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58 reviews

Muscular Dystrophy Association Employer Reviews

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I don't wish this job on my worst enemy
Program Coordinator (Former Employee), Lake Mary, FL – June 6, 2013
Pros: working with families
Cons: every single day i endured there
I did learn a lot from this job. I learned the value of time management, persuasion by a simple smile, and most of all, I learned a lot about myself and how lucky I am to be healthy.

I cherished the days out of the office visiting businesses, firefighters, schools, and summer camp. Those moments were my escape from the reality of the hell I was exposed – more... to.

Our manager was by far the worst manager I've ever had. She pinned her emplyees against each other. She often yelled at us like children. Have you ever seen "The Devil Wears Prada?" Meryl Streep is a walk in the park. I had my fellow co-workers each come into my office crying. How do you handle new hires that sob at your feet begging you to help? It was pathetic the way our manager ran that office. She went as far as to make up post-dated written referrals about how we were being unruly about my co-worker. That co-worker did take legal action against our manager.

It wasn't uncommon to receive 3-4am emails written in 72pt font about how much we sucked. Degrading and negative through and through.

I have been tempted to alert HR but what's the use? It's corporate culture. Most of the girls in our office were prescribed some sort of anxiety medication because of this job. I was sickly thin- 5'2 85 lbs. My co-worker threw up every single morning. Every morning.

I did gain wonderful friends aside from my manager. I still keep in touch with many that I worked with. We formed a bond that no one could understand. It's like a bunch of beaten puppies left for dead depending on each other. I felt ugly working there. But, hey! You might like it! – less
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– June 13, 2013

Hello! I was reading reviews on the MDA and came across this one and was frightened by your comments. Is the manager still there? I would like a little more insight if you do not mind.

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The WORST
Fundraiser and Event Coordinator (Former Employee), Houston, TX – May 30, 2013
Pros: nothing
Cons: everything
I have worked in several charities since and I can promise this is the worst. When I was there we were not allowed to have email and had to " call" to ask permission to walk down the hall to speak with management. They completely frowned on " departments" speaking to each other and collaborating. ED and her two assistants were horrible. Treated employees – more... with total disrespect. Turnover is greater than I have ever seen – less
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Unrealistic Expectations!!!
MDA (Current Employee), USA – May 22, 2013
Lots of calls, traveling, hours worked, manual processes, cold calling for sales, marketing, unattainable goals, lack of training, micro-managing
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very comfortable work facilitu
Volunteer Recruitment Coordinator (Current Employee), Little Rock, AR – May 14, 2013
I make over 130 call a day. I Have learned patients. My co-workers are awesome. The hardest part of my job is getting people to commit. The most enjoyable part of my job is knowing that I am helping better someones life
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Simply The Worst Job I Ever Had
Office Admin. (Former Employee), Los Angeles Valley – May 7, 2013
Pros: having steady income until you find a better job
Cons: living a nightmare
The Muscular Dystrophy Association is by far, and unbiasedly, the worst job I ever had in my entire life. Everything from the interview process to the last day I worked there was absolutely horrific and atrocious.

Where do I begin.... When I first moved to Los Angeles I needed a job, and quick, so I decided to take anything I could get. Most likely, – more... I would have taken a job cleaning bird cages, and in hindsight, that would have been more rewarding. When the MDA called me in for an interview I put on a friendly face, turned up the cutesy nonsense, and read the Wikipedia article for the MDA Telethon once or twice to get some good background information. Ready to go.

I interviewed not once, not twice, but three times for a maybe...pun intended...to have a chance to work there. The first interview was basic, questions, background, etc. Then they told me they would call me. GREAT!! Already in Los Angeles for one week and perhaps a job! They did call me back, only it was a week later for an interview the following week. OK great, let's do this. That interview was more or less the same. They said they'd make a decision shortly. Good news again. The next telephone call was for a third interview. Now there's an old irish saying: "Go or get off the pot." As much as I "cared" for Jerry's Kids I also cared for my bills and financial obligations, and I felt they needed to make a decision soon. So I went for the third interview, this time more upper/regional management was there. I remember they repeatedly asked me if I had any criminal records. I told them no (to this day I still have a squeaky clean record, knock on wood.) They asked me "Are you sure?" "Umm..yes, I am sure. Please do a background check." "Oh we will. Not even a DUI? Anything?" Are you kidding me? I found out later their past office admin was fired for having a DUI so I suppose this justifies their demeaning interview process.

