Pros
Good pay rates if you can stick it out for a few years. It starts on the low side, but after the five year mark you start to make a decent wage. Currently tops out at about $32 per hour, which is good for an entry level job with no prerequisites. Benefits are good. Health, Vision and Dental coverage. Free flights on standby. They have a point based system where you can purchase gift cards and other goods for having perfect attendance which is awarded monthly. Good values for a company that is ultimately out to make a profit. Stable, good set of ethics, have not seen any layoffs in the 4 1/2 years I've worked. Very physical job. If you like working outdoors and keeping active, this is a great option. Strong Union. Probably one of the strongest I've worked with. Pretty good at negotiating contracts, and they are good at keeping people from getting screwed over by a supervisor with a chip on their shoulder. I've seen lots of folks who were fired for whatever reason get their jobs back, and they tend to give good advice when you aren't sure of a policy.
Cons
Very physically demanding. If you aren't in shape, or have issues with health, this might not be for you. You'll stacking bags in a bin, on your knees, trying to move bags that can way up to 99 pounds and freight that can get up to 200+. You're subject to whatever weather comes your way. Where I work, we get everything from rain, to high wind, to severe storms, to snow. Temperatures can get to either extreme from -20 to 105+, and the conditions of the ramp go anywhere from a sheet of ice to being like standing on an oven. Consider the weather in your area and ask yourself if you can handle working in those conditions daily. Seniority based, with many stations having staff that have been around for 15+ years. Depending on the station, some of the smaller ones will undoubtedly be hard to get the hours you want. On top of that, mandatory OT is issued by seniority starting at the bottom, so if you wind up in a very senior station, expect to get hit up very frequently with forced overtime. While the Management at headquarters generally have good values, this does not quite apply to the management of the station you work at. Expect to see the same things you would see in most jobs, with supervisors that just hate you and hate the world, and administration that is just plain incompetent from time to time. Many of the supervisor staff come off the streets directly into their job and have no experience in actual ramp activities. There is a very strong Us vs. Them mentality, at least in my station. Monthly bids for your weekly schedule occur every month or bi-monthly, depending on your station. All of it is done through paper. Have to plan your vacations around it to ensure you don't miss the week a bid rolls out, or have a bid on file that you know you can hold.