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American Red Cross

Is this your company?

don't donate to this company - Anonymous employee American Red Cross Employee Review

1.0
Mar 15, 2017
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

none. none at all. the entire organization is managed by some really not very good people.

Cons

don't be fooled. just because this company has been around forever, it doesn't mean it's an ethical organization. they treat volunteers and low-level employees like crap. if you complain, they get rid of you. if you notice that things are not right, you're rewarded for turning a blind-eye to it....I wouldn't trust this organization. if you give blood, they sell it to hospitals to pay salaries. if you donate money, it pays MOSTLY salaries. the money they give to people when their houses burn down is marginal. there aren't that many home fires where they give people money. AND, when there is a major disaster, the money goes towards mostly volunteers traveling to give away food and other things that it got for free, and again for SALARIES. the only thing i'd give to them is advice. get rid of the CEO, upper management, and all those people who DON"T REALLY CARE about people. Ok....well, that means they'll need to start all over again. the only people remaining may just be the volunteers. if the red cross fired ALL upper management and hired volunteers to replace them, i will retract this review. also, if you look at the reviews in here -- they're done by red cross people who were successful--it's management reviewing management.....

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.

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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