graduate researcher

research assistant

research scientist

teaching assistant

postdoctoral fellow

University Of Washington

If you are applying for a "classified" staff position, most if not are now unionized positions now. Even so, where your pay starts is crucial! Your pay is set on a ladder, and every 12 months you automatically get a 5% pay increase. There is no merit involved, nor was productivity a concern for the few different bosses/locatons I worked. The hardest part is knowing that there is a wide gap between your pay and a slacker who's been there a long time and is at the top of your grade. Further, to get an upgrade within your position - unless the policy has changed - involves your writing up reams of documentation of everything you do and for who, meeting with H.R. officials, and if you're successful, another 5% raise.
The other classification is "professional" - and raises for those folks are limited to whatever the state grants you, which is often 0%. When the state does grant something, though, my departments use those monies as a salary pool, distributing to their favorites and not to their non (conversely, classified staff's monies from this are automatic, across-the-board). This staff also has its own retirement system, so it's like two employers in one place, but this one is very lucrative, offering dollar-for-dollar matching. The required contribution from the employee, unless that's changed, is 5% if you're under 35, 7.5% if you're between 35 and 50, and 10% if you're over 50. Yes, that means that a 50+ aged employee gets 10% taken out of their paycheck, but the employer throws in another 10%!
A typical day at my jobs was designing and/or producing reports. I had a co-worker who asked me early on why I stayed late to finish one; that's the attitude. Bureaucracy was heavy. Career development was non-existent, rather it was self-serve, and internal interviews I got for promotional opportunities seemed to be for the hiring department to fill a quota vs. genuine interest in you as a candidate. I ended up going elsewhere. A surprise for me was that I found a few exceptional hard-working individuals that I didn't expect to see given the culture.
The benefits were above average: academic discounts on software and attending school are unique. Conversely, the managers were, for the most part, below average. Inept managers, as with inept employees, aren't dealt with. Some of those work in areas that are supposed to support you, but don't, and you have to learn to accept inept and to cherish the rare exception.

The University of Washington is like a small city unto itself. There are not that many things which could define a typical day. A typical day is different for the campus police and the directors of the Medical Center. 

I've learned that the UW way is not always the right way or the sensible way things are done outside the UW. This is a challenging aspect of the culture here and you see a LOT of wasted effort and funding because of it. Departments often make choices in isolation and then find their systems do not communicate with other partners inside or outside the UW system. This makes for a lot of redundant systems and rework.   

Academics are not automatically experts in all things but often end up calling shots because of "rank" even when they have no qualification to make an informed decision. Union positions have good group support but individual issues are not handled particularly well. Leadership is entrenched and and does not change without a really big push or after a crisis. This may change in time as older leadership retire and younger people come on board.  

Poor managers and employees who know how to stay just inside the lines can stay on and even move up, even if their behavior would be unacceptable outside the UW. This is particularly true of Doctors and Professors. If you generate revenue for the UW, you can be problematic as all get out and stay on in your role. 

There is a great effort to make the culture jolly but, that tends to get dragged down by being stuck in business practices which are behind the times and dealing with troublesome workers and management.

The hardest part of the job is to stop trying to make things make sense or get better. If you are at the UW, keep your head down and trudge towards retirement. Don't make waves. Change comes from outside consultants, not staff. The UW tends to take action after things break down rather than avoid problems. 

The most enjoyable part of the job are the extra paid holidays you get as a state worker.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Good benefits, one of the only places that offers a state pension but keep in mind that's if you retire from UWMC. 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The work load and management. MA's do clinical work and admin work such as faxes, phone calls, prior authorizations and other office duties. So stressful juggling all of that on top of high patient volumes. On a normal day from appt times being from 8am-4:30pm, you will have at least 40 patients. You work with multiple providers per day, not just one. Avg providers I had on my daily was 4-5.
Management - the clinical manager is never there to see your work ethic and performance. The only thing my manager ever saw was my time card. The MA supervisor is more involved. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
I worked in an older building in the U-District, so it was outdated and small compared to our patient volume. As for culture, the people I worked with were all within my age range (20-30). It made it easy to work with them. Towards the end, they were the only reason I would show up for my shift. The trauma bond you build is strong. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Schedule is based on seniority, so you will have closing shift which is 9-5:30. Coming in at 9, appts for the day have started so it's very much hit the ground RUNNING. Rooming process is 15 mins prior to appt start time as appt start is the time the dr is supposed to be with the patient. Small clinic so we always ran out of exam rooms, making appts late and running behind schedule. You do specimen and other orders in between (EKG, ear lavages). You cannot leave for the day until all pts are gone, meaning if your pt is there past 5:30, you are too.

