Culture of Exploitation and Discrimination - Anonymous employee Conservation Legacy Employee Review

In an attempt to defend the exploitation of AmeriCorps members, you often hear that the corps life is a "lifestyle", a culture in which one gets very dirty, works extremely hard, and gets very little pay in return, beyond the satisfaction of doing important work. This idea pervades into the greater organizational culture, as full-time staff are also extremely overworked, are expected to be willing to work recurring overnights and regular 50+ hour weeks while receiving low salaries. Making these kind of sacrifices is rewarded, and staff who are unwilling to make them are unlikely to move up in the organization. The conservation corps world and outdoor industry, generally, are very exclusive of people of color, and while some at the higher levels of the organization (and many more people who are at more foundational levels) are trying (sort of) to make it more inclusive, not all are invested in this work (including and especially the CEO), and non-white employees may find themselves in very uncomfortable situations. I personally experienced blatant discrimination in the form of racism as well as ableism. The CEO also very explicitly and publicly silenced, humiliated, and delegitimized the voices of people of color who had spent years doing incredible and important work, after they had shared their own experiences of feeling discriminated against and unheard for years. My experience was that the organization tried to sweep issues of discrimination and sexual harassment under the rug. Conservation Legacy is also very hierarchical. In my experience, it was common for staff to feel like they had little impact, or that their feedback was worth much to executive management.