At the supermarket... official MoneySavingExpert....

[MSE Lawrence]

This is a special discussion as part of the

Boost Your Income

article, all about

Working at the supermarket

which is part of the Work, work, work section

Please feel free to add your comments, suggestions or questions

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[Little Pickle]

Hi there anyone know if supermarkets still do night-time shelf stacking? and if so, is it minimum wage??
thanks!
LP
xox

[tara28]

i work for asda and get just under 8 quid an hour

[Shoey1610]

Hi

I'm thinking of working in a supermarket short term whilst I make a career change, I'm particularly looking at sainsburys as it is closest. Can anyone tell me what the shift times are, or are they flexible? Also any rough idea of wage?

[Badger_Lady]

I worked part-time at Tesco for several months before getting a promotion. The best way to find out about what's on offer is to ask in-store - they usually have a standard recruitment pack that they can give you, including leaflets describing the work and an application form. Tesco also have a short "personality" quiz (I spent some time marking these!).

The application pack I received was really quite generic, and was enough to get you in for an interview and discuss the hours / roles you'd be interested in / are available.

I think I had the ideal job - I did 7-10am on weekdays only (full-time job were happy for me to do 10am-6pm), and my job was to price goods up, mostly applying discounts to things.

It was very quiet at that time of the morning (low risk of bumping into colleagues) and I could go back in and buy all the bargains after my shift... My best buy was a batch of Seimens Poppy phones that had been marked down 60%, and I sold them on eBay for their original price!

[Shoey1610]

Thanks, thats really helpful. I just need something to tide me over whilst I do some unpaid work experience so it sounds like it is definately going to be an option!

[missim]

I did temp night shift at Sainsbury, approx 7.50 an hour, good, but i'd reccommend for this shift a very local branch, mine was a bit of a trek which is no fun for this shift.

[learning_to_drive]

I worked at ASDA and Sainsburys (part time then full time) so can give advice if anyone needs anything.

ASDA nightshift is hard work, not that anyone is scared of it, but it's really hard going,

[hacksawcats]

Can anyone tell me if any of the supermarkets would be looking for someone who could only work weekends? and does anyone know how long the shifts are? Or does anyone have any ideas for work in the evening every other week? or evening weekend work (already got a part time job, but it's only every other week and I have my son to look after at weekends in the day) tks in advance.

[Lou3000]

I've worked in our local Co-op supermarket for 12 months. They pay £5.61 per hour - which of course is taxed! They do have 10% discount which is something, I suppose :confused: I work weekends but we don't get double-time, just normal rate.

The problem, I've found, with working in the supermarket is that very often we are short staffed. This being the case, it's rare for them to take on new staff who specify the times they prefer to work. The only thing I was able to choose was if I didn't want to work the late shift (1-10), but I've had to do it lots of times when we are short staffed.

Depends which supermarket you are lucky enough to work for, I suppose. Ours is the only supermarket in the area so it's a case of them or nothing. I have a friend who works at Tescos in Glasgow and she earns about £8 an hour - and her cost of living is half that of mine plus Tescos stuff is much cheaper. :confused: so her discount gets her even more for her money

[debrag]

Do suprmarkets usually advertise in store? I mean do they have a poster or board? I'm looking at evening/weekend work - after 6pm evenings, all day Sunday & afternoon/evening saturdays. Am I not being flexible?

[elliep]

I think your best bet is to go to your local store, or the one you want to work for. Ask at their customer service desk for an application. When you get in for interview then you an ask about your preferred work patterns ad remember that even if they offer you the job, if it isn't what you want then you don't have to take it.

[Smamfer]

Can i add also all supermarkets have their own websites and normally have a situations vacant area on their page covering all stores so may be worth a look

[A new Start]

As far as I know all of Sainsburys store recruitment is done online now, so here's the link to the page from their site.

If you're not sure on the role leave it blank and it will show all vacancies in the store you've searched for.

https://access.sainsburys.co.uk/OA_H...fYBFRlYdlc9g..

[Wang]

Not all stores use on line recruitment - some use the job centre - but either way it's always a good idea to go in and ask, especially one of the personnell/management team - it can go a long way if you get an interview and they remember how keen you were.

In terms of supermarkets own websites, the advertised jobs are predominantly supervisory / management roles, unless it is a new store opening where mass recruitment is on the go.

Often being able to work weekends / evenings (as well as being available most days & at short notice) is an advantage - most of the full time staff prefer to work mon - fri & get weekends off, which can be a rare treat in retail.

[moraystella]

Hi

I was very interested to reaqd about working at supermarkets at weekends

Where I used to live I had six jobs - yes really:

Main job in IT : 12-8
Cleaning jobs x 2 : 8-11 tuesday and wednesday
Shop : sat 7-1 and sunday 8-6
Farm: every day 4 am to 7 am and 9 pm to 10 pm
Petrol station : flexible hours between 7 am and 11 pm

and I had a young family

I also did babysitting

Having moved to Scotland three years ago I am finding it impossible to find a second job let alone a sixth!

I worked for a few months cleaning holiday cottages but that was seasonal

There seems to be no private cleaning

I have applied to every supermarket, shop and petrol station within 30 miles without success as well as factories such as Walkers and Baxters

I can find no adverts for babysitters

I have an excellent CV and references and loads of experience

My income is less than half of what it was and I am becoming further and further in debt

What am I doing wrong??

I would love some advice/suggestions :confused:

[CLOSECALL]

I work for The Cooperative Group and I certainly do not get paid extra for working at the weekend, nor during the evening and do not get extra for working bank holidays

[babsbrian]

i have applied online quite a few times for job's in supermarkets can't even get an interveiw i think they look at my age ( 60 ) but i tell you i am a hard worker and not a slacker

[silentotter]

I have just recently been made redundant and am considering apply to work in a supermarket. I have no experience of working in a supermarket as I have had mostly office jobs, would this stop me from getting a job in a supermarket?

Which supermarket is best to work for?

[rrr]

does any1 know how to get a job in a supermarket likeTESCO or ASDA, i never worked in a supermarket, the only place ive worked for is INDIAn Restaurant,im a uni student and would like to get a parttime supermarket job