Pros
- Lots to learn for fresh grads - Once in a while you get to work on an interesting project
Cons
- Benefits start after two years - Get 10 days vacation, some of which are forced to be used up during the Christmas holidays, so you pretty much get 6-7 days vacation per entire year - Taking your minimal vacation is a hassle, where you have to give 2 months in advance to take a few days off. Even taking one day off is problematic and is always met with some sort of resistance - If you’re sick even for one day you have to take yourself to the doctor to get a doctors note - Very small family owned business that is grossly understaffed and is too cheap to hire new people or invest back into the company, resulting in a very disorderly laboratory environment, a lack of instrument maintenance because everyone is too busy to do it, and a very messy and unsafe lab - Difficult to convince to purchase consumables or columns, at times forced to wash and re-use one-time-use plastic syringes or glass vials - Older fumehoods significantly lost efficiency and have never been upgraded or fixed, but employee health and safety is the least of their concern - No expertise to be found since everyone leaves after a few years - Documentation and record keeping is also lacklustre, which results in the same mistakes being made over and over again - Family members are placed in roles they are not qualified for, and are given special treatment in terms of taking days off or not being reprimanded for acting in highly inappropriate ways - Owner can be verbally abusive at times and talks badly about other employees during your own yearly review. Owner downplays everything you do here and will blatantly tell you how low value you are. Can never see the wrong in her and her families way - One of the greatest sins you can commit here is leaving at 5pm to go to your family. In their eyes, the best employee is one who works late for free and prioritises work over everything, even your kids. You are expected to go above and beyond for this family while they give you the bare minimum in terms of vacation, benefits, and salary