Finally I got a call about a week later offering me the job and was asked if I should accept. I wanted to make a joke and tell them "No, no, all of those grueling trips to the valley to listen to you babble degrading rhetoric at me were for fun!" But of course I didn't do that. I told them I'd be happy to accept and I looked forward to it.

I started a week or so later and that's when it all began. I quickly realized this was a terrible, terrible job. The management team were completely inexperienced and displayed an overinflated sense of self-importance and worth whilst treating others like garbage. I was in charge of all the work that no one wanted to do; which is fine with me because I am a hard worker. And I NEVER showed up late nor called out, despite having severe depression issues and stress breakdowns from the abuse there.

One of my duties was to train temp employees for phone driving people for their "Lock-Up Programs." I've probably seen one hundred or so of these temps throughout the months because if they didn't make their numbers, they were let go immediately. If they didn't sound "good" on the phone they were let go of immediately. Pretty sad to see all of the time let me tell you.

Another one of my duties were to run errands for them wherever they needed. These would include picking up lunch for upper management (almost three times a week) and picking up money from local businesses from their Shamrock program. One time I was "asked" to pick up a check from a grocery store in a very seedy town about fifteen miles away from there. As I wasn't familiar with California at the time I soon realized that locking my doors was a good idea. It was literally down a gravel road in an undeveloped part of town and I had to quickly get out of there as I was getting weird stares from people. Stares that say "What are you doing here?" Upon arriving back at the office I was scolded with "What took you so long?" Really?

Lunch time was another favorite of mine. I had to eat lunch with the staff and feign fake smiles as I listed to their stories about how dumb their boyfriends/husbands were and how much they owned them. This was only until I was told to change my lunchtime so they didn't have to eat with me. But don't worry, I was still ordered to pick up their food three times a week from local eateries so they could feed their faces.

Months of abuse, etc. started to wear me down internally, but I still showed up for work on time every day and took the abuse. Then came the Telethon. Yep, Labor Day weekend. I thought it would be fun. Boy, was I mistaken! My contributions to the telethon were driving all around God's creation to pick up various items for them. Here's what the items were: 1) Flowers for decoration. I absolutely adored having wet flowers all over my brand new car's interior. 2) Pizzas. OK, pizzas? Cool! For the kids? For the employees? No no no, for the volunteers. OK cool, people need to eat. And where are these pizzas? Yep...27 miles away in Calabasas. They wanted me to pick up pizzas 27 miles away and deliver them to Silverlake. Thankfully I got out of that one. because, hey, you need to retain just a smidgen of self-respect. They also had me doing security and a variety of other things that weekend. Bizarre.

One time I was setting a reminder on my phone to pay the rent that month and one of the team leaders saw this. A minute later I was asked to come into the executive director's office and was scolded about texting. Really? You don't want to just ask me when you see me what I am doing? You need to "tattle" and get me in trouble? Another time I was doing errands for them and was late coming back to the office (by 20 minutes) because of traffic. LA certainly has the worst in the country, you know. I was passive-aggressively told "You can stay later today if you want...since you took an extended lunch." An extended lunch? I was driving all over for you!

These all seem bad, I'm sure, but to me no job was more degrading than the fabled "Fireman's Vest Project." What they had me do was take 350 reflector vests, hand-fasten one crayon, Tootsie Roll, lollipop, miniature Snickers bar, note, Shamrock and a pin to all of them so they could give to the firemen as a way of saying thanks. It took three days to do this tedious job and all I was thinking in my head was "No self-respecting fireman is going to care about these vests." What a waste of time, money and resources.

