principal software engineer

senior engineer

engineer

manufacturing engineer

intern

Pratt & Whitney

Going into my position when I first started I was hopeful that Pratt would be my forever company however, it is clearly not the case anymore. Working on the parts everyday was genuinely rewarding and I would have kept doing it, however the company structure/culture is just not there to support it, thus I left the company. Here are my experiences for others to keep in mind when applying:

1. I had a Lack of support from upper/lower management

Usually the best we would get is the upper management talking about doing things, but they never really happen most of the time, and when something goes wrong they always turn to the engineer without doing any of the legwork with other resources to lessen the burden first. It would be all on us (even with limited training).

2. I had Limited career progression/recognition 

I had been denied my promotion and it kept getting pushed out to the point where I had no idea when it was actually going to happen if at all. I also was never really recognized for any of the big projects and work I put in, but I honestly just attribute that to Pratt being a larger company.

3. General Lack of accountability

When it comes to the accountability for screw ups, it seems that at times the hourly workforce was let off easier (especially for machine crashes) which lead to a lot of people putting in the bare minimum and many mistakes being made. I had more than a few mistakes made by the hourly staff that really set me back in my duties, but I was held accountable, not them.

4. I had no clear direction

There really isn't any sort of formal training to speak of here so be prepared to learn on the fly and/or just work with someone who knows most of the duties. Make sure to read up on policies and procedures that relate to your area it will help.

5. I had a heavy workload

This isn't necessarily a bad thing as I was able to manage, its just something to note. If you do well, you will get a lot of responsibility which some may like, but sometimes it can be overwhelming, especially when you have to figure things out on the fly.

Now I will say this, this is only reflects my time in one area. Some areas may be better, but I have to be honest with my experience. I will also be honest when I say that when I left, most everyone I talked to in the plant had negative things to say about any area I went to. Not many positives unfortunately between both Design and Manufacturing from what I heard. Its tough because the development and programs were very interesting, but in my personal experience, too many things were piling up. I really hope it gets better though, and I hope ĺothers have a better experience!


Review of Pratt & Whitney
Typical Day at Work

Meetings, Meetings, Meetings, followed by Meetings about the Meetings. A typical day at Pratt & Whitney is heavily focused on attending various meetings. The constant need for discussions and follow-ups can make it challenging to find time for hands-on work and actual task completion.
What I Learned

During my time at Pratt & Whitney, I learned to be more aware of the signs that support from management can be contingent upon being part of an internal clique. Recognizing these dynamics early on is crucial for navigating the corporate environment and ensuring that you have the necessary backing for your projects and initiatives.
Management

Top management at Pratt & Whitney is generally accessible and willing to help if they can. However,  there is a significant lack of transparency. This lack of openness can lead to uncertainty and miscommunication about critical aspects of the job, including decision-making processes and support for employee initiatives.
Workplace Culture

The workplace culture at Pratt & Whitney is disorganized, ironically a side effect of attempting to be ultra-organized. The emphasis on structure and processes often leads to inefficiency and confusion, as employees spend more time in meetings and discussions than on productive work. This paradoxical situation can be frustrating and counterproductive.
The Hardest Part of the Job

The hardest part of the job was working with limitations due to the requirement to have a meeting about everything. The requirement for meetings significantly slowed down progress and made it difficult to get necessary purchases approved for even basic needs. The bureaucratic hurdles created inefficiencies and impeded the ability to perform essential tasks effectively.
The Most Enjoyable Part of the Job

Despite the challenges, the most enjoyable part of the job at Pratt & Whitney was getting to be creative. The role provided opportunities to think outside the box and develop innovative solutions to complex problems. This aspect of the job allowed for professional growth and satisfaction, as I could leverage my skills and creativity to make meaningful contributions.
Overall Impression

Pratt & Whitney offers a mixed experience. While the company provides opportunities for creativity and innovation, the heavy focus on meetings and lack of transparency from management can be significant drawbacks. Improving the balance between necessary discussions and actual work, along with fostering a more transparent management approach, could enhance the overall work environment and productivity at Pratt & Whitney.

