Is ESS a good company to work for?

ESS has an overall rating of 3.7 out of 5, based on over 1,852 reviews left anonymously by employees. This rating has decreased by 4% over the last 12 months. 65% of employees would recommend working at ESS to a friend and 50% have a positive outlook for the business. The best reviews about ESS have been left by employees working as Teacher , Subsitute Teacher and Building Substitute Teacher .

Does ESS pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, ESS employees rate their compensation and benefits as 2.7 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at ESS. This rating has decreased by 8% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at ESS?

65% of ESS employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated ESS 4.0 out of 5 for work life balance, 3.3 for culture and values and 3.1 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at ESS?

Substitute Teacher (985) , Paraprofessional (90) , Long Term Substitute Teacher (33) , Teacher (28) , Special Education Paraprofessional (25) , Subsitute Teacher (24) , Substitute (20) , Recruiter (18) , Certified Substitute Teacher (17) , Account Manager (16) , Building Substitute Teacher (16) , Substitute Paraprofessional (14) , Substitute/Guest Teacher (9) , District Manager (7) , Teacher Assistant (6)

What are the pros of working at ESS according to real employee reviews?

"Scheduling is flexible and easy to work with" ((in 99 reviews)); "Flexible schedules are a great thing to have!" ((in 79 reviews)); "Flexible hours You know your pay upfront Paid every other week pick up assignments suddenly or ahead of time" ((in 45 reviews)); "Also great people to work with in the school system" ((in 22 reviews)); "Flexibility is great and the change everyday is great" ((in 18 reviews))

What are the cons of working at ESS according to real employee reviews?

"The pay is low but this is why the company has a lot of partnered schools" ((in 282 reviews)); "No benefits unless you want your entire paycheck to go towards the benefit plan they offer." ((in 86 reviews)); "No training for Special Needs." ((in 31 reviews)); "Poor communication and support" ((in 24 reviews)); "To much work for the bad salary" ((in 20 reviews))

What are the top reviewed ESS locations?

Cherry Hill , Philadelphia , Jacksonville , Savannah , Elizabeth , Portland , Frisco , Denton , Newark , Atlantic City , Toms River , Little Rock , New Brunswick , Union , Roanoke , Chattanooga , Houston , Englewood , Piscataway , Camden , Hampton , Dallas , Hillsboro , Tampa , Edison , Jersey City , Woodbridge , Burlington , Lehi , Orem

ESS reviews

3.7

65% would recommend to a friend

(1,485 total reviews)

Buddy Helton

60% approve of CEO

50% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

4.0

Work/Life balance

3.7

Diversity & inclusion

3.3

Culture & values

3.2

Senior management

3.1

Career opportunities

2.7

Compensation and benefits

ESS has an employee rating of 3.7 out of 5 stars, based on 1,485 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The ESS employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Human Resources & Staffing industry (3.8 stars).

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Reviews by job title

1K reviews

3.0

Dec 21, 2025

Hours cut

Paraprofessional

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

As a permanent substitute you stay at permanent location, set schedule, positive school culture

Cons

Once you accept a permanent position, they cut your hours without warning. Computer Lab position requires extensive knowledge of lesson planning, classroom management, lesson preparation, flexibility. Not paid your worth if you have a teaching degree and/or GA teaching certificate. Benefits are very expensive for minimum coverage.

ESS Response

4mo

Thank you for sharing your feedback. We appreciate you taking the time to provide your perspective. We are continually working to make improvements whenever possible.

2.0

Dec 20, 2025

They don’t care about you

Substitute teacher

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Convenient, flexible, frequent pay, variety of schools

Cons

The pay is terrible, very cruel especially to disabled employees who require accommodations, highly punitive for having needs as an adult. The school will literally act “concerned” like they “care” then throw you under the bus and make either exaggerated or false allegations against you. Just like how they still had the police involved after an emotional moment despite my explicit refusal. They immediately canceled all of my scheduled assignments, deactivated my account then refused an investigation timeline and have me vague instructions. The incident agent was extremely rude and unprofessional as she kept cutting me off and denying my needs and challenges associated with autism. I then called her lot forcing her to listen instead of running mouth and had the audacity to use panelist language like “erratic” to describe my traits related to my diagnosis. I called that term used very disrespectful. I once trusted this company but no more. They have severely betrayed my trust.

ESS Response

5mo

Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts with us. We’re sorry you haven’t had a more favorable experience working with us, but we would like to make it better! Please reach out to our team at HRHelp@ESS.com with specific issues that we can help resolve. In the meantime, we appreciate your input and will take it into consideration to better our company.

1.0

Dec 17, 2025

Not worth your time.

Substitute teacher

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Sick pay is not difficult to get. You have freedom to choose assignments.

Cons

Will not conduct any investigation or review. Lack of drug testing.

ESS Response

5mo

We are sorry to hear you haven't had a more favorable experience. We encourage you to reach out to your local support team to address your issues.

Viewing 52 - 54 of 1,485 Reviews

Jobs at ESS

DISHWASHER (FULL TIME)

HOUSEKEEPER (FULL TIME)

HOUSEKEEPER (FULL TIME)

ESS

ESS reviews

Ratings by category

Ratings by demographic groups

Reviews by job title

Hours cut

They don’t care about you

Not worth your time.

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