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American Red Cross

Is this your company?

Just hope you never need blood. - Donor Collections Assistant American Red Cross Employee Review

1.0
Aug 23, 2014
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

The staff was pretty cool. I'm still friends with a few of them.

Cons

The other reviews seem to have the problems with the management structure down. I got a few laughs from those. Thanks guys. My main problem, potentially leading to my resigning, was the fact that they didn't seem to care one bit about the health hazards pertaining to the blood supply. The main factor in that is a combination of poor training and lack of knowledge in senior, supposedly experienced staff. I wonder how many bags of blood were considered "good enough" when I wasn't there to inform my colleagues that the product is, in fact, contaminated and potentially fatal to the recipient. I tried though. I tried to report it to management and attempted to "initiate a problem," but was essentially told that a problem isn't a problem unless it's a "problem." That is, when it's "investigated." The funny thing is, I never saw an investigation or, at the very least, a clarifying memo to explain the procedure to the ignorant staff that refused to listen to me. (Best part: after six years of employment, I ended up with a relapse into a severe anxiety disorder that inevitably made me stop going to work altogether. I got myself some help and attempted to reapply, but have seemingly been blacklisted from any and all Red Cross departments.)

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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