But I'll leave you with this, this is the kicker. The reason we hired so many temps to raise so much money was because they sent Jerry's Kids to summer camp for a week. When that camp session was cancelled one year we were told to still tell potential donors that the money was for camp. When I said that was a lie, and asked where the money would be going because as a non-profit they need to publicly show earnings, etc. and they can't retain a certain percentage past the fiscal year, I was told to shut up and continue my work. I was fired shortly after that.

Nor before nor after have I ever worked for more pathetic, soul-less, egotistical and unflattering people in my life. If this were any other profession or company in the world, that maintained a proper HR department or held business integrity and ethics, there would be lawsuit after lawsuit.

Keep finding a poor sucker kid to use for your poster child, MDA. I'm counting down the days when you close your doors once and for all. – less
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Get Experience and Run!
Healthcare Services Coordinator (Former Employee), Southwest – April 27, 2013
Pros: the families, the cause
Cons: poor leadership, lack of vision, outdated business models.
MDA deludes itself and customers into thinking that they provide more than any other charity. Their fundraising is deceptive. Their costs to raise money are ridiculous and their methods are still from the 1950"s. They are top heavy and have an abundance of former McDonald's management personnel who don't know how to treat people.
Their business model – more... is so out dated that it really is a joke and they blame the field offices because they simply cannot meet the expectations that have set with the resources they allow.
I feel sorry for the families who are not wholly served and they deserve better. No one stays very long with MDA if they are any good because the environment is so toxic. The hours they demand are ridiculous and the pay is abysmal. – less
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Don't work for this company!!!!
Volunteer coordinator (Former Employee), Worthington Ohio – April 23, 2013
Pros: hours
Cons: terrible management, will be fired for anything, do not care about the employees, cows for the slaughter!
This company does not care about their employees!!! Don't do it they will fire you with no questions asked for anything!!! Run as far and as fast as possible! You have been warned!
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Temporary position
Telecommunications Operator (Former Employee), Jackson, MS – April 18, 2013
Pros: helping others
Cons: poor management team
A typical day at work was calling every jackson area business. I learned about the charity aspect of raising money for a cause. Management was poor. Coworkers were always nice and very helpful. The hardest part of the job was getting in contact with business owners. The most enjoyable part of the job was seeing the funds raised for children in need.
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Great organization in helping families coping with neuromuscular disease.
Regional Field Services Coordinator (Former Employee), Birmingham, AL – March 28, 2013
Pros: pay, benefits, typical work day hours, travel, co-workers
Cons: reorganizational lay-off
I worked in the Regional office as the Regional Field Service Coordinator. I loved this position as it gave me opportunity to work with many different people in different positions within the company. I found myself able to help staff in eight district offices especially with accounting and training new programs. I also learned and conducted behavioral – more... interviewing. I was able to sit on a panel that implemented a division wide new person orientation curriculumn. The people that I worked with in the Regional office were awesome and a close cohesive team. All of us worked to be a source of help to our districts. Most everyone in the districts took the cause of the organization to heart, knowing the difference that it was making in the lives of the families that we served. All were good people. – less
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I & other Employees got Harassed and Degraded - No Breaks, Slave Driven Work Ethics
Admin. Asst./ Fundraiser (Former Employee), Los Angeles, CA – March 19, 2013
Pros: i learned to recognize when a job, isn’t worth the money, time or sacrificing. because if you work for mda you will have to sacrifice.
Cons: everything
I learned how to focus, smile, function and produce efficient, professional work, all while I wanted to cry. Most days I did cry in my car, in the bathroom and at night when I went home. Upper management harassed me and selected co-workers around me. I did achieve healthy relationships with volunteers, MDA clients, external business professionals and – more... bonded with my other selected co-workers who were severely harassed. I learned how to recognize when a job, just isn’t worth the money, time or sacrificing. Because if you work for MDA YOU WILL HAVE TO SACRIFICE MORE THEN ALOT AND MORE THEN YOU CAN GIVE.

