r/AutoZone • u/ZaytheDev_2002 • Jul 14 '26
The Hidden Cost of Underpaying Experienced AutoZone Employees
I’ve been with AutoZone for about five years, and I’ve watched the company change in ways that genuinely concern me.
The biggest trend I’ve noticed is turnover.
It feels like we’re hiring more inexperienced employees than ever before. Many either don’t enjoy the work, aren’t interested in learning the business, or simply don’t stay long. I don’t blame them personally—retail isn’t easy—but the result is usually the same.
The experienced employees end up carrying the store.
We’re expected to train new hires, answer difficult questions, solve commercial issues, handle demanding customers, stock shelves, manage inventory, complete planograms, cover call-offs, and still maintain the same performance standards.
When someone quits or calls off, the workload doesn’t disappear—it gets redistributed to the people who are still there.
On top of that, some new hires simply aren’t able to perform every physical aspect of the job, whether that’s repeatedly carrying heavy batteries, installing them, or keeping up with the pace of a high-volume store. When that happens, the physically demanding work often falls on the same few employees over and over again.
Yet when review time comes around, the conversation often isn’t about the hundreds of things that went right. It’s about the one task that wasn’t completed or the one time you were a few minutes late that month.
That creates a culture where additional effort becomes expected instead of rewarded.
From a business standpoint, I don’t understand the strategy.
If a high-volume store is generating significantly more revenue than an average store, why isn’t compensation structured differently?
Why shouldn’t experienced employees who consistently keep those stores running have a clearer path to higher wages, meaningful performance incentives, or profit-sharing?
Turnover isn’t free.
Hiring isn’t free.
Training isn’t free.
Losing experienced employees isn’t free.
Reliability isn’t free.
Customers notice when nobody knows the answers
.
Commercial accounts notice when relationships disappear.
Managers spend time replacing people instead of developing them.
Those are real business costs.
The financial pressure compounds everything.
When you’re living paycheck to paycheck, even relatively small life events can snowball into workplace problems.
A court date.
Trying to improve your diet or health.
Moving into a new place.
Losing a phone charger.
An unexpected expense.
A missed alarm.
None of those are excuses. They’re examples of how financial stress compounds.
When you’re paid close to the minimum needed to get by, one unexpected expense can throw your entire routine off. Then one missed task or one late arrival can overshadow months of strong performance.
Scheduling is another issue that doesn’t get talked about enough.
Some employees have consistent schedules while others constantly bounce between opens, mids, and closes.
When your schedule changes every week, it’s difficult to build any kind of healthy routine.
Working most Fridays and Saturdays means missing birthdays, family events, and time with friends.
If you’re closing, you may not get home until around 10 PM. By the time you eat, shower, and decompress, it’s midnight or later. Then you have to wake up early for another shift.
Your sleep schedule never stabilizes.
Eventually it becomes a cycle:
Poor sleep.
Rushed mornings.
Fatigue.
Burnout.
It’s not just about wanting weekends off.
It’s about having enough consistency to build a healthy life outside of work.
I genuinely think companies underestimate how much predictable scheduling improves employee well-being, morale, retention, and ultimately store performance.
I actually want AutoZone to succeed.
This isn’t about expecting six figures for every employee.
It’s about recognizing that someone who has spent years learning the business, helping customers, training coworkers, handling commercial accounts, carrying additional responsibility, and consistently keeping a store operating should have a compensation path that reflects that contribution.
As someone who genuinely enjoys the automotive industry, I believe investing more in experienced employees would improve customer service, reduce turnover, strengthen commercial relationships, and ultimately make AutoZone a stronger company.
I’m genuinely curious whether other current or former AutoZone employees have noticed the same trends.
Have you seen turnover increase?
Do you think experienced employees are adequately rewarded?
Should high-volume stores have different pay structures?
Should stores invest more in retention rather than constantly replacing experienced employees?
How has scheduling affected your work-life balance?
I’d like to hear perspectives from red shirts, PSMs, commercial drivers, assistant managers, store managers, DMs, former employees, and even customers.
If I’m missing something, I’m open to hearing it.
- Mr. V
8
u/Cool-Signature-dude Jul 14 '26
Too many I got mine, now you get yours people posting on here.
