product designer

laborer

welder

mechanical assembler

cnc operator

Tigercat Industries

My time at Tigercat started out well, and I was proud to tell people I worked there. Over time, I noticed the favouritism, clouded judgment, and lack of respect coming from upper management/HR towards employees. At previous companies, and in all of my positions, I have only ever been known as a dedicated employee who goes above and beyond when it comes to my roles. I’m optimistic, regularly beat job times, and maintain great relationships with colleagues. It is not the norm for me to dislike my job, but I found myself leaving on a Friday already dreading having to return on the following Monday, waking up for work was a constant struggle. After some thought and consideration, I can tie it to the above statements about upper management and HR. 

The company has defined policies in most areas, but they are only followed when it best suits the company. Decisions are often made by doing what is easiest, not what is ethical or consistent with past decisions.  As a Supervisor, you are micromanaged by upper management, making it clear that they do not trust their team to perform their duties and responsibilities. There is a huge lack of transparency in addition to a lack of communication. Frequently team members were laid off, terminated or moved to a different department without their direct Supervisor having any notice at all. We found out the day it was happening or at times, when we received text messages after the fact from confused employees about the decision. 

Over a two-year period, the Woodstock location had five different HR reps, substantially adding to the inconsistency of decision making. I spent years believing that hard work and dedication was the formula to continue succeeding within the company, but I was proven wrong time and time again. After almost seven years, I decided to leave the company and since starting in a new company I have recovered my passion for working and feel respected by my leaders, peers and our HR team. The flow of communication is a breath of fresh air, and most importantly everyone is treated with respect and dignity. I felt it was a responsibility to provide an honest review of this company, as team members have brought many of these issues to Tigercat's attention internally with little to no improvement. Perhaps this will help them take a step in the right direction.


I worked there for 2 years as a welder fitter in the Cambridge factory the work was repeated didn’t learn a thing that l didn’t already know . If you like working with no challenge and check your brain at the door this is the place to be money is so so . If you are new to the trade and country this is the place if your not a very strong fitter welder this is the place .lf you want to collect an easy pay check no brain easy job this is the place if your English is not very strong this is the place if you want to learn welding as a trade run away there is no welding certification to work there no CWB no TSSA no tickets to work there one type of welding process witch is GMAW the best part is no welding test or certification every 2 years only one type of steel witch is mild only one position FLAT . I’ve been a welder for over 20 years and learned more about welding in high school then Tigercat has to offer it’s against the law to do down hand welding but this place tells you it’s fine . You will never be a true welder working for this company plus if laid off or terminate you will be left with no certification because they don’t have any plus if you have been certified before you get there once your expired ticket comes up your kind of stuck with a company that will tell you your a welder but really your so far from one . The owner is a great guy he looks after his workers the people there are nice benefits are good profit sharing there only down fall is they barely scratch the surface when it comes to the actual trade of welding. If l was an employer looking to hire a welder fitter and seen Tigercat on the resume l wood never higher you because no certification no fitting experience just jig work witch doesn’t help your blueprint reading at all one process mig flat so at the end of the day if you are the person that doesn’t want to learn welding as a confident welder check brain at door new to the country not very strong English no welding tickets love jig work collet an easy pay check l highly recommended TIGERCAT industry 

The general management of this company strongly lacks talented & competent leadership. 

Minimal to no transparency is provided for any business decisions. 

Advancements in the company are unclear if even available. There is a strong culture of complacency which seems to be fostered or even tailored to in regards to new hires.

There is no consistency within the managemen styles or policies. Each plant and engineering group exists as their own entity - yet there are continuous 'corporate decisions made to act as if the company is one unit but at the individual level this has never been realized. 

Strong leadership is absent so if you are seeking professional development and and an environment that fosters growth,  definitely look elsewhere. 

Compensation is mediocre. Management is perpetually evasive when seeking information about oay structure, reasons for pay increases, etc. There is zero room for negotiation, a take it or leave it attitude. 

