A culture of ableism and discrimination - Senior Staff Software Engineer The Helper Bees Employee Review

1.0
Mar 24, 2024
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

- Frontline employees and operational staff are awesome. - Criticisms are levelled directly at leadership, and leadership alone.

Cons

I worked here from October 2022 until October 2023 as a Senior Staff Software Engineer. I reported directly to the CTO, and the Director of Engineering. I stood in for the Director of Engineering when she was out on maternity leave. I personally witnessed and had reported to me multiple instances of sexism, ableism, and harassment towards women in the workplace and neurodivergent people in the workplace — that is those with ADHD or autism. I am autistic. In the summer of 2023, I allege that multiple individuals in this company conspired to isolate, harass, gaslight, and then fire a female employee. She has an active lawsuit against the company, and I believe in and support her. I was fired on October 5th for my support of her. I was retaliated against because I am autistic, and I supported an autistic woman who was discriminated against. This company engages in widespread discrimination, harassment, and retaliation against women and neurodivergent employees. She is NOT the only one. I am not the only one. They have done this to MANY people. I am writing this review six months after I was fired to show that this review is being made with sound mind and body and because it is Neurodiversity Week and April is Autism Awareness Month. As an autistic leader, I must set an example to expose wrongdoing when I see it. My goal is to spread the truth. I was a high-level employee with around 30 reports. I reported directly to the CTO, Danny Lynch. I reported to the CEO Char on occasion as well. I stand by what I am saying 100%. I stake my professional 17-year-long career on it. This is a terrible company to work for. They do not respect people with disabilities. They do not provide accommodations for disabled employees when asked for. They fire disabled employees exhibiting traits of their disability. They gaslight, harass, target, and fire disabled people on account of their disability. Ableism is part of The Helper Bees culture. This problem is endemic within this company and it is 100% driven by and the fault of the executive staff.

Explore other reviews about The Helper Bees

5.0
Jan 28, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

I genuinely love working here. The ability to work from home is a huge benefit. The PTO plan is amazing and it truly supports a healthy work/life balance. Everyone works together as a team. It’s a supportive environment where people are respected and encouraged to succeed.

Cons

Like any growing company, things can move quickly and processes may evolve over time. Occasional changes can take some getting used to, but overall leadership is very receptive to feedback.

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The Helper Bees Response
4mo
Thank you for taking the time to share this review and for your long-term commitment to The Helper Bees. We’re grateful for the care, consistency, and perspective that come from team members who have grown with the company over many years. It’s encouraging to hear that our flexible work model, PTO approach, and team-based culture are showing up in a meaningful way. We put a lot of intention into creating an environment where people feel supported, trusted, and able to do their best work while maintaining balance. Thank you again for being part of the journey and for helping shape the culture we’re proud of today.
1.0
Apr 8, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Remote work. Some genuinely good people work here. Unlimited PTO (still don't know if they would hold that over your head if you actually took the time you need).

Cons

The culture used to be great. Leadership was communicative. Expectations were set. They allowed us many freedoms to build our own culture. But like a light switch, their whole outlook changed; suddenly, revenue was not good, and suddenly, we had to cut jobs. I got laid off with no warning at all. via an email telling me "My work mattered." I never felt so disposable in my life. They were definitely warning signs I ignored for the sake of doing my work and keeping the culture we built alive. But in the end, we are just disposable to these people; of course, their salaries were not affected at all, just cut people with no warning, citing "business needs." Classic inner-circle company: the few at the top get the biggest slice. There were some "leadership" people I never even heard from, not even in quarterly meetings, probably making my salary three times and then some. This wasn't a problem at the start, but Product slowly wanted to have hands and eyes on everything engineering does. Micromanaging from other areas slowly started to creep in as well. I'm 100% convinced they just want to set Product up to Vibecode directly and cut engineering entirely. An extreme fake positivity aura engulfs anything outside engineering until they can't keep it up, and they have to show their true colors.

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The Helper Bees Response
1mo
Thank you for taking the time to share your perspective. We appreciate you calling out both the positive aspects of your time here and the areas where we fell short. Feedback around communication, leadership visibility, and how decisions are experienced by the team is important, and we take it seriously. Moments of change are challenging, and while decisions are made with care, we recognize they can still feel difficult and personal. We are continuing to focus on improving how we communicate and support our team through these transitions. We wish you the best in what’s next.
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