FIRST TIME EVER BEING FIRED!! I worked for this company for 3 years. I worked there as a mechanic and an inspector. While working there I worked extremely hard(I would consistently pull overtime every week). I worked so often that I eventually learned how to build in almost every cell of the engine line I worked in 3 for years. I also worked in an ops tech capacity for much of that time training people across 3 different shifts. I have also earned multiple awards in this short time with the company.

 They would never pay me as much as they were paying other guys who had been there longer even if I did more work than them year in and year out. I was under the impression that they pay more based on how much know/can do but they don’t. Whoever has been there the longest will be paid more even if he just sits around doing nothing for the most part. 

My wifes grandfather caught COVID-19 around June 13, and died on the 17th. While this is going on I made a mistake. I completed some work and forgot to sign it. I told my ops tech what happened and he said it’s ok sign it when you get back as I had left for the funeral. When asked by the higher ups he didn’t know why they were unsigned. 

There was an investigation. While this investigation ensued it was proven that I had completed the inspections and that my ops tech lied(another ops tech confirmed what I said, another employee that I was training when I made the mistake confirmed what I said)and I was still let go AND PUT ON A NO REHIRE LIST. 

Yes I made a mistake, I was under a lot of stress had not slept much for a few days(because my wife would be up grieving) and I was the only person able to do that job in my area that day, while training a guy. Even after telling them this I was let go. That being my first mistake in 3 years and all the accomplishments I had made there you would think I would at least still have a job. They will ALWAYS choose the guy who has been there longer no matter what happens. If you are new you have no job security no matter how hard you work.  

Very good pay for the area and excellent retirement and other benefits. Job is not physically hard about 80% of the time, the other 20% is still not that bad. 

 Problems come from young inexperienced shift leads, some in their early 20s. They act like kids, goofing off while assigning their friends to the easy jobs. Beyond that the upper management are very disconnected from the people working on the floor, especially the off shifts. Most of them work from home every day, thanks to the pandemic (Must be nice). Was better before the pandemic started, somehow I doubt it'll get better any time soon though.

 We haver no HR, or rather our HR is outsourced to a 1-800 number where you have to call and sit on hold forever. Also if you have a hard time comprehending foreign accents on the phone, good luck. The only internal HR person we have will usually refer you to that number, if she bothers responding to you at all. And god help you if you are stuck on an off shift and want 1st shift. Been waiting for my turn for years. 

 If you can get past all that, when it comes down to it, it's still one of the best manufacturing jobs in the area. They reimburse you for college and recently approved some vocational schools too, and they actively encourage you to take advantage of it. It's 8 hour shifts with paid lunch, or 12 hour shifts with paid lunch if you are working the weekend shift (4th and 5th, or weekend warrior type shift). You get between 10-15 vacation days and 5 sick days per year, so about a month of paid leave. There is mandatory overtime, but you can usually get somebody to work it for you if you don't want it, but if nobody else wants it you have to come in. Overtime can be a pro or a con depending on your preference, for me it's a con, I like my days off.

All and all it's an excellent job with good long term benefits, but there are a lot of problems and issues that can make the job more stressful then it needs to be. But aside from a few exceptions, there are mostly good people working here.

Typical Work Day:  Completely random, there was no way to plan for many of the problems that would occur on a day to day basis while trying to balance the need for keeping processes streamlined to meet on time delivery/customer demand and maintain compliance at the same time. This was a continuous challenge. 

What I Learned: That it is far easier and more beneficial to ensure that the company can meet the demands of a contract or purchase order with proper planning rather  than blindly rushing approvals for the sake of ramping up work just to later realize relevant departments needed to complete the work were not ready/prepared to do the job correctly, but failed to speak up at the time in fear of losing the work.  

