retail sales associate

case manager

processor

assistant store manager

store manager

The Salvation Army

What is the best part of working at the company?
Being a Community Engagement Coordinator at the Salvation Army Ray & Joan Kroc Center is deeply rewarding because it allows me to connect purpose with people every single day. The best part of this role is working alongside an awesome, supportive management team that truly values collaboration, creativity, and community impact. Their leadership creates the space to dream big and turn ideas into meaningful action.

Through this role, I’m blessed to help design and lead impactful community projects from senior enrichment and youth development to cultural celebrations, health initiatives, and partnerships that uplift families across Philadelphia. Every program is an opportunity to serve with excellence, build genuine relationships, and see lives touched in real time. Knowing that my work helps strengthen the community while reflecting the mission of compassion, dignity, and hope makes this role more than a job; it’s a calling.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Wearing many hats at once.  You’re often the planner, relationship builder, problem solver, marketer, and on site support, all at the same time.

Managing multiple partners and moving parts
Coordinating vendors, sponsors, volunteers, staff, and community members means managing many schedules, follow ups, and last minute changes.

Meeting community needs that are bigger than one role can solve
You see real needs, seniors needing support, families needing resources, youth needing safe spaces, and it can be emotionally heavy knowing you can’t fix everything, even though you want to.

Pulling off high quality programs with tight budgets or timelines
There is pressure to deliver impactful, polished events while stretching resources creatively.

Being “on” all the time
Community engagement often extends beyond office hours, including evenings, weekends, and events, and it requires constant energy, presence, and emotional intelligence.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
The work environment and culture are supportive, mission driven, and welcoming, creating a peaceful atmosphere where people feel valued and respected. There is a strong sense of teamwork, open communication, and shared purpose, which makes collaboration natural and effective. The leadership fosters encouragement and balance, allowing staff to work creatively while staying aligned with the organization’s values.

The environment itself is calm and peaceful, providing a space where both staff and community members feel safe, comfortable, and supported. This culture of compassion and mutual respect makes it easier to serve the community with excellence while maintaining personal well being and a strong sense of fulfillment in the work.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
A typical day for me at the Salvation Army Ray & Joan Kroc Center is dynamic, purposeful, and people centered. No two days are exactly the same, but each day is rooted in service, connection, and impact.

My day usually begins with checking emails, calendars, and communications to stay aligned with upcoming programs, events, and community requests. From there, I may be meeting with staff, leadership, or community partners to plan initiatives, coordinate logistics, or build meaningful collaborations that support seniors, youth, and families.

Throughout the day, I’m often engaging directly with the community, welcoming participants, problem solving in real time, promoting programs, and ensuring events run smoothly. Whether I’m preparing materials, managing outreach efforts, or supporting on site activities, the focus is always on creating a positive and inclusive experience.

The day often includes creativity and flexibility, adjusting plans as needed while maintaining a peaceful and supportive environment. By the end of the day, there’s a strong sense of fulfillment knowing the work contributes to strengthening relationships, uplifting the community, and advancing the mission of service and hope.

