Pros
Work will challenge your abilities. You may get to learn many food testing methods. You can meet many great people.
Cons
The workplace is overcrowded, poorly maintained, and dysfunctional. This becomes your problem, and your safety risk. There are not enough scientists to complete work properly; everything is done in haste and mistakes are problematic. There is always a relentless backlog. You are pushed everyday to get it done. Expectations are to sign off on incomplete work so that you can keep moving and get going on the next batch. The company does not honor promises and pay agreements. Promotion without pay increase is normal. Employees increase work responsibilities for promises of future reward, to someday receive only a trivial pay increase. The problem is that you are told there will be more when you work hard, stay late and work weekends. Many new hires leave quickly. Employee turnover exceeds 20%. Company went through 3 HR Managers in one year. Employee abuse is typical, much more for supervisors and immigrant scientists. You will be paid less than your peers, you will be yelled at, and you will be insulted as a human being. Incomplete work and low quality data are referred to as, “Fit for purpose”. Accreditation from A2LA was suspended during 2013 and the attempt to get reinstated fell short. A2LA ultimately removed the company from accreditation with a forced withdrawal. The new audit company has lower expectations. This ensures that improvements will not happen next year.