Disappointing, toxic culture of bullying and nepotism, lack of psychological safety - Anonymous employee Leidos Employee Review

1.0
Aug 6, 2020
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Very friendly and social workplace at lower levels. Good offices. US parent has good mission and vision and supports worthwhile causes/sports sponsorships etc. Was very sold on the potential when I first started, despite warnings from ex-employees and recruiters.

Cons

A toxic culture of bullying and nepotism, where the committed and hard workers are rarely rewarded appropriately. Underperformance is rewarded with manufactured roles if you play the game the right way. Distinct lack of psychological safety. Employees are too scared to call out inappropriate or unethical behaviour as history shows those who speak up or have a differing view to the ELT are very quickly ostracised and magically their roles are made redundant. High turnover. Promise the world to stop you from leaving for a better job elsewhere and then not deliver on those promises. Bullying and harassment are not taken seriously, even sexual harassment can be seen as a joke. They speak to wanting to be a female friendly workplace promoting themselves as such, however, if you ever have a ‘female’ issue and need to take leave (such as pregnancy, pregnancy loss, emergency surgery) or need to cease working ridiculously long hours for short periods, prepare for this to negatively affect your future with the company. I was personally unable to take the necessary leave during or after any of these events, and experienced bullying and after I was open about it. Golden handshakes are not everything - Look after your own health and wellbeing and find an employer who actually values their people.

Explore other reviews about Leidos

5.0
May 7, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Large companies. Willingness to work with you.

Cons

Low paying. No hybrid opportunity

3.0
May 27, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Leidos provides opportunities to work on complex government programs with meaningful technical challenges. Depending on the contract and team, there can be exposure to cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity, systems engineering, networking, and mission-focused work that is difficult to find elsewhere. The company also has a large footprint, so there may be internal opportunities for people who are able to navigate the organization.

Cons

My experience was that the quality of management varied significantly by program. Communication around expectations, roles, and priorities was often inconsistent, and decisions that affected employees were not always explained clearly or handled in a transparent way. Work-life balance also depended heavily on local management. Flexibility that existed in practice could be changed quickly, and employees were sometimes left trying to reconcile changing expectations with existing workloads and personal obligations. In my view, the company would benefit from stronger oversight of program-level management decisions, especially where employee responsibilities, workplace flexibility, and performance feedback are concerned. I also found that technical decision-making was sometimes driven more by schedule pressure than by sound engineering judgment. On complex government programs, that can create unnecessary risk and frustration for employees who are trying to do things correctly.

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