store clerk

commis

conseiller

porteur funéraire

assistant de gestion

Renaissance

I started at Renaissance with optimism, but quickly faced some difficulties, especially with management. My manager often spoke in a dismissive and impatient manner—snapping his fingers to hurry tasks, frequently calling me by the wrong name despite corrections, and repeatedly telling female employees to smile.

The work environment is fast-paced with high expectations, and there’s little flexibility. Scheduling is often communicated only one day in advance, which makes personal planning difficult. Overtime is not compensated, and employees are pressured to encourage customers to round up their purchases for donations, even though we aren’t offered commission or bonuses.

There are strict and sometimes inconsistently applied dress code rules. For example, hats are not allowed unless for religious reasons, sleeveless shirts are prohibited even in hot weather and shorts and capris aren’t permitted even if worn modestly. Long skirts, however, are acceptable. These kinds of policies, while understandable in part, often felt arbitrary in practice.

While the majority of my coworkers were friendly and supportive, the management style, particularly from the lead manager, made the workplace stressful and uncomfortable. I know of at least three people—including an assistant manager—who left within 1.5 months under his leadership. Another assistant manager asked myself and two other female coworkers out, which added to the unease.

I’m concerned that these kinds of behaviours are tolerated, and I believe they’ve contributed to the high turnover. If you value a respectful and supportive environment, this may not be the right fit.

What is the best part of working at the company?
You learn a lot. There is a lot of collaboration and respect among team members. It's very successful company where you can get the best training in retail.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
it is always super busy, you have to be an excellent planner. It's action, action, action all the time. It is challenging, you always feel you have to improve your performances.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Respect, inclusion, diversity, work ethics are Renaissance core values. It is important to be polite with each other and take advantage of everyone' strengths.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Arriving at work I punch, then I look at the poster indicating where I am assigned. I can be assigned to assembly to prepare the goods that will be placed in the store. During assembly, sorting and labeling are carried out. I can be assigned to the floor and cabins to place items or assist customers trying on clothes. I can be assigned to the cash register. I answer customers' questions, I guide them. At the checkout, I log the bags of customers entering the store, I show them the "boutique products" in a window, I do the transactions and with the manager we prepare the deposit envelopes and take them to the Bank.

Renaissance Goodwill is in the fact Renaissance thrift store in Montreal. This review is for the Distribution Center at 5900 Ferrier, Montreal. This is the place that receives all donations from the donation centers around Montreal, and reships the items to the several Renaissances stores to be sold. This location at 5900 Ferrier street near Decarie has two sections: a store and a large distribution warehouse (behind the store). A few dozen people work inside the distribution warehouse: the work is terribly physical because they deal with very heavy bins that come by trucks at high pace. This warehouse is very understaffed ("saving money") therefore the work peace is constantly extreme. You will not find such strenuous work even in the third world countries.

At my workplace we do encounter tough times as well as fun times. This is what  every work environment encounters. At the end of the day we all put a big smile when we leave work. I learnt a lot about management as a boss by asking curious questions about their role in their position. I would one day want to be in their position and be ready with all the information collected to run my workplace. There is no harm in learning something new and there is limitless space for education. Hardest part of the job in my field is the number crunching in production. There is competition everywhere and we all want to be at the top position. The enjoyable part is when everyone encourages each other to do their part well to hit the straight line to success. Everyone`s role counts to run the workplace well.

I've worked in the donation centers, bookstores, at Reception and at Human Resources, so I can attest that there are lots of opportunities for growth for those who are interested.

The company is growing quickly, so in some ways we're still learning; but there's a lot of good will and desire to change and get better.

My co-workers are fantastic, and the #1 reason I get up in the morning. It also helps to have a social mission--the pay isn't always commensurate with the private sector, but it's nice to work for a company where you see who you're helping (and it's not share holders.)

Definitely a place to get a lot of experience.

Although I liked everyone I worked with, I had to leave because I felt how much it exploits these poor people by making them work like animals for minimum wage. The company makes a lot of profit for a non profit organization. It is true that their profit does not go to owners, but it is used to grow the business more and expand to have more donation centers. More donation centers means only more work on the backs of the workers. we literally had no rest and we are not allowed to talk to each other but we're supposedly a team!  environment is not safe, not faire, we are all adults but management treats us like children. 

A good place to start for the immigrants speaking french. Not recommended for english speakers. Inclusive environment, appreciation of good work. Non-negociable work schedule. Sometimes inequality in workload between workers are noticeable. Management is good but, not too much empathetic. Very poorly paid for the amount of workload. Must be standing on your feet for nearly 6.5 hours everyday. Start with it, but, if get better options, better skip.

You sort and receive donations, either directly by the people, or by Renaissance themselves in a big truck everyday. It's a physical job. The schedule was always changing every week, wich I didn't like. Lots of new employees come and go; even with the management. The salary was abysmal; way underpaid for breaking your back. They don't offer anything to protect your back or your feet; just a cheap pair of gloves. The team was so big and always changing, that you don't really feel connected. It's more a buisness than what their "mission" tells you. Every morning, it's always about money and profit. 

So far, à lot of manual labor, around 90% labor, 10% driving, poor equipment, rundown trucks, disorganized, they try to make you do some warehouse work as much as possible, they lack warehouse employees and have more drivers than they have trucks to drive, benefits kick in after 6 months, very little to no incentives, and the pay is very low to start. Entry level job at best. The one redeemer is that everyone is nice and great to work with, but I can't put that in the bank. 

The work environment depends on the group you're working with.  The supervisors can be stressful and demanding (more hours than you're paid for are expected from you).  Otherwise, the other employees on your level are making the job livable.  One week off at Christmas but they expect a lot from you in return.

Top Job Titles	Average salary
Store clerk 39 salaries reported	$17.00 per hour
Commis 16 salaries reported	$18.03 per hour
Conseiller 2 salaries reported	$26.68 per hour
Porteur funéraire 1 salary reported	$19.15 per hour
Assistant de gestion 12 salaries reported	$20.29 per hour

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