Company: McDonald-s
Date: 2013-09-01
Overall rating: 4/5
Employment status: former
Experience level: Junior

Not as terrible as it's made out to be.
Pros: If you already work in the restaurant business, this job is a cakewalk.  High-volume, yes, but the work is easy and not very physically-demanding.  If followed, the protocols in place make it easy to keep the kitchen very clean, minimize burns and other injuries, and maintain surprisingly good food quality.  You don't have to worry about over- or under-cooking food.  You don't have to do tons of prep work.  You don't even need to have a solid grasp of health and safety standards until you move up to management.  Stores tend to run on a low number of employees, meaning that the environment becomes tight-knit and friendly.  Scheduling is usually very flexible.  Our store had a dedicated break room, and we were always entitled to a free meal (with some limits) on every break.  Uniforms were free (except for the required non-slip shoes, which we were offered coupons for.)

If you actually care about your job at all, it's not unrealistic to count on becoming a manager after a year or two.
Cons: If you've never worked in a restaurant before, you'll think this job is terrible.  You're on your feet all day, performing what feels like intense cardio exercise during peak hours.  After your shift, you will be coated in a layer of grease and filth, and you will smell like cooking oil.  You will not be able to get it off of your work clothes.  Management will set often unrealistic goals for the staff, specifically pertaining to how fast you need to get food out of the kitchen.  You will make close to minimum wage the entire time you work there, even if you're promoted to low-level management.