driver

direct support professional

private duty nurse

licensed practical nurse

daycare teacher

Midwest Family of Companies

Midwest can be a wonderful place to work... in the right circumstances. If you're under a supervisor who truly cares, if your group home is fully staffed, if you are a person willing to learn new things and think on your feet, if you can be patient and understanding to clients who have very different struggles than you do-- it's a good workplace. You will never find more rewarding work, although it is challenging. 

The problem is there are just too many ifs. I've worked for Midwest for several years and for the majority of that time, we've been short staffed. If you're a Direct Care worker you'll generally have plenty of opportunity for overtime if you want it; I was able to get by pretty well with regular overtime even though my hourly pay was pretty low ($8/hr when I started). If you are salaried it's another story. 

Midwest really relies on its salaried workers-- Program Coordinators and especially Managers. Whenever you are short staffed, have a staffing crisis or client emergency, the expectation is that managers will fill those hours in. When you are fully staffed and overtime is not approved, managers are expected to work as many hours as it takes to make sure no one has overtime. As a manager I rarely worked less than 50 hours a week. 60-80 hour weeks were not uncommon... double shifts many days in a row... sometimes just hours apart. It is very discouraging to put in those kind of hours and get little recognition for it. Your productivity can dry up when you're always exhausted. There is high turnover for these jobs  because people get frustrated and discouraged and just give up. And there's even higher turnover for Direct Care because burnt out managers don't/can't provide the necessary support and training. 

I have seen encouraging signs that Midwest is trying to turn things around. They've added training programs and adapted the programs they already had. They are always brainstorming employee appreciation activities. But there is so much more to "appreciation" than pizza parties or $5 gift cards. It seems the higher ups know that their staff are underpaid... I have heard them say it before... But seriously, pay is a pretty significant part of appreciating someone! 

I have known people to have to leave because they could make more money in food service. Direct Care staff are dealing with medication administration, behavior protocols, personal hygiene care, specialized diets, sometimes verbal abuse or physical violence. For the kind of work we do there should be better compensation. Period. Especially for salaried workers who make so many sacrifices of their personal lives, physical health, emotional health, for the wellbeing of our clients. I wish the company would compensate people appropriately for the hard work they do.

There is very little job security in this role, which creates a constant sense of instability. Upper management often comes across as being on a power trip and is not approachable or supportive when concerns are raised. Instead of addressing issues constructively, employees are frequently left feeling dismissed.

Staff are often expected to manage overwhelming responsibilities, especially during periods of severe understaffing, where individuals are essentially left to fend for themselves. A healthy work-life balance is not realistic in this position, as the workload and expectations consistently exceed reasonable limits within working overtime and only being paid for a 40 hour work week.

Additionally, there are concerning safety risks due to a lack of proper supervision and support for individuals in the program. The job description is also highly misleading and does not accurately reflect the actual duties and level of responsibility required.

Expectations are set unrealistically high, with little to no recognition or appreciation for the work being done. Ultimately, accountability is disproportionately placed on the Program Coordinator, even in situations that are clearly beyond their control.

I loved my co-workers for the most part and the individuals that I got to work with, which are the two main reasons I stayed for a little bit. I was lucky to have direct supervisors that were fair, helpful, and consistent for the most part . Salary workers are not treated fairly by upper level management, expected to work 24/7 with no support from the higher ups. When you try to explain that you’re working to much (leads to other issues in your personal life!), you’re basically told that if you don’t want to do the job then you need to quit, it’s emphasized quite a bit about how you are replaceable! As if it’s legal or ethical to make someone work around the clock and not compensate them for it! People aren’t busting down the doors to be hired. One of the lowest if not the lowest paid company in the field of DD in all service areas. It was a nightmare. It’s amazing that they get away with this legally. Staffing issues constantly, call offs, no shows, etc. if you’re a home manager and your house is stable, you’re expected to work endless hours at another location. Higher ups unwilling to listen to the needs of the managers, program coordinators and program directors. The only way this job would be worth it is if you are related to or friends with the owners. Favoritism is obvious and if you’re “in” with them you make more and get special treatment. I saw many people in various positions get pushed out because they said something that the owners didn’t like. Watch out!!!

I loved my job, supervisor, my staff and my clients.  I understand my position was eliminated and the reasons why.  I'm still puzzled as to why I was treated like I did something terrible after my position was ended.  I was banned from the properties of Midwest.  I was asked to have no contact with any of the indivuduals after leaving.  I was not offered to "step down" so I could at least maintain a position with the clients I had grown attached to and cared about.  I was not allowed a chance to explain to the clients why I would no longer be there.   I respected the company's decision without asking corporate why, and they treated me like I was a criminal.  
As far as the pay?  It is far less than what other similar companies offer.
The benefits was reasonable, in my opinion.  
The actual job...THEE most emotionally rewarding thing you will ever do in your life.  I just feel that higher management has, along the way, forgotten what this company was built with...care, compassion, patients, love and respect for people with developmental disabilities and most of the staff that TRUELY love what they do.  This job is not for folks who ONLY care about a paycheck.
Overall...Midwest was a great place to work.  Just needs some adjustments here and there.  Weed out the bad ones and I'd give them 👍👍

