phlebotomist

recruiter

courier

laboratory technician

hospital service technician

LifeSouth Community Blood Centers

My reason for leaving: Lifesouth’s continued nonchalance and/or apathy in regards to employee satisfaction, compensation, and a variety of safety concerns. During the last three-four months of my employment; over 90% of our staff has quit, been fired, or transferred. To include our supervisor, and his supervisor. Our employee satisfaction rating last year was 50%. Our company’s overall rating, via a national listing site, is 1.6 stars out of 5. 

This rating has recently been increased, due to padded reviews from upper management. In the time since my departure, the remaining 10% of the staff has also quit the company, and been replaced. Including facility manager, two department managers, the district, and regional manager.

To attempt to summarize the absolutely disgraceful and sometimes CRIMINAL treatment of employees by Lifesouth would require pages upon pages of review.

Which I actually submitted upon my exit interview. Including dates, witnesses, and even photograph and/or written evidence documenting favoritism, defamation of character, failures to follow FDA regulations, theft of time/company money, and property, falsification of documents, and abusive treatment.

The stance, from FOUR different company and HR managers, was that of total apathy.

As a further example: the highest paid individual in my department (by a scale of making SIXTY PERCENT MORE than the other, equally trained employees. 20k vs 34k) was well documented as sleeping on the job, multiple accidents in a company vehicle, handling blood products without protection, and a general ineptitude at required job skills. And yet, his position was protected.

Raises, are laughable. The percentage of a raise is based on a 1-5 rating system. However, scores of 4-5 require full documentation, and are rarely given. Not that it matters, however. A 3 point review will net you 30 cents per year. A 5 point review, will net you 32 cents. Yes, you read that correctly. If you are the most exceptional employee in the company, you get 2 extra cents per hour. 

There are no end-of-year bonuses. No employee bonuses of any kind, actually. In fact, there are no rewards whatsoever, to doing a good job, with the exclusion of the in-company reward system that allows you to purchase incredibly cheap merchandise from a catalog.
However, the points that you receive are so low, that it takes well over a decade, to purchase an item that is valued around $200.

Retention program? None. NONE. In the midst of total panic, and complete loss of employees, there was ZERO attempt to keep any of the well-trained and seasoned staff. Four different positions were open for promotion. None of them were mentioned to the existing staff, who had proven themselves. No pay raises were offered. No extra benefits. Rather than make any attempt to maintain the employees who were experienced, LifeSouth's stance was that it was easier to replace us.

Keep in mind, we were only making $10-11 an hour. For a very technical, stressful, and highly regulated job in the medical field. Other branches start as low as $9.

The bottom line: The people who work hard to save your life....are worthless to the company who employees them.

This is without a doubt the worse place I've ever worked. HORRIBLE. There is ZERO accountability. Corporate blames middle management, middle management blames corporate. Everybody is CONSTANTLY passing the buck. It's ALWAYS somebody else's fault.

As a phlebotomist you are required to do work that is BELOW what a phleb was put here to do. Recruitment is expected as well as demanded, meaning that you have to get off the bloodmobile regardless of the weather and more or less panhandle. 

Your average workday is around 12 hours but you're reprimanded for not staying later. The family to work ratio is HORRIBLE but they do not care. They're all about the numbers. "Get that blood! You did? Good! NOW GO GET MORE!"

Speaking of.... The "numbers" are just that to corporate. Numbers. Units. But when you're out there establishing relationships with donors you find they're so much more. They're not just numbers or units, they're people. Corporate fails to see that. And that's another thing. Management consists of people who would not have the first clue on how to draw blood, but they have no qualms on calling you out when your numbers are low. You can't make people donate.

Management doesn't care that when asked to stay late and we decline, that we stay late all of the time anyway. Management doesn't care that we spend long hours away from our families or that we don't get dinner breaks or bathroom breaks until you can get the donors in and out in what seems to be a "revolving door" policy. A lot like employee turnover.

