Funeral atmosphere, toxic work environment and bullying culture. - Mechanical Fitter Ridgway Machines Employee Review

Don't let any recruiters persuade you into taking a job here you will regret it. I'm absolutley disgusted with how I was treated at Ridgway. When interviewed I was told I would be trained, the man who interviewed me left before I started and the plan changed. Instead they want you to be the finished article straight through the door and you're given no time to learn and no settling in period. If you're new to this sort of work don't bother applying because you won't be taught or given time. If you're experienced there are much better paid jobs out there for you. You will constantly be watched, picked at and belittled by the owner and his management team. There is constant passive aggressive bullying, I feel like I was basically bullied out of the door. I left within a week because the bullying and horrible work culture were effecting my mental health. If you go to get a drink or go to the toilet you will be watched or followed by someone, this isn't an exaggeration. The men are like beaten dogs, everyone is scared to talk or stop working to help someone else for even a second for fear of losing their job. The worshop is silent and it feels like you're walking on eggshells all the time. There are a few very nice, very skilled people working there but you won't be able to tell as you'll be offloaded somewhere by yourself doing a job nobody else wants to do with no help or guidance. The management have everyone feeling wound up all the time so expect tensions to be running high. Don't expect any help because people get sacked for coming away from what they're supposed to be doing. Ask about staff turnover, for such a small team you will be shocked at how many people leave after such a short time. Expect to do overtime or be sacked, if you're old they will put you on heavy lifting jobs while they laugh at you behind your back. Expect people to talk about you behind your back. You'll need very thick skin if you're going to stick it out here for any length of time because you'll be belittled and feel degraded daily. If your team leader decides he doesn't like you as happened in my case you're basically screwed because they will set you up to fail. Expect to get thrown under the bus for any issues that arise and nobody will stick up for you even if you've only been there a few days. If you don't get invited into the experienced guys clique you're basically doomed. All the parts you need for your job are randomly scattered around the floor on pallets making it a nightmare to find what you're looking for. Time spent looking for things isn't taken into account when they tell you you're taking too long on a job. The drawings have mistakes and missing information, parts are missing and there is no system of work provided to read through to see the correct order/way of doing things. For some bizarre reason they like to make up a lot of the sub assemblies with temporary bolts so you have to strip it all back to fit the correct fasteners. More wasted time not taken into account, they'll just label you as too slow. All it takes is for one of the management or experienced guys to label you as slow and you've got a big target on your head. The amount of brown nosing that goes on will make you feel sick. The work I actually found very interesting and there's plenty of it to do. I felt like I could've learned a lot and improved my skills if someone took the time to go through it with me and they provided a training plan. It's just a shame you aren't given time to learn anything without the owner and management cracking the whip at you. They will make you doubt yourself but the fault is with them not you. Health and safety and employee wellbeing is an afterthought, they don't care as long as the jobs getting done quickly. In conclusion, Ridgway is the worst place I've ever worked and the only place that has ever made me feel so low about myself. If I can persuade others not to waste their time there I will feel a bit of good has come from my terrible experience.