wellness nurse

cook

housekeeper

server

maintenance technician

Watercrest Senior Living

I absolutely loved working at Watercrest. This was my first job and I couldn't have asked for a better experience. There are two main shifts: brakfast & lunch (6:30 AM to 2 PM) and dinner (3:30 PM to 6:30 PM). Due to COVID-19 precautions, the residents received meal deliveries to their rooms instead of eating in the dining room areas like normal. 
Servers get to know each of the residents very well, including their general personalities, food likes/dislikes, food allergies and dietary restrictions, etc. The majority of the residents are extremely pleasant, appreciative people, so it is a very positive work environment.
The servers are responsible for pouring drinks, cutting and packaging desserts, finishing side salads, restocking, cleaning prep areas and the drink station, etc. in addition to serving the residents.
During the COVID-19 room delivery method of serving, we had residents fill out meal tickets. We would tally up how many of each item we needed, prepared what we could, let the chef know how many special entrees/sandwiches we needed, and then brought it to their rooms on large carts. The chefs and dishwashers are really nice people to work with, so the kitchen is generally calm and fun to be in.
Walking between the kitchen and the residents' rooms can be tiring at times, but it's honestly just good daily exercise; you'll DEFINITELY get your steps in for the day! 
If you need time off, you need to give 2 weeks notice wherever possible but my supervisor was always great about making schedules around our needs. 
Honestly, the worst part of the job is just having to go back to the kitchen to redo an order or get something you missed the first time around. Sometimes residents will change their mind about what they want to eat, which is a little more difficult to rectify with the room delivery in comparison to eating in the dining room.
Watercrest has an INCREDIBLE facility that is very well maintained. I was very luck to have worked in such a nice building. Keeping the kitchen and server stations clean is a high priority objective.
Like I said, this was my first job. I didn't need any prior serving experience; I shadowed the experienced servers for a few shifts, then started on my own. Everyone is very good about lending a hand if you need assistance or have concerns about a particular resident's order/eating habits. 
I would HIGHLY recommend this job to anyone with the patience, compassion, and care needed to work with the residents. It is so important that you are attentive to detail, especially with the residents' dietary needs. If you're not committed to treating the residents with the respect, attention, and positive attitude that they deserve, do not apply.

 Watercrest continues to be resident NUMBERS focused and not staff focused. Be sure to ask about TURNOVER  before joining this company . Low pay rate , not competitive for nurses and caregivers . Management and front office is friendly and they are trying to improve the place , however it is still a Toxic environment, a lot of DRAMA , gossip and unhappiness . Full time is 32 hours per week , schedule is fluctuating from week to week . Requires every other weekend rotation. Lunches are frequently interrupted, residents having freq falls with ER visits and a lot of documentation and phone calls required for each incident . HIGH Ratio of patient for NURSING staring at 26 residents  in Mc up to 40 in AL ( nurse administers HANDS on meds for ASSIGNED residents / NARCOTICS /INSULIN - unrealistic times to administer meds- same patient you need to give meds at 4, 5, 7, 8  and half of them are crushed ). You stay on your feet almost the whole 8 hrs shift , going up and down 2 floors in AL SIDE . Every shift has  2 or 3  aides that have to set up meals in dinning room , assist with feeding of more than half of the residents , clean the  dinning room  after meals , supervise wandering residents and provide personal care. It is challenging …The  caregivers are aides not CNA’S -they speak poor English and they do not like to work in team , very resistant and arrogant when redirected .From my perspective ..  an upscale AL and especially the memory care unit needs to hire (Pay better )trained staff to take care of these specific  residents. Reflecting back ..It was a challenging job due to chronic staffing issues, a lot of drama , physically was really challenging for me , standing , walking and pushing a big and heavy medication card almost the whole 8 hrs shift , doing admission, re-admission, sent residents to ER and completing constant incident reports . 

Today marks my 1 year anniversary with this company at Watercrest St. Lucie West.  I can’t believe a whole year has gone by already.  I am so appreciative to the owners of this company, for this job and for their vision.  I remember a year ago, being excited, but apprehensive.  Wondering if my career change was going to be the positive thing that I thought it would be.  Hoping that I would be good at it and add value to my company.  Well, I hit the job lottery when I got hired here!!!  I am able to do something I love and feel like I am not only helping the residents here, but their families, my co-workers, and my community!  It means a lot to work somewhere that has the same values as I and my family do as far as giving back to the community and leaving the world better than we found it.  I remember the first time I suggested doing something that would be giving back to the community.  I fully expected to be looked at like I had 3 heads, since that's what I've experienced in the past.  Not only was my idea accepted, but everyone was also excited about it!!!

It's hard to put into words what this job has given me.  But, I feel appreciated, valued, useful, respected, enabled, and part of something much bigger than myself.  
 
Working here has changed the quality of my and my family’s life and I am so grateful every day that I have this opportunity.  To work with the management team in my building is to experience teamwork and camaraderie that I have not experienced since I was in the military.  I am so lucky and proud to be a “Watercrestian!!”  LOL!!!!
 
I remember leaving my interview thinking, “She’s never going to hire me!  I blew it!  I talked her ear off.”  I had never been so comfortable in an interview situation!!!
 
Thank God for Watercrest Senior Living. 


