Pros
The only pros about this job was that it was a fully remote / work from home position and my coworkers were nice (I actually still keep in touch with them to this day!)
Cons
Disclaimer: I haven't worked at Optum / UnitedHealth Group since the Summer of 2021. Hopefully a lot of these policies have changed for the better, but the following is my personal and true experience with the company. I worked in the BAR (Benefits, Authorizations, and Referrals) department for mental health. I would take calls from members and providers on a variety of issues. There were back to back calls, which was to be expected, but we had very little time to ourselves. The ACW (after call work) average was 45 seconds. They only wanted us to spend 45 seconds after a call to finish our notes and catch our breaths before going back into the queue. Are you serious? The calls were very triggering, too. I remember getting calls from people threatening to harm themselves and others. We aren't crisis managers; we aren't trained to handle suicidal people and the fact that it was our responsibility to make sure that they got to the right place (often with a long hold time), it put a lot of unfair pressure on us. We were only allowed a 30 minute lunch, and I believe that we should have at least 45 minutes to an hour to recharge after taking calls nonstop for four hours. We were also allowed two 15 minute breaks, but if we went over it by a minute, there would be managers asking us what the problem was. Their PTO / Holiday agreement was awful. I'm not sure if this was limited to only CSRs, but if we wanted to get holiday pay, we'd have to work the day before AND the day after the holiday. Let's say it's Memorial Day weekend, and you want to take the Friday before it off. Well, you won't be getting paid for that Monday! God forbid people want to have an extra day off to spend with their family or just to relax without being penalized for it. The turnover rate was very high. People were quitting this job before the training was even over! By the time I left, half of my training class had quit. And now, less than a year later, none of the people that I trained with currently work at that position anymore. You would think the higher ups at UHG would notice it and realize the common denominator. There was also more responsibility for the same pay. During my final two weeks at the position, I heard from my coworkers that they were going to be trained in claims which would mean taking on an additional set of callers, but their pay would not be increased. The health insurance wasn't good. How are we working at one of the largest health insurance companies and the options that they offer their employees are trash?! Some people weren't able to afford the insurance at all because the pay was so low. I was able to get the most expensive insurance, but that still came with a high deductible. I could go on for much longer, but I, along with my coworkers, was so eager to leave this job. If any management is reading this, please see my advice below.
