Make sure you get it in writing - Anonymous employee Stantec Employee Review

I started at Stantec as an entry-level, temporary position making a couple cents above the local minimum wage with the possibility of getting hiring on as a regular employee with full benefits after 6 months. During those 6 months, I was given much praise for my and my contributions to the team and my work ethic. I repeatedly expressed interest in being hired on as a regular employee to have access to pay and benefits that came with being full time. I was reassured by manager that she would put together a portfolio if that's what it took to convince the higher ups that I should be a regular. After 6 months, my manager informed me that the company was not hiring at the moment, but they'd like to extend my entry-level, temporary status for an additional 9 months. I was not expecting that and feeling as though I had no other choice, I felt like I had to accept that. After another 9 months, they extended my temporary, entry-level status for almost another 3 months. In total, I had worked in what was supposed to be a very temporary, entry-level job title for nearly 1 1/2 years. Finally after 1 1/2 years, I was finally made a regular employee and my pay and benefits kicked in. At this point, I had been doing the work of a regular employee already, and I am convinced that the only reason they kept me in that entry level, temporary status for as long as they did was so they didn't have to pay me more than minimum wage or offer health benefits. By the time I was finally hired on as a regular employee, I had already been doing the work of a regular employee, so it's not like my responsibilities changed all that much. I'm convinced that the only reason they finally offered me the full time position was because I threatened to walk if I didn't get hired on. It was extremely frustrating going to work every day knowing that I could be making more money if I applied to nearly every other job, and yet I chose to stay and work with them. To anyone looking to work at Stantec, I would strongly advise that if your manager gives you any kind of offer, you get it in writing so it's harder for them to go back on their word. This example of a 6 month temp position turning into nearly 1 1/2 years is just one example of many of Stantec going back on something they offered. Who your manager is also plays a big part as I'm sure it does in any job. The first manager I had treated me well and was a good leader. The other manager I had was not competent at all. The second manager would set up a recurring weekly 1/2 hour phone meetings. There was more than once instance where I would call in and be waiting for my manager and she would finally call in 25 minutes later. Her response would be "why didn't you remind me we had our meeting?" and "The next time this happens, I want you to ping me and remind me of our meeting." And no, my position was not as her secretary. The last interaction I had with Stantec is also another another example of Stantec not holding their end of the bargain and why you need to get everything in writing. Once I decided to resign from my position, I gave proper notice. I asked my manager for a letter of reference and she agreed to write one for me. I didn't hear from her for a couple of months so I emailed her asking for the reference letter. I never heard from her again. I'm guessing because I had nothing to offer her, no way for her to benefit from writing a reference letter for me that she didn't bother and chose to ignore my email, hoping I'd just disappear or leave her alone. I did eventually email and receive a reference letter from my other manager at Stantec so I am extremely thankful to that other manager. The entire time I worked at Stantec, we were also extremely short-staffed, which led to no work-life balance. Our team was constantly pressured to stay and work weekends, late nights etc. to complete projects. The managers mentioned several times that they didn't have the budget to hire new employees, so our team would constantly be working I remember once within my first 2 months of working at Stantec, I stayed well past midnight one one occasion. There were a lot of late nights and weekends worked after that. Pretty much from the first day I worked there, the head manager would praise everyone on the team for working so hard and pulling a lot of late nights. This continued throughout the time I worked at Stantec. To motivate the team, once we finished a large project, the manager would give us a Stantec branded t-shirt or beanie hat. While this was a nice gesture, I felt like it didn't really make up for the amount of extra hours spent working on projects. There were a lot more negatives working here, so I would not recommend anyone working here. I believe (and hope) that for anyone that does end up working here that getting any kind of offer in writing would help Stantec keep their side of the bargain.