barista

café manager

cafe assistant

store manager

kitchen worker

Gloria Jeans Coffees

I only worked at Gloria Jeans for about 2 months because it was so bad. Although, given the amount of hours i worked, i probably worked there for an equivalent of 6 months . 
Gloria Jeans may be a good workplace for some, but the store's owner at this specific workplace created a workplace that was pretty awful. The pay was average, pretty much the same as every other fast food/coffee shop - type job. And the actual work day and jobs available were fairly ok. I would prepare cold drinks, cook and work at the register. This was good work but when it got busy, this became kinda stressful.
However, it was the owner of the store that made my experience unbearable. He always paid me incorrectly, was disorganised when it came to rostering, he would literally sit there and watch me working, correcting every little thing i did wrong. And i can understand him wanting to make me work harder, but he balance none of his many criticisms with  praise. I would go above and beyond to ensure that his coffee shop was running accordingly and he stood there and pointed out the most insignificant things! One night, cleaning up, i did't empty the dustpan into the bin. I had only been working there for a week and all of the bin liners were taken out so i assumed it wouldn't be a big deal, and left it until the working. The next day, he had posted onto the groupchat a photo of the dustpan along with a message 'I will not tolerate this laziness! If something like this happens again, there will be severe consequences!' He later looked through security footage to find me not emptying the dust pan and messaged me, angry. When i responded with my explanation about the bins, he refused to relent in his extremely condesending and angry response.
And the culture of the workplace was no better. Everyone hated their jobs and this could be seen through the way they related to others. There was no happy 'hellos' but everyone merely tolerated each other. No one had eachothers backs or trained me when i was new. It was a 'fend for yourself' vibe that wasn't pleasant to be around for such long hours.
And the long hours!! Because so many people had quit due to the owners unpreparedness, we were severely overstaffed. I am a full-time student and he had me working 30 hours a week. I asked for less, and he said that it was nessasary and refused! 
All in all, i quit working at Gloria Jeans and i would never go back. It was a terrible workplace at this specific place, but maybe if you had a better boss, more staff and a more encouaging culture, it could be bearable.

I started as a casual employee whilst at uni and full time when I left uni, and became store manager with new ownership. It’s a shame when the owners are uninterested or not as invested in the business as the store manager. There was a lot of pushing to get stuff done. Business is successful if the owners want it to be successful. The old owners were passionate, driven, and disciplined and this is important. Things would get done timely and properly. Nowadays things are done on a half a** basis and as cheaply as possible. The staff I worked with were great. Sometimes a little conflict over management but again you need the support of owners! I found at times a little stressful but regular customers were awesome. Training staff was fun and watching them grow was even better. I like a supportive environment but it was very up and down. Depending on whether stuff was working properly. In the end I got tired of the “boys club” and as the store manager the pay was poor considering everything done for the business including rosters, hiring staff and training, fixing broken down equipment and acting on behalf of owners with food ordering, delivery and creative decisions, etc. It also became very difficult when staff boundaries were not set. After all GJs is a franchise and certain rules need to be followed (food safety/oh&s/wages). But with all that out the window and owners not caring it was time to move to something better. I wouldn’t recommend unless there’s a shift in attitude from owners and it became more of a professional workplace with decent pay.

When I first started with GJs, I had no interest in coffee, or how it was made, but within 2 months, I was fascinated! From the opening of the store, how everything started, to the closing, and how everything was shut down and stored. 
This position, pushed me to my limits, remembering exact recipes, performing at a fast pace, constantly. It was exciting.
Not only did I learn new recipes, methods, why what was done when it was done, but I learned all about the area through the locals, meeting and greeting them every morning. It was a pleasure to see them leave to begin their day, happy with a coffee in hand.   
Management taught me a lot, and from this I became the manager myself, without their knowledge and support I never would of made it as far as I have. 
My co-workers came from all over the world, this kept the job exciting, learning about traditions from all over the world such as: Ireland, UK, NZ, Australia, China, South Africa, it was a brilliant experience, and makes you realise how rich we all are in different ways.
The hardest part of my job was watching people come and go, we lived in such a transient town that regular customers came and went very often. 
The most enjoyable part of my job, was watching our junior staff progress and flourish, this made my job rewarding and has shown me that I had done a good job. 
Overall, an amazing place to work with great support from the top right to the bottom.

Gloria Jeans is a great, fun, easy place to work at. On the average workday we would make on average 100 coffees, meet a range of new people with different personalities, and would put effort into seeing each customer walk away happy with their beverage.
I learnt how to use a professional coffee machine, I learnt the difference between many types of coffee beans, I learnt that there is more ways to use coffee than you would think, and I learnt how to present myself in a workplace.
The management was great, they kept on top of what was happening, they got involved in everything, they helped clean up after we'd finish our shifts, they helped out when we weren't too sure on what to do.
My co-workers were lovely, they showed me every detail in the simplest way so that I would learn quick, and they understood that when I first started that I would need a fair bit of help with using the equipment and serving people, and they didn't mind, they helped in every way possible.
The hardest part of working at Gloria Jeans Coffee was the peek hour, where we had the most customers come in and we were flat out making coffee and serving food.
The most enjoyable part of the work experience was meeting new people and seeing how happy they were with their food/beverages, and learning many new skills.

