Lam - Mostly good, but really no different than any other big company. - Anonymous employee Lam Research Employee Review

4.0
Oct 1, 2018
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Lam seemed like a good company and they were when the revenue was grwoing. The benefits (medical, dental, 401k, bonuses, etc.) are good.

Cons

They talked about the value of the employees, but it was all talk. With the recent down turn in sales, they eliminated most of the contract employees globally (~1,000?), which was understandable. But instead of "weathering the storm", they also recently RIF'd ~5% of the regular work force globally (400-500?) and ~19% in my organization. (Lam hires a lot of contract employees so if there is a downturn, they don't have to report it. Contractors are rarely converted to regular employees and after 2 years are let go. They can return after 60 days if the job is still open. I know of one contract employee that was at Lam for over 6 years having been let go at least 3 times and then hired back again as a contractor.)

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Pros

Lead business and overview of business

Cons

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2.0
Jun 11, 2026
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CEO approval
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Pros

Pay is market rate or slightly higher. Smart new fresh grads join every year. They work hard.

Cons

Avoid Dielectric Etch Org as much as you can. Both product and process engineering. Constant Pressure, extreme long work hours, You are working 7/8 AM to 9/10PM, need to work on weekends because of lack of tool times. High level management yelling, screaming in meetings for anything trivial. If CVP wakes up not happy that day, someone will get yelled at in either large or small meetings for small things. THIS IS Dielectric Etch Culture at Lam. This place is a cesspool of nepotism. Even director levels are being yelled at constantly in meetings for various reasons, if he or she is not favored by the CVP. If a mediocre engineer or director who is liked by CVP, he will have much easy time cruising through with minimal effort and knowledge. ... If you are fresh PhD from top or mid tier schools, expect 80hr work weeks, and if you are not lucky, wait for 4 years to be promoted from lvl 3 to 4 level and stuck with no options to move around because you are stuck in Semiconductor equipment industry and other orgs in Lam won't take you. There are many junior engineers with excellent work ethic stuck doing the same things for half a decade without a move in their career. But if you are good at lip service, your life will be easier. Do not trust the general statement of Lam has good culture, it is very very dependent on which Org inside Lam.

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