Been working in my capacity for over 20 years through several different ownerships. The present ownership is by far the worse. The insistence to change that which does not need changing and in fact worsens conditions is by far the most detrimental action taken over the last several years. For example, a more recent change has been to make supervisors now a combination supervisor/job holder (control room operator/lab tech) which makes them stationary and removed from what is going on around the plant and unable to interact with the workers. When implementing this recent change, it had already been done at a couple of other plants and did NOT work.
Yet, the plant manager where I am employed knew better and stated he could make it work. He promoted people with single digit years employment (and most often with NO experience in control room/labs) into these roles. These supervisors are so busy trying to do multiple jobs that they are not qualified for that they have no idea of what is going on in the rest of the plant or what the workers are in actuality doing! But hey, it isn't the plant manager's responsibility as he made these and other changes then left to take another job in the company. He stayed in the office area and had no clue about what was happening in the plant. Him, and his predecessors, have made multiple changes over the years that do nothing/cause harm to operations and definitely lower worker morale then the next plant manager tries to make more changes (but will not just admit something doesn't work and go back to something that did work) to correct workings.
Supposedly we have several committees that help decide things around the plant. One committee is to have some say in the handbook. In actuality, the plant manager at the time and the HR person has pre-wrote every handbook and presented it as a done deal. Of course, every change or addition to the handbook benefited management and penalized the worker. HR is a joke and the person that has been in place knows nothing about the workers. This company has become big on college degrees and will promote based on one and NOT on any actual knowledge or experience. They want workers with degrees or military experience yet treat them as subhuman unless in a management position.
The threat of losing a job in the present economy, not to mention having so many years invested, creates mandatory overtime no matter what is going on personally. The family suffers. The present setup make it very easy to just not do anything except if something directly impacts the supervisors job and he needs it to be done by the worker. One worker made the comment 'look busy, but do nothing.' He's close to retirement and just trying to hold on through the latest changes. Many other workers have left or are looking to leave from recent changes to management. One particular promoted manager is so lost in his job and blaming the workers he is in charge of instead of admitting that a degree does not a manager make.
So, if you need a job and can get hired while looking for a better job, then go for it. This current ownership has made it just like all the other companies who treat their workers like dung. High turnover and no loyalty. It used to be a place where a worker would be extremely loyal and work 30 or more years before retiring. Oh well, guess that isn't important to Essroc and it's parent company anymore. They don't care about their product and they certainly don't care about their workers.