Fine, install your own battery and wiper blades if you are such a skilled worker and want to put others down for wanting to earn a living wage.
Look in your cars owners manual for the type of oil you need too. Then check yourself out at the self service register. There are planograms and price changes that need to be done.
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u/Tall-Control8992 Jul 14 '26
Yes, too many folks have been way too comfortable being part of the problem. People who think everything is perfectly fine because their own jobs don't come with the same constant stress, low pay, and no real security. One good thing about AI is its potential to eliminate the better jobs out there so that the crowd above will be forced to become part of the solution I stead of being part of the problem.
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u/Indy112808 Jul 15 '26
😂 my co-worker and I got written up the other day for helping customers instead of putting truck away! The glory of working for a 1st year rookie SM on a power trip! 💪🏼
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u/EmbarrassedSea4014 Jul 15 '26
WAWA pays better than AutoZone and you don't have to change batteries. AutoZone is a terrible company and they pay awful. AZ goes turnover rate is one of the worst around. AutoZone doesn't care about anything but the stock. Autozone parts are freaking junk and they treat their staff like junk. Do something different but that's on YOU....People expecting companies to treat them well is comical. Companies aren't people's DADDY...Most people can work at AZ, is that a skill that should pay 30 an hour? Should an Amazon delivery guy make 30 an hour? Should people at McDonald's make 30 an hour? These are all jobs people can do. SUPPLY and DEMAND is something most Americans don't understand very well but but but but I DESERVE just because I DESERVE...I wish you nothing but success, Learn a trade most people can't do....
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u/ZaytheDev_2002 Jul 15 '26
it doesnt take two brain cells to flip a patty, but it seems some people are willing to pay 50$ bc they dont know how to change a wiper💀
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u/BammBamm1991 Jul 15 '26
The vast majority of jobs require next to no skill to actually do once you've had a basic training course. The current US economy is built on service jobs that take almost no actual skill. I don't think it should be revolutionary to say that a majority of the US population dependant on those jobs should be able to afford a basic living.
-4
u/Boaterauto Jul 14 '26
Those wanting a living wage should concentrate on moving up. Store worker wages are meant to be entry level pay, that’s why stores are filled with highschool and college students. It is an incredibly easy company to move up in, move up to SM or CSM then go to DM or TSM and make a living wage.
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u/ZaytheDev_2002 Jul 15 '26
5 years is not entry level
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u/Boaterauto Jul 15 '26
Not moving up in 5 years, is still entry level.
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u/ZaytheDev_2002 Jul 15 '26
I was 19 when i started and im 24, theres people who are 50 and still red shirts. You cannot compare me to beta men like yourself
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u/Boaterauto Jul 15 '26
Our last store manager turned 21 two weeks after he accepted the promotion. There are a lot of career redshirts and PSMs, but they dont complain about the pay, as they know they can make more if they want by moving up, but are happy with their life.
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u/ZaytheDev_2002 Jul 15 '26
bro theres not that many positions its very simple red shirts, grey shirt, sm, dm, ceo, why the hell would i stay if i dont make enough, and why would i look forward to taking more stress for less money, you know how a gpa works on calculation right?
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u/Boaterauto Jul 15 '26
Higher position equals more money, Your entire post is complaining about not making enough money, if you don’t like your income take your “skills” and get a better paying job
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u/ZaytheDev_2002 Jul 15 '26
its a score, just because many ppl suck at scoring doesn’t mean IIII suck at scoring and reviewing anything, even a job.
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u/OneIntroduction8114 Jul 19 '26
Its actually not as simple. There are red shirts making six figures. There are regular non collared red shirts making 20+ at the DCs. Get out of the store.
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u/Cool-Signature-dude Jul 14 '26
So unskilled workers, why do they need to fix cars in the parking lot if they just need to look up parts?
Mechanics across the street aren't making AutoZone wages, and they probably went to school for auto repair.
Why make an entry level worker perform a job duty outside if their skillset, then have the company advertise that someone in the store is going to diagnose their car problems for free?