Unfortunately they get no support from the top. Pay for all department staff is not competitive even though Corp office will tell you it is. A lot of great staff leave due to low wages especially now with Covid and they see, not just how much agency pays, but how much competitors are paying which is upwards of +$2-$4/hr for some positions. I can only speak for the Community I worked in since each Community seems to be run differently depending on the ED and their Director team. There is no consistency within the company between communities. The residents are the ones who suffer due to staffing shortages and inability to keep morale up. Again, not the EDs fault- they seem to have their hands tied by those at the corporate level who forgot what it’s like to work at the community level. They will say, “Don’t hesitate to ask for assistance if you need anything.” Then you make the request and … crickets. They have a lot to learn and  before opening any new Communities, they should slow down and fix the current community problems. 
Instead of paying someone, who knows how much $, to go around and give advice on Sales techniques, how about paying their own front line staff fair wages, staff according to acuity instead of giving a choice between raises or staffing, and bringing in a Dementia Expert to make changes to the Memory Care Communities to train floor staff on how to approach/treat residents with dementia??? 
Overall this company has promise IF they decide to follow the right course and focus on the communities and staff they have now. 
No hard feelings… They just need to practice what they preach. 


Absolutely the worst place to work! Do not be misled by their bragging that they are certified as “a great place to work” its contrived. Consistently low pay, slow recruiting and hiring, always short staffed! Unrealistic expectations that the RWD (DON) must fill in on all shifts when there is no coverage 24/7 for both nursing and caregiving. It’s not uncommon to be required to do this multiple times a week including working 24 hours straight. Senior Leadership does not care, Home Office does not care! Zero support or assistance when there are staffing standards that are below regulation. Nurses who are working 80 hours a week filling in and are fired for complaining. Salaries are below market rate making it impossible to hire and Senior Leadership are so out of touch with Community concerns refuse to increase wages to compete. If you search they have multiple RWD positions open because rarely does anyone complete 90 days with them. Executive Directors have just as high turnover and this should we a wake up call to Senior Leadership snd Investors, that perhaps the people you have overseeing these community based positions are unqualified with poor leadership skills themselves. 

Every time I step in the building, I automatically feel like I want to leave. There are too many residents here who require high-level assistance, and not enough care staff to effectively take care of them like they should be. Burn-out is everywhere. Turnover is exceptionally high. Managers play favorites, and even if you make one tiny mistake, they call you in for a talking-to. Write-ups occur for negligible things. If you're struggling emotionally, they put the blame mostly on you. The general message from management is, "We hear you but really we don't." The executive director in charge of the building can act really nice while at the exact same time say something really insensitive or mean. Pay isn't very high for the amount of work you do, starting pay is a little over $10 an hour for a caregiver. I wouldn't put my own parents in a building run by this company. I just don't trust them.

As an employee or resident at Watercrest, it unfortunately is not what they tell you it's going to be like living there and or working there. They advertise amazing programs and lifestyle and most of the time, it's simply not true. Yet, we are told not to tell the truth. The senior management is so out of touch with what is truly going on with staffing and with residents. You are reprimanded, talked down to and given zero support if you go to them for support. The senior staff talks to you as if they know all. They don't ask questions or look for feedback. Don't they hire their managers and staff because they have experience and excel in their roles? They continue to hire inept Executive Directors to manage communities. A warm body does not make for a good leader. If they truly valued employees and residents, why wouldn't they spend time with them and understand the positives and negatives of the communities? Watercrest continues to be numbers focused and not staff and or resident focused. 

I started as a CNA and was impressed with the growth potential offered by the company. It appeared that the company placed high value on employees and their dedication to residents and the company.  I thought I was home. 

As I worked at pelican landing it seemed like some people could get away with murder while others could work twice as hard with little recognition. This only got worse when our MC director left. I finally figured out the connection.  If you left the same company that the founders did they seemed to treat you with a familial bond. Even if you bust your butt for the company you couldn't compete with the history. 

When I got program coordinator they raised my pay but refused to give me more than 35 hrs a week, which ended up with me making less money than i did as a CNA. I couldn't even fathom sticking with their career paths because 10.25 hrly at 35 hrs is not livable for the cost of living in this area. It felt like being set up for failure

At first this company seems very legit.  Everyone is nice and supportive.  WAIT and then it starts.  Lies by regional managers about tasks not being completed. No support from regional. All they do is sit in Florida and direct things for you to do.  Most of the time, very impossible tasks that sound good when said, but ridiculous to actually expect it to work.    The sad part is, these regionals are so trusted that when you reach out to the home office, nothing is done about it.  They say what they want and do what they want.  When times get hard and things are happening at home, you are still expected to be at work. No work- life balance.  They guilt you when you try to take time off to support your family.  If they want to terminate you they will, so don’t try and figure out why.  You will be told everything is confidential and see you later.  All of this is done while smiling in your face and being extremely nice to you.  It is the worst feeling in the world when you do everything asked of you and they still terminate your position.  STAY on their good side or you will be let go in a heart beat. 

When are the investors going to realize that it’s not the frontline workers that are the problem? The home office directors are a joke! They may show up at your community but most of their time is spent sitting in the private dining room getting waited on by the frontline staff. It’s a joke that they come into the building and give you lists of everything that needs fixed instead of helping fix things. My favorite is when they do a hiring blitz and hire anything that walks in the door and then blame the managers when these new employees don’t show up. This by far was the worst place I have ever worked. It’s a beautiful community, but that’s about it. Until the investors open their eyes and really see that the problems at watercrest lies within their upper management team, then nothing will change. Turnover is horrible and the blame lies with home office. You’ve got, or had some great managers there, but no one will stay because of the unreasonable expectations. 

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Wellness nurse 2 salaries reported	$27.00 per hour
Cook 1 salary reported	$21.00 per hour
Housekeeper 5 salaries reported	$27.20 per hour
Server 3 salaries reported	$14.00 per hour
Maintenance technician 1 salary reported	$18.00 per hour

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