Executive and Regional team of this particular office/region is ruthless, manipulative and obtains excessively poor people skills. They will love you, if you are willing to play a soul sacrificing game. The Executive Team projects none to low morals/values, they lie and cheat to get whatever is they are seeking. I highly value professionalism and honesty. I watched some co-workers with my same values and work ethic be harassed on a level no person should experience. I also witnessed other co-workers who where willing to lie, cheat, and take part in unprofessional language (cursing, swearing, take the Lords name in vein) excel and get promoted. The Executive Team is money hungry and act as though they truly care about the families MDA helps, but the truth is they really just care about the money and budget. I cried with co-workers, I even prayed with some. The severity of being degraded by the Executive Staff was something I never want to endure again. I watched 1 hardworking co-worker get fired, while the Executive team paid for the rest of the staff to get coffee. In my rough two and a half years with MDA I witnessed 10 employees, myself included resign because we just couldn’t take the harassment anymore. When some harassment was reported to Human Resources, nothing happened. MDA offers no training; you will be used and used. If you are an individual who is hard working, efficient, professional, loving, friendly, with good morals/values, an overall good person you will get hired, but you will not last. The Executive team(s) wont necessarily fire you, but they will harass, disturb, push you around, lie about you and threaten you, until you resign. They will do this to you because you are not one of their kind. A few of my former co-workers, as well as myself developed medical problems, while/after working for MDA, because of the stress levels (headaches, hernias, acne, ovarian cysts, missed minstrels, heart surgery). May God bless (you who is reading this review), with a job you will love, where you will be appreciated for the right reasons, a job you can be a healthy working citizen of society.

But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. 2 People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, 4 treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people. – 2 Timothy 3 – less
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silverbeach – June 6, 2013

Yep, I pretty much had the same experience. I have been tempted to alert HR but what's the use? It's corporate culture. Most of the girls in our office were prescribed some sort of anxiety medication because of this job.

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Working for the Muscular Dystrophy Assn. was very rewarding and I thoroughly loved my job.
Administrative Assistant (Former Employee), Casper, WY – February 19, 2013
Pros: fun work environment. benefits - healthcare, paid vacations, personal leave
Cons: due to national restructuring my office was closed
The office was always busy and we had deadlines on a daily basis. I learned to manage my time effectively and I became very organized. My co-workers were an amazing team of people. I enjoyed knowing that the hard work that I put in every day was helping others in my community.
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Working for the Muscular Dystrophy Assn. was very rewarding and I thoroughly loved my job.
Administrative Assistant (Former Employee), Casper, WY – February 19, 2013
Pros: fun work environment. benefits - healthcare, paid vacations, personal leave
Cons: due to national restructuring my office was closed
The office was always busy and we had deadlines on a daily basis. I learned to manage my time effectively and I became very organized. My co-workers were an amazing team of people. I enjoyed knowing that the hard work that I put in every day was helping others in my community.
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Noble cause; burn-out environment
Administrative Assistant (Current Employee), Nashville, TN – February 18, 2013
Pros: being a part of an organization that provides so much for others.
Cons: lack of monetary motivation; never feeling you've done enough; easy burn-out.
Funded exclusively by donations and grants, the fundraising non-profit world experiences high turn-over. There is continually more, more, more to do with very little to be offered in return other than the intangible reward of "doing good." While my right brain has received long-overdue exercise in this position (and I am grateful!), the overall experience – more... has become quite tiring. New ineffective and uncommitted local management combined with no national raises since 2009 and nationwide week-long furloughs in 2010 and 2012 have combined to sour the taste of "noble work." The organization does wonderful things for its patients and provides an enormous amount of research into the causes of and cures for neuromuscular diseases. The ideal candidate for this organization would need a real passion for helping others --- and should probably be part of a two-income family. – less
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Laid back atmosphere
Recruiter (Former Employee), Saginaw, MI – February 3, 2013
Pros: worked around school schedule
Cons: similar to telemarketing
Laid back, worked with very nice people. We were given a list and had to make as many calls as possible (60-100+) to get people signed up.
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DO NOT WORK FOR MDA!!!
Fundraising Coordinator (Current Employee), Albany, NY – January 24, 2013
Pros: good cause
Cons: high turnover, overworked, lack of job security, furlough
You think it will be a worthwhile venture, helping children and families with muscular diseases. It SHOULD be - but all they do is work you to the bone and cut you loose the moment you fall below their ridiculous fundraising goals. It is a constant revolving door of employees, and none of them matter to management. Sad. From Day One I got a bad vibe – more... from the admin. who had been there forever, and that was the writing on the wall for the mistreatment to follow. They will often use temp. agencies, so it's easier to give people the boot. One woman was a fundraising coordinator for only nine days. She was doing a great job and getting results...and the two younger ladies in the office were feeling threatened by her success. Our director was away on vacation when she started, and the day she came back, they immediately told the director to get rid of her - so she did without batting an eye. Awful. Things like that negatively impact the whole office. And it happens over and over. People are expendable. They also don't tell you that they have to close the entire office for a week because they didn't make budget - without pay, of course (furlough). A very unpleasant surprise the week of Thanksgiving. Steer clear of MDA, and especially fundraising coordinator position at MDA. It is a no-win situation of being overworked with no encouragement or loyalty from management. They will send you packing for any and every reason....I've seen it too many times. – less
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Lucile – February 27, 2013