volunteers are treated with little to no respect and the management is very unprofessinal. Although it is a religious atmosphere, they treat voluneteers horribly and the clients unless they literally break down. Often the management is moody, rude and often just plain terrible to spend the day with. The office manager is rude, catty and gossipy. She often is rude and disrespectful to clients and volunteers. You never know when the Boss will be in a good or bad mood, and he often ignores you, or replies to you in a sarcastic manor. When you complain, or try to explain how the behavior effects your wanting to be in the facility- you are then treated hostile and ignored until they have decided they are no longer angry with you. You often witness the wife and husband bicker and argue innapropiatly at work, and they hide downstairs and let their office manager treat clients and volunteers disrepsectfully and do not see what it happening in the facility. They will hold long Pow Wows to discuss ONE thing you may or may not have done to upset them, or go over rules, sometimes for hours- and then do not demostrate them, themselves. While the people that run the facility are not terrible- they are immature and run a poor business and put on a fake show when superiors come around to see how they are doing. A typical day here at this place varies between being told to clean a toilet to answering phones and doing client intakes. On other days you can be forced to clean ovens,make lunches for up to 80 people, sweep a parking lot or just be ignored all day long often being thrown into a situation you have no idea what or how to do, and are left figuring it out for yourself. You are also told by 3 different people to do a job 3 different ways, all telling you to do it there way- and when confronted why you are doing it wrong, will deny even telling you that you had to do it that way. office manager will tell you to do it differently then the her boss, and then deny it when you are asked why you did it differently, making the management confusing and also discouraging. I rate this current management to be poor based on a very terrible office manager who has a negative attitude, many clients complain about and its ignored, and runs a poor office that is already run badly by a moody boss who doesnt often see and know what is happening in his own business, stays in his office 98% of the time and ignores complaints and you if you seek his assistance or help. I have learned that there is a reason most work places do not have married couples work together. I learned that working at a volunteer place was teh hardest job I ever had.That there is a reason volunteers hate being there and never last. I have also learned other then cleaning and office skills I already knew how to do, that this is not a place I prefer to work at. The hardest part of job other then just the few things I have listed with out any specifics, is as a volunteer you are not respected enough to be listened to, or treated fairly. The best part of the job-and something I thought would be the worse, but was not- was the clients and regular people outside of the paid positions there. They treated me respectfully, often appreciated me, thanked me and over all, was the only reason I kept going back. I grew attached to the clients. The only way to experience this in a better light, is to not be there all the time. I volunteered everyday of the week, where most once a week or month...and even they quit due to the atmosphere. Maybe when the new bosses switch, like they always do every 3-5 yrs in this facility, things will be run more smoothly and with a better attitude and a smile.

A typical day at the Bushwick Day Care Center for me varied, if I had to work in the office,I'll be there to meet and greet the parents and children. I collected fees and wrote receipts for parents as they paid their fees. If I had to be in the classroom I would be there to meet and greet the parents and children as they entered the classroom.On arrival the children are asked to wash their hands and choose a book or a toy and either join their peers at a table or on the rug for some free play. Just before breakfast arrived two  children would be selected to help set the tables, breakfast was served family-style, after breakfast and clean up it was time to take attendance and have circle time. We either read a story and discuss it or have the children tell their own stories. We had computer time, art and drama, that was followed by outdoor play or gym time depending on the weather. For lunch the routine was basically the same as breakfast time where two children were selected to help set the tables, lunch was also served family-style, after which it was time to clean up. That was followed by bathroom time and the children got their sheet and or blankets and prepared for rest time. After waking up the children had a little free time before snack arrived, some were picked up early and left for the day. After making sure that things were in order in the classroom we proceeded to go to the front of the center so the room could be cleaned by the capable custodian. My day ended when the last child left.
Working at The Salvation Army Bushwick DCC has taught me the importance of nurturing children and how important my role was while caring for those children who were placed in my care on a daily basicis.
For the most part management as good. The culture there was stable and difficult to change because it represented the accumulated learning of a group-the way of thinking, feeling, and perceiving the world that has made the group successful. 
The hardest part of my job was when a child came for the first day and both child and parent are having separation anxiety, first the parent has to be coached into leaving which may take a good half an hour, then the child screaming for the parent to come back. Calming some children down was a bit hard in the beginning but after gently speaking to the child and lots of reassuring that their parent will be back made things easier. 
The most enjoyable part of my job was simply being with the children and helping to nurture them and watch them blossom into well-mannered smart boys and girls. It gave me great joy when something was read or said to the children and they in turn question you about it in their own way, when given an answer to what they asked and they were satisfied you saw the look of joy on their faces, you say yourself well I've done something right here. On seeing them outside of school and they greet you with such a big smile and sometimes a hug saying to the person who they are with , this is my teacher. I'm happy and proud to say my 20years working at The Salvation Army Bushwick DCC were great years that I will always cherish.

The Salvation Army White Shield Center is fortunate to have so many caring and dedicated employees. A typical day varies considerably depending on the program/department an employee works in.

White Shield has several different programs/departments, including a Parenting program, Wildflowers program, Early Learning Center child care, Social Services wing, Food Services, and Administration. 

The work can be quite challenging, however, it is always rewarding. Staff support each other well and the difference we make in clients' lives, whether directly or indirectly through our work, makes a big impact. 

The most difficult part of the job is balancing a fairly tight budget. As with most non-profits, White Shield faces challenges within the budget to get the most out of the funds available. 

