What's latest on this place? Is it any better to work for Express Microbiology?

I worked there for a short while. I was made aware of the backward working environment from early on. The people who train you are completely inadequate. The owner of the company is a power hungry moron. Their staff are expected to work for pittance and there is an Oliver Twist type feel to being paid your overtime 'Please sir can I have some more!' This company try to make asking for your overtime payment taboo! Like you should just keep quiet and assure they have your best interests at heart. They pay minimum wage and when it all boils down, its glorified factory work. If you have a scientific qualification, a shred of decency, aspirations and self-respect you will give these retards a wide birth and let them slide down the shoots where they belong. Express Microbiology you are absolutely abhorrent!

More lambs required

Express Microbiology Microbiologist
Edinburgh   £13000-£18000 depending on experience
 Express microbiology is a busy food and environmental testing laboratory offering a range of molecular and traditional microbiogy tests to our customers. Due to continued growth we are looking for experienced microbiologists or keen learners with science degrees to join the lab. The company is a keen supporter of personal growth and will offer training in all areas of operations. Some weekends and evening work will be expected.

Closing Date:     27-Jan-2012

Except that these aren't rumours.....

Re - no contracts - have since found out that it is actually illegal to have no contract after your trial period has finished. When I got paid off I could have pursued unfair dismissal but wasn't there long enough to go any further. Need to be there a year - surprise surprise I had been there just less than that! The excuse they came up with to pay off myself and a couple of other people just sucked but due to time I was scuppered. They think they can get away with anything - don't trust them!

It surely is - hideous place to work!

IS this the place in Linlithgow you are all talking about?

They were expanding when I was there - they'll be rattling around in that big empty building soon!

sounds like this is a lab to be avoided. Perhaps a case of, if your face fits i suspect.

Have heard there's been more pay offs at this place. Is this true? They were just advertising not that long ago? I'd worry if I worked there!

I too was promised the moon when I was interviewed - 11 till 6 working days, no weekend work. Lovely I thought - right up my street! Ended up with so many different shifts i didn't know where I was - 11-7.30, 9-6, 6- 2. Got fed up with the huffs if I left at the time I was supposed to which was very rare indeed! Also ended up having to work weekends too. You're also right about some of them having no people skills - all they thought about was money, money money and it wasn't giving it to their employees. Surprised they're still going!

I can safely say that Express Microbiology is all over the shop. At time of employment I was doing 12 hour days 5 days a week for no extra money, a lot more hours than initially agreed!! A lot of nice people there, but the management wanting the moon on a stick, and wanting it yesterday, does not help. Too much time and money spent on, essentially, unnecessary outgoings. I too never had a written contract and am glad to be well shot of the place. It was probably a great idea for a business venture, but without business brains then its destined to fail. Add into the mix the fact that people with absolutely no people skills or actual common sense, hold positions that require people skills and common sense and it might explain why there are so many unhappy people posting here.

The people who work there are for the most part really nice. Its the way they treat employees. Long hard hours, often with no payment for overtime but you're still expected to do the hours and if you don't people further up the pecking order go in a serious huff! Its strange how they don't look for qualified staff too - i assume its because they're cheaper and more dispensible if they can't be trained. I'm sure some of the companies using Express micro would be appalled at the way the workers are treated and would probably wonder if the tests asked for we're being done properly.

Am thinking of putting an application in for a microbiology assistant. Is the place THAT bad????

When I was there, every time I asked for a contract I was told they're in the hands of the lawyer who was looking over them - never did see one!

always looking for new staff is always a give away on how well/badly a company treats its staff. Adverts don't lie.

chears guys nearly put an apps in to them but been in similar position in past, have noticed that they advertise often (especially for low level qualified employees)so suspition raised,.....high profit /low expenditure me smell a sellout of company see yaa express bio.

Correct me if I'm wrong here , but you're doing this anonomously too!

How grown up! Since you probably are still working there you'll know that this stuff isn't rumours. It may well be a successful business with a lot of really nice people working there but the boss doesn't know how to treat her workers - she's too busy focusing on her profits to take into account how her workers are feeling. Most of them are dead on their feet cos' they work so much.

Guessing since you're on the defensive you're still stuck there!

I like the fact all the posters are anonymous, pretty easy to be a keyboard warrior or a liar. Its called the rumour mill for a reason, isnt it funny how nobody ever starts a positive rumour? Lets see..............everyone that left this place is fat, ugly and lazy, discuss.

They're not searching for workers because they're expanding, they're searching because the place is crap to work for and have a very high staff turnaround. They want you to work 40 per week minimum - anything over that isn't paid even though its overtime and sometimes ridiculous finishing times. But its ok, they do reward you with the occasional bottle of wine or box of chocolates instead!

Surprised place is still going since the managements counting skills are zero!

Every month I had to go and ask about wages being wrong - took 8 months to finally get them right then i left. Now advertising for the same job i did for £1000 less than i "finally" earned.
Don't go near - they want you to work all the hours god sends but don't want to pay you for it!

they weren't when i left but they were expanding, hence the search for workers, look at their website

and another one left to fight for rightfull money, maybe someone should let the companies they are testing for know how they treat their workers.......I know they are looking for employees, just get the word around not to work for them!!!!!!

don't know why they do it but they just don't pay their workers the respect they are due, i still have to fight for my money and I can't win

Why? What goes on at this place??? Why is it so bad?

Is it a very big company?

yep....right bunch of cowboys or should I say cowgirls...makes you wonder what the test results were like...