I debated writing this because, like many others, I know I’ll probably get the standard “please contact HR” response , which goes nowhere and isn’t confidential. But future candidates deserve to hear the truth. I spent a decade at BAYADA. I believed in the mission. I lived the BAYADA Way. I gave my best and was proud of the work I did. I had great feedback from leaders, was never on a performance plan, and truly thought I had a future here. I was laid off with no warning, no real explanation, in the coldest way possible: a webcast where the CEO couldn’t even see our faces. To make matters worse, those who remained were invited to a town hall later that day where a slide was presented listing every single person who was laid off. My phone blew up from colleagues who saw my name on that list. I can’t describe how disappointing, unnecessary, and humiliating that felt.
The worst part? This layoff was avoidable. Leadership spent millions on poorly thought-out projects driven by newly hired executives and external consultants instead of simply asking the people doing the actual work for input. Anyone working in the trenches could have told them these initiatives (i.e.JOY) wouldn’t succeed with the current structure. But instead of leveraging internal expertise, they wasted millions. It’s a pattern seen across the company.
Even more frustrating, over $10 mil was spent flying office and support staff to Hollywood for their annual awards weekend event in May ....a trip that excluded field nurses and aides (the backbone of the organization). At the same time, the company struggles to offer competitive wages to the very caregivers who deliver the actual care. Leadership salaries, which are public due to BAYADA’s nonprofit status are shockingly high (go search and come back). Meanwhile, office and field staff live paycheck to paycheck with little flexibility or balance.
For those who remain, the workload has doubled as teams shrink. Leadership is banking on fear “survivor’s guilt” to keep people from pushing back while they carry the extra weight. Meanwhile, new executive leadership hires (most from outside the company and industry) don’t understand BAYADA’s mission or culture. Seasoned, loyal employees are being pushed out and replaced with people who don’t embody the BAYADA Way or have the knowledge or connections needed, leaving teams scrambling and disjointed.
If you love home care, I recommend looking at competitors. They pay better and, frankly, value their people more. Also, if you start seeing a sudden wave of 5-star reviews after June 6th (the day of the layoff), don’t be fooled. It wouldn’t surprise me if leadership “strongly encouraged” the remaining staff to flood Glassdoor with positive feedback or offered them “BAYADA Bucks” (yes, that’s a real thing) to help bury the truth and make the company look better than it really is.