It's a great job. You're out saving lives, meeting people, doing good for your community. It's just that LifeSouth isn't a great company to do a great job for. It's not even a good company to work for. Their policy is, "Well, we'll wear one tech down but they'll be another one waiting." The way corporate on down treats you is very undignifying. I left because I have more respect for myself than to be treated and spoken to like I was. 

So if you're into being treated substandard as a phlebotomist, management coming out on drives to spy on you just to make sure you're recruiting, unappreciative management that yells at you for low numbers when they're really only worried about their bonuses, then by all means, apply.

It's places like this that make good phlebotomists quit and go somewhere else or get out of the industry altogether.

I worked here for almost 2 years and it was one of the worst experiences i have honestly ever had. 
The management and the way the company runs is unprofessional.  Every person with a leadership or manager position in this company in all regions have no idea what they are doing everything is "winged". There is a set SOP everyone is suppose to follow but each region interprets them differently so the whole company basically is one big mess. management never knows whats going on you get different answers every time you ask questions about the way things run,how to do something ect.
The way the company runs is through scare tactics. they will threaten to fire/move/demote you if you dont agree with something or if things happen that are out of your control ex. getting donors on the bus or converting the donor you have into doing automation. 
Also if you work on a mobile unit  the hours are nuts and they are only closed Christmas and thanksgiving day. Expect to leave your house before the sun rises and expect to be home after it sets NO EXCEPTIONS. You are not allowed to go to collage or have a side job while doing this they will not work around any schedule what so ever and if they find out you do they will sit you in the office and basically say you need to quit doing whatever it is on the side and only focus on lifesouth.
You can not have any piercing or dye your hair any unnatural colors and tattoos have to be covered at all times.... but just know there are favorites in the company that are allowed to do those things but god help you if you ask why certain people are allowed to break code.
Benefits SUCK not worth buying. 
Its Alot of driving but you get payed mileage if its your personal car and hourly pay while driving as well.
All in all if you want to be mentally and physically stressed  this is the place for you!
Also This is a honest review I in no way have any animosity twords this company i am just stating how it was during my time there so future employees can be prepared. They train you in phlebotomy you can learn if you actually read and take your time through the online training and have at least one good person to help you along the way if your new to phlebotomy.They also teach you how to drive a truck and trailer and will pay for you to get your cdl class B and your CPR certification.

I worked as a courier at LifeSouth for just over a month. Unfortunately, my experience was not great.

Management was unprofessional and inadequate. I received no formal orientation or onboarding. On my first day, I began working with a "trainer," which was more like shadowing an experienced employee to learn the job.

The onboarding process was nonexistent. I was never given a schedule or an explanation of how many hours I would be working, my shift, or even if I'd be working on the days I said I was available.

There were multiple occasions where I realized management was inadequate. My position and job description were not completely explained to the "trainers," which meant I couldn't perform certain tasks that were essential to the role. Management also openly discussed their decisions to terminate former employees and their reasons with subordinates, which became a primary topic of conversation.


When I professionally and courteously submitted my formal resignation, that also became a topic of discussion among my former associates, as if we didn't have other important tasks to complete.


I confronted management about these issues, but they completely disregarded my concerns. I was told, "Your resignation date, once turned in, is not confidential information. Plans must be made for schedules going forward, and employees have a right to know that staffing levels are changing. I hope you can see how unprofessional and unfair it would be to staff if we waited until the end of an employee's last day and sprang on the team that schedules will now need to change because an employee no longer works here..."

While I understand that plans have to be made and other employees need to be notified about potential scheduling changes, identifying which employee is leaving and why they are quitting is unnecessary. It's also strange to be approached by associates at a different branch in another city about your resignation, especially when you did not disclose this to them.

Lastly, the pay is very low. The job pays minimum wage, which was fine since it was a second job for me. I received a small pay increase upon starting because of my "experience" and "degree."

