Austal Ships
    (89 reviews)

    Company Reviews

    Working at Austal Ships

    3.189 ratings in total
    5
    23
    4
    17
    3
    14
    2
    12
    1
    23
    65%
    Rate salary as high or average
    52%
    Employees recommend this employer to friends
    Work/Life balance
    3.5(87 ratings)
    Career development
    3.0(88 ratings)
    Benefits & perks
    2.8(88 ratings)
    Management
    2.6(89 ratings)
    Working environment
    3.0(88 ratings)
    Diversity & equal opportunity
    3.3(87 ratings)
    Ratings for Austal Ships are shared as-is from employees in line with our community guidelines

    reviews

    Showing 17 reviews for All Perth WA
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    5.0
    Recruitment Consultant
    Apr 2026
    Henderson WA 61661 to 2 years in the role, current employee
    Great team, smart stakeholders, immersive work. I plan to stay long-term
    The good thingsSupportive and collaborative team environment. Opportunity to work closely with highly intelligent and knowledgeable stakeholders who are leaders in their respective fields. Exposure to a very interesting program, allowing you to become fully immersed in the work and gain a deep understanding of the business and its projects. The role provides strong learning opportunities and professional growth through stakeholder engagement and complex recruitment challenges.
    The challengesFast-paced environment that challenges you to adapt quickly and continuously improve processes
    5.0
    Manager
    Feb 2026
    Henderson WA 61661 to 2 years in the role, current employee
    A team I enjoy being part of
    The good thingsBeing part of a team at the leading edge of WA's shipbuilding capability. A collaborative culture and friendly atmosphere. And of course, a three-day weekend every other week.
    The challengesThe challenge is keeping pace with new and improved ways of working to embrace innovation and technology.
    5.0
    Manager
    Feb 2026
    Henderson WA 6166Less than 1 year in the role, current employee
    This is my second time working at Austal. I love the people and the projects. A good place to work
    The good thingsMultiple people working in the same direction. Its a big job but together we are going to succeed.
    The challengesAs expansion happens, trying to keep job roles defined and clear ensuring there are no gaps,
    4.0
    Senior Production Engineer
    Feb 2026
    Henderson WA 6166Less than 1 year in the role, current employee
    Contributing to a world-class legacy of continuous and sustainable naval shipbuilding.
    The good thingsBeing part of the Production Engineering team within Design and Engineering has been a fantastic experience so far. Austal is aggressively building expertise in continuous and sustainable naval shipbuilding, and it’s exciting to be at the heart of that transition. The focus on bridging high-level design with efficient, modern production methods is clear, and the collective knowledge within the team is world-class. It’s a great and exciting environment for anyone looking to contribute to Australia’s sovereign industrial capability.
    The challengesThe complexity of moving toward a fully digital shipyard while maintaining a high production tempo is significant. There is a lot of specialized technical knowledge to absorb in the first few months, but the team is incredibly supportive in helping you navigate those systems.
    5.0
    Projects
    Feb 2026
    Henderson WA 6166Less than 1 year in the role, current employee
    The face paced, delivery focused, can do culture is the perfect place to challenge yourself and grow
    The good thingsAwesome opportunities to grow your career. Great team working environment.
    The challengesSome of the tools and facilities can be a bit aged
    5.0
    Configuration Management Specialist
    Feb 2026
    Henderson WA 61664 to 5 years in the role, current employee
    Come along on the journey with us!
    The good thingsThe projects I have worked on are really interesting, keeps you on your toes. The teams are very supportive which makes it easier to come to work each day
    The challengesKeeping up with the technology innovations that is being introduced. Will be great for new projects.
    5.0
    Engineering Role
    Feb 2026
    Henderson WA 61661 to 2 years in the role, current employee
    Dynamic but exciting time to be at Austal with lots of opportunities
    The good thingsGreat team of people with a bright future and lots of work in the pipeline
    The challengesRamping up resources and teams means a lot of change.
    1.0
    Undisclosed
    Jan 2026
    Naval Base WA 61651 to 2 years in the role, former employee
    Poor onboarding, micromanaged, cliquey culture, and flexibility not as promised.
    The good thingsLeaving and going home everyday
    The challengesminimal onboarding, tightly managed team, and culture that rewarded “dobbing in.”
    1 person found this helpful
    1.0
    Project Manager
    Jun 2025