Benefits at White Shield are excellent. The full time benefits package includes generous vacation and sick pay, several paid holidays, as well as medical, dental, and vision coverage. Meals are free for employees and schedules can be quite flexible, depending on the program/department. 

I found work-life balance at White Shield to be outstanding. The Director's expectations were reasonable and she encouraged a flexible schedule that fit the needs of her staff. As is common in social services settings, it is important to manage burnout and having leadership aware of these issues was vital to alleviating burnout. 

An incredible benefit to working at White Shield are the advancement opportunities. Whether through promotions within White Shield or within other programs at The Salvation Army, advancement opportunities come up for hard-working and dedicated staff. Most of the positions that become available, excluding entry-level staff, are filled by promoting internal applicants. Typical advancement opportunities for the programs include: RTC II, RTC III, assistant program managers, program managers, case managers, ELC director, ELC assistant director, cottage coordinator, parent trainer, outreach coordinator, engagement specialist, clinical director. 

As with many non-profits, compensation is fair for most positions but needs to continue to see improvement. This continues to be a point of emphasis for the leadership team to address. Several increases had been made throughout the agency and more are planned in the near future to remain competitive.

Training for my position was extensive. I had a full week of hands-on training with my predecessor and an additional week of agency trainings which included segments on trauma informed services, CPR & first aid, suicide and self harm intervention, confidentiality, safety training, drive training, and several others. 

The most rewarding and enjoyable part of my job is the freedom I have to be creative and brainstorm with our team different ways to improve White Shield. Ideas and feedback from team members has been a vital piece to improving the agency over the years.

Collectors were to report to The Salvation Army church at 8:30 and be signed in with location slip in head awaiting work day and location briefing. After the briefing, drop you location slip into The Salvation Army official collection bucket and load onto work vans and await transport. Once the driver arrives at a set up spot, collector gets out, unloads Salvation Army stand and sign along with collection bucket, sets up (if assistance is needed, another collector will get out and help his fellow co-worker) and begins to ring their bell and uses any acceptable method they can to catch peoples attention to entice shoppers to donate to the Salvation Army. Collectors can not badger shoppers, walk around with collection bucket, use hands to stuff money into bucket, pocket donations or money offered by kind shoppers who want to give collectors something for themselves. Must use an object to push money into bucket such as a pencil, pen, paint mixing stick, ruler etc.Some lessons I learned while working at this job was that going outside the realm of other collectors with methods for bringing in shoppers has a big impact on the over all outcome. though you can't really call the shoppers customers, it's like customer service; you make a shopper smile, laugh or entertain them with dancing, singing or dressing up, seven times out of ten you'll get a donation. This applies to any workplace that deals with people; give the customer a happy, fun and re-memorable experience, eight times out of ten that customer will come back.The management at The Salvation Army was good to work with. Kind, respectful, professional but above all held the workers to the standards that have been set. The co-workers for the most part were fun to work with, but just like in any other job, you have those certain co-workers that don't go above and beyond let alone fulfill basic requirements for the job- ringing the bell, greeting shoppers, being respectful to those who do not wish to donate, standing while at your post unless ordered by a doctor to use a chair due to medical condition, must be wearing Salvation Army apron while at collection post, when going on a break collector must down Salvation Army sign and bucket and take bucket to co-worker that is still on the clock to hold while you are one break, if smoking, collector must remove apron and stand ten feet away from post. They made the Salvation Army look bad, so management dealt with those workers with 2 warnings then termination. In my opinion, the hardest part of the job was standing for hours on end in the snow and below freezing weather, but as long as you bundled up you'd be good. what made it a little more stressful was standing out in the rain, snow, ice and/or freezing rain for hours getting paid $7.25 per hour. The most enjoyable part of the job was entertaining the shoppers with music, singing, dancing, dressing up and joking around with them. Putting smiles on peoples faces is one of my most sacred joys, along with doing something that would impact the community is a big way.

