Very Disfunctional Management - Scaffolder PCL Construction Employee Review

1.0
Apr 28, 2015
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Well the people who worked in the field for the most part are decent and hard working. I would choose to work with many of them again, just not on a PCL managed site.

Cons

The overall program PCL has adapted is one of safety over productivity. But in reality this is just to keep their clients happy. On the site I worked `Surmont 2` just south of Fort McMurray, Alberta there was one set of rules when the client was watching and one set of rules when they were not. I was employed as a Scaffolder. PCL has increased the safety factor to make it appear to their client that they are in fact a safe company. Examples of this are... A)100 percent tie off of all tools. This makes tool handling very difficult B) You must drag your butt along steel beams and not walk on them even if you are tied off. A physical feat in it self(very dangerous) C)You must tie off to a tie point of at least 5000lbs even though OH&S for Alberta states 3600lbs. A 10 inch pipe or larger instead of a 8 inch pipe of larger. And Foremans determine if you tied off correctly and can discipline you at their discretion. D) They add a number of restrictions to you in contradiction to your training and tell you its all about safety and then can write you up for lack of production. E) When you are doing your induction read the fine print, they can terminate you for a number of reasons based on their opinion including any negative remarks you make about them on public media, ie Facebook, Twitter etc My over all advice to trades people is to avoid this company.

Explore other reviews about PCL Construction

5.0
Jun 9, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Amazing loved the management and team

Cons

Nothing at all! Amazing experience

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PCL Construction Response
1mo
Sounds like your internship was a success! Don’t forget to sign up to our Talent Community to stay up to date with our career opportunities.
3.0
Jun 30, 2026
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Work life balance was good. Some coworkers were good

Cons

Management position definitely play favorites, pay for amount of work lacks and ESOP is not good.

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PCL Construction Response
1w
Thank you for your review. Construction can be a challenging but rewarding industry so we appreciate your time and committment to building better futures. If you’d like to provide more details regarding your specific situation please reach out to glassdoor@pcl.com.
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