nice.
Cons
During the economic downturn, Enterprise made cuts, including in their personnel expense. One way to save money was to cut down on hours that employees worked. Hourly employees (MT/MAs) were forced to work no more than 48 hours, which proved to be massively difficult for management (which is an indication of how much people worked previously). Two things resulted. Either (1) MT's and MA's were asked to work a bit more than 48 hours, but clock in for 48, or, (2 - and most prevalent) management had to work increasingly long hours. As an assistant manager, I put in a 65 hour work week during my last month, with no overtime, nor recognition, of course. Pay was mediocre at best. MT's were paid about 33,000 for a 50 hr work week when I left. MA's had a slight raise over that. Assistant Managers were put on a salary + commission percentage which was "supposed to" total 42,500, but rarely did. Branch managers had a wide range in salary based on the % they agreed to when they got the job, and the increase of income of the branch. Area managers were the spot where people really started getting paid well, but those job opportunities were simply never available. The other part of the job that put alot of stress on employees, was the "Book, no look" philosophy. What this means, is that if anyone calls looking for a car, that the employee was to tell this person that a car is available and to come right in, or "we'll pick you up!" Enterprise bases their system of profit on a utilization method, therefore their occupancy (% of cars on the road) should be as high as possible. So, whether or not a car existed, really was not an issue, as upper management would tell their employees to "figure something out." With no cars available at your branch or any neighboring branches, a customer that you were forced to lie to would be forced to sit and wait at your branch until a car got returned. Needless to say, that customer is usually not pleased. Also, a reservation means something different in the real world than it does in the Enterprise world. Most people operate under the assumption that making a reservation means that you have something reserved for you, and only you. Not the case with Enterprise. In the busy season, specialty vehicles (like minivans, large SUV's, sometimes cargo vans) are booked on a reservation basis, but otherwise, there is no such thing as "sold out." Therefore, you are forced to make as many reservations as possible, and deal with the fact that there are no cars available. If a corporate account or dealership calls looking for a car, and you have 1 car left with 5 reservations remaining? "Sorry Mr. Smith, your car's brakes were a problem and we had to send the car to the shop. Sorry Mrs. Jones, your car was overheating and had to be sent to the shop." These are certainly not all the poor business practices that you'll see, but they are the most prevalent.