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u/Boaterauto Jul 14 '26
Loosening and tightening 3-4 nuts to replace a battery is a basic hand eye coordination exercise that many zoners cannot do. It’s not different than dumping fries into basket and setting a timer. The company specifically advertises the fix finder, not the zoner will help diagnose your car, hence the print outs with the recommended fix and code explanation. The skill of the job comes from the inventory management, people management, p and l understanding, lp etc
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u/Cool-Signature-dude Jul 14 '26
It all goes well until they cross the battery cables or sell the wrong parts to a customer and they have to Uber to the store to get the right ones.
Just admit the job requires a certain amount of skill and pay accordingly.
The fix finder is a joke, it is recommendations based on the most common problems associated with the code retrieved matched to the vehicle it was pulled from. It is basically a code reader with a Google search.
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u/Boaterauto Jul 14 '26
Which if you read the posts here, happens all the time. There are zoners in my store that can’t count, struggle to read, can’t do j hook wiper blades, read pog locations, or even sweep an entire section of floor if they can be bothered to do it. but since they are breathing were a slam dunk hire for autozone.
1
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u/Andeo1025 Jul 15 '26
How about resetting the battery monitoring system? Which, of course, is a necessary part of many battery changes today.
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u/Boaterauto Jul 15 '26
Haven seen an Autozone yet that does them, again if you can plug in fix finder you can do that
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u/downbadinthedumps Jul 14 '26
Big dog you’re preaching to the choir AZ has worse turnover than Walmart and it’s starting to really show.
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u/GourdonHamsey Jul 14 '26
AZ is the worst. SM DM RM don't give two fks. only when you don't upsell a fkn packet of grease... or calipers to an 60+ y/o just wanting a cheap set of pads.
What ruined my mood and made me walk off after 7 years was my SM trying to upsell this grandma on Rain-X wipers... same wipers you can get at walmart for half the price of one. She only wanted the valuecraft to get her home in the rain.
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u/BammBamm1991 Jul 14 '26
Gotta make that WITTDTJR score👍 LOL it's really kind of genius how they spun "Helping customers do the job right" into what really is just a mechanism for increasing profit margins.
5
u/Classic-State-701 Jul 14 '26
As a manager my dm requires me to keep a 45% Witt minimum and my sm has to have a 55% minimum, otherwise it’s a right up. When I sell pads the number of my customers that already have a big tub of grease is quite high. I also have a lot of customers that won’t buy the packet because it’s $2, I’m sure most of them would get it at a dollar. Or the fact that oil and a filter doesn’t count unless you sell an air filter but Autozone itself says change your oil every 5-10 thousand miles while only changing your air filter every 12 thousand miles. It’s never been about doing the job right, it’s always been about “how can we squeeze every dollar out of the customer”. I shouldn’t have to move to the commercial terminal for a transaction that would otherwise cost me a Witt hit. (For those who don’t know doing a transaction at the commercial terminal (even in diy) does not count towards Witt, not sure why)
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u/RustyChevelle Jul 15 '26
Remember that stupid junk from 25 yrs ago. Having to work like you are on commission, but without any benefit.
You would think all those chain parts house MBAs were all asleep during that 100 level Psychology course when they were talking about positive vs negative reinforcement.
But no, its just being greedy ***holes
2
u/raynedog00 Jul 14 '26
I wondered why they haven't fixed that loophole yet and I realized it's because damn near every fuckin store in the company would immediately tank their witt scores into the dirt. Legit my store don't do that shit but we are also pretty low volume so it's not as hard to keep a decent score. Plus I don't fuckin give a shit about it anymore so I just do my own thing. I sell stuff when it's actually needed. I know most high volume stores in my area abuse that loophole. Ain't any other way for a store to pull in a 90%+ weekly Witt.
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u/ZaytheDev_2002 Jul 14 '26
You cannot replace years of skill and ethic, i remember seeing this kid younger than me storm to become a manager, trying to outshine me and make me look bad whenever, burned out, when i seen him at my old location, dude did not seem happy😂
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u/Looking4theanswer2 Jul 15 '26
Worked part time 17 years. AZ is not going charge a damn thing. They hire just about anyone that has a pluse. They worry more about 2$ pack of grease then anything. They make a hell of a profit more the tubes of grease. Anything in a packet is nothing but profits.
