Bureaucratic, unresponsive organization - Membership Director The Y (YMCA) Employee Review

2.0
8 Feb 2009
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

It's a decent place to get started in your career if you are seeking to get into health club management, child care or community non-profit work. Employees have access to fitness centers and fellow employees are young and friendly. If you can't afford to join a health club, you may want to work here as a way to gain access.

Cons

Outside experience is not valued and the organization is very insulated and non-receptive to new ideas or concepts that do not come from within the YMCA. Also, while the organization is very friendly to gay and alternative-lifestyle individuals there is a corresponding discrimination against those who are not. The organization is also perpetually understaffed and exempt employees carry the load and are typically required to work additional hours without compensation or comp time. Front-line employees are left to deal with member complaints while senior staff hide in their offices and are unresponsive to concerns.

Explore other reviews about The Y (YMCA)

5.0
2 July 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

There was staff and leadership

Cons

To much workload for no pay

3.0
28 May 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

The team members/ coworkers and administrator (team lead) that you work with on a day-to-day basis are the ones who will make or break the experience. Obviously working with children, one must have patience, be flexible, creative - there are some days that test all of those skills! lol! But when you have a great teaching team to work with, your program can run like a well-oiled machine. I loved the time I had working with this program!

Cons

The pay is very low, I do understand with the YMCA being a non-profit, but at the same time when a position is responsible for young children, the pay should be higher than a fast-food chain, to attract and keep higher caliber staffing. - If you already work at a school, it's not a bad gig to make some extra money for coming in a few hours early or a few late. But if you are driving more than 5min, to work 2-3 hours for a ridiculously low rate I would say pass. I was not doing this for the money - I truly loved my coworkers and the kids that attended my school. Unfortunately, some of the other cons are: poor communication (very poor), lack of SOP's when it comes to how teachers should be handling situations for their own personal safety and unrealistic expectations (of us to do marketing, surveys collecting demographics, and pushing for financial donations). The last few things listed is what ended up driving me to resign.

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