Let's be clear: this isn't a company, it's a high-turnover body shop. They'll sell you on "opportunity," but you're not an employee; you're the product. You're a line item, a resource to be billed out. Your only value is the margin they can squeeze from your hourly rate. They've built their entire business model on you being disposable.
They talk about "growth"? That's an illusion. They want you to believe there's a ladder, but the rungs are missing. Training? Appraisals? Why would they invest in a product they plan to burn out and replace? It seems like they're banking on you not noticing. They're betting you'll be too busy to see there's no path forward.
Your pay is stagnant from day one. That's not an accident; it's a feature. They know you're locked in. Asking for an inflation adjustment? They'll act like you're being unreasonable, like you're the one being unfair. It's a calculated strategy to demoralize you into accepting less than you're worth.
Here's the real game: the "implied" unpaid overtime. It's endless. It's the standard. And your personal time? That's theirs, too. You'll get calls from managers on your personal number, on a Sunday, and it won't be a request. It'll be an expectation. They have zero respect for boundaries. They're testing how much you'll give them for free.
This isn't a team; it's a burnout factory. They operate on pressure and fear. I've watched great engineers—the ones who actually care—get ground down to nothing and leave. Good people are constantly running for the exit. That's the signal. That's the proof. Don't walk away. Run. Avoid at all costs.