Brookhaven National Laboratory reviews

First- Sam Aronson is no longer Director, and the scenario of his replacement has been telling. BNL is run by the pairing of a big engineering contractor and a research university. Sadly, the lab has been in a phase that is quickly becoming decidedly more corporate and less academic. Morale has declined terribly from historically quite positive levels, as emphasis on work for others and programmatic 'facilities management' have overrun encouragement for (historically, quite successful) independent research. The current focus includes way too many profit center analyses and way too little focus on important, even meaningful science. Worse, 'profit' seems to be defined irrespective of costs imposed by engineering charges widely seen as bloated and pointless to an extent that is whispered to be self-serving of the engineering management. The lab system was founded on the need to generate science in large venues, not to use ROI calculations to decide priorities. Yet, the emphasis on transient projects and flexible offerings to provide the lab technical resources for contracted work for others has handcuffed, and now begun to garrote the lab scientists.

It's isolated. Paycheck is lower than in other Nat Labs. They have serious issues with safety and is considered by DOE as the least safe Lab. Postdocs never make it to staff even though they might tell you will...