Sexist, confused and old-fashioned management - Anonymous employee Humane World for Animals Employee Review

Thank you for your posting. You mention a number of topics in this post, some of which can be addressed here. • The HSUS has a workforce primarily comprised of women and the demographics of our staff managers are fairly consistent with that breakout--about 75% female and 25% male. Over the past four years, nearly 80% of all staff promotions were for females, and 67% of those promoted to a Vice President or Senior Vice President level position were females. We believe that’s a pretty good track record. The level and scope of a manager’s authority and decision-making at The HSUS is contingent upon the individual’s role, accountability, and performance. It is not based on gender. • Our all-volunteer Board of Directors is currently made up of 29 members, almost evenly split between men and women (15 and 14, respectively). The immediate past Chair of the Board, and the current Vice Chair, are both women. These volunteer Directors are the individuals who set policy for the organization, and oversee the performance and compensation of executives and officers. • We are a mission-based organization, with a fast-paced campaigning style of work, and that is not necessarily for everyone. We have some jobs—which given the nature of their role—do have responsibilities that require those in them to work outside the normal business hours, i.e. evenings and weekends. Our fundraising; outreach and engagement; legislative and grassroots; rescue and response; direct animal care; and campaigns and advocacy-related roles often can be called upon to support events and activities during these off hours. We appreciate the time and efforts given by the staff in these positions and, when possible provide flex time and/or time-off to allow them the opportunity to balance their work requirements with time to refresh and rejuvenate. We also provide other benefits such as paid pet sitting for employees who are required to travel for work. In addition, many staff are able to telecommute some days during the workweek, dependent on the type of work they perform, and this provides a break from the expectation of them being in the office every day. • As an organization that is funded by donor dollars, we are committed to ensuring that we are using these funds in the most prudent and fiscally responsible way. Whether or not we fill a position, hire a temporary, require an employee to pay to voluntarily attend an event at which he/she is not required to work, or make any other spending decisions, we make them giving consideration to the impact they may have on our staff, as well as on our budget and our overall operations. Like all non-profit organizations, we often have to make hard decisions about how our spending is allocated, with finite resources and an unlimited number of worthy projects and positions to fund. • Our full-year turnover rate for 2015 is not yet available. Last year’s (2014) turnover rate was 13.9%, which was a decrease of 2% from 2013’s rate. This was below the non-profit trend for 2014 of 15%. Finally, you mention a number of issues related to harassment, equality, equity and diversity. Our employee handbook covers these in several of our HSUS policies (EEO Policy; Policy Against Sexual and Other Kinds of Harassment) and provides a complaint process. You are encouraged to contact the Human Resources department regarding these and any other concerns you may have.