Does Charles River Laboratories pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, Charles River Laboratories employees rate their compensation and benefits as 3.0 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at Charles River Laboratories. This rating has been stable over the past 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at Charles River Laboratories?

49% of Charles River Laboratories employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated Charles River Laboratories 3.2 out of 5 for work life balance, 3.2 for culture and values and 3.1 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at Charles River Laboratories?

Lab Technician (78) , Scientist (69) , Animal Care Technician (65) , Research Technician (55) , Technician (52) , Analyst (51) , Research Associate (46) , Research Scientist (42) , Supervisor (37) , Research Assistant (36) , Laboratory Technician (31) , Study Director (27) , Project Manager (25) , Manager (22) , Associate Scientist (20)

What are the pros of working at Charles River Laboratories according to real employee reviews?

"The ability to move around within the company is relatively good and the benefits are good." ((in 232 reviews)); "Great people you work with and a relatively easy job with very easy to understand ladder to climb." ((in 166 reviews)); "Great Coworkers (for the most part)" ((in 46 reviews)); "Great people and team to work with" ((in 44 reviews)); "flexibility friendly easy good training" ((in 40 reviews))

What are the cons of working at Charles River Laboratories according to real employee reviews?

"sites are disorganized and pay is low" ((in 174 reviews)); "Management is poor and people who are in charge lack knowledge of CDMO" ((in 158 reviews)); "The low salary also makes it hard to subsequently ask for more at another company." ((in 121 reviews)); "Long hours are common and they happen with little or no warning and frequently (at least a couple times a week)." ((in 41 reviews)); "upper management is awful, lots of work to do which overwhelms people easily." ((in 35 reviews))

What are employees saying about Charles River Laboratories layoffs in 2026?

Explore Glassdoor’s employee reviews to understand what current and former employees are saying about Charles River Laboratories layoffs and their outlook for job security at Charles River Laboratories in 2026.

What are the top reviewed Charles River Laboratories locations?

Wilmington , Mattawan , Reno , Ashland , Horsham , Shrewsbury , Memphis , Boston , Charleston , Worcester , Chicago , Bethesda , Raleigh , South San Francisco , Malvern , Wayne , Cambridge , Skokie , San Diego , Rockville , Morrisville , Newark , Frederick , Philadelphia , Spencerville , Kalamazoo , Wilmington , Durham , Kingston , Catskill

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Charles River Laboratories

Charles River Laboratories reviews

3.1

49% would recommend to a friend

(2,375 total reviews)

Birgit Girshick

64% approve of CEO

32% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

3.7

Diversity & inclusion

3.2

Culture & values

3.2

Work/Life balance

3.1

Career opportunities

3.0

Compensation and benefits

2.7

Senior management

Charles River Laboratories has an employee rating of 3.1 out of 5 stars, based on 2,375 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Charles River Laboratories employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Pharmaceutical & Biotechnology industry (3.5 stars).

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Reviews by job title

2K reviews

4.0

Apr 17, 2025

Good work life balance

Scientist i

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

1. Good work life balance 2. Decent PTO of 15 days/Yr and 3.5 days of Flex holidays/Yr. 8 days of sick leave/Yr and 9 holidays/Yr 3. Fun events 4. Tuition fee reimbursement up to $20,000/yr available from day 1 at the job 5. Good dental insurance

Cons

1. Health insurance could be better 2. No stock options offered either in the form of long term bonus or at a discounted rate for employees 3. Health Benefits do not kick in at day 1 of employment 4. Payback clause on tuition fee reimbursement. Have to stay at CRL for 36 months since the last reimbursement. 5. 401k is not vested from day 1 as advertised in job description. To be able to get the company match, one has to be employed on 31st December of a calendar year.

3.0

Apr 16, 2025

Not Competitive in Reno

Supervisor

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

With so many people leaving, opportunities are everywhere.

Cons

Job security is at an all time low.

3.0

Apr 14, 2025

Cog in the wheel

Client manager

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

There is exposure to great world of pharma and biotech, but ultimately if you are low on the totem pole, you're subject to changing tides from senior management

Cons

no a lot of direction from leadership, people take things one day at a time, no vision

Viewing 199 - 201 of 2,375 Reviews

Jobs at Charles River Laboratories

Animal Care Associate

Security Officer - Worcester, MA (Mon-Fri, 10pm - 6am)

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Good work life balance

Not Competitive in Reno

Cog in the wheel

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