Pros
Although working at TransPerfect is indeed a job and steady (low) income as an internal employee, at what cost? This is a good company to gain experience in the workforce as a first job, especially because they will only hire recent college grads with no professional experience. This is a key part of their business model and revolving door of hiring. It is also a good place to get a start as no real skills are required for any position. They simply hire the cheapest people they can find, and if you're single with no children, it's a perk, as they will pressure you to work long hours. Another pro to working here is that you won't have much oversight from management as they are always too busy dealing with daily crises and "training" all the new employees that are hired every few days. In any case, management isn't even qualified to manage or judge work as they have no real skills themselves. There are some really great people that work there on lower levels and there is opportunity to make good friends. Misery loves company after all. Unfortunately, there is such high turnover that your friends will probably leave within a year.
Cons
TransPerfect is not a company to work for if you want to feel proud of where you work. While there are good employees who genuinely care, none of them have any power, which is unfortunate. Eventually these good people leave out of frustration, disrespect and lack of monetary compensation for the hours worked. None of the intelligent people are ever listened to, in fact, are often hushed, as management doesn't want to hear any productive ideas to improve the company, only to make their wallets fatter. There is no job security whatsoever. There is no contract, and they make it clear that whatever your position is, you are easily replaceable. Do not try to negotiate a livable salary, they will just tell you to quit. (They won't fire you to avoid expenses or unemployment, but instead make your life miserable until you do.) The average length of stay at this company is probably 6 months to a year. The only employees that end up staying any considerable amount of time are foreigners whose visas are tied to the company. It is telling that in an economic downturn, employees quit left and right with nothing lined up after simply because the conditions are so miserable. If you are a freelancer, don't even think of working for them. They will treat you like garbage and offer you below market rates. They are proud of the fact that they've driven down prices so low that no one can make a living wage from freelancing for them unless they live in the third world. Also, part of the money-making scheme is to blame freelancers for problems then demand discounts from the job. Apparently they don't understand that costs can only be cut so far, they will eventually have to pay someone for something, but the business model depends on the cheapest people they can find, a veritable sweatshop of translation. They claim upon hiring that it's a meritocracy, which is a complete joke. If you receive a "promotion," it's never backed up monetarily, instead, they will drown you with work and blame you when things go wrong. The only reason you would be promoted is because so many other people have quit and you are the only one left. People are not treated equally and policies are never clear and there is no accountability whatsoever. Usually those that are promoted are the ones that get the drunkest with their managers (it often feels like a giant fraternity). HR does not look out for employees' interests, they are simply a tool of upper management to get people to quit before any real benefits have to be paid. HR is so incompetent they can't even return phone calls or emails or call you when you have a scheduled interview. I would only recommend someone to work here if I wanted to destroy that relationship. I would venture to guess that no one that has worked at this company has left with a positive impression. And this does not even touch upon the unethical business practices...