machine operator

inspector

forklift operator

packager

mill operator

Smalley Steel Ring

Some days can be boring and very slow to get through. I enjoy setting machines up because it is very hands on and the days go by faster. They have vending machines throughout the facility which is convenient and a cafe upstairs to buy food. They do provide overtime every now and then. Employees for the most part all get along. It is hard to understand some of them though because they lack fluency in English. Most employees think they deserve better pay and would prefer that over holiday parties and little events. Also, the employees on the manufacturing floor, notice management stands around a lot and believes the company has an unnecessary amount of them. Employees feel the company promotes some people way to soon in certain departments. The employees that slack and call in a lot are treated the same as efficient and dependable employees when it comes to raises. Office people are treated much like royalty where manufacturing employees are not treated the same; example is office employees get a 1 hour lunch where as the plant employees receive a half hour lunch and 1 10 minute break. The company has also told us that there would be no more coming in on Saturdays and no overtime for that matter to be able to spend more time with family and relax more. That lasted for about a whole month and a half. The company does keep growing though which is a great thing if your looking for job security, They do provide a health wellness program and get employees involved in activities that way. The health insurance benefits are fantastic. Record breaking months, the company does a cook out for all employees. During the holidays, the company hands out free turkeys for everyone. They also provide bonuses and paid vacation as well.

Smalley pays well and always has open positions. They're felon friendly and willing to work with you, especially if you have experience with machining of any kind. They stress safety and efficiency but are also generally understanding. There does seem to be a bit of a disconnect between the upper offices and the working floor, but honestly that's pretty much normal in the industry.
When you interview they'll tell you overtime is occasional, but that's not the case at all. Once you're approved for overtime, which is typically once you've finished your 90 day training period, you'll be working a minimum of 50 hours a week, and every other Saturday is mandatory. Missing a Saturday counts against your attendance record. If you don't mind the overtime or the extra pay by all means it's perfect, but if you've got a family at home or prefer having a social life you won't really find that here. It's work work work non-stop. 
Generally most people get along with each other fine, and your day to day is going to be pretty routine with the occasional odd job or special request item. HR is pretty good at handling things if you have questions, and for the most part supervisors are hands off as long as you're doing what you need to and getting the job done.

A typical day of work at this company, would consist of various tasks. There was not a particular routine. There were times when maintenance was required on heavy machinery, from mechanical maintenance to general cleaning. There were times when hand tools were utilized for fabrication purposes on varied projects. Sandblasting, Overhead Crane usage, limited Forklift usage, and whatever tasks were required to serve the production floor.

I learned that a position can be satisfying, diverse, and not require a set schedule. Many of the tasks above were first time tasks. Usually once shown, I can gain ample ability to perform well in almost any situation.

Management was relatively relaxed. Generally I worked individually and with a team to complete assignments. There was limited supervision, and completion of tasks. Workers ideas, and previous experience were considered when solving problems, and completing projects.

My co-workers were experienced people, and very willing to help with the fostering of new skills, as well as social when possible, but still focused on their jobs.

The hardest part of my Job were the hours. An average of 55 hours a week were assigned compared to the original 40 promised, with overtime at various intervals.

Other than the hours, all other aspects of this company made for a positive experience, and a very positive learning environment.

I've worked at Smalley for a few years and I've enjoyed my time there. I've had a couple of hard times and in each case, my supervisors treated my issue with empathy. They truly want you to succeed. When I was offered the chance to move departments and was worried about them giving up on my growth as an estimator office assistant, my supervisor and the department head both connected with me about my worries and listened to my concerns. I did end up changing positions, but was equally as encouraged in my role as an engineering support team member.

Raises are given regularly as long as you are doing your work as best as possible. Effort is rewarded and acknowledged, and there are regular check-ins to make sure you understand your responsibilities and work progress. In our department meetings, you get informed about general company updates, which I have always appreciated as it made me feel connected to the company as a whole.

If you chose to work at Smalley, don't be afraid to ask questions and bring up any concerns. It is a team-focused environment, specifically one where individual success is just as important as team success. Also feel free to participate in the monthly spirit days. They're fun!

