Marks & Spencer Employee Reviews about "benefit"
68% would recommend to a friend
(653 total reviews)
Stuart Machin
76% approve of CEO
Found 653 of over 9K reviews
Updated 5 Dec 2023
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Top Review Highlights by Sentiment
Excerpts from user reviews, not authored by Glassdoor
- "The pay is good and the company treats you well which is one of the best things about working with M&S." (in 863 reviews)
- "Most colleagues are friendly and personable; more of a 'we're all in this mess together' kind of friendship." (in 403 reviews)
- "Poor management at time because too many managers on departments that they are not fit to run and just 'wig it'." (in 588 reviews)
- "We were not allowed an extra short break to warm up even working with no heating." (in 108 reviews)
Reviews about "benefit"
Return to all Reviews- 1.08 Jul 2016Anonymous EmployeeFormer Employee
Pros
I wondered what it was like to work for Marks and Spencer and found out.
Cons
I received bullying and verbal abuse from management and members of staff, ( this was at times homophobic). I would of had more money to live on had I been unemployed and claimed benefit. The myth that M&S looks after its staff seemed not to apply to everyone, unpleasant atmosphere, when I would get home I just felt like crying, I was glad to leave the place.
- 4.012 Aug 2016Customer AssistantFormer Employee, more than 1 year
Pros
Excellent training and introduction to the overall business with many opportunities for progression if you are willing to work hard. A very friendly environment where you will make friends for life with colleagues.
Cons
As it is retail you may be asked to work during anti-social hours on evenings and at weekends but sad they are getting rid if all the benefits for doing so.
- 3.019 May 2015Sales AssistantCurrent Employee, less than 1 yearLondon, England
Pros
A decent start to a career in retail and if you work hard enough there is potential for growth within the company.
Cons
Working in a smaller store not much training is offered and there's not much benefits. A lot of older staff are favored and stuck in their ways. Can be very dis-organised and a lack of communication between management and staff.
- 4.026 Jun 2014Anonymous EmployeeCurrent Employee, more than 10 years
Pros
M&S have a reputation for having great people and it's true that so many staff are hugely committed and passionate about our brand. There's no limit to how for your career can progress as long as you have the drive and ambitions and are prepared to put yourself out there. At times you may have to wait to progress, but at other times people progress quickly as they are prepared to access the opportunities. Although benefits have been seen to reduce over the years, M&S is still a great place to work with a strong ethic for work life balance. Long hours and hard work are put in by choice rather than pressure. The Business strategy has it's sights on the long term and I agree with much of it. It takes a while to turn such a huge company round, but feel we're heading in the right direction, particularly with our food Division.
Cons
Challenging cost cutting sometimes impacts the staff in stores more than the Head Office environment. Pay and benefits may look less attractive than other retailers who don't necessarily offer the same environment or values that M&S does.
- 2.012 Mar 2013Sales AssistantCurrent Employee, more than 5 yearsBirmingham, England
Pros
20% discount. Other benefits but only if you could be bothered to go through the process of signing up for them. Love the people I work with, they are hard working and go beyond everything they are required to do and we are a close knit team.
Cons
Firstly morale within the whole store has plummeted within recent years and that has effected the standard of customer service as no one seems to enjoy working there anymore. Also there is so much that management want us to include with our customer service that it comes across robotic. There is no thanks from upper management for the work you do. Not enough staff to do everything they want as they have cut back so much and not replaced staff that have left, you end up taking on the work of 3 people. Upper management don't interact with sales floor staff unless to criticize or to give us more jobs to do on top of the ones we already have. No real flexibility with working hours but they would do things for you if it benefited them. Poor communication between management and staff, you weren't told anything unless you asked. Poor pay for what you do every day and the bonus was just demoralising this year!
2 - 3.018 May 2017Customer AssistantFormer Employee, less than 1 yearSheffield, England
Pros
-The pay is very good compared to other retailers
Cons
- Temp contracts,not guaranteed any work after weekly/monthly contract ends. Also means you don't get any of the benefits such as holidays and sick pay. - Management not that helpful - Older staff not very welcoming of newbies.
1 - 5.012 Nov 2018Anonymous EmployeeFormer Employee, more than 3 yearsEpsom, England
Pros
Very supportive when my mother died and good benefits
Cons
Staff shortages and retention issues
- 5.020 Jul 2022Customer AssistantCurrent Employee, more than 3 yearsManchester, England
Pros
Friendly Good Managers Good Benefits and Discount
Cons
Gets very busy during sale season!
Marks & Spencer Response2yHi there, thank you for leaving us a review. We are glad to hear that you have friendly colleagues, good managers and good benefits and discount. We are always trying to find ways to improve, we appreciate your feedback. Marks and Spencer
- 4.03 Jan 2019Customer AssistantFormer Employee, more than 1 yearBicester, England
Pros
I enjoyed working at Marks, everyone is really friendly and they really make you feel like part of the team. Good pay especially as I was 18 when I started and many companies like to take advantage of that, but at M&S I got paid the same as everyone else. Most the time they let me stay on the till because they knew I enjoyed carrying out that work. They have excellent benefits such as 20% staff discount and offers on cinema tickets etc through Perks at Work
Cons
The hours can be very early or very late, with 6am starts and 8pm finishes. Everyone is contractually made to work saturdays
- 4.030 Sept 2018Commercial ManagerCurrent Employee, more than 10 years
Pros
Passionate team, great brand, great products and fairly good work life balance. Great company benefits and a board of directors we finally trust to do the right thing! We now seem to be acting with pace to turn the company around.
Cons
Acting with pace and raising the bar is absolutely the right thing to do but doing so with less staff and less hours is not! The only thing it means is that the management team now work longer hours and have more stress as they are the ones picking up the shortfall!! Stuart Machin is great and his vision is very clear however the expectations are not always realistic!!
