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    Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Reviews

    Updated June 13, 2018
    407 reviews

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    4.3
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    Recommend to a friend
    Approve of CEO
    Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Director Bill Goldstein
    Bill Goldstein
    167 Ratings

    407 Employee Reviews

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    Pros

    • "Work life balance is the biggest advantage" (in 97 reviews)

    • "As a grad student: lots of resources, cutting edge research opportunities" (in 34 reviews)

    Cons

    • "Being a government contractor does mean there is a lot of red tape" (in 34 reviews)

    • "High cost of living in Bay Area" (in 14 reviews)

    More Pros and Cons
    1. Featured Review

      Helpful (4)

      "Veterans in Energy Technology & Science"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee in Livermore, CA
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee in Livermore, CA

      I have been working at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory full-time

      Pros

      I was an employee at LLNL from 2008-2013. I was laid off with several other co-workers. The outreach Officer from the Veterans group at LLNL reached out to me and assisted me in finding a new career at LLNL. Even though I am not a Veteran, I still feel that there is very much a family atmosphere at LLNL and I am very grateful to be apart of that family. Thanks VETS!

      Cons

      No cons at this time.

      Advice to Management

      Love my career!

    2. "Fantastic"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee

      Pros

      Get to work with some of the smartest people in your field

      Cons

      Summers can be hot in California

      3. Join the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory team
      See Our Latest Jobs

    3. "Very slow pace but benefits and comp are great"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Dimensional Inspector in Livermore, CA
      Current Employee - Dimensional Inspector in Livermore, CA
      Recommends
      Positive Outlook
      Approves of CEO

      I have been working at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory full-time (More than a year)

      Pros

      Competitive pay and benefits very good

      Cons

      Very slow paced and very political

    4. "good benefits and stable, but in a very high cost of living area"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Physicist in Livermore, CA
      Current Employee - Physicist in Livermore, CA
      Recommends
      Neutral Outlook
      Disapproves of CEO

      I have been working at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory full-time (More than 8 years)

      Pros

      excellent work life balance
      good benefits

      Cons

      high cost of living area
      top-heavy management

    5. "Good work life balance"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee

      I have been working at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory full-time

      Pros

      Environmental and health conscious work environment. Great compensation and benefits.

      Cons

      Most jobs require a clearance.

    6. "LLNL employee"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee

      I have been working at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory full-time

      Pros

      Good ability to join a variety of research groups and be involved with a broad scientific community

      Cons

      Some of the buildings are old and some lab space is cramped

    7. "High Voltage electricians under paid and under staffed"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - High Voltage Electrician in Livermore, CA
      Current Employee - High Voltage Electrician in Livermore, CA
      Doesn't Recommend
      Negative Outlook
      Disapproves of CEO

      I have been working at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory full-time (More than 3 years)

      Pros

      There is a good policy here that anyone can stop work if they feel it is unsafe. Tools and uniforms provided. Medical benefits are available.

      Cons

      The pay is not competitive therefore we are very under staffed and cannot attract qualified people. The hiring process has a lot of holes in it allowing inexperienced candidates that lack effective work practices as well as good work ethics. Though safety is a priority it doesn't seem to be taken seriously at the Staff Relations level.
       Many of the "fringe " benefits do not apply to craft employees (bonuses, hiring awards)
      There are many problems with getting paid properly for work that should be deemed Davis Bacon.

      Advice to Management

      Start listening to the core group of employees that you have that keep this place running. Before there is no one left or before there is an accident. Compensation needs competitive to attract and keep those you have.

      Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Response

      May 30, 2018 – Recruiting Group Leader

      Thank you for your review. LLNL has a compensation philosophy to pay competitively in the markets in which we compete. LLNL takes complying with the laws and regulations seriously. The safety of... More

    8. Helpful (1)

      "Research Laboratory"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Physicist in Livermore, CA
      Current Employee - Physicist in Livermore, CA
      Recommends
      Positive Outlook
      Approves of CEO

      I have been working at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory full-time (More than 10 years)

      Pros

      World class research facility with experts in almost every field of the physical sciences and engineering. Leading scientists guest speakers and numerous seminars in various fields. Beautiful campus setting in Livermore Valley.

      Cons

      Bay area traffic is difficult to navigate. Cost of living in CA is relatively high entrance cost for housing.

      Advice to Management

      Incentives for young staff could include some kind of financial guidance and planning. Specifically discussing retirement, housing, taxes, etc...

      Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Response

      Apr 30, 2018 – Employee Relations Program Leader

      Thank you for your review. The Benefits Office has scheduled a series of workshops throughout the year to provide information intended to increase employee awareness of programs available to enhance... More

    9. Helpful (2)

      "Great Work-life balance"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Program Coordinator in Livermore, CA
      Current Employee - Program Coordinator in Livermore, CA
      Recommends
      Positive Outlook
      Approves of CEO

      I have been working at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory full-time (More than a year)

      Pros

      Coming from the tech industry, LLNL's work-life balance is refreshing. Many people work AWS schedules and get every other friday off. There are a lot of fun events and programs on-site to take advantage of during your lunchtime to step away from your desk and relax. Bands, Authors, Fitness/Gym, shopping events.

      Cons

      There seem to be some antiquated systems and techonlogy that can slow processes down and seem a bit archaic. It seems to be changing and improving over the past two years I've been here so its comforting to see positive change.

      Advice to Management

      Build a culture/engagment survey that ties to the beliefs and vision of the laboratory as a workplace. Get buy in from leadership, measure it regularly and continually seek to improve the culture of the labs. It's moving in that direction, but it is something that will continue to build the positive momentum that's been building over the past few years.

    10. "Good place to start career"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Contract Analyst in Livermore, CA
      Current Employee - Contract Analyst in Livermore, CA
      Recommends
      Positive Outlook
      Approves of CEO

      I have been working at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory full-time (More than 3 years)

      Pros

      Good work life balance, benefits

      Cons

      Can get boring and not buy into mission

      Advice to Management

      Keep it up

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