engineer

intern

nuclear power reactor operator

technical officer

engineering intern

Ontario Power Generation

Ontario Power Generation is a very large corporation whose goal is to produce Electrical Power Safely, Economically while being a good Environmental Steward. As such, it has a wide variance of nuances that offers the right candidate the ability to contribute to the company goals. The employees are highly intelligent with a focus on Continuous Improvement. I had the opportunity to learn a great deal about the operation of a Nuclear Power Plant, but to me, the more important lessons I learned and applied were in the area of being a Supervisor. I learned what it takes to be an effective supervisor and that if you work hard to support the needs of those you supervise while maintaining a high standard performance with a clear set of expectations, you can positively effect the work performed. My track record as a supervisor supports that theory. My crews consistently showed improved performance and is well documented. If I had to say anything negative about this company, it is that I believe that there is a disjoint between Management and Supervision that could improve the whole operation and effectiveness of the people it employs. Other than that, this is very good company with high values and concern for the people it employs. My time with this company was full of life lessons and I enjoyed the job immensely even with the daily ups and downs. It provides an environment where people can experience personal growth as well as performing a job. You can get out of it what you put into it.

I have to say my experience was far from positive. Technical challenges were overshadowed by some serious management issues. First, the management was a major disappointment. My direct supervisor had no real understanding of the technology we were working with, which led to unrealistic expectations and poorly defined project goals. It felt like the tech team was constantly being pulled in different directions without clear direction or support. Lack of technical leadership was compounded by a general reluctance to embrace modern practices and tools. Instead of fostering a collaborative and innovative environment, there is a tendency to stick to outdated methods and ignore valuable input from the team. This created an environment where productivity and job satisfaction suffered.

Moreover, the communication from management was often poor. Feedback was inconsistent, and it was not uncommon for decisions to be made without consulting the people who were actually doing the work. This not only led to frustration but also resulted in projects that missed deadlines and exceeded budgets.

The work-life balance was another area where OPG fell short. Despite being in a high-tech role, the company seemed to undervalue its employees’ time and contributions. Long hours were often expected without adequate recognition or compensation.

Overall, my time at Ontario Power Generation was marked by frustration and missed opportunities for growth. If you’re a tech professional considering a role here, be prepared for a challenging work environment with management that may not fully appreciate or support your expertise.

As an eight-month developmental student working in Nuclear Refurbishment, I was always provided with new challenges and opportunities to further myself. My manager provided excellent opportunities equivalent to a full-time worker that allowed me to set goals, and establish myself as an individual within the organization.

I worked to manage the spending, forecasting and cost allocation for a major nuclear project. I worked heavily in Microsoft Excel, developing methods to accurately manage the spending and costs. I worked directly with the Finance department to help manage accruals, spending, purchase orders, and organizational and change requests.

I was able to learn much about the industry, how to communicate with others, was able to conduct many presentations, and how to effectively meet deadlines. The hardest part of my job was picking up where another student had left off, with zero training or information provided on how to effectively do the job. When I left after about eight and a half months, I had successfully created a large binder to be used by the entire department on how to most efficiently complete the tasks that role required.

What was most enjoyable about this experience was being able to work in the initial stages of a large, multi-million dollar project. It was exciting to be able to assist in the development and management of the costs to such an important project that aims to benefit the entire province.

While there are knowledgeable staff who want to do a good job and earn their keep, there are a small number of staff who back-stabs and does no work, upwards delegating their work as there is absolutely nothing management would do to correct the situation.

Speaking of management, the most incompetent and sociopathic people reside in those roles, often play nothing but favouritism to their buddies, and move an overwhelming work load to those "outside of the circle".  However, when it comes to evaluation time, those inside the circle, those who come in at 8:30 and leave at 3:30, those who get unlimited resources whenever asked for, those who do not have any real job responsibilities are the ones who get good ratings.  Those who work around the clock, with unmanageable tasks that upper management couldn't manage for years, those who follows governance and get things done, those who try to bridge the chasm between management and staff, would get rated horribly.

It's come to a point where the competent staff would refuse to take on management roles because of the horrible behaviours they observed at a management level.

Upper management has no interest in running a normal environment, as they are generally ignorant of the required skill sets.  By rewarding those who are generally incompetent through high ratings and bonuses, upper management continues to perpetuate this incompetence.

