If you are a chemist, run and do not work there - Researcher Battelle Employee Review

1.0
Jan 30, 2022
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

The insurance benefits are not bad

Cons

Where to begin. 1) The work life balance is a joke. The every other Friday off is extremely deceiving. You are not a salaried employee but an hourly employee which means you have extremely long days. If there is a holiday, you have to make up time and add it onto your work week. Some weeks you will work 50 hours just to make up for the time. You must work 80 hours in a pay period, which again defeats the purpose of being a salaried employee. You must also log your time like an hourly employee. 2) They do not have sick days and expect you to take your PTO if you’re sick. Even during the pandemic. They give you 14 days for vacation which is actually a lie. Because you have to work 9 hours each day you truly get 12 days and again, that’s 12 days for vacation and your sick days because they give you none. ***People who have had this place as their first job think that the above is normal. It is not normal at all. Other companies will give you sick days (usually unlimited), personal days, over 3 weeks of PTO. Hence, they aren’t competitive. 3) Projects here are an absolutely joke and they do not get things done. It seems they have a hard working PR team who must market like crazy. Honestly shocked that people still give this place their money and they win proposals because it’s a scam. 4) they do not take intellectual property seriously and will not defend patents that may be infringed on. Their process is clunky and it seems they don’t have the staff or dollars it takes to really structure Solid IP portfolios. 5) diversity is terrible

Explore other reviews about Battelle

5.0
Jul 6, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Friendly coworkers, great team culture

Cons

Time tracking for every single project

1.0
Jun 4, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

They pay my salary on time.

Cons

-They are run like grad school. They have you compete against your co-workers for funding, they consider rules and laws as simple impediments to be overcome by capricious edicts, they will treat you like a rented mule if you let them. I have come to the conclusion that senior management cares very little about work conditions or employees, only about the bottom line. This experience has significantly changed my opinion of not-for-profit companies. If you are a researcher looking for an open and collaborative environment with shared goals, I suggest you look elsewhere.

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