Half Price Books reviews

The company doesn't provide many bonuses like they used to. The company portrays itself as if it is always losing money, when in fact now that we're selling on Amazon and frequently having blowout clearance sales, they're making more than ever. The money is not shared with employees who worked their tail off, but rather the company uses that profit to open more and more stores states away from where we are working hardest. It's becoming quite frustrating. It's also a job where you hear a lot of dissatisfied customers complain to you and/or yell occasionally, especially now that our "monthly coupons" are only for 10% off a purchase. So it's not a job for somebody who has thin skin when it comes to criticism. Some days you can work 8-4, then the next day 2-10, so some days balancing what you do in life outside of work becomes secondary to your job.

Management teams vary based on the store. The laid-back environment leads to employees who've been there long enough to be complacent and jaded (including managers), which is aggravating if you're trying to follow policies and find books good homes. Because the company is good/easy to work for, and it's rare to get fired, openings for advancement are fairly rare. Dealing with literally hundreds of books every day (sometimes thousands) can make you jaded, and requires that huge numbers are recycled. The workload is constant, and can kill your motivation. Considering the amount of work required, the pay is too low to keep good employees very long (including management).