Get ready to be worked like a dog!!! No respect from anyone.

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Working with clients and sponsors is the best part of the job
Fundraising Coordinator (Former Employee), Lancaster, PA – January 22, 2013
Pros: holidays and vacation days
Cons: compensation
A typical day is un-organized and un-manageable. You get no help from upper management, and you're only recognized when you do something wrong.
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Worst Job Ever!
Fundraising Coordinator (Former Employee), Phoenix, AZ – January 21, 2013
Pros: meeting the families and children with md
Cons: terrible management, no work/life balance, no chance for advancement
This job turned out to be the worst job I ever had - a complete nightmare! They work you as hard as they can - set your fundraising goals very high, there is NO training, they have you work on many fundraisers at a time and you eventually burn out. The normal job life is 1 year!

The management is horrible and the pay is very low for the amount of hours – more... you work. There is no work life balance - even though they put it in their ad - a joke!

I was so excited to be hired - I thought this was my dream job - working for a non-profit health care organization - making a difference in the lives of children, but it turned out to be a nightmare! Worst job EVER! – less
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A fast-paced environment
Fundraising Coordinator (Current Employee), Harrisburg, PA – January 13, 2013
There are many programs that run and the fundraising coordinator has a hand in all of them. Whether it is filling in for clinic and dealing with families and clients to generating new business and maintaining established relationships, the fundraising coordinator plays a part in it all.

The main skills I developed were my sales and communication skills. – more... There was also a great deal of time spent working with staffing agencies to hire for a temporary position. In addition to screen candidates, I interviewed, hired and trained them.

The best part of the job is the enjoyment that comes from knowing that I am making a difference in the lives of the families that we serve. – less
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A nice work environment
Good Will Ambassador (Current Employee), Pittsburgh, PA – January 12, 2013
The staff is very nice. I enjoyed helping at fundraising events.
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Productive work place with very nice peope
Recruiter (Current Employee), Seatlle, WA – January 4, 2013
Pros: very friendly enviroment
Cons: not a full time position, no benefits
Making warm calls to recruit people to donate money and time to The muscular Dystrophy Association.
Management helped me honed my phone skills and learned how to implore our cause in a way people understood and showed compassion by donating time and money.
I love my co-workers friendly and encouraging.
The hardest part was being told No again and again – more... on the phone.
The most enjoyable part was getting callers to say yes – less
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About Muscular Dystrophy Association

The Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) is a not-for-profit health agency that supports research into more than 40 neuromuscular – Read more