Thompson Safety reviews

If anyone in corporate is trying to understand why the Milwaukee branch is struggling again, they need to look closely at what has happened under the current general manager. I was with the branch before she arrived. It was not perfect, but it functioned. Since she took over, turnover has increased, morale has dropped, and the day-to-day environment has become noticeably more negative and unstable. Safety and employee well-being do not feel like priorities. There were multiple times when I was expected to move or swap heavy, awkward equipment alone that clearly should have been handled as a team lift. When I asked for help to do it safely, the person who helped me was criticized. The clear takeaway was: get it done quickly and quietly, even if that means ignoring basic safe practices. As a company operating in a safety-focused industry, that is a serious concern. It sends the wrong message about what matters: hitting numbers and avoiding inconvenience, rather than making sure people can do the job without getting hurt. I do not believe that lines up with the type of safety culture OSHA would expect. Raising concerns often made things worse instead of better. Once you question how something is being done, or speak up about safety or fairness, you stop being seen as part of the solution and start being treated like a problem. The pattern is pretty clear: keep your head down and say nothing, or expect some form of pushback. The tone inside the branch has shifted too. It is common to hear employees spoken to sharply or called out in front of others for things that could easily be handled in a calm, private conversation. At one point, the general manager told others, behind the team’s back, “This is the worst service team I’ve ever managed.” When leadership talks about their own people that way, it destroys trust. What makes it even more frustrating is how little visible leadership we get in return. The GM spends most of her time in her office, rarely out in the field or on the floor with the team. She regularly talks about how busy and overwhelmed she is, but a lot of the day-to-day planning, communication, and documentation ends up on others. There were plenty of times where AI tools like ChatGPT were being used to write and organize things that should have been handled directly by management. It creates the impression that she is removed from the actual work while still claiming the most pressure. There is also a clear double standard in how people are treated. If you have a family or any real responsibilities outside of work, it often feels like a mark against you. Needing to coordinate childcare or have a predictable schedule is seen as less committed. On the other hand, if you were hired by her, you tend to get the benefit of the doubt. Those employees are given more grace and protection, while others are scrutinized more closely for the same or smaller issues. Gossip and favoritism are not occasional problems; they are part of the culture now. Decisions often seem driven more by who is in favor than by performance, professionalism, or safety. Real operational and safety issues take a back seat to managing optics, assigning blame, and controlling the story. After a while, you stop believing that leadership will have your back if you do the job the right way. You do not feel confident that they understand what field employees face each day or that they are willing to stand up for them when it matters. The most discouraging part is that this does not feel like a hidden problem. In my experience, upper management and HR are aware there are serious issues in Milwaukee, but nothing meaningful changes. Concerns are raised, details are shared, and then things go quiet. The message that sends is that protecting leadership and short-term numbers matters more than fixing a broken branch. Milwaukee has already had a reputation as the branch of “lost business” before. If this continues, it will end up in that position again, not because the service reps don’t care, but because of how the branch is being led. If you value a stable environment, fair treatment, and a workplace that actually backs up its safety messaging, you should be very cautious about joining the Milwaukee branch in its current state.