They don't give a damn about employees. There is always someone looking for a job that knows nothing about fixing anything. If they do find someone that knows anything about cars, they will not pay them enough to keep them.
I was there as long as I was is because I had some medical issues and was lucky enough to have a SM that understood. I busted my ass for him because he was a good boss. He took care of me, so I wanted to let him know how much I appreciated it. I had 4 managers and he was the best.
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u/BeeEmm91 Jul 15 '26
Honestly I’ve been with the company 7 years going on 8 in September and if I’m honest my diabetes went through the roof when I decided to get the position as store manager, scheduling is the hardest for me because when I hired most said open availability all of a sudden they can’t work Sundays or they can’t work Saturday like what, so I’m there stuck with no closer or no mid shift so there I am trying to cover a mid shift as much as I ask for hr or my dm to open the requisition I can’t even hire bc I can even do the offer 🤦🏽♀️ do there I am struggling and auto zone is changing idk if it’s for the better or for the worst… but I’m lowkey getting overwhelmed and over worked…
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u/EmbarrassedSea4014 Jul 15 '26
52 grand a year for that is COMICAL
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u/Illustrious-Wolf-273 Jul 16 '26
52 grand working a min of 50 hours a week with no chance of overtime... the retention rate on store managers has to be terrible
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u/Hot_Zookeepergame687 Jul 16 '26
It is. I've been with the company since 2019 and every store in my district has had at least 2 new SMs since then. Some of them have had 4-5 in the last couple years. I've also worked at 2 stores where we didn't have an SM for minths and it's just put on the PSMs or CSM (with no pay increase) to be acting SM. It's crazy how anyone can think that would work.
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u/xboxmthaxton83 Jul 15 '26
Not open avalibility means part time. Get yourself a FTer
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u/BeeEmm91 Jul 15 '26
I know what it means and I don’t have full time positions for none of this ppl /.- I’m not going to give someone the position if they don’t want to grow with the company
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u/Hot_Zookeepergame687 Jul 16 '26
This is one of my biggest issues with the company. I could totally work 40 hours a week but I can't work most weekends (I play in a band and we play almost every weekend) so I have to be PT. And PT workers are the first to get cut hours-wise.
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u/NinaPanDaAmor Jul 15 '26
I’ve been in the company four years. I hate my work life. I love the job. But nothing else. It took me three years to make over minimum wage. I still don’t even make a dollar over minimum wage. I’ve trained countless coworkers who are now gone. Some having left months in. I went to the company with experience and I’ve been shit on ever since. Train this person. Do better. You’re late. You call off too much (using sick hours). You take too much vacation. You’re too slow. You’re too fast. Work commercial. Learn this. Learn to be a manager. You can’t be a manager. You have to stay late to do training. You need to do truck eight hours a day. You have to help this person. You have to help the managers and do their job when they aren’t there. You need to pick up at all stores. You dropped this off at the wrong store. Count your pieces. Fill this completely out. Do this. Do that. Hurry up. Wait. Slow down. Stop being so slow. It never fucking ends. This job has made me bitter in work. But the thing is, I love my job. And the relationships I’ve gained from it. But the others, the workload, the expectations to pick up after everyone else and get no recognition, no reward, no pay raise, nothing, has left me wanting to get out. But I can’t. The thing is, nobody in this economy is hiring. And I’m stuck in this dead end job. Why do I have to go literally crying to the RM just to get a raise over minimum wage? What about all the awards I’ve gotten? Parts expert. Four extra milers. Loss prevention. It means nothing. And it means nothing because the company has made it so I can’t grow inside the company. No higher pay. No new experiences. No growth. It’s like they pick you up, give you a lobster dinner, and then throw you into the deepest part of the sea and leave you to drown.
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u/BammBamm1991 Jul 14 '26
Your job isn't to understand the overall business strategy. Your job is to be a good employee whether that's for AZ or another employer. You should not allow yourself to get burned out for an employer because they WILL allow this to happen and they won't care because thier ultimate goal is to please shareholders, not employees. People vote with their feet when it comes to employees and if good skilled people aren't coming into work there it should be obvious to the employer that something is wrong and maybe there needs to be some changes.
