ZERO WORK/LIFE BALANCE - SLAVE LABOR - Assistant Store Manager Cracker Barrel Employee Review

2.0
15 Jul 2018
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

No serving of alcohol which means dealing with fewer drunks. The health benefits are adequate considering the health care system got butchered by the last administration.

Cons

The hours are LONG. I worked 60+ hour weeks regularly. MANY weeks of 6-7 days in a row before having a day off to rest and then if you have a family and a home there is no rest. Several times I was scheduled to close (getting done at 2 am), then had to drive nearly two hours to meetings only a few hours later, then after a 4-6 hour meeting I was required to go back to the store to work a closing shift after the meeting. Do the math: begin work at 2 pm, work till 2 am, get home, wired from working twelve hours, in the bed by 4:30-5:00 am; up again to go to another meeting two+ hours away; in a six hour meeting; driving two hours to get to the store after the meeting; then closing the store (again working until usually 2 am; then driving home. That's 36 hours in 1.5 days with maybe 3 hours of rest. This was a frequent occurrence and this is not what I was told at the interview for this company. I was lied to by the regional who said 60 hour work weeks would be rare and only at the holidays like Thanksgiving/Christmas. Multiple times I was the only acting manager on duty working without a shift leader. Multiple times I had back of the house people walk out mid-shift due to the astronomical workload and the crummy pay. Cracker Barrel pays much less than similar concepts. So guess who gets stuck washing dishes until 2 am after doing the mountain of closing duties already assigned to managers? Time after time I was left alone to manage busy night shifts with no help--often down to 2-3 servers on busy Friday and Saturday nights. This job buries you in major stress and upper management is dishonest. Like I said, no quality of life. My family saw me no more than 12-13 hours per week for long stretches at a time. This isn't a career, it's a slave trade.

Explore other reviews about Cracker Barrel

5.0
8 Jun 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Great career with a reliable schedule and pay.

Cons

High stress environment with some physical adjustments.

2.0
3 Jun 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Most coworkers were genuinely great to work with and made shifts more enjoyable. * The guest interaction and serving aspect of the job is something I personally enjoy. * Some shifts could be positive depending on staffing and team on duty.

Cons

*Management was often unprofessional with inconsistent communication and expectations. * Certain coworker behavior occasionally affected morale and created a less positive work environment. * There was a noticeable blame culture where issues were not handled in a constructive way. * In my experience, bringing up workplace concerns or uncomfortable situations did not always feel welcomed or supported, and it sometimes felt like speaking up led to negative attention. * Scheduling and hours were inconsistent, making it hard to rely on stable income. * Inconsistent scheduling sometimes resulted in difficult shift patterns, including working split doubles (such as 9–3 followed by a 4–close shift), which often meant not getting out until around 10:30 PM and then repeating the pattern on consecutive days. * Training was limited, and expectations were often unclear, which made the job more stressful than it needed to be. * In my experience, HR concerns or formal complaints did not feel like they were taken seriously or addressed in a meaningful way.

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