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American Red Cross

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More cons than pros - Manager American Red Cross Employee Review

2.0
29 Apr 2019
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

The Red Cross is a good starting place to get experience in disaster services. The volunteers and employees are exceptionally hardworking and well-intentioned individuals, solid all around. They also offer comprehensive and affordable health benefits.

Cons

The consensus within the regions in California is that the organizational pressure to be a workaholic has deterimentally impacted their ability to retain talented and mission-driven employees. Across all departments there is an expectation that every person needs to go above and beyond to meet the unrealistic goals. The business plan at the executive level is intended to "turn the business around" by adopting for-profit business practices. I can say they are in better shape financially than they were in the past, but at the cost of burning out dedicated employees with their extremely high expectations and poor decision making. If you are not someone who is looking to work 50-60 hours a week, and value your after-work activities or want to see your children grow up, you might want to explore opportunities at other organizations.

Explore other reviews about American Red Cross

5.0
14 Jun 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Friendly people and good work

Cons

No cons for this company

2.0
15 Mar 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

You feel connected to a larger mission, and go to bed knowing you did good work. Most of the volunteers are amazing people. The job is a good stepping stone to other disaster management jobs elsewhere. PTO policy is generous and Healthcare is decent.

Cons

You are INCREDIBLY overworked and GROSSLY underpaid. You get zero work-life balance. Even when you're not on call, you'll still get tons of calls from volunteers with questions and concerns. If a volunteer is unavailable to respond to a fire call or tend to any other responsibility day or night, you're on deck. You're salaried, so there's no overtime pay. Your pay barely covers the basic cost of living in today's economy ($40k-$50k). Diversity is bottom heavy, meaning there are lots of employees of color in entry level or lower management roles, but beyond that there's a steep drop off. Most of the volunteers are great, but the Red Cross is so desperate to keep them, that poor behavior and language (racist/sexist/phobic) is not properly disciplined or responded to, if at all. Employee retention is poor, especially in the Disaster Specialist role, because they burn you out so quickly without decent pay.

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