Management:  This department was mostly run by individuals that knew the least about the companies procedures and often led to implementation of requirements (Self imposed) that were needless and created extra bureaucracy, time waste, and problems.

Workplace culture:  The job started off as a great culture, everyone was willing to help each other (production vs. quality).  Once the company started growing more problems occurred with additions of new processes and as mistakes occurred more frequently, production and quality divided into a culture of wanting to blame one another for issues rather than work together to solve them.

The hardest part of the job:  Meeting customer demands for implementing new processes and part production while juggling problems that would surface with already existing processes for part production.

The most enjoyable part of the job:  Getting the privilege of consulting with highly talented individuals across the company in order to solve challenging problems.

I'll break this down by Indeed's suggested talking points & add a summary at the end.

Typical Day:  
I assist employees w/ misc. HR needs.

What I've learned:  Patience.  
Some decisions have to be run up the ladder 3-5 levels.  I feel my department  is at times cut off at the knees thus not being allowed to make decisions in a timely manner.  This is also typical for other departments too. It's just the P&W way. 

Management:  
Current management is wonderful. We have good people doing great things.  I feel my direct manager truly wants me to succeed.  They take time to meet w/ me & respond to my e mails  to make sure we communicate.  Is accessible, seeks my opinions on ways to make improvements or eliminate waste. Acknowledges my successes/contributions. 

Workplace Culture:  
One department pulls down the others (attitudes toward their departments leadership).  We have grown so fast this year.  We have tenured employees who are having to accept more people being hired & there is a mix of attitudes at times.

Hardest part of the job:  See work place culture.

Most Enjoyable Part Of The Job:
EVERYTHING (pay, benefits, people, clean work environment, location).

Summary:
This company has a lot to offer if you are willing to put in the work.  If you are a person who expects to have everything handed to you just for showing up and doing the minimum you should probably move on.  

If you are willing to work, ignore the general petty gossip nonsense that goes on at every other employer  & can truly grasp the bigger picture vs your own agenda, you can go far.  

P&W offers one of the best pay & benefit packages out there.  They are a global company so there is a lot of room for advancement.  Their Employee Scholar Program is by far the best I have ever heard of for those wishing to continue their education.  I've worked  here for almost 2 years and have no regrets.

Generally a good place to have a career.
Hybrid/Remote work possible.

Pay:
I’d rate it “decent”.  PW seems to pay slightly less than the industry averages.  I’ve been with the company for 5 years.  I came in around $70k, have been promoted twice, and now make right at the $100k mark.  I came into the company with little comparable experience.  I have an advanced degree.  Because of the “hot job market” there are people being hired into the company at an entire pay band lower than mine making essentially what I make.  This is frustrating, especially since I’m regularly approached by recruiters to leave the company for a 25-30% pay increase.  I don’t want to leave the company, but it’s becoming a known strategy to leave for 6-12 months and then return for more money.

Benefits:
401k match is good.  Plus they “gift” you money into your 401k regardless of your contribution every month.  It’s based on age and salary.
Health insurance is a sub-par HDHP.
Their shining star of their benefits package is the “Employee Scholar Program”.  After one year with the company they’ll pay for you to go back to school 100% upfront.  I owe nothing for my MBA thanks to the company.
Vacation/PTO - Three weeks vacation the day you’re hired (pro-rated but front loaded).  Option to purchase more vacation.  Loads of sick time, you’ll (hopefully) never need to even use half of what’s available to you.

Culture:
Overall company culture is good, though I’ll say it does feel as though it has gotten slightly worse off since I joined the company.  Particularly the merger with Raytheon and how things were handled during the pandemic was bothersome to me.
More importantly is the culture of the organization you end up in.  Some are great, and some are not so great.

