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American Red Cross

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Lab Tech - Lab Technician American Red Cross Employee Review

2.0
Apr 1, 2016
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Hours are flexible and the people you work with are pretty friendly and helpful. There was coffee as well, which is always a plus.

Cons

Several, but first and foremost is the awful pay (even for a nonprofit) for a position that requires a college level education. Simply put: there is no way that someone can afford living in an area like DC for $33K a year without supplementing income with a second or third part time job (which is basically what every lab tech had to do). Second: The lab work is incredibly mundane and isn't even real science, you will likely get burned out after 4 months and start looking for new jobs. Third: Conditions in the lab are a complete mess and lack basic organization. You will understand immediately why this company is under a consent decree by the FDA. Finally, the lack of advancement in career. Regardless of how well you do your job, you probably wont be getting a promotion unless you work for x amount of years, which is already terrible considering how low the salaries are.

Explore other reviews about American Red Cross

5.0
Feb 11, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Position on G-Levels and on site

Cons

Must renew frequency through Their website

2.0
Mar 15, 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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