employer cover photo
employer logo
employer logo

American Red Cross

Is this your company?

American Red Cross reviews

3.3

50% would recommend to a friend

(4,609 total reviews)
avatar

Gail McGovern

68% approve of CEO

48% positive business outlook

American Red Cross has an employee rating of 3.3 out of 5 stars, based on 4,609 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The American Red Cross employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Nonprofit & NGO industry (3.7 stars).

Reviews by job title

5K reviews
2.0
Feb 12, 2015
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

- The volunteers - These are the most incredible people. There is the same range of personality types that you find in any group- angelic to nightmarish - but they all come to help and then they keep coming back, again. They are unquestionably the best part of the job! - The staff - No one stays with a non-profit for money. Anyone who can make through the first 18 months is a special soul. These people bond like they have survived a war together. Over the past 10 years, they have been battered, over-worked, unappreciated, ignored, made into scapegoats and under valued for their subject expertise but they never stop trying. - The International Red Cross Movement - Being a part of the keepers of the Geneva Conventions is a privilege that is difficult to understand. Take a class called International Humanitarian Law - it is offered for free by every ARC across the country and has an online format. You will be humbled. - The mission speaks for itself... The American Red Cross prevents and alleviates human suffering in the face of emergencies by mobilizing the power of volunteers and the generosity of donors.

Cons

- The complete failure of upper management to understand the mission, to tell the story and to listen to those who do! - Financial Development has become so separated from chapter operations that they do not understand the programs. They cannot sell something that they never get to experience. Their goals are unreasonable and then they are re-evaluated and raised during Q3 every single year. - Staffing structure - Just keeping the lights turned on has everyone racing at disaster operation level everyday. How can they possibly scale up more when the an actual disaster strikes? How much time can they give to supporting, engaging and retaining volunteers? - The financial crisis is incapacitating every line of service. - The community well water is poisoned. Volunteers left with all of the responsibility and none of the support or explanation become disenfranchised very quickly. They feel betrayed by something that they have only ever tried to support and they spread the word. Community partners are hesitant to work with us because the reputation that precedes us does not inspire confidence. Government partners do not have time to waste and they only see constant turn-over leaving perpetually unmet commitments. The mission cannot be met without these collaborate partnerships and that means unmet annual goals and Performance Improvement Plans.

3.0
Oct 16, 2014
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Great people with many having a selfless attitude More informal work environment and dress code Make lots of contacts in Emergency Management and local government

Cons

VERY low pay VERY long hours with VERY unreasonable expectations High turnover, been here less than a year and 4 people have quit out of my office alone Executives make 6 figure salaries with bonuses while most of the management level work horses earn closer to 35k so there is a massive pay gap No opportunity for advancement and no raises.....ever Often times they will hire outside the organization rather than promote their own Aside from house fire cases, we only really provide services that arent really needed like handing out water to firefighters EXTREMELY disorganized...Ive never ever seen an organization that doesnt even know what vehicles they have or where they are They claim to have "service to armed forces" as a primary mission, but charge PTO days for military training, so as a reservist, Im on average 3 days in the hole every year before I even make my PTO days. Dont plan on training when you get to your job. Most of us got thrown in with no guidance whatsoever Volunteers tend to be self centered and you have to stroke their egos to get them to do anything or they threaten to quit

1.0
May 21, 2015
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Helping Folks, few dedicated volunteers, travel alot if like travel but it will be only local/regional. The biggest joys will come from assisting folks from house fires.

Cons

No Work Life Balance, tone deaf upper management, long hours, little pay and very difficult to take time off . You will 50-65 hours a week when there is not a disaster and make anywhere from $29,000 to $32,000. VA has gone through 2 mergers the last two years and the organization has lost an immense amount of knowledgeable, skilled staff and an immense amount of volunteers at the local and regional levels. The organization is in free fall without a vision and will likely become insolvent nationally by 2017. You will likely have a manager that does not respect your personal time, not approve your paid time off in a timely manner and expect you to answer emails that are sent at 10-11pm at night by 8am the next morning. Your goals will me mandated without a process of collaboration. It is a 24/7 job and even when you have staff support coverage for time off you will be called. You will have a work phone and P-card to pay bills that likely will be 3 months late in coming. You will work weekdays, weeknights, and Saturdays (at least 2 a month). The organization is not respected at the local and state levels by county or state emergency management for multiple reasons. The volunteers that do participate now are highly committed and can assist you but their numbers are few. You have top executives that make high 6 figures, tone deaf to and unresponsive to feedback from the local or regional level. You will enjoy helping others but find organizational mistakes that make this consistently cumbersome and you will quickly burn out over time and not much focus or time for anyone to focus on supporting your professional development.

Viewing 1 - 3 of 4,609 Reviews

Glassdoor has 5,263 American Red Cross reviews submitted anonymously by American Red Cross employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if American Red Cross is right for you.