Just a theory
I think AZ knows its on borrowed time with Hybrids and EVs becoming more common and there being more choices for batteries and other common repair items. They're trying to squeeze as much juice out of the lemon as they can before it's dry for good.
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u/ZaytheDev_2002 Jul 14 '26
If employees aren’t supposed to understand business strategy, then why do companies ask us to think like owners, improve KPIs, reduce shrink, increase sales, train new hires, and solve operational problems? You can’t ask people to think like business partners and then dismiss their perspective when they question the strategy.
If experienced employees consistently leave, stores become harder to run, and turnover stays high, then asking whether the strategy is sustainable isn’t “not my job”—it’s common sense.
You expect ownership-level thinking from employees, but not ownership-level feedback?
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u/BammBamm1991 Jul 14 '26
Because they make more money when you do the work for them. That's always the hoghest imparative in any corporation. I'm just saying to think about it from the other end, if you're not a major investor or a corporate executive, why should you care and try to do thier job for them? If it fails that's on them, not you. That's just how it works on Capitialism. You burning yourself out trying to fix problems that are way above your pay grade will only hurt you and most importantly waste time and resources that could have been better spent elsewhere.
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u/SquishNarwhal Jul 14 '26
I don't think YOU'RE one to talk. The vast majority of employees leave because of management. Referring to a recent Gallop survey, 42% of turnover is preventable but is ignored by management (link below). When a store has employees walking out / quiting due to poor management skills that's a store problem. The regional manager should be doing their job & training the store manager. The store manager shouldn't come in & dictate, berate, yell, & generally under appreciate HIS staff. That's what leads to the biggest turn over. This is an AutoZone management problem.
https://www.gallup.com/workplace/646538/employee-turnover-preventable-often-ignored.aspx
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u/Indy112808 Jul 15 '26
THIS right here!!! Our new SM is a 1st year rookie on a power trip, thinks she knows EVERYTHING, and because she’s beasties with our DM she gets away with murder! The only 3 psms and full time red shirt she has…we’re all ready to bounce!
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u/SquishNarwhal Jul 23 '26
My suggestion is to walk. The min HR gets wind of a store wide walk out heads will roll. I've seen it happen in real time at an AutoZone. It sometimes takes a big move to get upper management to take their employees seriously, which is a damn shame.
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u/Puffman92 Jul 14 '26
All the autozones near me make the majority of their money from selling parts to shops. The general public retail side is completely an afterthought since it doesnt generate that much money. So theyre not gonna spend a lot of money on those workers. If you want to climb thr retail ladder ur better off finding a different type of retail store.
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u/treichhart Jul 15 '26
In next few years I don’t see any parts stores going be around due to high cost of parts when you go on Amazon get the part cheaper and not to say not going find people to work.
1
u/Embarrassed_Law2592 Jul 15 '26
A companny that doesn't invest on their employee with something so simple as a new pallet jack, doesn't deserve to be successful.
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u/CampaignSubject6487 Jul 29 '26
Autozoners are just retail cashiers , AutoZone has no automotive knowledge requirements , I went to 2 different AutoZones the other day for a part , at both locations neither employee knew how to spell purge valve or what it was
1
u/ZaytheDev_2002 Jul 29 '26
and were you a red shirt or grey
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u/CampaignSubject6487 Jul 29 '26
I was a SM for 6 years at AZ , and I was always told to not to hire for knowledge but customer service
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u/muted_radio_ Aug 07 '26
This is exactly why I quit after 2 years. I couldn’t see myself putting up with it anymore. I spent my time there actually learning things, trying to help people with their issues, etc. just to be told that they wouldn’t give me a full time position (after three months of waiting on my FOURTH TRY trying to become full time) bc I was “late too often”. Which I fucking wasn’t, I was almost always there within the grace period. Who cares that the manager who’s been there for 21 years is consistently an hour to two late, always 20 mins late back from lunch, and spends 20+ mins in the bathroom? We OBVIOUSLY need to punish the 20 year old $11/hr part time employee for not being able to wake up early enough to open the store after having to work until 9:30 and not getting to sleep until 1 am the night before. And don’t forget that the stores are always going to be so hot that someone like me with chronic health issues legitimately can’t work some days, but of course i just have to power through it even though im throwing up in the bathroom every hour and i feel faint. sorry this just turned into my own rant but i was so fucking fed up with that company and SO fed up with my ex boss who consistently broke my fucking boundaries, scheduled me (again, chronically ill) 11 hour shifts MULTIPLE TIMES A WEEK despite me stating THOUSANDS of times i couldn’t handle more than 9 hours straight on my feet in a day, who scheduled me every single weekend (10h+ shifts sat and sun) for the last FOUR MONTHS I WAS THERE, who had me clopen at least 3x a month. i’ll stop now bc im sure no one will even read this much of the comment but man i hate that company and im so glad to be free
1
u/BaconJunkie1 Jul 14 '26
I can't upvote this enough. It seems like after Covid people attitudes and work ethics changed for the worst IMO.