    Perth WA 60003 to 4 years in the role, current employee
    Horrible culture, hamstrung by old ways
    The good thingsSome exceptional people
    The challengesMost things are a challenge
    2 people found this helpful
    3.0
    Operations Manager - Austal Technology (Full-Time)
    Mar 2025
    Perth WA 60003 to 4 years in the role, former employee
    Thankful to Austal Technology and Austal for giving me the opportunity to grow as a IT professional in WA. But you have room for improvement!
    The good thingsMost of the staff were friendly and supportive. Lately introduced work-life balance.
    The challengesIt was challenging to deal with some senior managers.
    2 people found this helpful
    2.0
    Reliability Engineer
    May 2024
    Naval Base WA 61653 to 4 years in the role, former employee
    Great people, interesting work, terrible culture and non-existent support.
    The good things-Work for a designer, manufacturer and sustainer of Australian Ships, with long term contracts to various government departments. -Opportunity to work across different areas of the business and programs, sustainment work can be secure and long term for job security -The people at the coalface are great, willing to help and will find the time for you. -Get to work with some really experienced engineers, fabricators and maintainers. -See the ships you help design, build and or support as they come in for refit. -Opportunity for some challenging and interesting work across sustainment.
    The challenges-Little support and incredible reluctance to fund or deliver training and development. -Neglect and isolation of In Service Support branch, with absent senior leadership. -Turnover was high from poor behaviours allowed to flourish, and people realising nearly everywhere else is a better deal for conditions, pay and culture. -Despite being in an established company, feels like you were making processes and procedures from scratch every time. -Frequently seeing good people burn out, not be supported and subsequently leave -Poor pay relative to competitors, Unrealistic expectation of roles with even a smidge of specialisation for pay, experience and education. Inflexibility with pay to be commiserate with experience. -Hidden rules, arbitrary processes and lack of communication from the business. -At the company level, no desire to identify, acknowledge or address problems.
    2 people found this helpful
    1.0
    Engineer
    Apr 2024
    Henderson WA 61661 to 2 years in the role, former employee
    The toxic environment and lack of unity make it challenging to work here.
    The good thingsThere is not much about it, unfortunately.
    The challengesToxic working environment.
    3 people found this helpful
    2.0
    Manager
    Oct 2023
    Henderson WA 61661 to 2 years in the role
    A company that falls short of its potential.
    The good things- Working in defence - A large enough organisation to have a variety of roles - Good people who want to do a good job - New teams with an appetite for change
    The challenges- A toxic culture that lacks accountability - A stagnant and dysfunctional senior leadership team led by a non-existent CEO. A people and culture team that is isolated from the workforce - Lack of diversity in work - Lack of internal communication - Poor systems. Procedures that do not apply to senior leadership - Average and opaque compensation
    8 people found this helpful
    1.0
    Engineering Role
    Jun 2023
    Henderson WA 61665 to 6 years in the role
    The worst I have seen in 20 years of experience.
    The good thingsNot much unfortunately
    The challengesTrying to convince yourself to go to work due to lack of support
    4 people found this helpful
    2.0
    Project Coordinator
    Jun 2023
    Perth WA 6000
    Austal has allot of potential, but fails to grow as a digital shipyard due to lack of unity.
    The good thingsComradery in the project team was high and the Program leadership was good.
    The challengesBusiness leaders continually resisting change. High turnover of staff.. not all ELT/SLT members share the vision of digital transformation. Some Dept Heads ignore or never engage with the project, program sponsor not active or visible enough. No project detailed design, No project schedule visible until year 3. No PMO or project governance, the organisation has low change maturity.
    7 people found this helpful
    5.0
    Electrician
    Apr 2017
    Perth WA 6000Less than 1 year in the role, former employee
    I was happy working there.
    The good thingsFriendly crew, supervisors and managers Good working hours Close to home
    The challengesWorking on new areas and electrical projects
    3.0
    Project Manager
    Sep 2015
    Perth WA 6000
    Burnt out.
    The good thingsDesigning and building the most advanced aluminium boats in the world with a team of the best people in the world.
    The challengesManagement kpi's in terms of productivity, efficiency, schedule and profitability.
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