Does Charles River Laboratories pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, Charles River Laboratories employees rate their compensation and benefits as 3.0 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at Charles River Laboratories. This rating has been stable over the past 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at Charles River Laboratories?

49% of Charles River Laboratories employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated Charles River Laboratories 3.2 out of 5 for work life balance, 3.2 for culture and values and 3.1 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at Charles River Laboratories?

Lab Technician (78) , Scientist (69) , Animal Care Technician (65) , Research Technician (55) , Technician (52) , Analyst (51) , Research Associate (46) , Research Scientist (42) , Supervisor (37) , Research Assistant (36) , Laboratory Technician (31) , Study Director (27) , Project Manager (25) , Manager (22) , Associate Scientist (20)

What are the pros of working at Charles River Laboratories according to real employee reviews?

"The ability to move around within the company is relatively good and the benefits are good." ((in 236 reviews)); "Great people you work with and a relatively easy job with very easy to understand ladder to climb." ((in 175 reviews)); "Great people and team to work with" ((in 47 reviews)); "Very interesting place to work and colleagues are great" ((in 43 reviews)); "Flexible hours available" ((in 42 reviews))

What are the cons of working at Charles River Laboratories according to real employee reviews?

"sites are disorganized and pay is low" ((in 184 reviews)); "Management is poor and people who are in charge lack knowledge of CDMO" ((in 169 reviews)); "The low salary also makes it hard to subsequently ask for more at another company." ((in 116 reviews)); "A lot of managers don't know what actually occurs in their department." ((in 32 reviews)); "upper management could do better caring for the employees." ((in 31 reviews))

What are employees saying about Charles River Laboratories layoffs in 2026?

Explore Glassdoor’s employee reviews to understand what current and former employees are saying about Charles River Laboratories layoffs and their outlook for job security at Charles River Laboratories in 2026.

What are the top reviewed Charles River Laboratories locations?

Wilmington , Mattawan , Reno , Ashland , Horsham , Shrewsbury , Memphis , Boston , Charleston , Worcester , Chicago , Bethesda , Raleigh , South San Francisco , Malvern , Wayne , Cambridge , Skokie , San Diego , Rockville , Morrisville , Newark , Frederick , Philadelphia , Spencerville , Kalamazoo , Wilmington , Durham , Kingston , Catskill

Charles River Laboratories reviews

3.1

49% would recommend to a friend

(2,373 total reviews)

Birgit Girshick

64% approve of CEO

32% positive business outlook

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Charles River Laboratories has an employee rating of 3.1 out of 5 stars, based on 2,373 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Charles River Laboratories employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Pharmaceutical & Biotechnology industry (3.5 stars).

Reviews by job title

2K reviews

3.0

Jul 19, 2014

Focused on Business. Not so much on it's employees and departments

Supervisor

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Work Schedule- very relaxed co-workers- are great.Many great employees have come, gone and remain with the company. More leave than stay Benefits- average and has consistently increased in costs every year

Cons

too many senior management rolls and not enough workers. low pay compared to local companies inconsistent in yearly evaluations and promotions. management worries about every other department except it's own

3.0

Jul 14, 2014

Reno Site - Laid back culture but heavy workloads

Quality assurance auditor ii

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

It is nice working in a professional environment that still maintains a casual, laid-back culture. Employees are dedicated to the mission of the company, which is aiding and accelerating drug development through preclinical research. I enjoy having a great deal of autonomy in my position... NEVER micromanaged.

Cons

Workloads within some departments were overwhelming at times. In general, salaries are not commensurate with other CROs and certainly not with large pharm/biotech companies. CRL- Nevada benefits from being the only gig in town for those with a biology/life sciences background. A lot of employees stay because the area is rich in quality outdoor activity, not to mention lower cost of living than the West Coast science hubs. That said, CRL seems to even be falling behind on salaries compared to other companies in the small Reno market.

2.0

Jul 8, 2014

Unnecessarily high stress for a job that shouldn't be this hard.

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

For the kind of things that we are responsible for, the salary is good. Also, coworkers are great. The vet techs and most PI's are friendly and easy to talk to.

Cons

Management is TERRIBLE. You are stuck between a rock and a hard place constently. People are in constant fear of losing their job or they stop caring for the job. For the work that is done, they hire people that are over qualified to make up for the lack of training provided. They promise that things will get better. However, they are really slow on their promises. Also, there is no opportunity to grow, unless you don't mind moving to different locations. This is a new contract. Therefore, I'm really hoping things will improve.

Viewing 2287 - 2289 of 2,373 Reviews

Jobs at Charles River Laboratories

Technician I Microbiology

Technician I - Clinical Pathology, 2nd Shift

Research Assistant I - Analytical Chemistry

Associate Project Manager