LifeSouth is by far the worst place I've ever worked at. They have absolutely no respect or regard for their employees. The management in South Alabama is constantly threatening employees in a futile attempt to motivate them to make goals. Even to the point of telling them they can't come home for the day until they make the daily goal of 16 pints of blood. Having no regard whatsoever that the employees may have kids to feed, bathe, and get to bed. I have directly reported to corporate executives, but have never experienced such threatening behavior as LifeSouth presents to their employees on a daily basis. They constantly degrade the Red Cross. An organization that serves the needs of many more Americans than LifeSouth ever will. We were constantly told to ignore the rules of businesses that allowed us to use their places of business to hold blood drives. We were told to do things that those businesses were clear about us not doing and then ask for forgiveness. That's a sure fire way to lose a business partner. But the management doesn't care because it's the employees that have to face the consequences, not the management. I even heard a District Manager tell a long time employee to shut up because she made a comment during an open staff meeting.

Daily goals are presented to you during hiring and training and then quadrupled once you start. They let the very crucial position of Donor Recruiter go vacant for more than 8 months, which results in losing numerous important accounts, and then expect the new Recruiter to fix their mistake and fix it overnight.

I have also never seen a company that micromanages their employes like LifeSouth does. Way too many people get involved in the responsibilities of employees. You not only know who to report to, you're not sure how many people you report to.

Think very long and hard before you commit one second of your life to this company.

Working at LifeSouth Community Blood Centers in Dothan, AL was both challenging and incredibly rewarding. Like any job in healthcare, it could be stressful at times because you're playing a role in saving lives, but that’s what made the work meaningful.
The work environment is very team-driven. You’ll be working closely with your team day in and day out, and that kind of collaboration really helps you grow. When I started, I already had some phlebotomy experience, but with the help of my team leaders and supervisors, I learned new techniques and gained so much more hands-on skill. Their guidance helped me grow more confident in my role and develop skills that have continued to benefit me throughout my career.
I also want to acknowledge that, like any workplace, there are pros and cons. The schedule can be a bit unpredictable at times, mainly because this is a blood bank. You’re going out into the community to businesses, schools, and public locations so the schedule is built around the availability of those sites. That means it’s not always consistent, but most of the time you still finish at a reasonable hour, and early or late shifts are usually rare exceptions, not the norm.
This kind of scheduling does contribute to a higher turnover rate, which puts management in the position of constantly training new staff while keeping everything running. Despite those challenges, I saw firsthand how committed the leadership was to supporting the team and making things work. They consistently put in the effort to help employees grow and succeed, even when things got hectic. It's easy to feel frustrated when things don’t go your way, but in my experience, the management team truly cared and worked hard to create opportunities for everyone.
If you're looking for a job where you'll grow professionally, work in a strong team environment, and make a real difference in people's lives, this is the place for you. I truly miss working here. If there were a LifeSouth location where I live now, I’d still be part of the team.

It was a great place to work in the beginning. Overtime, you learn why they have such a high turn over rate. They do not value a person or their life outside of work. The work environment is very unprofessional and is not ran the way a health organization should be. You have managers who play favorites or will work together to get rid of someone they don't like. The managers don't know how to do their jobs, and will not reprimand the other supervisors. They have relationships with each other or people who know who they work with that causes intereference with their ability to be unbiased, again they play favorites. They do not follow proper protocols when it comes to health of donors and employees by not providing proper PPE and enforcing strict cleaning regime for all employees. They just keep pushing numbers.
The job itself is rewarding, the position can be rewarding, but the management in place is not the right fit. Your complaints go unnoticed and if they don't like what you have to say they will find a reason to write you and get rid of you, but if it is someone who they favor nothing gets done. You can place a complaint to corporate, but again nothing gets done.

This company, specifically, the East division, plays favorites, doesn't follow proper protocols, and does not value the employee or what the employee has to say or complaints. The job again is rewarding, but don't waste time when you will simply be told you are replaceable which is demonstrated through their high turnover rate. And while you may train as a Phlebotomist, they will not sign to help you get certified. 