No job protection if you're non-unionized; non-unionized salaries have been frozen since 2009.  Job security and promotion based on nepotism.  Stay away if you value your principles/morals; highly political climate.  You are immediately ushered out the door if terminated - usual reasons are "business re-organization" or "poor fit." Warning signs are lack of work, co-workers avoiding you, duties transferred to someone else, office relocation.  HR dept. ignores you unless you are being terminated.  "Training" is computer-based; very little desk side IT support - unless it's an emergency or you're an executive, expect to wait. Focus of CEO is to replace older workers with young(er) workers, who will work for less but perform the functions of 2 workers.  Beware of location at 700 University: tightly regulated stationery dept. (i.e., need to record # of pens, pencils taken for use), company downsizing. However, no-frills on-site gym is available - you pay, but executives and upper mgmt. don't pay. Health benefits are standard, but excellent if you're unionized.  Job duties constantly changes - what you sign up for changes upon the whims of the dept.; don't believe what mgmt. tells you - only unionized workers and upper mgmt. benefit. If you like functioning as a robot, company mantra, no job security, and doing more for less, then this employer is for you.

- I was loaded with lots of work every day.
- I had learned so many things in the areas of licensing and nuclear safety; e.g., how to perform nuclear safety assessments or analyses, nuclear design calculations; how to work independently as well as work in a team environment or matrix set up; how to put a nuclear licensing package submission together; how to manage work requests and completion on schedule for Section Mangers, Department Managers, as well as Station Engineering Directors etc
- The management had been very supportive in providing the necessary coaching and feedback.
- My Co-workers had been very supportive and co-operative in working towards a common goal or work objective.
- I did not consider the hardest part of the job to be an issue.
- The most enjoyable part of the job was that I was able to resolve the problem with a cost effective solution such that my Section Manager, Department Manager and Station Engineering Director were always pleased with my hard work or contributions.

Been working part-time at OPG well over a decade.  With all the hard work, dedication, and experience I have put into this company, not once did I, or most of us hear of them offering to hire full-time in our department.  Never saw an external posting that I check monthly.  You can back track their external postings to a certain time frame.  They said it was there to see.  Only a few part-time people who knew of this were offered full-time positions......interesting.  The candidates also beat out others (full-timers) through their internal postings.  A grievance was submitted.  They also hired no or little experience full-time workers who were family members.  This was done with NO knowledge of a position offered in our department.  Again, no external or internal postings.  People who were hired full-time, had relatives in high positions in the company.  Seems management was looking for a promotion, or had their hands tied.   Funny, I had handed my resume' into this company long before these positions were offered, and no call.  Money was great, and don't get me wrong, a good company to work for.  Bottom line, I feel this company needs to review their hiring practices.    

I am a full-time employee who took a developmental rotation. I was not aware the hiring manager hired me to make sure I didn't get a full-time position out of my rotation. In OPG full-time staff get hired for internal posting over temp workers, provided they meet the min job requirements. The manager whom hired me had a team full of temp workers who would not get a job if I were to apply. So, the team made my experience during the rotation horrible, and did not give me the opportunity to develop skills. I confirmed my suspicion when I placed in a different department, same job, and my performance noticeably improved overnight. This is an example of how office politics ruin the work culture and I'm sure it is accountable for some of the extremely high turnover this company experiences. Wages are no longer competitive either due to government regulations on wage increases. Only in Ontario would you cap raises at 1% when inflation has been 8%+ for over a year. 

Typical Day at Work
Each morning before the day started everyone gathered around for a safety meeting.Everyone was assigned their jobs for the day.I was fortunate enough to work with some amazing and talented co- workers.Most days I was welding in a confined space. After I was done welding a section I would have to wait for an inspector to come and examine my work. This was basically a typical day at work for me.

What I Learned
While on the job I learned new welding techniques, tons of safety training and the importance of trust with the people I worked with.

Management
The management there conducted themselves in a very professional manner.

Co-Workers
I was fortunate enough to work with a talented group of people.

Hardest Part of the Job
For me the hardest part was getting comfortable enough to work in confined areas.

Most Enjoyable Part of the Job
I enjoyed the job itself, I am the kind of person who likes to work and stay busy. The atmosphere and the people I got to work with was a great experience.

Please note this review is based on my time as a full-timer not a contract term employee. I worked for opg as a contract employee for approximately a year before I got the opportunity to interview for a full time posting as an external candidate.
To start, I studied for the interview for approximately 3 weeks and still found it difficult. The difficulty was well worth the job and suits the position applied for. It was segmented into different parts including but not limited to technical questions, problem solving and behavioral questions. 
OPG is fast paced and every day brings a new challenge. From general maintenence to troubleshooting old machinery to water control on the trent River, day to day i never really know what to expect. This is what I love about the job. There is lots of opportunity to learn my trade safely, and it feels good knowing that a lot is done to protect my wellbeing while working. The job includes pension and benifits as well as more than fair wages. Couldn't have asked for a better place to work.

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