Specsavers Employee Reviews

Overall, a good place to work. Very supportive colleagues. Bit of favouritism going on so if you’re looking for progression, it’s very much if your face fits.

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Awful

Optical Assistant (Former Employee) - Skipton - 26 September 2023

Poor work environment. Seen as a number and nothing else. Managers and directors create a very noxious place to work. No room for development. Poorly paid and workload is extreme. All this is shown in the very high volume of staff turnover.

Pros

Home time

Cons

The list is endless…

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Insights into Specsavers

Based on 658 survey responses

What people like

Ability to learn new things

Areas for improvement

Fair pay for job
Energising work tasks
Sense of belonging

Awful Avoid Avoid Avoid!!

Optical assistant (Former Employee) - Skipton, North Yorkshire - 24 September 2023

Worst workplace I have ever worked in! Directors and managers are nothing but noxious. Over worked and very little appreciation shown. If you want a miserable time then go ahead and join the worst store to be known! There is a reason why the staff turnover is soo great 😐!!!

Pros

Hometime

Cons

Everything

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Mental Health death trap

Optical Assistant (Former Employee) - Glenrothes, Fife - 23 September 2023

Bending over backwards to meet overly high management expectations whilst said management barely lift a finger to actually work. Did not enjoy my time here.

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Very busy work place but poor management.

Optical Assistant (Former Employee) - Wigan, Greater Manchester - 21 September 2023

Specsavers Wigan was over all an OK place to work. With generous and often pay rises its quite easy to work your way up if you put the work in and stay on the right side of people. The management were lovely people but seemed to be extremely stressed with the pressure they were under from the directors, This was then reflecting on the way they treated the staff. The directors never really knew what they wanted us to do as they were constantly changing their minds. This made it stressful day to day as everything we was doing felt like it was going to be wrong. The directors constantly focused on negatives and never positives especially when obsessing over the security cameras to spy on what staff was doing. It was a very busy work day and your day would go very quick. The colleagues you have and friendly patients are what got us through the day even when it felt like we was being turned against each other. Overall not a very team like work environment.

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Despenser

Dispensing Assistant (Former Employee) - Hockworthy, Devon - 21 September 2023

A day was usually me working with eye tests and making sure that each customer had the correct frames which they required, pay wasn't the best and atmosphere wasn't great.

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Work colleagues great

Senior Optical Assistant (Former Employee) - Hinckley - 21 September 2023

What is the best part of working at the company?Progression if want it lots of trainingWhat is the most stressful part about working at the company?Hours can be long and incredibly busy managers not listening to youWhat is the work environment and culture like at the company?All depends on the store some better than othersWhat is a typical day like for you at the company?Stressful, hard work, tiring exhaustive

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Lots to learn

Optical Assistant (Current Employee) - Chatham, Kent - 20 September 2023

what you believe you learned: Social skillsthe hardest part of the job: Decently long hours.the most enjoyable part of the job: Speaking with customers

Cons

Salary

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The worst place to work in!!

Receptionist/Optical Assistant (Former Employee) - Birmingham new street - 20 September 2023

They do not care if you leave as they know as they are well known company they can employ anyone. NO PROGRESSION!!! Even if you know you job and have been there for so many years they will give a higher job externally, they do not care!! The pay is so bad and they say it will go up but I have worked in Birmingham New street for so long it never has!!!

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Lovely colleagues but pay is very low for the workload.

Optical Assistant (Former Employee) - Beeston, Nottinghamshire - 19 September 2023

The only reason I stayed at this job is that most of my colleagues were so lovely. The pay is very unfair for the amount of knowledge you need although you get lots of training. There is little to no progression in your job role and very rarely do you get a pay increase. Overall the pay does not reflect the workload.

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Jobs at Specsavers

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Trainee Lab Technician

Solihull

16 days ago

Trainee Lab Technician

Stressful, exhausting and unfulfilling.

Clinical Assistant (Former Employee) - Norwich - 17 September 2023

What is the best part of working at the company?The free spectacles but that was taken away by directorsWhat is the most stressful part about working at the company?Lack of support. No team support. Unrealistic targetsWhat is the work environment and culture like at the company?Hard, no respite. Management demanding more

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Long hours. Good pay but depends on experience. Some stores are totally LGBTQ+ friendly.