Harborview unquestionably sees some of the most complex and severe cases in the region. The trauma volume and pathology are real, and for experienced clinicians who already know exactly how they practice, that exposure can be valuable. That said, the culture is deeply problematic.
The environment is extremely cliquey and exclusionary, and this significantly undermines learning. New or transitioning nurses are not consistently supported, and education is often replaced by scrutiny and judgment. Expectations are high but guidance is inconsistent depending on the unit. This makes HV a poor learning environment for nurses who are still developing confidence, clinical flow, or unit-specific skills. Inexperienced nurses should strongly consider gaining experience elsewhere before coming here.
Operationally, the logistics of Seattle add unnecessary strain if you don’t live in the city (even if you do). Parking is expensive, with no meaningful employee discounts and commuting in Seattle traffic significantly extends already long workdays. These factors directly impact work–life balance and contribute to burnout.
Finally, the realities of Seattle’s homelessness crisis heavily influence the work environment. While caring for vulnerable populations is part of medicine, the scale and nature of this issue at Harborview are unique and constant. Staff are expected to absorb not only clinical complexity, but also significant social and behavioral burden often without adequate structural support.

My experience may not apply to all experiences at UW, as department leadership is highly variable. Our department leadership did not understand basic personnel processes and demonstrated incompetency several times. They placed me (a junior employee, TA) in a very uncomfortable and compromising position. When complaints were raised elsewhere about a faculty that I TA'd for, management essentially forced me to give documented comments on the faculty's performance, rather than establishing a review process or investigating on their own. I was told repeatedly that they were 'on the faculty member's side' throughout the process, demonstrating clear bias by those appointed to investigate the faculty member. I also stated several times that I did not want to be involved in any disciplinary action process and they said they would pursue action on their own, but instead they returned to me to answer their questions several times, and ended up documenting my feedback AND sharing it with the faculty member. They never did a proper review of the faculty member. They also discourage junior employees against taking leave that they are entitled to, by telling pregnant TAs not to take any quarters off. In at least one case that I know of, they refused to provide an alternative work assignment to a pregnant TA who requested it.

The recent review by #Me Too is all too indicative of the environment at the dental school.  The environment is no doubt toxic and the unethical behavior is pervasive from the top on down.  The current situation evolved over a number of years to the point where it is presently.   There should be no wonder why the school is failing.  The previous management left the school under a cloud of questionable dealings and it continues with the current management.  The new management was brought in as a fixer.  As far as I know, the situation is certainly no better and in numerous cases, as I have been told, is worse.  Certain individuals who side with management can get away with any degree of unethical behavior while individuals who disagree are determined to be trouble makers and "taken care of".  I will again refer to #Me Too in that the "disrespect, lies, abuse, and mistreatment of targeted employees is shocking".  There is no rhyme, reason, or equity as to how any issues are handled and there are certainly no rules that are followed.  There are a lot of good people in the dental school, but unfortunately they seem to be fighting a battle with the deck stacked against them.  Those are the people who are in it for the sake of the school.  The school has been in a downward spiral for some time, so it makes no sense that the people who got it there continue to wield the power that they do.  #Me Too again hit the nail on the head with-- "If you have good ethics and strong values you will struggle there".  On the flip side--if you are a good liar and sneaky--this is the place for you.  Beware.

