If you're thinking about Safeway grocery store employment, you will be glad to know that the company is stable and offers many kinds of job opportunities.
About Safeway
Founded in the early 1900s, Safeway has grown to become a Fortune 500 company with over 1,700 stores around the United States and Canada. Safeway also owns and operates grocery stores with different names, including Vons in California and Nevada, Carrs in Alaska and Randalls in Texas. Other names are Dominick's, Tom Thumb, Genuardi's and Pavilions.
Jobs
Safeway grocery store employment includes much more than just the jobs that are visible in a retail store, like checkers and courtesy clerks. There are dozens of employees working in different departments and behind the scenes in stores, as well as a myriad of options in management, distribution and corporate positions.
Retail Stores
There are three levels of management in the retail stores. Department managers, assistant store managers and store managers. If you have prior management experience, particularly in a grocery or retail setting, apply for one of these. If you don't have management experience, there are many options for employment, and you should be aware that Safeway encourages and supports promotion from within. If you start out as a deli clerk, you could work your way up to deli manager and into the management ranks.
The following is a sample of the positions available in retail Safeway stores. Not all locations have all the departments to support all the positions.
- Baker
- Cake decorator
- Courtesy clerk
- Deli clerk
- Floral clerk
- Host/Demonstrator
- Meat cutter
- Meat wrapper
- Pharmacy clerk
- Produce clerk
- Seafood clerk
- Wine steward
Corporate
The corporate headquarters for Safeway is located in Pleasanton, California, but division offices are based in several states and corporate positions are available in numerous cities. The following are just some of the corporate departments that hire employees.
- Accounting
- Administration Support
- Communications
- Facilities
- Home Delivery Operations
- Human Resources
- Information Technology
- Legal
- Marketing
- Risk Management
- Supply Chain
Distribution Centers and Manufacturing Plants
Safeway operates 17 distribution centers around the country and several manufacturing plants for its private label products. Jobs include inventory clerks, maintenance mechanics, parts clerks, dispatchers and plant and warehouse supervisors.
Pharmacy
With over 1,400 pharmacies, Safeway offers a full range of employment opportunities for pharmacy technicians, pharmacists and pharmacy managers. In addition, Safeway runs a pharmacy internship program for currently enrolled pharmacy school students.
Benefits
Safeway offers a number of benefits, although benefits for retail store employees differs from that for non-retail store employees. Many retail store employees are union members, depending on the state a store is located in, and receive many of their benefits from their union. You can ask about union status and benefits when you apply for a job. For non-retail store employees, the following list is a sample of the benefits of Safeway grocery store employment currently offered in 2009. There is no guarantee that you will be offered these benefits and you should check with the company human resources department if you are hired for your full benefits package details.
- Medical plans
- Dental and vision plans
- Prescription drug coverage
- Flexible spending accounts
- Disability insurance
- Life insurance
- Professional training
- Paid time off
- 401(k) plan
- Safeway stock purchase plan
- Company retirement plan
- Credit union membership
Safeway Grocery Store Employment Application
Safeway does not use employment agencies to hire workers, handling all applications through its own human resources department. If you are looking for store employment, most stores have kiosks where you can electronically submit an application. It's also a good idea to ask for the store manager to introduce yourself and ask if they need further information from you for employment.
Store positions and all other positions can be applied for online, and in fact, Safeway encourages this method. From the careers page on the Safeway website you can click on an area of employment that interests you. You will be taken to a page with a button that says "Apply Now." Click on the button and follow the steps to find and apply for jobs near a location you specify. You will be asked to register before submitting an application, so if you can't fill out the entire application at once, you will be able to log back in at a later time to finish.
Employment Tips
After you finish your Safeway grocery store application, you may want to spend some time preparing for a job interview. You should practice answering difficult questions that may come up and be sure to also brush up on interviewing tips. With a complete and accurate employment application and some interviewing skills, you may well find yourself on the way to a long-term career with Safeway.
- Written by Maria Christensen