I work with a lot of strong teams that are passionate about the work they do and feel that they are important parts of the Smalley team.  The manufacturing team does a lot together like lunches, ping pong everyday, Basketball on Fridays and everyone seems to work really well together.  
The shop does birthday celebrations with food, costume contests and spontaneous lunch gatherings.  It can be a bit stressful at times, trying to get up to speed with any new changes and company policies, but it's a relaxed environment and people are open and understanding.  The shop has a strict attendance policy, but that's understandable seeing as they all rely on the machines running smoothly and on time.  
The most surprising thing was how many people have tenure at this company.  Every month anniversary updates are sent and generally there are 10-20 anniversary and half of them are above 10 years!  I take it as a good sign that so many people stay for as long as they do.
I would like to see more attention paid to the parking situation as that can be very painful for people.  It would also be good to see policies and procedures staying in place a little longer before changing them to create continuity and alignment.

There's not a lot of room for growth here. There are only so many management positions available, and no one higher up ever leaves, so the more qualified people have to move on eventually to make money because the compensation growth is painfully slow. I know they might be "competitive" but the fact that you can go above and beyond the call of duty here and still get the same cost of living increase as those who do the bare minimum is discouraging and frustrating. (There's an end of year bonus but it's like 1-3% MAX.) The benefits make up for this a bit. The medical is excellent, PTO is great as well, and management is flexible if you need something (i.e. 15 minutes early leave for a dentist appt) as long as you don't abuse it. There are fun group activities as well, like group lunch or games, etc. Oh, and your day starts at 7 or 7:30. Listen, I know I'm being a whiner. I get it, but by 2 pm I am dragging so hard thinking I have another 3 hours when I've been up since 5:45. I've never worked anywhere that started before 8.

There is OT almost everyday of the week plus one of your off days. So therefore, you only have ONE off day. Employees are tired! Let us rest both off days once in a while! How do they expect for people to be here all the days? We have to call off to necessarily rest. They go off a point system so if you accumulate 3 points within your 3 month probationary period then you will be terminated. While this is their policy, they have to realize that people will call off because we have family to take care of. This company is not worth dying for so if you need rest, please take care of yourself. I was working in packaging so my back and hands especially the fingers were hurting so bad. I got terminated because I called off “too many times” HR should better explain call offs, point systems when and how many points, points of contact etc… a lot of the employees were lost and we all had to find stuff out the hard way.

I was laid off 3.5 days after I was hired for a 3 month contract to permanent position. The reason provided was that I did not have the experience in their environment even though I had similar if not the same job duties at my previous two employers. This is hard to believe since I was given an offer within 30 minutes after the onsite interview before I reached home. I worked hard, did everything they asked, asked questions to the person that was training me and other co-workers.  I couldn't do all my work since I didn't have access to all the systems. I was punctual and not insubordinate. I believe the reason my position was eliminated was due to the fact that I was filling in for someone that was on medical leave and the person came back early. This was supposed to be a contract to permanent position after about three months.

My time at Smalley Steel Ring has been very unsatisfactory. Over the past few years I have seen more people leave than what we can bring in and keep. They have left for many reasons, some being the amount of hours that we have to work and others just being management and more policies that are being added in order to make it harder to stay employed here. There is very little opportunity for advancement in any department for manufacturing, most people that want to move up in the company are passed over for promotion or are not even considered worth looking at.

Its a great place to work, they do provide training but one of the major problems they have currently is they can't really provide that training and keep up with what needs to get sent out. As for a typical work day it really depends where they put you and if its a busy season or not. The influx of jobs that need to get out were constant when i worked there. There was never really any downtime in any sense, if you were ahead on work you would start on things for the next day/week, but all that progress could be offset the next day with just an absurd amount of orders or if logistics worked late. At the end of day its an okay job but as far as stability of work hours and personal its terrible, unless you love overtime.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Machine operator 21 salaries reported	$19.46 per hour
Inspector 12 salaries reported	$18.93 per hour
Forklift operator 8 salaries reported	$20.21 per hour
Packager 12 salaries reported	$18.66 per hour
Mill operator 8 salaries reported	$21.71 per hour

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