Pros
Q’Straint is a family owned global manufacturing company that contributes to the local South Florida economy. It provides factory, traditional office and engineering jobs and engages in some community service. Company is slowly growing and making necessary capital expenditures however its investment practices are piecemeal and lacking due diligence. Compensation seems to be fair but benefits are lacking – specifically vacation and 401(k) matching which doesn’t kick in till after a year of employment.
Cons
Despite an unusual amount of meetings there are communication issues. Timelines, goals and basic business and engineering processes are not clearly defined or even understood by management and employees. Business ERP software is out of date and processes such as engineering changes are still managed via paper forms. These inefficiencies make otherwise easy work unnecessarily stressful and tedious. Q’Straint factory and office work environments are situated inside a warehouse and notably in poor condition. The company is looking for a new facility and uses that as an excuse for not upgrading the current facility. The factory floor is not air conditioned, only ventilated by large wall and floor fans. The office space, despite being air conditioned is also littered with fans to compensate for uneven cooling. The open office is packed with a mix of Ikea desks and standard 4’ tall cubicles. Overcrowding and a bad office layout leave 3 desks a mere 4 feet away from bathroom doors which are separated only by a 4-ft. tall partition; imagine the outcome. Fan noise and ongoing distractions from the open office layout lead to even poorer work performance. There are some potential health and safety concerns in the factory. For example, the company recently installed new high speed CNC machines for metalworking. These machines began production without hoods for capturing or controlling CNC mist and smoke emissions. This caused a visible haze in the factory. OSHA defines limits for air contaminates that should be investigated by management. Employee time is strictly micro managed and even professional salaried employees are required to clock in and out via software on their computers. Being even one minute late is red flagged by the software and may result in disciplinary action (unless you’re in the management “clique”). There’s a 15-minute break at 9:00 AM but no afternoon break. Most managers monitor every move their employees make. Friendly conversations amongst employees or even restrained cell phone use quickly result in snippy, sarcastic remarks from some managers. Being called out in the open is not uncommon and therefore employee morale is low. One manager in particular is demeaning to his staff who visibly appear immediately traumatized when he walks in the room. His demeanor is unprofessional and amounts to outright bullying, but unfortunately he is clueless or does not care. Management is not popular with the 99% of employees, but most put up with it for no reason other than just to keep their jobs. Whoever says they like working at this company probably spike their coffee and repeat “Keep it together, you can do this” into the bathroom mirror ten times a day. Working there boils down to leaving your professional dignity at the door, clocking in, keeping your mouth shut about everything, clocking out and hating the everyday work life that Q’Straint provides. Steer clear!