I've never worked for Costco, but as a longtime Costco member (for 20 years!), I've always gotten the impression that Costco is a good place to work. As of February 2024, Costco ranks No. 61 on Forbes' list of America's Best Large Employers, and 74% of Costco employees on Glassdoor would recommend Costco to a friend.
One of the biggest strengths of Costco is the quality of its work environment. Based on my observations over the years, Costco employees just have a little more spring in their step compared to most retail environments. They seem happier to be there, and they're quick to help answer questions.
Shoppers don't just go to Costco for low prices; they go to get a curated customer experience, to go on "treasure hunts," to find exactly the right items to make their everyday lives better. People are willing to pay higher prices for Costco memberships if they can get enough value out of the deal -- and making Costco a better place to work is part of that grand bargain.
Here are a few special perks that come with working for Costco -- and why Costco members are happy to help keep paying for generous Costco employee benefits.
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1. Full Costco benefits for part-timers
You don't have to be a full-time Costco employee to get benefits like health insurance and dental insurance -- part-time employees at Costco also get the same full-time benefits package. This can make Costco a great place to work for stay-at-home parents who are re-entering the workforce, later-career workers who want to downshift to a part-time job before retirement, or younger people who want to work part-time while earning a college degree.
2. Career development
Costco tends to promote a lot of managers and executives from within the company. If you work hard, love what you do, and feel motivated to grow, you can make Costco a career. Here are a few career development programs that Costco offers to employees:
- Journeys for All: Offers career education, mentoring, and networking.
- Student retention programs: If you're a college student, you can keep working at Costco while earning your degree.
- Supervisor in Training (SIT): Helps connect warehouse employees with opportunities for future management roles.
3. Plenty of paid time off
Costco offers paid sick leave, paid vacation time, eight paid holidays, and one paid "floating" holiday that employees can choose for themselves. Costco also has paid "bonding" leave for new parents. Although the Costco website does not specify how much paid time off its employees get, other surveys have found that Costco employees get an average of 20-30 days of paid vacation per year, based on how much they work.
4. Twice-yearly bonuses ("Extra Checks")
At Costco, it's not just the top executives who get annual bonuses. Costco gives twice-yearly bonuses, known as "Extra Checks," to its hourly employees. According to discussion among Costco employees on Reddit, Costco employees can qualify for "Extra Checks" by working at least 1,000 hours in a year, and if you work less than that, you can get a lower prorated amount of the bonus. This is a nice perk for hourly retail workers, especially for part-time employees who can get extra cash even without a full-time work schedule.
5. Employee-friendly scheduling
One challenge of working in retail, or any part-time job, is not knowing when or how much work you'll have in any given week. Some companies do not make life easy for employees, because they're constantly changing schedules and not giving people any predictability.
Compared to many retailers, Costco appears to be more employee-friendly with its scheduling. Costco offers its employees guarantees of minimum scheduled hours, and posts its weekly schedules at least two weeks in advance so people can plan ahead.
Bottom line
As far as we can tell, Costco employees do not get legendary perks like free hot dogs or free stuff from the Costco shelves. But they do get highly competitive pay and generous benefits, beyond the usual 401(k) plan.
Costco is offering an employee-friendly way of doing business that (hopefully) leads to happier workers and happier shoppers. When employees can get extra cash in their bank accounts and feel well cared for at work, it's a win-win for everyone -- customers, workers, and Costco stock shareholders.
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