How Old Do You Have to be to Work at Dollar General?
Generally speaking, to get a job at Dollar General as a sales associate, lead sales associate, or assistant store manager, you must be at least 18 years old.
Dollar General also prefers that you have your high school diploma or GED for the sales associate position. If you are interested in a lead sales associate or assistant store manager position, you will need some previous retail, supervisory, and cash handling experience.
Teen Jobs at Dollar General and Age Requirements
Sales Associate (Hourly)
A Sales Associate at Dollar General is responsible for providing excellent customer service by greeting and assisting customers. Sales associates also operate the cash register and scanner, collect payment from customers, and bag merchandise during customer purchases.
Sales associates must also follow the company merchandise process - unpack, stock, restock, and rotate merchandise on the shelves, and also build merchandise displays.
They are also responsible for cleaning the store, taking out the trash, dusting and mopping floors, cleaning restrooms, and setting up sidewalk displays.
You must be at least 18 years old to work as a sales associate at Dollar General.
Lead Sales Associate (Hourly)
The Lead Sales Associate at Dollar General helps maintain a clean, well-organized store with a customer-first focus. The duties of the Lead Sales Associate include assisting customers in locating and purchasing merchandise, operating a cash register, stocking and recovering merchandise, cleaning the store, and performing other duties as assigned by the Store Manager to maximize store profitability and customer satisfaction while protecting company assets.
Lead Sales Associates perform the duties of a Sales Associate and act in a lead capacity in the absence of the Store Manager or Assistant Store Manager.
You must be at least 18 years old to work at Dollar General as a lead sales associate, and you also need a high school diploma with at least six months of supervisory experience.
Assistant Store Manager (Hourly)
The Assistant Store Manager at Dollar General helps maintain a clean, well-organized store with a customer-first focus. At the direction and delegation of the Store Manager, the Assistant Store Manager assists with supervision of store employees, management, and presentation of merchandise, completion of paperwork, and preparation of deposits.
The Assistant Store Manager also performs stocking and cashiering functions, and performs other duties as necessary to maximize profitability and customer satisfaction while protecting company assets and reducing losses.
To work as an Assistant Manager at Dollar General, you must be at least 18 years old and have a high school diploma or GED. They also prefer that you have at least six months of supervisory experience and one year of retail experience.
Can a 15 Year Old Work at Dollar General?
Because the minimum age to work at Dollar General is 18, 15-year-olds can’t work there, but we have a page on our website specifically for 15-year-olds that you can view instead.
Can a 16 Year Old Work at Dollar General?
The minimum age to work at Dollar General is 18, so 16-year-olds can’t work there. We have a page on our website specifically for 16-year-olds that you can view for other options.
How Much Does Dollar General Pay Part-Time Workers?
The hourly earnings for employees at Dollar General vary because of state and city minimum wage laws. However, we can give you a general idea of what the hourly pay is for each position.
Sales Associate (Hourly)
As a Sales Associate at Dollar General, you will be making somewhere between minimum wage and $11 per hour. If you are coming in at entry-level without any prior experience, then you will most likely start at minimum wage.
The average hourly rate for a Dollar General store associate is $8.
Lead Sales Associate (Hourly)
The rate of pay for Lead Sales Associates is between $8 and $13 an hour. You will most likely start at the lower end of the range, but depending on your previous experience you might be able to negotiate a higher starting wage.
The average hourly wage for Lead Sales Associates at Dollar General is $9.
Assistant Store Manager (Hourly)
Assistant Store Managers can be an hourly or salaried position that ranges between $22,000 and $36,000 per year. You can negotiate your pay rate based on your previous retail and supervisory experience.
The average annual salary for a Dollar General Assistant Store Manager is $29,000.
How Much Experience Do You Need to Work at Dollar General?
Dollar General is an entry-level, friendly company, so you can apply for a position without any experience and get hired as a sales associate. However, they do prefer that you have some prior experience for the lead sales associate and assistant manager position, and that can help you negotiate a higher rate of pay.
What Should You Wear to a Job Interview at Dollar General?
Dollar General is a large retail chain, so when you show up for your interview, you will want to be dressed in business casual attire. Consider something like a buttoned-down shirt with nice slacks and dress shoes. You do not want to show up too casual in a t-shirt and jeans, but you don’t need to be too formal and show up in a business suit.
Dollar General Interview Questions
The possible questions in a job interview are endless, and it always depends on the interviewer. There are some common questions that they have been known to ask most applicants. However, be prepared for some curveball questions. You should also expect to take an assessment test and a drug test.
What would you do if you caught an employee stealing?
Why are they asking?
If an interviewer asks you this question, be careful because it’s a trick question. People tend to answer by going on and on about taking charge of the situation by either confronting the employee or calling the police. But, that isn’t what the interviewer wants to hear.
What’s the ideal answer?
The best thing to say is that you would bring it to your supervisor’s attention or call an HR hotline to report it. Companies want a situation like this one to go through the proper channels. They also want to make sure that you would handle this by following company policy instead of taking the matter into your own hands.
What are your strengths and weaknesses?
Why are they asking?
If they ask you this question, they are trying to find out what job skills you can bring to the position, and what you need to work on.
Applicants are usually able to communicate their strengths, but when it comes to weaknesses, some think it’s best to say they don’t have any or can’t think of any. Don’t do this —that answer is a red flag.
What’s the ideal answer?
The hiring manager wants to know you can accept feedback and develop your own skills. Give one or two strengths with examples to go with them. Then list one or two weaknesses, and describe how you’re working on them.
A good answer for a weakness would be something like, “I’ve been told I speak too quickly, so I’ve been practicing on slowing down when talking with customers.”
Why should we hire you?
Why are they asking?
If a manager asks you this question, they are trying to get you to sell yourself. A big part of your job at Dollar General is to give excellent customer service and to be able to drive sales with excellent communication and product knowledge.
They are wanting to find out how well you can communicate while being positive and professional. If you can sell yourself, you can sell their merchandise.
What’s the ideal answer?
Know your strengths. If you get asked this question, tell them how you will benefit their business. They want to hear that you are creative, have above average verbal communication skills, have a friendly and upbeat demeanor, and can successfully sell merchandise.
Tell them that you are a reliable worker who will show up to work on time for every scheduled shift. If you want a career with Dollar General, definitely let them know because there are opportunities for advancement. And, their store manager and district manager positions pay very well.
Benefits of Working at Dollar General
Everyone who works at Dollar General gets a merchandise discount. However, the benefits they offer are for full-time workers only.
Benefits include:
- Paid time off, paid holidays, and paid sick days
- Annual Bonuses
- Vacation
- 401K with company match and Retirement Plan
- Employee Stock Purchase Plan
- Health, Dental, Vision, and Prescription Insurance
