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International Rescue Committee

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An education in power and politics - Anonymous employee International Rescue Committee Employee Review

2.0
7 Jul 2018
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

What I say below applies to the New York office.

Cons

This is a hard place for competent and ethical people to succeed in or be happy in. You will see a lot of waste, negligence and abuse. If you are a hard worker and have even basic knowledge/competence for your job, you will end up picking up a huge amount of slack without being rewarded or recognized. You will eventually lose patience over the lack of forward motion and progress on basic organizational improvements, much of which is very simply due to mismanagement and incompetence of decision makers. I personally know at least 5 people from the New York office who left the IRC with serious emotional, mental and physical health/exhaustion issues caused by working at the IRC due to highly unprofessional treatment by managers. I directly witnessed employees who are *former refugees served by the IRC and/or people of color* treated poorly and denied professional growth opportunies after many years of employment, at the hand of people who lack the appropriate cultural awareness and mission-aligned values to be working at the IRC at all, but somehow hold positions of power in the New York office.

Explore other reviews about International Rescue Committee

5.0
25 Dec 2025
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Everyone is so nice here.

Cons

we have a lot of time to collaborate one project

2.0
22 Apr 2026
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

You will meet some amazing and passionate people here who are truly there for the mission. Many came to this country as refugees and immigrants themselves and continue to devote their lives to helping others going through similar experiences. If you end up on the right team, it's an extremely rewarding job.

Cons

Unfortunately, the HQ upper management makes it a toxic place to work. VPs regularly undercut each other publicly (including at all-team meetings and gossiping negatively with staff), especially when potential job cuts were on the horizon. C-Suite didn't listen to staff concerns about upper management and didn't investigate major departures by dedicated staff who left due to poor management despite their dedication to the mission. Leaders picked favorites, ignoring work performance (excusing mediocre performance in some, having high standards for others), and preferred yes-men over staff who wanted to think more critically about the work. Projects were pushed too quickly, despite concerns that it could be detrimental to clients. Positions given to unqualified internal staff who wouldn't be interviewed for the role as external candidates. Senior leaders (director and above) are more focused on keeping their jobs than the mission and will use lower staff work for their own career growth/safety. DEI didn't seem to apply for senior leader roles, where there was little, if any, diversity.

4
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