This workplace is toxic and the management is terrible. I worked here as a young teen and felt intimidated and belittled on many occasions. Any issues raised with management were always dismissed and ignored. In my over 3 years of employment I never had 1 performance review or meeting, I was never issued any warnings (verbal or written), i was actually promoted on 2 occasions, however when used as a reference they advised the complete opposite and gave false reviews of my work performance (which were dismissed by the company conducting the review as they were unable to substantiate their claims). The manager at the time encouraged another male staff member to continuously harass me and on one occasion they openly discussed my physical appearance and asked him to rate the girls working there on their appearance with the owners present. I asked the owner to put a stop to this and I do not believe anything was done. This led me to eventually leave where I gave 2+ weeks notice, after I left the store I received a text from the owner stating I was no longer welcome there. I would not recommend this workplace to anyone if you value your mental health.

Usually I would come in and my manager would be late to work, so I'd have to wait for her to arrive and open up the store. Once opened, I would have to set everything up by myself, barely any help from her. Once set up, she would only make appearances in the store sometimes, as she always hid away in the stock room, smoking or playing on her phone. The day would get busy and another worker would arrive and help with drinks, while she would idly sit around, not considering that stock and bins still need to be done. Either myself or another worker would have to end up doing that. Drawing to the end of the day, cleaning would mostly be done by myself or any other worker in the shift, not my manager. It is stressful to complete all the work duties in a day all by myself, especially in an environment with hot fluids everywhere. 

With that aside, working at Gloria Jeans has helped me build my barista skills and my customer service skills. It also helped me make several connections with my other coworkers and the customers, and it was always enjoyable to simply make a nice coffee for them.

A typical day at work: Having fun, working as a team and carrying out the job to the best of our ability.

What I learned: I learnt a lot of managerial skills whilst at this job. 

Management: I learnt the correct way to treat staff,and a lot of things regarding how to build a strong team that works together. 

Acknowledging and utilizing peoples abilities and skills to help and share with others.

Co-workers: I got along with all my co-workers, had a lot of respect for each other and good friendships out of the workplace as well. 

Hardest part of the job: There wasn't a particular hard part about this jobs. Obviously in any workplace you have your ups and downs eg, customer complaints and few miss communications. but its all about taking them step by step, communicating with staff and your boss. And solving the problems as quickly and efficiently as possible.

Most enjoyable part: Having a wonderful team of staff members that create a fun and enjoyable environment to turn up to work everyday. A team that works hard and all share the same passion.

My time at Gloria Jean’s has been a fantastic opportunity, starting from a young age, I was able to learn the traits and skills of working in the hospitality business and gaining immense social skills and team leadership. Having on a day to day basis, the involvement with customers, I have been able to learn, in a relaxing and professional environment the initial traits to customer service and communication skills. I enjoy my time at work, working alongside fantastic employee's I have been able to develop long term friendships with; however now coming out of high school I am aiming to start a new path, particularly in a well-established organisation, where I can expand my knowledge and capabilities in the work force.

Trained for over 2 months and only received one chance to "learn" the coffee machine (without help or training from management). Received a scolding after not knowing what to do, still, there was no support. The manager refused to teach the coffee machine after the first opportunity to "learn" how to use the coffee machine. Management also didn't provide many opportunities to learn in other areas (e.g. correct recipes, preparing food/drinks, etc.) were mostly directive and authoritarian, with lots of micromanaging! 

Most employees I befriended were unhappy to work there. The management was unprofessional, with gossiping and talking behind the backs of each employee.

The store I worked for was great, as everyone got along and did their job well. I managed a crew of 6 very different people and customer service was very good and we had a very loyal group of regular customers (mainly seniors). The store was a kiosk in a busy shopping centre so there was always something to do and no one was ever bored or unhappy.


However, Gloria Jeans management (at head office) do not respect their employees and only care about the amount of money coming through. Head office eventually pushed the owner out of business to the point where she lost not only the shop, but her home. All staff lost their jobs, and the company re-opened the shop within a week. The shop I worked at was only one of the MANY shops they did this to.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Barista 3 salaries reported	$31.15 per hour
Café manager 2 salaries reported	$65,000 per year
Cafe assistant 5 salaries reported	$32.41 per hour
Store manager 1 salary reported	$35.00 per hour
Kitchen worker 1 salary reported	$27.00 per hour

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