laboratory technician

laboratory analyst

analyst

laborer

technician

Bureau Veritas

The petroleum laboratory leaves a lot to be desired. The work itself can be satisfying, supervisors are understanding and accommodating (as they can be, more on that later), and progress has been made in recognizing the hard work and accomplishments of the working staff. The workload is high - working at a high-throughput across multiple stations is the expectation, and due to high turnover, expect to bounce around between different areas of the lab. Training was hurried and corners are cut everywhere, all the time. Safety is a big deal, supposedly, though work culture highly discouraged being vocal about issues that aren’t very severe. People do not respect each other’s time and certain senior analysts can be very toxic. Supervisors are oblivious to many problems within the lab. Basic consumables such as gloves and rags are always in short supply. Instruments go for months, sometimes years without proper maintenance or replacement, and something is always breaking down. Analytical equipment that doesn’t meet spec is seldom replaced in n a timely fashion. Housekeeping and organization of lab materials and equipment ranges from sub-par to abysmal - this is some of the worst use of space I’ve seen in a lab. Most of this is on the shoulders of upper corporate management; the analysts and supervisors on the front line make do with what they have, working for peanuts even at the highest levels of seniority. Room for advancement as an analyst is poor. HR is fantastic however, and go above and beyond organizing appreciated staff events and lightening the mood for workers - generally, the workplace maintains a can-do attitude and positive outlook, however superficial. People rarely speak their minds to each other otherwise, and somebody is always trash-talking and throwing shade on somebody else behind their backs.

A typical day at work starts with lots of things to organize before beginning to setup experimental batches. One has to make sure that the work environment is clean and free from any material that is potential cause for hazards. Everything that is reqiured for the job should be ready and in sufficient quantities for the day's activities.

It is important to prioritize the daily work according to rush, rework and regular samples. The management is supportive and gives guidance in all aspect of day to day activities.

I learned scientific procedures and principles for different types of analytical works in addition to social cultures and how to work within a team. I also learned how to deal with co-workers with difficult characters.

The hardest part of the job is when one has to repeat an experiment setup due to quality control failures. This doesn't happen so often. However, when that happens, it is time consuming to search for archived samples and to re-work all the way from the start.

The most enjoyable part of the job is that it is a team work. As a team everyone does the best to accomplish the task in due time.

Established a prioritized daily work flow:
- record voice mail messages from clients and return calls
- sort new work orders from provincial government by Drinking Water Officer and scan/email to each officer daily
- sort new work orders by job number and file by date
- process credit card and cash payments for pre-paid work orders, scan all related documents to accounts receivable, record payments in tracking file
- run database report for new jobs requiring price approvals and do price approvals
- run database report for completed jobs requiring invoicing, do invoicing, print and mail invoices
- answer calls as they came in, providing information regarding company services, redirecting calls as required, researching information or services, providing information on job status, results of testing, invoicing information, locating and supplying clients with copies of prior job results or invoices
- assisting lab manager and project manager by locating documents they required or returning client calls for them
- assisting shipping & receiving department with data entry of new work orders, and filling client orders for testing supplies
- assisting lab assistants by disposal of their expired soil or water samples

They expect you do do overtime constantly in the high season, which in the interview they described as "occasional". You'll be scheduled for 8 hours but do 12-14 hour shifts from May-November, all year in certain sections. The management aren't bad people, but they have no respect for employee's time and life outside of the job. They will bring you 2+ hours worth of work to be done in the last half hour of your shift and then complain about you doing overtime. They cannot make any decisions about vacation requests, days off, promotions etc. without getting the directors approval- this results in you not hearing back about things for months because their hands are tied and they string you along. If you need experience in a lab, do 6 months and leave, if you get a better offer just give them your two weeks and get out. Benefits are minimal, part-time employees often expected to pick up the slack, and forced to work even longer shifts since they aren't eligible for overtime. A lot of expectations about how much work you can handle, but almost 0 oversight so employees get overworked or get fired when the work slows down- only to leave the ones left behind overwhelmed when it picks up again.  great if you're a workaholic or single- terrible if you have a family, school or you know..any life outside of work.

Maxxam Analytics is a great place to work. The people are absolutely wonderful. As well, the company offers an important and quality service to oil and gas clients. Maxxam is involved in the Environmental reclamation process of drill sites in northern Alberta and abroad. Maxxam's attention to detail and success through science is what propels this company to succeed in this industry niche.

A typical day at work consists of receiving environmental samples from clients, and inputting the required test codes into a custom software program for future laboratory analysis. Samples are stored in coolers, and kept available for analysis for several months. Hazardous waste is dealt with following WHMIS guidelines. Some heavy lifting is required.

