FDM Group Java Consultant reviews

So I returned to FDM office and was treated like a child and when I wanted to pursue more training at some stages I was actually denied access to this, I was actually told that I was not allowed to partake in further training... despite this I decided to train myself with books and conversations with other developers and some of the trainers, the consultant support team didn't do much in means of support but they really just took notes on what you had been doing. The third year rate is not based on your work or stream but which is somewhat easier for clients to plan budgets but if as a moutie the offer doesn't seem fair for the market (considering you are a contractor you get less than most permanent employees do and in some cases less than graduate programs) FDM basically says you can be replaced, which in some cases is true however if you are mid project or if it involves multiple people leaving at once this can be some what of an issue considering the uptake time etc and not to mention any training that the replacement might be missing, but fdm does not care as long as they get paid. Communication within the company is also horrible, if one was to give resignation to HR it is almost guaranteed that the client and FDM client manager would not find out until the person had stopped coming in for a week a month after and pending the client does try to get in touch chances are they will be ignored unless someone says "legal" and which point it will be a little late. I really love my placement and enjoy the work and environment (on site) and it seems a shame that I will have to leave due to FDM not negotiating with a pay packet but instead offering you well under market rate. The company seems to be a sinking ship hence why non trainee staff are dropping like flies and to save money they are recruiting trainees to fill the spots without the experience or knowledge of using the skills in a working environment.

- Unpaid "training" period - during the time I was there, I was given a regular £20-30 C# book and told to sit at a computer and work through it. This was supposedly worth £20k. - FDM takes a huge cut of the pay. When I started, they were paying £12k base with £6 an hour, which was later changed to £18k base with £2 an hour (giving everyone a pay cut), but most people are charged out to clients at somewhere in the ballpark of £300 a day. - if you try and leave, they threaten to hit you with a 20k training bill... although I also know a few people who have left without paying, I think FDM tries to bury that news - if you end up at a client who makes you work longer than your 37.5/40 hours, FDM expects you to do unpaid overtime - no sick pay - took a month to start between getting a placement and starting onsite, all unpaid - was put into a programming in a language I had no experience in, and different from what the account manager told me it was going to be, when I mentioned this, I was told more training would be arranged for me, but this never materialised in the 2 years Incidentally, the client did want me to go onto more training, but FDM wasn't willing to pay for it, and the client felt they were already paying FDM for the training, and weren't willing to pay somebody else to train me on top In general, FDM don't want to hear from you when you're on site and making money for them, the less they hear from you the better, all they want is your timesheet. They have no real interest in career development or training. Also, if you look through most of the reviews, they break down into two categories. 1. The good reviews are usually people who work for FDM as account managers/trainers/etc, and the occasional person who had no IT experience and got it via FDM 2. The poor reviews are basically everyone who FDM took on to send out to clients, most of the people who work at FDM are the latter, they do their 2 year stint (unless they can get out quicker) and then get out. Last comment I would make is that FDM pay companies to manage their online reputation and spend a fair bit on marketing, so they get good write ups in a lot of places