Worst Place I Ever Worked - Systems Engineer Solar Turbines Employee Review

Great Culture, Good people, good experience

Any manufacturing place will have the typical downsides

- Strong benefits package: Holiday shutdown, competitive perks, and the advantages that come with being part of a large, well‑resourced company. - Paid parental leave (new): 16 weeks of paid leave, which is better than many companies in the industry. - Good healthcare options: Solid medical, dental, and vision coverage at a reasonable cost. - Annual bonus structure: Predictable and appreciated yearly bonuses. - Beautiful office + great people: The day‑to‑day coworkers are talented, fun, and genuinely supportive

- Extremely corporate culture: The company feels increasingly focused on pleasing shareholders and the board rather than supporting employees. - Loss of autonomy + heavy oversight: What used to feel like an independent, empowered environment now feels like “Caterpillar 2.0.” Badge tracking, VPN monitoring, and manager “hit lists” create a sense of surveillance. - DEI rollback: Programs that once had meaning have been stripped down to generic, checkbox versions. - ERGs restricted: Employee resource groups used to be vibrant and employee‑led; now they feel controlled, sanitized, and performative. - Rigid return‑to‑office policy: Leadership advertises “flexibility,” but employees are told that not being in the office 5 days a week, 8 hours a day will negatively impact performance evaluations - Slow, approval‑heavy processes: Even simple decisions require layers of approval, which slows down work and kills creativity. - Double standards: Senior leadership enjoys freedom and exceptions while rank‑and‑file employees are monitored like children. - Structure: People are encouraged to move around to get experience. While this may be a good thing for some people it essentially means you don't get rewarded by being a subject matter expert - you get stuck at the same salary grade for your entire career. It also means managers are frequently in a "step" position so they don't have the time or care to learn their actual job.