Pros
Overall, I had a great experience as an overnight baker at Panera. Both my bosses were awesome to work with and even though work was tough, it was pretty standard once I was done with training. I would still be working if I did not have to quit due to my commitment to finishing college. Other pros were: -Given plenty of freedom to work at your own pace as you are usually working alone. -Free credit for food when done for the day. -Better than average pay, decent benefits and some raises. -40 hours a week -Almost all of the other bakers were excellent at their jobs and fun to be around. -Although both of my bosses were quite tough, they were very appreciative and supportive of the good work I did. -Both my bosses were always willing to send me help if I needed it (for a $2000+ bake, catering, etc.). -Both my bosses would deal with any issues that GMs and store managers would have with either me or my bakes (believe me, they would complain about everything). -6 weeks of training which is more than enough to learns the ropes of panera baking which does not require any prior food experience. -Although I went to a bunch of different stores for training, I settled into one store when I was done with training and stayed there for the remainder of my time at panera.
Cons
-There is no set time for breaks. The only time I was able to take one was if I hurried through my bake to have about 15 minutes to take one before I started clean up. -This job is very mentally and physically demanding even once you get the hang of it. -Solo baking is very tough and you won't get many hours during the slower times of year (April through September) if you can't solo bake. -You need precise time management for this job. One wrong thing will ruin an entire night and have you hustling to get the bake done. -Store and Baking management are run by two different systems which leads to quite a bit of problems. -No reimbursement for gas or tolls if you have to go to another store. -Detail cleaning is stressed but it is hard to get done when solo baking.