Alcoa reviews

3.8

75% would recommend to a friend

(950 total reviews)
avatar

Bill Oplinger

74% approve of CEO

62% positive business outlook

Alcoa has an employee rating of 3.8 out of 5 stars, based on 950 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Alcoa employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Manufacturing industry (3.5 stars).

Reviews by job title

950 reviews
3.0
Sep 29, 2008
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

A profitable venture, if you are willing to give up a good portion of what used to be your personal time. Due to the 24/7 nature of operations, many hours are required of the average employee. The company provides an above average benefit package, at a somewhat reasonable cost. Until one gets into upper management there is the opportunity for paid overtime, which can substantially boost earnings potential. The average employee still cares somewhat about the future of the company, and newer upper management is trying to bring about a change in attitude. There are, however, a large number of older employees counting the days until they can retire. This should allow for many future openings.

Cons

Apathy of employees brought about by treatment from upper management. Many employees are disgusted by being treated as children. Granted there are some who abuse thir jobs, but most are conscientious employees who, given some proper leadership, will work to improve the company. Alcoa has abandoned some of their older supervisors by changing the calculation of the pensions. Therefore, many are retiring as their pensions will start dropping if they stay longer. There are many in middle management who have limited knowlege of their job function, have minimal education, and have very little idea of how to manage or treat people.

3.0
Aug 4, 2008
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Alcoa is a great place to start your career. The entry level positions offer variety and the chance to learn much about the company. There are a lot of great people who work there, and opportunities for flexibility in your work schedule.

Cons

Departments are very different within the company, but for the most part it seems like communication is poor and there is not a lot of trust in management. Also, it seems to depend a lot on who your manager is. Some managers are much better than others and offer their employees more opportunities.

2.0
Jun 28, 2008
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

If the reason that you're working is to make a lot of money and don't care about your home/social life than Alcoa is a great place to work. There are always opportunities to work overtime (which is paid) over the weekends. It is also a smaller company so there is more of a family atmosphere. The company also instills a strong work ethic and trains their employees well, so if in the end you feel the company is not a good fit for you personally you will definitely have valuable experience to assist you in the next step of your career.

Cons

One of the most troubling things about working for Alcoa is the layoffs. You never know when they're going to happen and you never know who is going to be affected. It is also difficult to get anyone out of the past. Product is designed the old fashioned way - with grunt work (hence the overtime), and there is little consideration as to where the product is going to go in the future. Then the products that are attempted for the future of the company are out of scope and far beyond the capability and core competencies of the company.

Viewing 946 - 948 of 950 Reviews

Glassdoor has 1,559 Alcoa reviews submitted anonymously by Alcoa employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if Alcoa is right for you.