A Terrible Place to Work - Regional Manager McMaster-Carr Employee Review

1.0
30 Mar 2025
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

The money and benefits feel like a pro, until you realize that many roles here expect people (particularly management) to regularly work 50 and 60+ hour weeks.

Cons

In my experience, most things about this company were untrustworthy, and the culture is abhorrent. Unless you crave an evil work environment and like being misled, don't work here. Micromanagement, constantly changing directions, lack of clear policy, rapid turnover, generally rude and sometimes inappropriate communication, and a culture of false urgency are things you can look forward to here. Starting from how the recruiters described the opportunity -- there isn't actually much "work-life balance" here. They use that term to encompass the fact that they pay what appears to be a high salary and cover benefits. However, given the micromanagement, frequently changing direction, and high turnover, employees (and especially management) are often volunTOLD to work extra hours. In my experience, after considering the many 60+ hour weeks I worked, the pay was not actually competitive because I was basically working 1.5 jobs and spending 2-3 extra hours commuting. Many leaders feel entitled to their employees' free time because of the high salaries. Management here has very limited leadership expertise as it's a family company in which the final say goes with the owners, and the majority of company leadership have not had meaningful work experiences outside of McMaster-Carr. Many were hired as undergraduates or very early in their careers, so they think the inappropriate and untrustworthy behavior is normal--even aspirational in some cases. If you try to change it, you may find yourself on the chopping block next. The longer you stay here, the harder it is to find a new job because the responsibilities are constantly changing, and individuals are often moved to new roles and teams.

Explore other reviews about McMaster-Carr

5.0
14 Jun 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

At least in the Systems department, it’s a helpful and collaborative environment.

Cons

3 days in office and potentially long commute from the city

4.0
16 Jun 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

- Pay/benefits are incredibly generous - People are generally easy/nice to work with - Note that the Systems department seems to be fairly isolated from the negative issues discussed in other reviews (e.g. tension between warehouse workers and management) - I haven't experienced any of those issues within the systems department. In my opinion, Systems is a great place to work and develop as an engineer. - Hybrid work style (3 days in office). Personally, I like hybrid more than both fully in-office and fully remote styles. - Great cafeteria with good food and cheap prices. - Good work/life balance (outside of being on call, I can leave work at work).

Cons

- Work is not super interesting to me. I come from a highly technical, but very different (not ecommerce/industrial supplies), background where I was doing work I was much more interested in. No doubt there are folks in Systems who love the domain though. - While I'm not on call a ton (1-2 weeks every few months), I really hate being on call. I like to leave work at work. Note that joining at least one reliability team is expected within your first year or so.

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