Sonoco Products Reviews

Current Employee – been working at Sonoco Products full-time for more than 3 years

Pros – Sonoco is a very strong, stable company.

Cons – The company's HQ is in a very small town.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend – I'm optimistic about the outlook for this company

Former Employee – worked at Sonoco Products full-time for less than a year

Pros – They have a microwave and refrigerator in the lunchroom.

Cons – OMG where do I start. Due to the environmental standards (HACCP) the protective equipment is extensive. Protective uniform (shirt) hard hat (bump cap) goggles/safety glasses, long, wool arm protectors (HOT!) , hair nets, beard nets, and gloves. One of the worst parts is they expect you to use a sweat-soaked bump cap that just came off someone else's head to start your shift! YUK! The people there have very little social skills. Most have been there for around ten years and are not helpful to new people. Been there for 7yrs and still only getting around $10.50/hr. And did I mention it was HOT! But that can't really be avoided as machines that are designed to melt plastic do create an incredible amount of heat.
             They cannot keep their machines running, with no apparent solutions, day after day. They are spending half their time either running a machine for nothing, or grinding half/most of the parts being produced. The mechanics make like $60,000/yr and you see 5 of them staring at a machine like 5 monkeys opening a banana. And the "good 'ol boy" system is alive and well in this part of the 'holler.
            It is supposed to be a non-smoking environment, but many people walking around that obviously just smoked at least one cig.

Advice to Senior Management – There is very little support on the floor, most people are lazy as hell (the further you go up, the worse it gets, except for MOST of the shift supervisors). Anybody that is not physically running a machine (packers) are walking around with their head up their butt.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend – I'm not optimistic about the outlook for this company

Current Employee – been working at Sonoco Products full-time for more than 10 years

Pros – The job itself is often challenging, interesting, and it does pay the bills. The commute is short. In my position I do enjoy a certain degree of autonomy.

Cons – Every year since being acquired by Sonoco compensation has decreased. Raises were skipped, 401k matching suspended and eventually partially restored in 2009 due to "difficult" times while the CEO's compensation increased by 45% to nearly 9 million dollars. Opportunities for advancement do not seem to exist. The safety program is out of control to the point of being smothering.

Advice to Senior Management – The current policies are a recipe for mediocrity. Provide a clear vision, opportunities, and incentives for employees. It seems that management is rewarded when we do well and receive incentives.. It would be good to give employees incentive as well. Provide clear avenues for advamcement.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

Former Employee – worked at Sonoco Products

Pros – Senior Leadership excellent. Great community. Company has fantastic potential and will continue to be successful.

Cons – Understaffed. Does not welcome "outsiders" into their "culture." It is great if born and raised in Hartsville or if parents/family members have worked for the company. Also, HR department, benefits, etc. VERY antiquated. Senior management strong, but lots of turf fighting among middle managers - which leads to bad decision making.

Current Employee – been working at Sonoco Products

Pros – - Great company culture
- Strong HR team

Cons – - Difficult prospects for growth

Advice to Senior Management – Diversify the business to go after new opportunities more aggressively. Take larger risks, in order to propel higher growth rates.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

Former Employee – worked at Sonoco Products

Pros – -Supportive co-workers
-Great company ethics
-Opportinities for travel
-A chance to really learn about the products Sonoco manufactures
-Great community to work within

Cons – -Corporate HQ location (Hartsville, SC)
-Technology that is not up-to-date (e.g. Word 2007; aging computers)
-Offices constantly being moved around

Advice to Senior Management – The best part of Sonoco was how open the management staff was with fellow Sonoco employees. Each manager I encountered was very kind and helpful, while more than willing to explain terms or fundamentals that you do not quite understand. I feel this is a huge asset to the company and managers should continue this process; it makes employees feel like they are not alone.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Sonoco Products

Pros – Stable company with good training and retention. Strong policies for advancement. Managers are good at working with people and are helpful.

Cons – Economic downturn has hit it pretty hard. Culture is somewhat stagnated in the past. Since it is such a large company, it's very slow to react.

Advice to Senior Management – Keep instituting change and things will turn around soon

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Sonoco Products

Pros – People, benefits and overall work environment is promising. overall job is enjoyable and easily manageable to fit into life. Pay is good.

Cons – Personal growth is challenging due to blue collar entrenchment of many leaders -- this needs to be corrected. Holiday pay for those working alternate schedules is non-existent -- getting a holiday off means you make it up another day.

Advice to Senior Management – look at long-term growth of all staff, better balance blue collar/white collar environments. No tolerance for harassment of any sort.

Current Employee – been working at Sonoco Products

Pros – i like my job because im left alone to perform my job

Cons – i think we need a whole new management team from secretarties down we just received a new general manager now we need a new production manager to complete the change

Advice to Senior Management – trea the employees with respect as you expect us to treat you be fair and let us do our jobs you need to revanp the foreman leadership we do not have fair bosses they have there picks its time for some new blood there

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Sonoco Products

Pros – They pay very well and treat us good. Lots of free meals and prizes if we meet safety and productivy goals.Insurance is well priced and you can lower your premium by doing wellness exams.Filling in for vacation

Cons – Filling in for vacations requires a 12 hour workday. This can get tiring after 5 straight days of getting up at 2 in the morning

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend