Commonwealth’s management team is committed to attracting and retaining top talent. 

• Our work environment and practices are designed to promote job satisfaction. Flex-hours are the norm, with additional flexibility through a paid time off (PTO) program in which employees choose time off as desired.
• Personnel are eligible to participate in Commonwealth's gain share / bonus program.
• Employee events hosted by the company and fellow coworkers for employees and their families have included crawfish boils, barbeque luncheons, group outings to sporting events, as well as traditional company picnics and holiday parties.

Legacy of the Red Bullet

Commonwealth Engineering and Construction can trace its philosophical origins back more than 30 years to when Chairman Paul Varello began his career with Daniel International in Greenville, South Carolina. Daniel Chairman Buck Mickel would prove to be an early and influential mentor in shaping Varello's management skills. More importantly, Mickel personally demonstrated the value of recognizing individuals who contribute to the success of his company.

Varello recalls, "Buck had a way of making people feel appreciated and important... he'd recognize each face and always made a point to remember names." Mickel also would frequently pen notes of praise and encouragement to individual employees. These highly prized notes, always written in red ink, became fondly known as "Buck's red bullets". It was a practice that Varello would emulate throughout his career. In his role as Chairman and CEO of American Ref-Fuel Company, those practices were very evident. In the 1990s, the company rose from its early operations stage to achieve more than $450 million in annual revenues. It ranked in the top three of its size among The Houston Business Journal's listing of "Best Places to Work".

While other dimensions of Commonwealth's business would evolve over time, Varello knew from the outset that there would always be a concerted effort to value and recognize people. This extends to Commonwealth's clients, employees and their families, business partners and all others with a stake in the company's success. This perspective figured heavily in the choice of the Commonwealth name and continues to impact virtually every other aspect of the company's daily business.

Today, the presence of red bullets in Commonwealth's logo, signs, literature and business correspondence is more than just homage to one individual. They symbolize the commitment of the company's employee-owners to service that merits such recognition. The notion of earning and sharing credit also reflects Commonwealth's dedication to create lasting business relationships that will one day leave a legacy of their own.

"To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded."

--Ralph Waldo Emerson