	Executive and management support  – calendar management, meeting planning and support, communication with internal and external stakeholders, relationship management at all levels, creation and preparation of presentations and documents, tracking and reporting of audits and materials, budget and pricing management.
	Client facing and liaison – departments and stakeholders in project management, communications, audits, negotiations, documents and reporting, interface with all levels of personnel and offices, run project meetings, create and present presentations, planning and logistics.
	Compliance – adhered to all corporate and government guidelines, training.
	Decision making – integrity, prioritization, department projects, distribution, negotiations, business strategies and continuation, primary point of contact for all levels of management.
	Project leadership and management – efficient negotiations, support functions and communications, accountability, relationship management and training, administer and document audits and reviews.
	Meeting management – planning, agendas, venues, catering, materials, and minutes.
	Confidentiality - personnel hires and retention, administer performance reviews, confidential and proprietary documents and information, financial information, business strategies and planning, contracts.
	High level reporting – proposals, negotiations, recommendations, financial information, business strategies, time management.

We had a positive, highly skilled and drilled team of co workers who worked in tandem with each other for the best outcome of care for the patient.  We were really a team oriented work place.

It was a fast paced job and department.  Knowledge of all pathways of finance, registration and computer savvy were necessary to keep up with a fast paced emergency room.  Our leads and managers were upbeat and of high integrity.  I was blessed to have worked at VMC for so many years.

My coworkers made a wonderful team where each complemented the other according to our job description.   There was always someone to assist during times of need.  Our leads were exceptional in this area.  They kept their eye on the ER board and assisted in the high volume areas when needed.    

All the ER staff was skilled in handling any type of patient who walked through our doors.  Security, nursing, patient registrars, housekeeping; right down to ancillary departments who worked with the ER; ALL worked in tandem with each other, complementing each other a team with regard to patient care a primary factor and ensuring safety for the staff who were in charge of assisting a compromised patient.  We were a well oiled team, as they say.  

I will truly miss working for VMC.

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I'm a self-motivator, hard working electrician with more than thirty years industry experience. I have exceptional ability working across a broad range of systems and facility types, and I pride myself on the impeccable quality of my work. My excellent interpersonal skills make me a good team member as well as an effective leader. I adhere to industry regulations at all times and enjoy keeping up to date with the latest electronic technology and innovation. I am very safety oriented and will enforce any company safety regulations.

Installing new electrical systems
Preparing layout and set-up of electrical wiring, tools and furniture, based on work conditions and electrical codes
Reading and interpreting specification and drawings
Ordering and receiving materials for new projects
Maintaining and repairing installed electrical systems
Fault finding
Panel wiring, construction and installation
Maintaining records of all electrical equipment which I have worked on
Liaising with building managers and coordinators
Managing apprentices and subcontractors
Recruiting and training new staff members
Projecting managing when necessary
Supervise Thirty Electricians----From 1989 to 2004
Manage 27 different trades personnel, Electricians, Carpenters, Plumbers, Painter, Machinery Mechanics and Welders----From 2004 to 2013

I worked a wide range of positions at UW, and all of them had a common trend: my immediate coworkers and managers were compassionate, hard-working people who saw me as a person, not just an employee. However, we were all subject to a wider culture that encouraged you to work yourself to death, then get back up and work a little more. 

Furthermore, there was often an uneven distribution of the workload, with "crunch periods" throughout the year. This isn't a bad thing in and of itself, but combined with the aforementioned culture, it quickly became dangerous: because my coworkers and I had developed strong working relationships with each other, we all leaned into this culture of overwork, as we knew that adhering to our personal boundaries or trying to maintain a healthy work/life balance would just shuffle more of the workload onto the rest of our team. This resulted in people routinely working themselves to the point of burnout or near-burnout. 

I was grateful for the clarity of communication and strong work ethic among my team. However, now that I'm in a healthier work environment-- one where I am regarded as a person>an employee by both my direct coworkers AND the wider company, one where my boundaries are respected, one where I'm encouraged to cultivate a healthy work/life balance-- I never want to go back to UW.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Graduate researcher 9 salaries reported	$38,222 per year
Research assistant 20 salaries reported	$47,741 per year
Research scientist 20 salaries reported	$79,263 per year
Teaching assistant 16 salaries reported	$21.75 per hour
Postdoctoral fellow 11 salaries reported	$74,646 per year

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