This review is in regard to RCOH (ESU, ACCIT, CEMAT, and HULL group) located at Newport News Shipbuilding.
After 16 years with the company, these were my experiences:
1. Many employees and managers are former Navy, so the culture often feels like being back in the military—except you have the option to leave.
2. Summer working conditions can be brutal. If you work in the field, expect to be hot from the moment you leave your car until you return at the end of the day. Office employees should keep a jacket because the air conditioning is often very cold.
3. Staffing shortages frequently leave employees doing the work of multiple people without additional compensation or recognition.
4. The company has lost many experienced employees with decades of knowledge. Much of that institutional experience has walked out the door.
5. Employee turnover is very high. New faces arrive regularly, while others leave after only a short time.
6. Pay does not always keep pace with experience or responsibilities. Long-term employees may eventually find that new hires earn similar or higher wages.
7. Unlike Newport News Shipbuilding, employees here do not have union representation.
8. Advancement can feel driven more by office politics than performance. In my experience, self-promotion and maintaining the right relationships with management often mattered more than technical ability or years of experience. I don't think management knows what is going on.
9. Subcontractors, such as those working for companies like QED, often appear to receive higher pay while having fewer responsibilities compared to direct employees. I have heard of subcontractors who decide to transfer over to HII and get a pay cut. Management tells them that in time they will get that money back. It's a lie.
10. If I could do it over again, I would've stayed working for Newport News Shipbuilding. I worked for them before HII. The pay is better. Overtime is as much as you want. 7 days a week if you want. If HII could get away with it, they would pay you $2.00 an hour.
