Sorry in advance, this is a bit long!
I am quite happy in my job and am doing well, it's not very prestigious but I am a junior member of the management team so a slightly higher rung of the ladder. I have a lot of flexibility, which I really value, get along with my colleagues well and have a good relationship with my manager. I am one of the lucky ones and have a better contract than most, I also have a higher rate of pay than minimum wage but not by much.
However, there's a few things I find very frustrating. It's very tightly 'controlled' by the higher management, it's a very money oriented business which means there's a lot of things we have to do which make no logical sense from day to day. We also get regular audits which aren't really necessary and are a huge source of stress for all the staff. We are constantly under staffed because the upper management refuse to offer decent contracts and so staff retention is quite low. Busy times are particularly difficult as we frantically try to recruit and train new staff. Realistically, I have gone as far as I can go with the company in my current role, I'm not prepared to move any higher due to the extremely high demands they place on managers for not enough pay (in my opinion). The hours can also be quite unsociable as it's shifts so I can can start as early as 6am and finish as late as 8 or 9pm.
An opportunity has come up recently in a similar company closer to my home with a better hourly contract and more regular, sociable hours. The downside is the hourly pay is lower and it's not a management position so effectively taking a step down 'career wise'. I really down want to take the step 'down' to another minimum wage job but at the same time the opportunity for a permanent full time contract is very very tempting and very difficult to come by in my town which is primarily seasonal work.
Am I better off sticking with what I know or is it worth the risk for a more stable position?