Having worked in the manufacturing and logistics industries for over ten years, I can confidently say this is the best company I have ever worked for. For starters, they pay you well and will give you multiple raises in a single year. These raises are based on performance, attitude, and attendance. The more you give the more you get. My personal experience with management and coworkers has been positive. The support is there when you need it! There is plenty of opportunity to grow within, and plenty of positions to try out should you want to do something new. Company events are awesome, sports, barbecues, family events, Christmas parties, it's all there! What really makes Tigercat stand out is how much they give back to their employees. In my short time here I have already received more in profit sharing, holiday gifts, perks, etc; than I ever have anywhere else. Not to mention the stuff they build is super cool! I would highly reccomend this job to anyone. I can easily see myself retiring here.

Great managers, my supervisor was one if the best bosses I've ever had. Really seemed to care about his employees and good co-workers mostly. Some of the long-term employees get extreme favoritism. Different strokes for different folks should really be the HR model. If you dont agree with the upper managements politics you are shunned. If you complain and provide proof about others in your department not doing their jobs, they say their is a conflict of interest and get rid of you. HR pretends to be helpful, if you make them do too much work they dont like you, no matter how good you are at your job. Have to listen political rants by upper management all the time. Supervisors are great but are really handcuffed by HR. Supervisors are walking on egg shells for fear of losing their jobs if they make HR work to hard. Very toxic, gossip filled oriented environment

Spent the beginning of my working career here, it's good place to go straight out school to learn engineering and prepares young engineers for their long term career once they leave the company. However advancement is almost non-existent. They say pay raises are performance based, but you could pull 80 hour weeks every week to get projects done and no one would notice. The only real way to get a pay raise at Tigercat is to leave the company once they've taught you the ins and outs of engineering. I liked the people and the owner, but liking the people doesn't pay the bills for a single income home. In engineering at Tigercat, you get the impression that you are second class behind the guys in the shop, the shop floor guys definitely have it pretty good, and engineering does seem to be ignored next to them.

What is the best part of working at the company?
The company cares for its employees. 
I’ve had a very good supervisor and an excellent team lead who is a pioneer in what he does. The coworkers as well treat you with respect and maintain a healthy atmosphere at work. Great place to work and learn throughout. 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Nothing that I remember of. Wouldn’t even know when the breaks pass by and there it’s time to go home. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
A very healthy and decent I must say. The employees are very much helpful to each other. We used to work as a strong team. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Well, I was in the finals and there was a new interesting work everyday. The learning curve is very big. If you love learning new things and not the same boring stuff everyday. Then this job is for you.

A typical day at work included meeting with factory employees to gather input on design and concepts. I would begin drafting designs in SolidWorks 3D, then convert them to 2D assembly drawings. After I would discuss the designs with supervisors and factory employees to see if the concept would work and if it could be manufactured as per drawing. 

Once the design was approved by all, I would get in contact with outside suppliers to discuss materials and machining of my components. After materials and machine requirements were met, the prototype was created and then delivered to factory employees. The testing phase would then begin. After a month or so, I would receive feed back and make the necessary changes to design. .

I would work four ten hour shifts Monday-Thursday's long days but it balanced well with a 3 day weekend. When I first started at Tigercat I thought maybe I might be in over my head. With the training I received I was able to gain confidence in a very short time.   
After about a year I was the one training new employees in the fabrication department. The managers were all people who at one time worked on the floor and understood how the flow of the product must sync with the lean manufacturing flow of parts.
I did however find it to be a little cut throat atmosphere between employees on opposite shifts. I found there was a lack of camaraderie between new hires and senior employees.
I would produce a cab for 800c machines 30 hours to fit and weld, and i was always filled with pride at the end of every machine.

What is the best part of working at the company?
If you do your job well, according to standards, you'll be satisfied. I like this place, I like the people around me. I feel like the company cares about the well-being of its employees, if you care about the well-being of the company.


What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
It’s a job of course you have days that are stressful but overall this is the best job I ever had they honestly care about there employees

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?

It’s like every other company you have your good employees you have your bad employees you have the lazy ones you have your hard-working ones  as long as you do your job you get treated with respect 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Work together as a team to get everything moving and job done

Top Job Titles	Average salary
Product designer 18 salaries reported	$31.51 per hour
Laborer 17 salaries reported	$24.27 per hour
Welder 13 salaries reported	$30.68 per hour
Mechanical assembler 15 salaries reported	$30.17 per hour
Cnc operator 14 salaries reported	$27.88 per hour

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