RUN. The manager in Gainesville is the worst manager I've ever had and made this job a nightmare. He exhibits favoritism and idiocy on daily basis and no matter to whom you report him, seems to never be reprimanded.

Pros: the other DSTs are usually very friendly and make work fun. Meeting new donors is also usually a plus, aside from the misogynistic or racist ones, which there are plenty of in North GA. Knowing that your work is helping children in the hospital is always great, as well.

Cons: literally everything else. The hours are not only long and varied, but often change the morning of or even during your shift. You could get off at 11pm and be expected to come in at 5am the next day, all while your schedule for the week showed something completely different. Management doesn't care if you made plans or have a family to go home to, they will make you stay hours after your clock-out time to reach their goals. Management has no respect for the DSTs and only see you as a means to achieve the goals that higher ups have set.

PTO is great, but often times requests to use it are denied. I have even seen people's requests be approved by the manager, only for them to "take it back" right before the employee was supposed to go on vacation.

Overall, the manager here will blame everyone for everything, when most of the time it is his fault. The hours are terrible, and you will be constantly disrespected. If you can deal with all of that, the pay is pretty good (considering how much overtime you will have), PTO racks up quickly, and it will give you experience to be able to get a better job in a few months or so.

LifeSouth may come off as a good place to work, they hype it all up about benefits, and vacations, and advancements,but it's honestly a  terrible, I repeat, terrible place to work. It's completely about how much rear end you kiss. They have poor training, people play around entirely to dang much, they eat and drink food all day long, they play on their phones all day long, they sit around or walk around and do nothing!!! They discuss way to much personal business from their bedroom life to whatever the heck they want to. They don't care a thing about the employees. You could work 24 hours a day and they would still want more, except if you're part time and then they basically view you as a waste of space and give you scattered hours. You might be lucky to get 22 hours a week.  Training is absurd! sit and read all dang day long, if you can even think to read with all the noise they make from cutting up all dang day long. So....sit read, watch some videos, read some more, and try to retain all of that junk and take a test on it!! Management MIGHT speak to you if they like you. Otherwise expect to be ignored to your face and talked about behind your back as if you don't know they are doing it. They think people are idiots!.Rarely will you get a schedule that doesn't change and you end up going some place different or working different hours. You can not have a life. You are expected to stand out in any type of weather and basically panhandle like the guys that twirl signs in the street. 
You may need a job but trust me, don't work here.

Management is horrible. It's not about saving lives it's all about numbers and $$$$$$$. They will tell you it's about saving lives but if you don't meet goal one day you will hear about it for the rest of the week. Employee safety is a joke. The parking lot is always full which makes employees have to park in a parking lot down the street. At the end of the day (get used to not seeing daylight after getting off ever again) you have to walk to that parking lot which is now empty. They make women walk to an empty parking lot..at night...alone. Smart.

There are two teams there. They say it's one happy family but one of the teams is clearly the favorite.  That team manager will constantly whine and complain to get something he doesn't like changed to something he does. He controls the big boss..not the other way around..which is sad.

Raises. The best employee will only get 2 cents an hour raise over a bad employee who also gets a raise.

The company says non profit but I won't even say here how much bank they make selling one unit of blood. All of that money pads the pockets of the uncaring and unprofessional upper management. Good luck bringing up any issues..nothing will be done about it. The manager here has a saying at the beginning of every sentence when you bring up an issue "I hear what you're saying, but...".

If you want a job that will give you tons of hours and slightly better than minimum wage then work here. If you want to be respected and feel rewarded look elsewhere.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Phlebotomist 149 salaries reported	$16.87 per hour
Recruiter 39 salaries reported	$20.80 per hour
Courier 44 salaries reported	$15.95 per hour
Laboratory technician 26 salaries reported	$16.46 per hour
Hospital service technician 27 salaries reported	$15.61 per hour

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