US Forest Service Employee Reviews about "people"
66% would recommend to a friend
(198 total reviews)
Vicki Christiansen
63% approve of CEO
Found 198 of over 1K reviews
Updated Nov 28, 2023
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Top Review Highlights by Sentiment
Excerpts from user reviews, not authored by Glassdoor
- "Great people and fun to meet the people camping and enjoying the national forest and national parks." (in 81 reviews)
- "Hostile Work Environment: The agency is extremely cliquey; it pays poorly and employees are under chronic stress due to ongoing poor management and budget turmoil." (in 25 reviews)
- "Upper management is crippled by political influences and those hired to make decisions are incapable of thinking like a business person." (in 10 reviews)
Ratings by Demographics
This rating reflects the overall rating of US Forest Service and is not affected by filters.
Reviews about "people"
Return to all Reviews- 3.0Sep 5, 2021Recreation TechnicianKEY NOT FOUND: jobLine.seasonal-currentRedding, CA
Pros
Colleagues are usually great. Work in some of the most beautiful places in the United States. Great experience, learn new skills, and it will toughen you up both physically and psychologically.
Cons
Abysmal management. Team leaders who are often clueless and power hungry. In my seven years I saw some of the laziest and least motivated people get promoted into management and even district ranger positions. Recreation officers who absolutely disregard their employees and don't develop talent. The pay also sucks but if they took the time to develop people it would be a decent trade off. Good luck with that. In my seven years there I only had one good supervisor who actually trained me and prepared me for a significantly higher GS position. The others stunk or simply played politics to move up the ladder. Its a shame because I've seen so many good people leave and now I'm among them.
- 2.0Feb 18, 2012Former Employee
Pros
good annual leave policy and holidays off. Nice job locations and the people who work for the Forest Service are generally nice.
Cons
Very poor office moral. Nobody believed in the projects they were working on. Even good projects were litigated against. Too much government red tape
- 4.0Dec 8, 2016Hydrologic TechnicianCurrent Employee, more than 1 yearRapid City, SD
Pros
Most of the people that work here are really nice and seem happy with their job. The building is fairly new and in good shape too. The work is nice because there is a huge emphasis on safety and quality rather than production. Great for people wanting to do quality scientific work.
Cons
Not very organized and the internet and computers are really slow. They really need a permanent tech advisor to help get this place up to speed.
- 4.0Nov 3, 2015Anonymous EmployeeFormer Employee
Pros
Very helpful and kind people that I had the experience to work with.
Cons
Somewhat disorganized, not much room for growth. A lot of retirees working as volunteers so there aren't that many openings.
- 3.0Jun 17, 2016Anonymous InternFormer Intern
Pros
The Forest Service often has good people working there who truly care about their work and the agency's mission. Golden is a perfect job location.
Cons
Government bureaucracy, ineffective employees, and no acceptance of change make this a challenging work environment
- 3.0Aug 9, 2022Wildland FirefighterFormer Contractor
Pros
-Amazing travel opportunities and being able to help communities at any level -Meet and learn from incredible people from all walks of life
Cons
-A lot of government red tape -Pay is so low for what the job entails
- 4.0Jan 30, 2019Archaeological TechnicianFormer Contractor, less than 1 year
Pros
The people you work with day to day are really nice and care about their jobs. Seasonal crews vary by forest but usually a good, fun group of people.
Cons
Typical limited funding and too much that is common with all government gigs these days.
- 1.0Nov 16, 2023GIS SpecialistCurrent Employee, less than 1 year
Pros
Cool, smart people 3 hours wellness Telework flexibility Fire work
Cons
Work is very boring, I don't have anything to do. People think the government is wasting the taxpayer dollar, well I am living proof. Poor mentorship for young professionals and they hire people without knowing what to do with them. Do not recommend. Just wish I had some work to do and opportunities to learn new things related to my job.
- 3.0Mar 13, 2022Wildland FirefighterCurrent EmployeeSan Dimas, CA
Pros
Benefits and time-off are great along with being able to see parts of the country most people never see
Cons
You will almost never get time off during the summer, expect to be gone with limited time off all of fire season, and the pay for how many hours you work is not great compared to what you may make elsewhere.
- 5.0Feb 28, 2018Anonymous EmployeeFormer Employee
Pros
Great outdoors where nature is your office and every day is better than the one before. Great people and fun to meet the people camping and enjoying the national forest and national parks.
Cons
I honestly can't think of anything because my dad was a ranger, I worked there and I would love it if my kids worked here.
