RNLI Employee Reviews for Technician

Very good place to work with a sense of achievement. Reasonable pay and work with a good team. Treated with dignity and respect. Good pension and all round good charity

Pros

Pay and pension

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Management are the Biggest issue

Technician (Former Employee) - Poole - 5 December 2020

My experience at the RNLI was that of the shop floor of the ALC. I was so excited to work for a cause and for a place that I knew I’d really be making a difference but it soon became apparent that it was a tough place to work if you actually wanted to ...... well work. Management positions are awarded to managements friends and not the ones that deserve it. The management do NOT listen to anyone that has first hand, on the tool management and only really care for KPI’ and the obvious hard work of a few goes ignored. I was there for a couple of years and I think I saw a manager come to the shop floor maybe 2 times and not once did they thank the hard work of the absolutely amazing talented trades man that they have working away to make sure that these amazing boats get put out on time. If you needed a technical drawing changed, good luck. The engineering office is so backed up and understaffed that it could take weeks or months to get any changes arranged. The ability of some trades are completely overlooked. A great example of this is engine rebuilds. When an engine is taken out of a boat, you would think that the incredibly well qualified mechanical technicians would get to work on these said engines but instead it is given to sub-contractors to do. This resonated strongly with a lot of staff who knew they had the ability to refurbish an engine and most of the staff completely willing to do this. The best thing that kept me going was the people I worked with. It was an amazing team effort to push these boats out to a super high quality. Your opportunities are -

Pros

Free coffee

Cons

Too many to list

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Insights into RNLI

Based on 47 survey responses

What people like

Sense of belonging
Ability to meet personal goals
Clear sense of purpose

Well organised looked to the future

ERC Technician (Former Employee) - Poole, Dorset - 27 October 2019

Friendly atmosphere, everyone worked as a team, no question was left unanswered, offered a full-time position after a month of my contract finishing but had already started another one, should have gone back to the RNLI where I was appreciated.

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Very demanding and under-supported

Technician (Former Employee) - UK - 4 May 2018

Very demanding job on the coast and a member of the hidden team that keep things running. Very often away for entire weeks with no extra benefits. Your work directly effects lifesaving capability. Can be enjoyable, however the sheer volume of work is monumental. Pay is low however the pension is exceptional. High throughput of technicians leaving the coast due to workload and being undervalued. This is not a job for a budding young technician wishing to progress as it is literally dead mans shoes and there are no relevant courses/training that enable you to develop in your specific arena. Older technicians/engineers should be aware there are considerably better opportunities out there if you require some investment from your employer. Roles outside of coastal maintenance however are considerably more enjoyable and employment at Poole HQ is a stark contrast from the coal front of the coast.

Pros

Pension

Cons

Pay, time away

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Challenging and exiting work place

Divisional Technician (Former Employee) - Perth Scotland - 15 July 2017

A typical day starts at 0900 till 1700 when on base.Although when out at a site or station you could work round the clock.The skills i have learned and brought to the job would mostly be diagnostics and electrical fault diagnostics.The job its self I really enjoyed although some of the management i think were not really up to the job position they filled.The hardest part of the job I would say was the long distance driving from place to place. And the most enjoyable part was meeting new people and visiting all the different locations.