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American Red Cross

Is this your company?

Excited at first, but now I know how they actually are. - Mobile Unit Assistant American Red Cross Employee Review

1.0
Mar 5, 2015
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

They have a great mission and do a lot of good for many people. With that mission they attempt to foster in the employees a sense of pride in having that mission. My particular location is one of the better paid areas. I cannot complain about the wages. However, in a different location the wages are almost guaranteed to be substantially lower. When I came onboard, I was excited to work for such a noble company. However, once I learned the inside details, I was sad.

Cons

They nickel and dime the employees. The Red Cross would step over a dollar to take a dime from an employee. Every bit of extras we get, such as meal vouchers, travel pay, differential hourly pay, etc. they are trying to take away from us. The hours are bad. I work a variable schedule and am full time, but most weeks I never get over 33 hours. Somedays I work until 3 am and have to be back at 8 am. Sometimes I work 3 overnight shifts, then immediately switch back to early morning shifts. That can be very hard on the body and moral. Management is terrible. Way too many chiefs and not enough indians. Many people act as if they are supervisors even though they are not. The management will institute a policy that holds certain people responsible for other people's mistakes, even though the punished employee had absolutely nothing to do with the mistake. The managers lied in the interview to get me to accept the offer. No overtime pay on weekends. No available overtime to build up hours. No accountability. The benefits are very very expensive and are almost worthless. No promotions, you have to apply for the positions to move. They don't give the positions to the best candidate, rather the one they like personally and know outside of work. They are in the process of ending my position and blending it into another. During this phase, they are making it hard on us in the position. In addition, we will have no guarantee of transition into the new job. Constantly put on hiring freezes. Denied positions that you are overly qualified for while they say your not qualified. Vacation is denied constantly. You get crap over taking a sick day, even when you have never used one. Your lunch break is scheduled for the first 30 minutes of your day. Meaning, you get no lunch break. They will make your drive in a blizzard and/or ice storm and could care less if there are 100 crashes and multiple fatalities on the road. If you are delayed due to weather, they will argue that its not snowing at the center so it must not be snowing anywhere else in the state. There is so much bad to list about them its unreal.

Explore other reviews about American Red Cross

5.0
Apr 16, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

My experience working with the Red Cross has been great. The work is fulfilling and the people are passionate. Benefits are good - Kaiser is $6 a month!

Cons

There is work life balance, but there is an expectation to work nights and weekends.

3.0
Jul 9, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

-Meaningful, mission-driven work that makes a real impact in people's lives during times of crisis. -Flexible remote work when not actively responding to disasters. -Volunteers are the heart of the organization. Many are passionate, dedicated, and genuinely enjoyable to work with. -Building strong relationships with volunteers creates an incredible support system. Many go above and beyond to help staff because they recognize the workload and truly care about the mission. -Unique opportunities to gain experience in disaster response, emergency management, crisis management, leadership, and volunteer management. -Deployment opportunities that provide exceptional professional and personal growth. -Every day is different, offering a wide variety of experiences and continuous learning. -Strong sense of teamwork and camaraderie during disaster operations.

Cons

-Inconsistent accountability for poor leadership and management behaviors. -Toxic relationship dynamics that overlook behaviors. -High burnout and chronic turnover; many employees do not remain beyond two years. -Unsustainable workload paired with unrealistic expectations. -Leadership often prioritizes metrics over employee well-being and long-term program sustainability. -Staff are frequently expected to fill operational gaps caused by declining volunteer capacity instead of receiving additional staffing support. -On-call responsibilities can feel like being available 24/7. Even when not officially on call, staff often receive calls from volunteers needing guidance, assistance finding disaster responders, or language support. -Employees who speak a second language are frequently relied upon across multiple territories for translation assistance without corresponding workload adjustments. Although translation services exist, using them is often discouraged, placing additional burden on bilingual staff. -PTO can be difficult to fully utilize because work continues to accumulate and responsibilities often remain waiting upon return. -Compensation does not reflect the workload, level of responsibility, or work-life sacrifices expected. Salaried employees often work well beyond 40 hours without additional compensation. - Recognition and incentives appear to be uneven across departments, while frontline disaster relief staff often carry significant operational demands with limited comparable rewards. -Diversity is more visible in entry-level and lower management roles than in senior leadership.

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