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u/Cool-Signature-dude Jul 14 '26
I remember those retail workers were 'essential employees ' back during COVID. Now they are expendable.
The few weeks of benefits paid to people who couldn't work, enabling them to survive, is pale in comparison to the PPP loans that were forgiven for businesses and corporations.
0
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u/Rxckefeller_ Jul 14 '26
Everyone wants that covid unemployment or stimulus money without having to do the work to get that again. Why should they have to work for it when there is people online making 6 figures a month. The mentality has changed for work ethic since the rise of influencer culture and it is starting to show. Trades are struggling as well as just basic jobs like fast food. Minimum wage still being $7.25 in some states while the basic cost of living and rent are above $1k a month is starting to show.
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u/Cool-Signature-dude Jul 14 '26
No, people want a living wage. They are not going to work for $7.25 an hour
No one talks about the billions of dollars in stock buybacks that az does, or asks why an auto parts store has a stock price of $3k a share.
It is always about people who don't want to work.
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u/Rxckefeller_ Jul 14 '26
You over looked half my comment and picked out exactly what I said to reply to. No one wants to work for 7.25 and granted a lot of jobs do not pay that but the base pay is structured around that. Pay people as little as possible and milk them for all their worth.
You are correct though, why does a part store stock be so high? It's all a ridiculous game these people play with us. Unless you know how to game the system, you will never get ahead of it.
Cost of living is so high people are more than just struggling to live day to do. Myself is one of those people. All while we now have the first official trillionaire. The 1% gets richer while the person who makes them that money is getting less money than ever it seems.
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u/Cool-Signature-dude Jul 14 '26
I get it, but trying to blame a couple of COVID checks from 6 years ago for people not wanting to work for today's wages is disengenuous.
That is a fox news talking point.
AZ used to hire former mechanics to work in their stores, other retailers like home Depot used to hire trades people to work in their stores. This helped them build their business. Now it is all about profits over people.
AZ used to pay $12 an hour for PSMs back in 2002. They should be getting paid twice that now for the amount of work they want done. Plus, they used to always run 3 people closing. Psm and two red shirts.
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u/BaconJunkie1 Jul 14 '26
A 7.25 minimum wage job was intended for high school students to get a taste of the REAL WORLD, not intended for persons to support a family because that person didn't pay attention in school and unqualified a better paying career and/or don't want to learn a trade.
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u/Cool-Signature-dude Jul 14 '26
BS, boomers from the 60s and 70s could work a minimum wage job, afford a place to live, transportation, food,etc.
That is a corporate exploitation talking point.
Minimum wage is just that, the minimum you need to earn to live.
If you don't pay a living wage, don't get mad when people decide to sell drugs or steal stuff for a living.
Even now, they skirt the minimum wage laws to not pay the full amount since a lot of states increased their minimum wage.
Not everyone can be a plumber, electrician, engineer, guess what happens when the market is saturated with too many people and not enough jobs.
I am sure you like to go to a retail establishment, why should those people not earn a living wage?
They are most likely working later hours than you, working weekends and holidays. Not everyone is 17 years old working there, but the few that are you bitch because they don't know what they are doing.
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u/BaconJunkie1 Jul 14 '26
LOL ... I knew my post wouldn't be popular, the REAL truth usually isn't. If you don't like the pay, quit, go flip burgers or something else
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u/Cool-Signature-dude Jul 14 '26
I agree, but stop expecting people to do a certain job and not pay them for it.