I enjoyed working with the people, especially finding those in a Real need, and knowing that I was able to help them obtain necessary goods, that they would normally be unable to obtain.
One of the most difficult parts of the work, is putting in alot of time in orientation, taking notes and following the protocols, only to have a potential participant not follow through with His/Her requirements of providing the necessary documentation and evidence. Another difficult part is dealing with professional and generational discrimination. Managers take the word of supervisors at face value against employees, without direct interview with the Employee, along with NO benifit of the doubt to the employee. The hiring of cultural labor is good, however there is little to no understanding of the culture by management who are not part of the culture. This makes for easy manipulation of those in charge.Supervision is attrocious. There are many with the educational background, however have no supervisory experience, or the lifetime experience that comes with age. This creates a generational gap, when you hire a younger person, soley based upon education and/or age bracket. This sets up "Elite" groups, who discriminate. The type of work that my job required is person based. When an organization, such as The Salvation Army subsidises to GMO, it no longer maintains itself as what it should be, and becomes nothing more than a business, for profit. Empathy and understanding of people and their culture no long er matter, only the Illusion that help is being given. A normal day, was to go to the CRC's, set up and begin to interview people and orientate them. I get their contact information, IF they chose to give it and let them know what they need to bring to process the case further. Being Puerto Rican and a Social Worker, I understood the personalities, especially the simple people who live in poverty. Almost daily, I would have questions, of which my supervisor would not reply, and I would have to seek answers from other employees. I worked through lunch most of the time, in order to see as many people as possible, and usually work late, in order to organize the days intakes and orientations. Drive to my house and usually put in 2 to 4 more hours into the case load at my house. The first two months were the worst, because there were constant changes to protocols and the addition to a new data base, besides the TSA to enter all the case information into, without properly training the personnel who were required to use it. There was only "here's a book" now do it.

A typical day of work, as the clinical director, at The White Shield Center started as early as 7am, and ended as late as 2am.  It's an underpaid salary position that offered little to no training, to either myself, the social services team, or the direct services staff.  

The staff are in no way prepared for their duties, and lack a trauma informed training to assist them in this learning.  The management are very territorial over their domains, ask for assistance and change constantly, yet are more than apprehensive to institute change, small or big.  

The agency as a whole fails to provide to the residents the quality and quantity of care needed, even what is agreed to within contracts with The Department of Human Services (DHS) and The Oregon Youth Authority (OYA).

The staff live in constant fear of being fired, yet are told to meet the demands of their jobs with little or no supervision, let alone guidance. Tenure on the job is dismissed promptly if an employee of over two years will not pick up a overnight shift or accept a full time position in the overnight shift. 

The residential hall is understaffed more than 50% of the time, and the direct services staff are grossly ignored in this negligence, along with the residents.  

This agency is at high risk of loosing it's place in Behavioral Rehabilitation Services (BRS) if it does not take a look at what is working, and what is not working, and strengthen it's team, it's training, it's approach to new employees and it's approaches in care to residents.   

If you do not socialize and "fit in" with the social services team as an upper managment position, such as clinical director, you will be asked to resign or terminated for reasons "which we will not go into detail over" or non-investigated claims of negligence to follow policy.  

This is a POLICY AND PROCEDURE heavy organization.  Thinking outside of the box will NOT get you anywhere with this organization.  There is little to no room for growth within the company as a few select employees maintain the higher positions available, leaving little to no room for advancement among the team.  

Feedback will not be given to you directly.  It's a culture, from the residents to all of the employees, to reach out to the person who is higher up and offer feedback to them, resulting in disciplinary action rather than action plans and conversations.

What is the best part of working at the company?
One of the most valuable aspects of my Assistant Manager role was the clear and consistent communication I had with the General Manager. Their hands-on guidance and thorough training ensured I fully understood all responsibilities before being entrusted to lead a shift independently. This structured approach built my confidence and equipped me to manage operations effectively while fostering a positive, team-oriented environment. Throughout my time, I felt like part of a close-knit family where collaboration, trust, and mutual support were central to our success.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The most challenging aspect of the job was ensuring that all tasks were completed efficiently and accurately, including managing cash flow and maintaining precise financial records

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
The work environment at The Salvation Army Family Store was collaborative and community-focused, emphasizing teamwork and mutual respect among staff members. The culture fostered a supportive atmosphere where employees were encouraged to contribute ideas and work together toward common goals. Additionally, the organization’s mission-driven focus created a sense of purpose, motivating the team to serve both customers and the broader community with dedication and compassion.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
A typical day as Assistant Manager at The Salvation Army Family Store began with opening the store and preparing the cash registers, ensuring all balances were accurate and ready for cashiers to start their shifts. I oversaw the cleanliness and organization of the sales floor to create a welcoming environment for customers. I reviewed any tasks assigned by the General Manager and delegated responsibilities to warehouse and floor employees accordingly. I monitored employee attendance, arranged coverage for any absences, and stepped in as needed to support the team in completing daily tasks. Throughout the day, I ensured smooth store operations, addressed any issues raised by staff or customers, and maintained open communication with management by reporting concerns promptly. Before handing off to the next shift, I verified that both the store and warehouse were orderly and prepared for continued success.

