Costco carries over 4,000 different products and many are far less costly than other retail stores and supermarkets across the country. By offering their products in bulk, this store can significantly reduce spending and save people tons of money over the course of a year.
The first Costco opened its doors in 1976 and by 1993, there were over 200 stores across the United States generating close to 20 million in revenue.
What Does Costco Pay?
This is probably the first question you want an answer to, so here you go! Costco raised its minimum pay recently to $17.88 an hour. This means they are one of the few retail store chains that pay an actual living wage to entry-level workers.
Also, as an hourly worker, you can bet on receiving a periodic raise every 6 months or so in the form of .25 cents an hour to $1.00 an hour.
Apply for Costco Job Online
The best way to try to get hired is to apply for a Costco job online on their careers website. There, you can click on the “Apply Now!” link that will redirect you to apply for your desired position.
While on the following page, you will enter your State, City, and zip code, in that order, and you will be redirected once again to another page that will list all the possible stores that are close to your area.
Once you choose a store, you can apply to any of the jobs in that store as long as you meet the minimum requirements.
Related Posts
- Costco Job Application Online
- How Much Does Costco Pay?
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- Costco Job Descriptions
Costco Age Requirement
The age to work at Costco is at least 18 years old. Please be aware that you need to have a high school diploma or its equivalent to work in . Due to the warehouse type of work involved, there is always a certain amount of danger, and companies such as this one are not willing to take the risk.
Youngsters hoping to find a part-time job can consider a safer retail job, such as in a department store.
Costco Careers Available
Additionally, it’s important to make yourself available for any type of shift if you’re trying to get an entry-level job. This will ensure you have the best possible chance of getting hired, as long as you make a good impression during your interview and you meet all the requirements.
Costco Hours of Operation
The Costco hours of operation vary. Typically, it opens between 8:00 AM to 9:00 AM and closes between 8:30 PM to 10:00 PM. You can expect to work either a 5:00 AM to 1:30 PM shift or 5:00 PM to 10:00 PM or 11:00 PM shift at the entry level.
Costco Cashier – In this position, you will provide excellent customer service while processing customers’ orders. This job requires accuracy at the cash register and carries very high-level responsibility.
At times, you will be required to participate in helping to clean the store and this includes bathrooms!
Cashier Assistant – There are so many responsibilities associated with this job but here are just a few important ones:
- maintaining the cleanliness of the store
- knowing where products are located in order to easily direct customers to them
- assisting customers with their purchases
- organizing the shopping carts.
The Costco cashier assistant’s hourly pay is $17.88 an hour to start.
Costco Stocker – This job requires some physical work in loading and unloading products from the distribution trucks. You will also stock the shelves and help control the presentation of products on those shelves. This is a great entry-level job, especially for someone who doesn’t mind physical work.
Food Service Assistant – Here, you will be selling drinks and food to customers while keeping your area clean and presentable. It is a highly-engaging customer service position.
Bakery Wrapper – In this job, you will be responsible for the bakery department running smoothly and efficiently by wrapping the store’s baked goods for customer purchases. Costco also provides standards for topping the baked items with sprayed glaze and icing.
Membership Assistant – When you enter a Costco, you will notice the member service area booth with workers attending to customers’ needs behind the counter. Here, you will be in charge of processing new memberships, adding membership cards, and renewals.
You will also be informing customers of the various benefits as a member and assisting them with product availability.
Service Deli Assistant – At the deli counter, you will be preparing and packaging meals, salads, and entrées among many other food items. Your specialty will be balancing all of your responsibilities while attending to customers asking for deli meats and cheeses.
Costco Store Management Jobs
Costco Assistant Store Manager – You will report to the general manager and be expected to supervise store operations and ensure customer satisfaction is at its highest every single day.
You will share in many of your GM’s responsibilities and be expected to help in creating a great work environment for all Costco employees. You can expect to make somewhere in the neighborhood of $75,000 a year and up!
Costco Store General Manager – This is obviously the most sought-after position at Costco with the average base salary topping up to $180,000 a year! In this position, you will be responsible for running the entire store smoothly and profitably.
You will be tasked to hire and fire and train your employees correctly while doing your best to keep employees motivated with high morale. Although it is fairly rare, some General Managers at this retail chain make approximately $180,000 a year in salary.
There are many other store and management jobs available at any particular Costco store such as; cake decorator, forklift driver, meat cutter, payroll clerk, pharmacy technician, pharmacy manager, front-end manager, and tire sales assistant.
At distribution centers called “depots”, you can find positions such as truck driver, order picker, call center, auditing, accounting, aviation, human resources, marketing, merchandising, property management, and many others.
If you haven’t noticed already, Costco offers much higher salaries and hourly wages than your typical retail store. As a result, their yearly employee turnover rate is very low at approximately 6% while the normal average for the retail industry is much higher.
Follow Up On Your Costco Online Application
You can easily visit the careers website and check up on your Costco job application online approximately 2 weeks after applying. Even though this is the easiest way, it’s not necessarily the best method.
It is recommended you dress in neat clothing and visit the store you applied to. Once you get there, ask to speak with a manager on duty regarding your application.
If a shift manager or the actual store manager is available, you will be able to introduce yourself in an attempt to make a great and lasting impression.
Be prepared when you do meet a supervisor. Thank him or her for taking the time to speak with you and drop them a business card with all your contact information.
See more tips on how to get a job in Costco here.
Costco Interview Questions
Every retail store chain has a series of questions they would most likely ask of their hourly workers during the interview process.
Here are a few questions Costco interviewers may ask of you:
Please tell us about yourself.
The way you answer this open-ended statement can mean the difference between getting an opportunity or quickly failing the interview. Be prepared to answer this question sincerely and honestly and highlight the positive things you have done up until now in your professional or school life.
Talk about your personality and how you positively impact your friends and family because of your specific qualities (name them). Finally, say that you are highly motivated and a team player, and you are thankful for the opportunity to be interviewed for a position.
Why do you want to work at Costco?
Always be honest and speak from the heart. A good example of an answer here should mention the fact that you want to get your foot in the door of the retail industry with one of the most respected and well-paying companies which can provide a future for you.
Where do you want to be in 5 years?
Again, be honest and if you’d like, you can tailor your answer to say you want to advance as far as possible within the company while learning the business inside and out.
How do you provide excellent customer service?
A good answer might say something about how the customer is the lifeblood of the business. You can add it’s extremely important to do your absolute best to make sure the customer comes away feeling they had a great customer experience because you took the time to help them with all their questions and needs.
How would you deal with angry or rude customers?
You could explain you would sincerely apologize to the customers for their misfortune and you would quickly try to comfort and reassure them and tell them you will do everything in your power to fix whatever problem they have encountered.
Costco Employee Benefits
These are some of the benefits of Costco employees:
- 401k plan – for every $0.50 you contribute as an employee, Costco will match it with $1
- Pharmacy program – your co-payments for generic medications start at $3 and you only pay a co-payment of 15% for other types what medicines
- Dental insurance – you can choose from a premium dental plan or a basic dental plan
- Vision insurance – you only pay $175 when you buy prescription glasses or contacts at Costco’s optical stores
- Dependent care plan – with pre-tax dollars you can pay for your daycare when your child is under 13 and this applies to Adult Day Care as well
- Short-term disability – this replaces your income should you get hurt in an accident, become ill, or are pregnant and would be tax-free income
- Long-term disability – this tax-free money would pay an employee 60% of their regular earnings once they are out beyond 180 days due to whatever physical circumstance they are facing
- Life insurance – this would cover an employee if they passed away and is included in the medical plan