In the interview, they gave false promises.  They offered first shift as a choice of what time frame they would hire and one of the other shifts didn't even exist in the area I was going to work.  The intake week didn't even happen and the safety of the plant is horrible and not followed up on.  Multiple issues with the management for these areas and it is best to not speak up when safety is involved.  It was an overall easy job, but the training that is promised in the beginning isn't even offered once on the job.  I was told I would have multiple chances for overtime, but this is only for those that have certain qualifications.  The Christmas vacation / overtime wasn't even available to me, but was promised to me in my interview.  At my first day, I was told that I would not recieve that benefit because I was hired in 1 day late and this wasn't my fault, it was the company's fault for not doing their paperwork properly from my interview and the drug testing.   
We didn't even have a supervisor the entire time I was working there.  As I was leaving the plant on my last day, the new "supervisor" was the one who had the final say if I could take a hardship due to my ex trying to kill me while I was trying to take care of my mother.  My immediate supervisor was ok and so was HR. The new "supervisor" said no.  He didn't even know me or my work ethics and threw in my face mulitiple times that I shouldn't have special privileges.  It was an awful feeling and it has left me without wanting to finish my master degree because i don't ever want to engineer in that atmosphere ever again. 

Typical Day at work consists of arriving and wondering who backstabbed or will backstab you during the shift. Management is based on favorites ,cronyism, nepotism , and who can be controlled from the get go. Management and supervision is beyond out of touch and the belief is they are gods who actually know what they are doing. Kindergarden is more organized. 100 degree or more temperatures on the floor which any sane person would walk out but they do offer you a free gatorade! You cannot go outside to escape the heat except on a lunch break. There is one air conditioned area but you must be a non skilled under educated wit preferably with retail store clerk experience , landscaping, etc. to fit in so you can be groomed into some of the dumbest ways possible to produce a product that has so far been woefully inadequate in it`s duty. Job titles and wage grade levels are the thing. Just out of college ,no experience, no skill or knowledge , Your a shoe in. It shows! If your content to be miserable or to just sit back and watch the level of incompetence soar to new heights this is the place to be! And hey landscapers and laborers you'll do better where your at pay and treatment wise then walk into this cesspool. YOU WILL NOT BE TOLD THE TRUTH DURING YOUR INTERVIEW OR ANYTIME AFTER! Think long and hard before jumping in. The door never stops spinning.

Been here over a year after working majority of my career in the P&W external network. Only ever had one bad month where I felt the workload was too high. Management was aware and did hire a new person to even things out. Since then it's been smooth sailing. Working from home 4 days a week, minimal meetings, and just spending time getting my work done. I stay late on days I need to, and leave early when I'm usually in office.

Main worry right now is a slow but consistent push to bring everyone back in person, which is repeated in every big corporate speech. I will most likely go elsewhere if a return to office time comes.

Update: almost on year 3, and the return to office was a complete fiasco. Since then, work has close to doubled. Was told there is an ongoing ramp up, and work will likely triple. Yet all managers are preparing for layoffs... For a measly 4% raise come February I will not be doing 3x the work, let alone taking on a laid off person's work as well.

My manager provides minimal support, and regularly micro manages and harasses us. Should have gone to HR multiple times due to retaliation for speaking to other managers about issues, and for applying to other internal jobs. Ready to quit

2nd update- management continues to make decisions that harm the employees, irrelevant of our opinions. Moving seating multiple times, double standard rules, massive workload increases for company benefit, no preparation for workload increases. Everyday is bad news, and I'm prepared to give my notice any day. 

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Principal software engineer 8 salaries reported	$142,250 per year
Senior engineer 10 salaries reported	$109,830 per year
Engineer 7 salaries reported	$110,663 per year
Manufacturing engineer 7 salaries reported	$104,100 per year
Intern 6 salaries reported	$66,852 per year

Working at Pratt & Whitney: Company Overview and Reviews

Pratt & Whitney

Pratt & Whitney Ratings

Popular jobs at Pratt & Whitney

Salary Satisfaction

Job Seeker Tools

Employer Tools

Browse

Stay Connected