The co-workers and management are phenomenal. Maxxam Sample Reception is a social team-oriented atmosphere with a stellar cast. The supervisors are phenomenal, and help the team to function to its absolute potential. There is always someone to ask if questions arise. It is a fast paced, and enjoyable atmosphere.

I would strongly avoid this Company at all cost. The salary is way below expectations of a competitive market. You get little to no resources in regards to work load, basically you are expected to work the job of 3-4 people and the salary doesn't reflect the amount of work load. I would be told not asked to work at times 7 days straight with no rest. Many of my colleagues I had the pleasure of working with either had nervous breakdowns or had to take stress related leave. The company is highly competitive to the point where your personal time was never considered. Management would constantly talk negatively to the Regional Manager to give you a bad impression in the eyes of upper management. Any work related grievances with Human Resources never were resolved. Company moral was always on the down side due to aggressive supervisors with no idea of how to express themselves. If you enjoy being extremely over worked and under payed then consider this company but I strongly urge anyone to re-consider their career at this company.

The only saving grace from working for this company was that the people were friendly and easy to work with. It was common to engage in small talk with coworkers from different departments, albeit the topics usually situated around the terrible pay or how much they disliked their job. It seemed like everybody in the building did not want to work there and it's true, there were 5 or 6 higher up individuals that left to seek greener pastures during my time there, even the assistant GM jumped ship.
The position itself was nice because there are 4 or 5 different roles you can do to keep the monotony at bay. There is also the promise of interlab training and progression; unfortunately, this did not happen for me, but there are a few success stories. The qualifications required for this position are hilarious though; you don't need a degree or diploma. This job would be perfect for a recent grade 12 graduate who enjoys science/chemistry and needs a place to start their career. Just be careful if you do get this job, everything will be your fault.

I have had quite a few opportunities for advancement since I've started at Maxxam. I have learned that the opportunities are there and it is what you make it - if you are willing to put in the effort and go the extra mile, you will be recognized. Management is very supportive of your growth if you make it known that you would like to advance and you put in the effort to do so.

The work/ life balance isn't always ideal as there is always a ton of work to do (constantly busy) and my role is rather independent... so there can be a lot of late nights which are unpaid if you are on salary. That being said, management is very flexible with taking time off for appointments, etc. to compensate for the extra time you put in, so often it does balance out. 

All in all, Maxxam is a great place to work and an excellent place to start your career in a busy, fast-paced environment.

Workload was insane across the board for all employees. Lots of mandatory overtime. Pay was close to minimum wage when I started. The lab received hundreds and sometimes thousands of samples every day and the sample management clerk's role was to scan samples into storage bins and then put the bins on a shelf inside a giant walk-in refrigerator. Additionally, the lab would send requests to do analysis on samples and the clerk would have to locate the required samples in the walk-in fridge. Often, there would be so many requests that you couldn't keep up with the incoming samples, which made it even harder if you received a request for a sample that had not been scanned/archived yet. We were expected to do 1-2 hours of overtime every day, plus a half-day every second weekend. Often, you would have to help facilities/maintenance staff with tasks well outside of your job description. 

Absolutely gross display of unprofessionalism from multiple sections of the lab, it’s like a bunch of children walking around in lab coats, genuinely shocked they are still in business.

So incredibly uncoordinated and instructions are passed down a week late, by then you’re knee deep in trouble because you aren’t doing your job right but don’t find how how it’s actually meant to be done until a week later. Lab managers don’t know how to do their own job and blame it on everyone below them, multiple times one manager has thrown boxes at staff in a fit of rage, you’ll find he’s still working there while everyone he blames has been replaced.

Public shaming if you trip up, overload of work until you break and then you’re replaced. Unreasonable hours expected of you, 10-11 hour days minimum, work load is pushed onto you with impossible deadlines.


Managers have threatened to get my car towed if I parked in certain spots in the parking lot which are by the way “for everyone” 

Top Job Titles	Average salary
Laboratory technician 4 salaries reported	$18.25 per hour
Laboratory analyst 8 salaries reported	$19.03 per hour
Analyst 8 salaries reported	$19.25 per hour
Laborer 1 salary reported	$22.20 per hour
Technician 5 salaries reported	$23.86 per hour

Working at Bureau Veritas: company overview and reviews

Bureau Veritas

Bureau Veritas ratings

Popular jobs at Bureau Veritas

Salary satisfaction

Job seeker tools

Employer Tools

Browse

Stay Connected