Optical Assistant (Current Employee) - London - 17 September 2023

Long hours. Good pay, dependant on experience. Self lead training not suitable for everyone. Store management lack experience.Franchised stores. Some stores are totally LGBTQ+ friendly for customers and staff. Friendly customers collecting glasses and can see clearly is the best part of the job.

Pros

Good pay depending on experience.

Cons

Long hours. Franchised stores. Every store different.

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Terrible

Optical Assistant (Former Employee) - Plymouth - 16 September 2023

Absolutely terrible experience at the armada way store. They made colleagues come in when they were grieving, fired people for going home sick more than twice (which is ridiculous). Management was terrible and insensitive. The store is over booked and it’s impossible for the employees to keep up. All this for minimum wage !

Pros

Training was good

Cons

Management

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Used to be amazing then new manager took over

Optical Assistant (Former Employee) - Long Eaton - 14 September 2023

I loved my job at specsavers until the new manager took over he had no understanding of the way optics worked there where team leaders that deserved the role because they knew everything they needed to know and knew the staff members but they where not made aware of the opening until it had been filled since the new manager took over there has been a fast flow of staff in and out with zero experience just thrown in the deep end and no proper training leaving staff with more experience to pick up the slack

Cons

The manager

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Pure he'll, worst company ever, only regarding Anne Street, then Victoria Square

Optical Assistant (Former Employee) - Belfast, County Antrim - 13 September 2023

What is the best part of working at the company?Nothing, job demanding no help from management although if your irish and not from rathcoole you will fit in What is the most stressful part about working at the company?Management are the worst. No help, bare training given. If you don't have the face your not wanted especially if you are not irish. This is only regarding Victoria Square not all spec savers What is the work environment and culture like at the company?Lovely staff, rubbish management What is a typical day like for you at the company?Pure rubbish, demands, demands and more demands, we all knew our jobs but belittled

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Don’t waste your time

Optical Assistant (Former Employee) - Specsavers - 13 September 2023

Unless you are looking to become an optometrist or a director of a store or something high up within the optics or retail side then do not waste your time. I worked for Specsavers for 5 years and my pay was inhumane. You work every single weekend for pay that’s around 16-17 grand a year (if you’re lucky) With the cost of living crisis I hope that it has gone up. You aren’t treated like a person or respected for any hard work that you do and even people like dispensing opticians who take all of that time to study, once fully qualified only earn about 25k a year? I earn more than that now with zero qualifications. You’re always understaffed and they are all about money and sales but can’t pay their staff a decent wage. Don’t bother working here because you won’t get a decent career out of it.

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depends which specsavers but the one i worked at lacked management

Optical Assistant (Former Employee) - Burton-On-Trent, Staffordshire - 10 September 2023

honestly if u want to save ur mental health don’t bother working here lol. old ladies wanna compete with the younger girls and the management is just horrendous. they’re all passively mean or just out right rude af they do not care for u at all that’s why loads of ppl quit and why they’re always hiring🤣🤣

Pros

nothing

Cons

Everything

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Bad work environment

Optical Assistant (Current Employee) - London, Greater London - 7 September 2023

Everyone teaches you different things and you are expected to do too much too quickly with little training. Some of the staff are great but the managers arent. They act so nice during the interview. DONT FALL FOR IT

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Worst place ever

Optical Assistant (Former Employee) - Birmingham, West Midlands - 6 September 2023

Probably one of the worst places to work.When you apply, they interview you and act all nice and then when you start its switches completely. All the managers are money hungry but don't take the time to train staff to the standards they want and then complain. The managers treat the staff that hit targets with respect and don't look at anyone else twice. Every branch is different but all they give a s h i t about is making as much money as they can. The customer service is fast but not attentive at all. They couldn't care less about their customers, don't even know how to fit glasses properly half the time and treat customers like a s s

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Terrible awful just avoid

Optical Advisor (Current Employee) - Lowestoft, Suffolk - 6 September 2023

Such a bad place to work. Very poor management. Terrible pay. Staff very unhappy. Think carefully and then try somewhere else, this place is beyond awful.

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Fast paced, good team

Hearing Aid Audiologist (Current Employee) - Plymouth, Devon - 6 September 2023

The work is fast paced with very little time for admin(referrals, repairs, responding to px calls etc). There is a 'conveyor belt' feeling with appointment times, meaning little time during appointments to get to know patients.

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