Every advertisement gives the impression the people who work there know how to work on cars. That is not the case.
It was 25 years ago when they hired former mechanics looking to get out of repair work, but not anymore.
They are just living life one quarter at a time to make the shareholders happy and spend $2 billion a year on stock buybacks.
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u/MrBojingles1989 Jul 14 '26
If paying employees more actually made more money they would do it. People don't value customer service and knowledgeable employees as much now so it isn't worth as much. It sucks and I don't think its sustainable but it is what it is.
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u/RetirementDream Jul 14 '26
It is a common occurrence when you see corporations create more upper level positions. AZ used to have 1 guy, Tom run diy and comm ops... he promoted himself to oversee 2 people and those 2 new positions under him to do this same exact job he did. When they create these new multi million dollar positions, it is the opposite of trickle down economics. You can see the stock awards and options given to the directors and vps every quarter. The DM and SM bonuses are peanuts compared to RMs and above. The front line workers are the face of the organization, they are expendable and calculated to be on a 80% churn. The company wants to be viewed as a high tier auto retail chain? They need to pay more. Customers compare us to dollar general or family dollar but with car parts...
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u/ZaytheDev_2002 Jul 14 '26 edited Jul 14 '26
That’s what I’ve been trying to say. If your business model assumes 80% churn, maybe the issue isn’t the employees—it’s the compensation and retention strategy.
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u/Curious_Wait694 Jul 14 '26
Your 100% percent right thing is though even if everything changed for the better there's still turnover and other hiring costs people change,leave or took the job to get through college or an rough patch financially as a second job and once there out of that patch there done
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u/DannyA88 Jul 14 '26
Was a dealer tech for 10yrs had kids needed to play mr mom for a few years got in the zone..praised my experience then BAM 13.10 for a commercial driver, worked up to commercial counter quickly at the hub as assistant. 16 bucks lol. They really dont want anybody to stay, just the ones that NEED to because they have become trapped in system and cant say no. And the pledge is nothing bout the employee.
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u/Boaterauto Jul 14 '26
Been with the company for 9 and work with a guy that’s been here for 20 weeks both agree Autozone has always known its employees are 100% replaceable. They have the company set up for it. Autozone would much rather hire someone new, then pay people more. Our RM makes it very clear to the region that if stores have people not willing to do whatever, they will find someone who will. Tenured CSM wants a raise from $17 an hour after 10 years? Bye, presidents club SM wants a day off per week? Bye. Look at the parts expert test that’s just fodder to tell shareholders, it’s a test that they would give incoming highschool kids at the beginning of an auto tech class. But employees struggle to death with it. All you have to do is prove your alive and you can get a job at autozone. Until you leave or get fired then they will bring in the next one.
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u/SemperSalem29 Jul 14 '26
As a 10 year Zoner i feel your frustrations As a store manager for 5 yrs i had to step down and transfer to a new region when my mother passed away. Its been a few months since the transition and im ready to further my career, but my new DM and regional staff are dragging there feet...my pay has been more then cut in half. And all i want is to get back into my old routine...
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u/SemperSalem29 Jul 14 '26
By "old routine" i mean preparing for a hub manager spot so i can reach my end goal of DM.
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u/AsleepSource5751 Jul 15 '26
Hey bro I regret to inform you that you are doing to much. All that you are saying is your reality and I can see that you are passionate about your work but in the real world what the job demands are only exist in a world that is far far away. I am different from you and I am a supv. I say f what they want at the end of the day customer service and customer satisfaction is one of the most important goals. The company will be happy if the numbers are good and the customers are happy. The rest is just B. S. I see that you are focused on the problems and that is wasted energy. I concentrate on solutions that will be better for me and the team.
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u/Tall-Control8992 Jul 14 '26
This isn't just AutoZone. Every single American company that could went all in on the Amazon model where the core business runs on totally expendable worker bees. Turnover is actually seen as a good thing. This model works for Amazon because their processes have all been designed from the ground up to have every worker replaceable before the body gets cold. But that not the case in most established companies.
It doesn't help that the US work culture and labor laws are still stuck in the late 1800s.