Does The Y (YMCA) pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, The Y (YMCA) employees rate their compensation and benefits as 3.1 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at The Y (YMCA). This rating has been stable over the past 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at The Y (YMCA)?

71% of The Y (YMCA) employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated The Y (YMCA) 3.8 out of 5 for work life balance, 3.9 for culture and values and 3.4 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at The Y (YMCA)?

Lifeguard (2018) , Summer Camp Counselor (797) , Camp Counselor (735) , Lifeguard/Swim Instructor (382) , Counselor (299) , Personal Trainer (284) , Swim Instructor (239) , Director (232) , Front Desk Receptionist (229) , Child Care Worker (213) , Member Service Representative (200) , Program Director (193) , Membership Representative (185) , Teacher (175) , Wellness Coach (158)

What are the pros of working at The Y (YMCA) according to real employee reviews?

"Also the people I worked with were great and really did care for the children and campers" ((in 1543 reviews)); "Great staff at my branch who always worked as a team real well and were very supportive." ((in 972 reviews)); "Flexible hours and you stay with the same hours for that set period ( ex." ((in 913 reviews)); "It was a positive experience and all my coworkers were great" ((in 789 reviews)); "good work environment and people" ((in 484 reviews))

What are the cons of working at The Y (YMCA) according to real employee reviews?

"Not very sure what my roles are a lot of times and also low pay." ((in 3028 reviews)); "Poor management and not enough staffing" ((in 1027 reviews)); "Low salary compared to similar jobs in the field and experience doesn't budge the needle much if you negotiate." ((in 292 reviews)); "Expected us to take care of a heavily special needs child with no training whatsoever and for 16.88 an hour." ((in 246 reviews)); "Poor upper management does not have a sense of how to grow itself." ((in 228 reviews))

What are employees saying about The Y (YMCA) layoffs in 2026?

Explore Glassdoor’s employee reviews to understand what current and former employees are saying about The Y (YMCA) layoffs and their outlook for job security at The Y (YMCA) in 2026.

Skip to content Skip to footer

Notifications

The Y (YMCA)

The Y (YMCA) reviews

Compare reviews

3.9

71% would recommend to a friend

(21,875 total reviews)

Suzanne McCormick

78% approve of CEO

57% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

4.1

Diversity & inclusion

3.9

Culture & values

3.8

Work/Life balance

3.4

Senior management

3.4

Career opportunities

3.1

Compensation and benefits

The Y (YMCA) has an employee rating of 3.9 out of 5 stars, based on 21,875 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The The Y (YMCA) employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the ONG y Organizaciones sin fines de lucro industry (3.7 stars).

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Reviews by job title

22K reviews

3.0

Sep 7, 2008

Rewarding place to work but management is a mixed bag.

Personal trainer

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

The people who come in are wonderful to build relationships with and it is very rewarding helping them. Also, there are a number of wonderful people on staff.

Cons

Some of the managers are completely incompetent, though the worst offender is now gone. The pay is also not particularly competitive. Some frustration is caused by the fact that customers will repeatedly complain to lower level employees about problems that management doesn't fix and doesn't answer for.

4.0

Jun 14, 2008

Great Way to help the community

Field manager

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

The Y is a great place to work for a variety of reasons. It has very competitive pay for young workers. I was paid much more than I would be paid at another job of similar responsibility. It is a relaxed environment that gives you the opportunity to work with kids and members of the community. Very flexible when it came to working - I could work when I could. It was also nice to work outside.

Cons

You get a horrible farmers tan if you work outside, and the parents can be somewhat uppity.

4.0

Jun 14, 2008

I wanna stay at the YMCA (for now)

Group leader

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Very relaxed and fun environment. People working there legitimately care about their employees. Management is very understanding of summer counselors and their needs. They understand that many of the people working there are not looking for a lifelong career but just summer employment and treat their employees accordingly. However, there is opportunity to continue working in child care if you enjoy the field. Some employees are perusing degrees in early childhood education while they continue to work at the YMCA. The YMCA is very caring about the needs of poorer families and you feel like you are making a legitimate difference in the lives of families that are in need of help.

Cons

Very disorganized management. Everyone is doing their own thing with no real guidance from the leaders of the local YMCA, instead being forced to run every idea and request through the Beverly YMCA. Further confused by being a member of the YMCA of the North Shore. As a result you end up having a large excess of red tape whenever you want to accomplish anything. They need to work on streamlining the entire process to make it easier and less time consuming to accomplish basic tasks such as budget and payroll. However, still a great place to work and this is just a minor complaint.

Viewing 21871 - 21873 of 21,875 Reviews

Top companies for "Compensation and Benefits" near you

World Food Programme

4.0★Compensation & Benefits

Population Services International

3.9★Compensation & Benefits

UNICEF

3.9★Compensation & Benefits

UNHCR

4.0★Compensation & Benefits

Jobs at The Y (YMCA)

cocinero/a en establecimientos o empresas

Buenos Aires

View job