Does VSO pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, VSO employees rate their compensation and benefits as 3.2 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at VSO. This rating has been stable over the past 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at VSO?

67% of VSO employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated VSO 3.9 out of 5 for work life balance, 3.6 for culture and values and 3.2 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at VSO?

Volunteer (20) , Project Manager (8) , Project Officer (6) , Project Coordinator (5) , Resourcing Advisor (5) , Sector Learning Facilitator (4) , Team Leader (4) , Education Advisor (3) , Fundraiser (3) , International Volunteer (3) , Manager (3) , Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist (3) , Program Officer (3) , Analyst (2) , Business Development Manager (2)

What are the pros of working at VSO according to real employee reviews?

"Some good people" ((in 17 reviews)); "Great, dedicated colleagues based across the world bringing different opinions, viewpoints and contexts to collaboration." ((in 14 reviews)); "Friendly staff and volunteers" ((in 9 reviews)); "People first culture is great" ((in 9 reviews)); "Amazing opportunity to work in a different country, work cross culturally, build skills" ((in 7 reviews))

What are the cons of working at VSO according to real employee reviews?

"The moral in the Kingston office has been really low for a long time and the senior management not only ignore it but also try to sweep it under the rug." ((in 6 reviews)); "Low salaries / allowances provided to staff / volunteers" ((in 6 reviews)); "There needs to be clear management structure to make decisions on making sure all offices are using the correct systems and actually enforcing this as best practice." ((in 5 reviews)); "little extra pay would go a long way in alleviating concerns of volunteers" ((in 3 reviews))

VSO Reviews

3.4

67% would recommend to a friend

(187 total reviews)

Donne Cameron and Kathryn Gordon

54% approve of CEO

50% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

4.0

Diversity and inclusion

3.9

Work/Life balance

3.6

Culture and values

3.2

Compensation and benefits

3.2

Career opportunities

3.1

Senior management

VSO has an employee rating of 3.4 out of 5 stars, based on 187 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The VSO employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Non-profit and NGO industry (3.7 stars).

Reviews by job title

187 reviews

2.0

8 June 2026

Flexible work options overshadowed by toxic culture and mismanagement

Data team

Recommend

CEO approval

Business outlook

Pros

VSO has good flexible working options, now 100 % remote for a lot of Uk staff. Does beneficial work among the worlds poor and has passionate supporters.

Cons

VSO was once a good place to work, but has lost revenue over the years, and there are teams that are very toxic unfortunately. Management rule breaking was common, I also faced whistleblower retaliation where management actively worked against me. VSO made roles redundant citing AI integration, but my responsibilities were immediately absorbed by remaining team members, in a "sham" redundancy. I wouldn't recommend VSO sadly as as good place to work.

VSO Response

1w

Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback. We are sorry to hear about your experience for some of your time at VSO. Please be assured that we have a stringent whistleblowing process in place, and we are committed to ensuring that all staff are protected from victimisation. Any concerns raised through the whistleblowing process are handled with strict confidentiality. Like many organisations in the sector, we are navigating significant funding pressures, and alongside our shift towards a more localised volunteering network model, we have regrettably had to make several roles redundant globally. We also continue to take advantage of emerging technology where appropriate to strengthen our impact and improve the way we work. Please be assured that we remain committed to fostering a positive, supportive working environment for all staff, volunteers and supporters.

3.0

1 June 2026

Flexible work and professional growth amid toxicity

Project coordinator

Recommend

CEO approval

Business outlook

Pros

Flexibility of work Professional development

Cons

Toxic work environment Competition Unfairness

5.0

13 Apr 2026

Positive volunteer for development outcomes

Project manager

Recommend

CEO approval

Business outlook

Pros

Inclusive working envrionment and people first centered approach in project development and implementation

Cons

None constructive feedback as present

Viewing 1 - 3 of 187 Reviews

VSO

VSO Reviews

Ratings by category

Reviews by job title

Flexible work options overshadowed by toxic culture and mismanagement

Flexible work and professional growth amid toxicity

Positive volunteer for development outcomes

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