The amount of work you do for the LITTLE amount you get paid is astonishing. The hours are ok, sometimes there is OT available and sometimes there isn't which is great. Paid holidays are only paid if you work them between 12am and 1159pm that day. The pay sucks, the people are great and the job is rewarding most times, but I don't recommend it unless you truly do not care about anything but the people, which is what the job is about. The co-workers and some of the management are wonderful, some suck, like any corporate place. Expect 2nd or 3rd shift hours, unless you are a manager or upper manager then you'll work an ungodly amount of hours for salary and benefits on call pretty much all the time. Once again, people you help and coworkers are great, hours are ehhh, pay sucks, so it depends on what you are looking for in a job. This one was less than what I expected with my previous experiences in the same field of work. All pay starts at same rate regardless of your experience and educational attainment, so a hs and college graduate get paid same amount regardless for each position. $9.25/hr SUCKS for the amount of dedication and love you put in, especially with years of experience.

Overall this company has the best intentions for the care of their individuals and Their priorities are in the right place, however due to erratic schedules and high turn over, the employees are not treated as well. Often times supervisors are stuck working 50+ unpredictable hours and are expected to work unethical hours, for example, being relieved at 4am after sometimes up for 14 hour shifts,  then expected back in for another shift at 10am. There is rarely any compensation given for all the hard work, dedication and effort the employees put forth. Their on call system is unreliable and exhausting for everyone. Often times it's hard for employees to know which manager is on call because the rotation is always changing and the lists aren't always updated in the homes. Employees can never get time for peace of mind when they have time off, their phones are constantly ringing due to managers calling to try to cover shifts. This company has great ideals but there are a lot of issues that need corrected and adjusted.

The managers live for the drama, even if it’s hurting our individuals. They don’t care about anything as long as it benefits their pockets. They don’t stop to train staff properly then blame staff for not knowing. They’re the worse. It’s truly just not worth it. I seriously feel bad for anyone who gets sucked into it. They try to pull you in with promises. Not to mention You have to pay for your life/health insurance and you can’t even use them. The only thing good about this company is the individuals you work with. The pay sucks, the hours are long and brutal. They don’t care about your personal life, or even if you have children. They’ll mandate you hours and run you like a slave. Even with medical health problems they’ll run you ragged until you collapse and then say you never work enough for them. This companies managers attack staffs personnel life and make you feel worthless every chance they get even tho you’d bend over backwards at their every whem and they’ll constantly throw it in your face that you’re replaceable. The acting pc is going to be the reason this company either fails or gets a huge lawsuit. Again just not worth it.

Management is all about hiring yet the turn over rate is insane.  The pay is terrible and when your salary pay you end up making less than minimum wage with all the hours they expect out of you.  The clients are amazing and when staff tries to do what is best they are told its not about you its about the client yet when a client is hurt or ill it becomes our fault for not informing them of a possible bad decision.  During my time there I received $300 in a 9 week period for groceries and I was constantly paying out of pocket for meals and food for the home and have yet to receive a dime back.  They never pay you for your personal mileage even if its owed nor do they ever give you the money back you spend due to having no access to the money the clients are entitled to.  The program coordinators only care about hiring people and not their actual abilities and staff means nothing to them.  They could careless if you stay or go as long as you do what your told and you enjoy working round the clock for little pay its a great place. If you want to see your family or have a life go elsewhere.

Midwest is a great job because you get to work wit some very unforgettable individuals.  The memories are everlasting.  I learned how to improve my communication skills and how to adapt to certain situations.  I also learned was to cope with anger and how to redirect individuals when they are upset or look like they may become upset.  My experience with management has not been very good.  Some of them are rude and they think because they have a higher position that it is okay to treat you any kind of way.  The managers sometimes don't answer their phones in emergency situations or they take their time returning your call.  I really enjoy working with all my co-workers never had a problem with any of them.  I really don't think that any part of my job is hard even though it can be challenging at times.  I enjoy ever part of my job because I enjoy helping and bringing joy to others.

Every day is a different day.  There are fun days and there are not so fun days however every day that a client smiles is a successful day for me.  
We support each other and encourage each other to be better than we were yesterday.
Like any company you work for, there can be some drama and hard feelings because someone is made to do their job, we work hard to train/re-train to ensure all employees know exactly what is expected of them as well as policy/procedure pertaining to drama.
I have learned a lot working with MWH for the last 11 years what I think that sticks out the most is "you can't make everybody happy all of the time"  As long as those we serve are happy the day has been good.  
The most enjoyable part of my job would have to be those we serve, the good morning texts or phone calls, the thank you's for just being there for someone.  Those we serve make me feel so appreciated.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Driver 37 salaries reported	$15.00 per hour
Direct support professional 81 salaries reported	$14.00 per hour
Private duty nurse 28 salaries reported	$23.02 per hour
Licensed practical nurse 13 salaries reported	$25.50 per hour
Daycare teacher 55 salaries reported	$14.04 per hour

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