Tetra Tech Reviews

Cons

if you have trouble in a fast paced entrepreneurial culture and like structure and the 9-5 M thru F job, this may not be the place for you.

Cons

No clear and concise information from uppermanagement

Cons

Workflow ebbed and flowed, largely dependent upon contract work

Cons

Vacation (TOWP) is not in line with other government contractors.

Cons

There’s isn’t anything that I don’t like about the job

Cons

TT is essentially a middle man. Embassies, major companies, and government agencies pay Tetra Tech to hire staff on their behalf. I was hired through Tetra Tech and placed at an embassy overseas. It sounds amazing, but in reality it isn't.

First, the company/embassy/government agency where you are placed will always treat you as a second class citizen because you aren't considered permanent staff (you were hired through a middle man, so most employees view you sort of like a temp).

Second, because you were hired and placed via a middle man, staff protections and policies don't apply to you. For example, at the embassy where I was placed, all embassy staff would get off for 4th of July and other public holidays. Not us TT contractors though, the 10 of us would still have to work because we were not embassy staff (even though we worked on the same teams and were doing the same jobs). Because we were hired through TT and TT didn't want to give us July 4th off, we would have to go in to work (even though the whole office was closed / everyone was out). Similarly, there was a snack area and TT staff were not allowed to take snacks or have coffee, because that was a perk for embassy staff, and we were technically TT staff (even though we all worked together and we literally did the same thing). You are basically treated differently than the entire team your working with, and TT sells this to their clients: "hire your staff through TT - they'll do the same job but you don't have to give them the same perks as your normal employees".

Companies use Tetra Tech to hire on their behalf so they don't have to treat you with the same rights as full-time, permanent employees. They can fire you, change your role, take away your leave, make you work weekends, anything - you are considered a contractor and don't have any of the rights of an employee.

Cons

not a lot of mentor-ship or learning, as a junior EIT you get stuck with the work noone wants to do and you pretty much end up as a drafter

Cons

An overworked, underpaid team that is expected to work until 2 or 3 am sometimes (this is in Arlington, VA) without little to no appreciation from upper management.

Boy's club mentality- not much room for women in management conversations from what i saw/experienced

An environment where staff are in fear of their jobs. Constant gossip from all levels with a lack of transparency from upper level management.

Awful benefits, limited vacation hours and no separate sick leave.

Not much room for internal professional growth.

Cons

Leave policy not great, offices not well integrated in overall company culture

Cons

-No flexibility: Management expects everyone to be physically in the office as long as they want. If you can't do so, you are deemed useless and management will make your feel miserable. When employees try to communicate and work out a solution, management's response is "I don't know [why you can't work as long as I need]. My wife took care of that [kids]."
- No upward mobility: No training is provided. When employees requested to attend training, management denied the request to save money. When executives leave, they don't promote from within, they hire from outside. Most staff have the mentality that they will be (and are happy to be) staff for life. Imagine the level of enthusiasm for work.
- Dictator style leadership: Runs from top to mid-level. If you're nice, you'll be the one being yelled at. There is only communication from top to bottom, not the other way around.