As the payroll/account clerk at the Salvation Army Trenton ARC, I expanded on my experience.  I completed the payroll in its entirety from timecards to processing and distribution utilizing Paychex Preview.  I handled benefits for the employees, such as health and life insurance, workman's comp, pension contributions, W-2s.  I also learned about the hiring process at the Salvation Army and what was required by government and company guidelines.

The management was less than desirable and left room for a lot of suspicion.  At the latest audit just held at the end of June, the management was cited for not handling the money deposits according to the protocol of the Salvation Army.  My manager did not have any respect for protocols and yet, she was handling some very large amounts of money.  

The environment was hostile and got even worse as time went on and I gained expertise in my limited functions.  I tolerated this the best that I could; but made sure that I did my job accurately, and honestly, and kept meticulous records.  Because I followed the policies and adhered to the guidelines of the company, I believe worsened the hostility as this did not coincide with the shady practices of the manager.  I wasn't really cited for anything in the audit, but was taught a couple of things that were unbeknownst to me.   I believe it is because of my recordkeeping that these shady practices were revealed in the audit.  Therefore, I was let go.

I only had one office co-worker who I enjoyed working with.  I was not permitted to talk to anyone so I never really got to know anybody.  But, I did enjoy servicing whoever I was permitted to service.  I really did not have a problem with anybody, nor did they have a problem with me.  Unfortunately, my manager was highly suspicious and distrustful of me the whole length of my employment.  I did not manage any funds.

The most enjoyable part of the job was the fact that I was doing the work that I had expertise in, and I got to learn a couple of new things. 

Although I knew my ending would not be happy, I felt strongly that I had to consistently maintain my limited workload to the best of my ability according to what was required by the standards of the Salvation Army.  I have no regrets; I feel I accepted the job in good faith, understood my position,  and provided honest and detailed work.

Major lack of communication at this organization. If that’s what you like this place is for you. It supposedly is a “Christian” run non-profit yet employees seem to be discriminated against for various reasons (s. orientation, race, education, personal views, etc.). The Majors of the Salvation Army are barely involved. A few of the Case-Managers are very rude, judgmental and act superior to CSA’s (mainly the CM Supervisor) The managers do not deserve their positions as they lack the proper knowledge and skills to do the job correctly and they don’t know how to train new employees. New employees that are employed for only one month are trainers. The amount of tasks you have to do increase over time for very little pay. As a CSA you are practically required to be an assistant, a Case-manager, counselor, nurse, janitor while also having to keep detailed case notes (written and typed) do group activities w/ clients, Shelter walk-throughs, data entry, assisting with needs of clients, intakes and discharges of clients, driving and picking up clients when needed, respond to Domestic Violence and S. Assault hospital calls, etc., and having to answer The Crisis Hotline and Salvation Army phone in the mean time, all while being alone and getting paid only minimum wage and having to use out of date technology. Only a half hour lunch for day shift staff. Second and third shift staff get no break. Even if they work a 12 hour holiday shift. At least 4 holiday shifts are required so be prepared. Not to mention the new Covid-19 sanitizing protocol that needs followed but is just a joke. Plus there is NO set schedule, so be prepared to work overnights and only have exactly 8 hours off until you have to return for your next shift while getting called on your off time to come in because they are short staffed and case managers and managers don’t want to be bothered to have to work overnight. The managers will promise you many things and it will never happen. Management gets rid of the best employees very quickly! Maybe they are nervous of knowledgeable, hard working men and women stepping in, doing better then them and taking their positions. Very unorganized job and all you do to help the clients that come in is put them on the welfare system. Good Luck to you if you accept the position. 

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Retail sales associate 944 salaries reported	$14.67 per hour
Case manager 214 salaries reported	$23.23 per hour
Processor 376 salaries reported	$14.17 per hour
Assistant store manager 223 salaries reported	$18.12 per hour
Store manager 323 salaries reported	$18.69 per hour

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