Tellers are Customer Service Reps
Pros
Nice benefits, ability to move up or to another location within the company. Good training. If you are an assertive, well-groomed person looking to move into being an Account Manager, you can certainly do so.
Cons
Won't pay overtime as they believe you can get everything done inside a "typical" day. Almost impossible to get fulltime as a teller, and you can only get ahead if you move to the "sales" side of the branch, as the "service" side is considered a "cost" instead of an "income"generator. As an example, I was given a 1.5% annual increase after taking on increased responsibility in a year of record profits, resulting in a raise smaller than those I earned at Wal-Mart. Turnover is very high, 80% of new hires at my branch quit within a year. Tellers are told that to advance they need to move into the "cash cage" but the raises are slow and small, and the increased time spent on complex transactions (ie wire transfers), business transactions and double-checking all cash received on the front line makes it impossible to meet your upselling goals. One local branch continues to lose 100% of their cage staff year after year, because they don't make bonus. I became a teller because I was burned out from Sales jobs, only to discover it's a service/sales position but without commissions.
