The downsides of working at Tim Horton's is probably the work ethic of other employees, countless times have I come in on my shift and I have a supervisor come up to me and say 'We didn't get a chance to restock lids and cups, refill cream and milk, restock the fridge, etc....but we had time to loaf around and do nothing and decide to leave it to you.' People call in sick all the time, lots of calls since I've worked there. Some 15 minutes before their shift begins, some 4 or 5 hours. It's completely up to you to find a replacement; the manager (owner/operator) wants nothing to do with sick calls and will not find a replacement for you unless you don't show up for your shift....in which case your screwed over because if you don't show up then you're fired.
Another downside, working night shift. Sure...you get that extra 50 cent premium on your paycheque, but after a while, your body takes a toll, your attitude takes a toll, and you're just plainly burnt out on your days off....all you want to do is sleep. Then some nights you get those real aggrivated customers in a rush 'I'm all important because I'm a taxi driver so hurry up and get me my bagel!' meanwhile you have 10 or 15 different sandwiches on your screen at the sandwich station...what are you supposed to do?....Management's rule of thumb, the customer is always right....not true. Reality check, you are only one person, you have a huge order backed up...are you supposed to loose your place just so this jackass can get his bagel and be on his way? No.
Saftey and security....especially on the night shift...if somebody comes up to you while you're outside and demands your wallet or ciggerates, and you don't have anything on you, what are you supposed to do....hope that the police just so happen to be in the area at the time or hope that a camera picks up everything that's being done to you. There's no panic button to push at these new locations, only on the computer in the office, and that's locked during the night.
Tips...who gets them and who doesn't? Everyone who works in the daytime gets there tips. The night shift however is left to work their ass of and not recieve any and is expected to turn over the tips at the end of their shift.
One last downside about working at Tim Horton's. Benifits. You have been working there for 6 or 7 months, and you haven't recieved benifits yet. Then when it comes time to recieve them, you realize that your hours have been cut back to less than 20 hours per week....making you part time. The benifits package states that you have to be working more than 20 hours per week in order to qualify for this. SO now what do you do? You're left with the unthoughtful position of whether or not to leave your job and find a different one that will pay you benifits.