camionneur

superviseur

avocat

truck driver

technicien

Canadian Blood Services

Working with clean healthy people who want to be there (donors) and friendly professionals who take pride in their role. It’s a great experience and environment unique to healthcare (biologics manufacturing). 

Very honoured to be a part of such an amazing team. CBS has a stellar collection of bright enthusiastic and caring staff who all come together for the cause. Everyone is exceptionally skilled at what they do and make it easy to come to work. It’s a good motivator for self improvement. 

There are always company politics, and working as part of a federally regulated organization will have that. As long as you can accept that fact, you will be fine. Training, both orientation and ongoing, is fantastic and comprehensive. Benefits, working conditions, team atmosphere, all a dream. Management is accessible and approachable. 

Work life balance can be an issue if you can’t adapt to the corporate culture. Front line staff work varied odd shift work with varying start/end times and shift durations/locations, it’s the nature of the business. Picking up shifts and no set schedule rotation is the norm. Which can actually be a great thing for some people. 

Overall exceptional handling of the pandemic, lots of communication improvements over the years. Very much appreciated. Frontline staff now always have the info they need when they need it. Concerns are readily and respectfuly addressed. Room for advancement is potentially good, depending on your current role, but competitive by nature of the caliber of the internal application pool. 

Overall a respectable understanding diverse workplace. You really do need to be the best of the best to succeed here and fitting into corporate culture is key. “Put your head down and cook”. :) Great technical skills, fast independent learner, comprehensive knowledge base, and exceptional customer service skills/friendly required. If this is you, you will find this a respectful, fun, and “easy” job. 

Pretty much the best place to work in healthcare. 




The job is decent. You have different types of "runs". You have mobile clinincs, permanent clinics, dropping off blood/products to hospitals and dropping off blood to couriers. Mobile clinic runs are the hardest because you are actually transporting equipment to be setup by yourself and a partner and this will usually be challenging because the mobile sites are all over the surrounding area from the CBS hub. The mobiles sites are usually at a school or a church but not exclusively. Once you get there then there's a layout map of where to place all the beds, chairs tables, computer, garbage bins, privacy screens etc. It's exhausting to say the least. You then have to figure out your split break time between you and the other driver because you will be collecting and "shipping" the blood using a proprietary software. The break time is roughly 2 hours which is good. Permanent sites are easier because there isn't any equipment setup, just collecting the blood, no "shipping". Dropping off to the hospital/courier is as easy as it sounds. The big problem for me was the dynamic start/end times that changes daily so you cannot have a 2nd job. CBS also wants you to schedule your other job around this which is absolutely ludicrous and impossible. If you have a family then good luck seeing them 😕. Money is decent and they offer you hours but that's because most traditional drivers are not accustomed to this type of "driver" job. On the mobile run, you only drive 10-20 percent of the time. They will give you, as a new driver most of the mobile runs 😒

CBS - Canadian Blood Services

Overall it is not a bad place to work.  There are people here who genuinely care and are here to make a difference.  Pay in most areas is reasonable though in many of the corporate roles it is on the low end for sure.  Benefits are just average in my opinion.  It is bare bones and not really anything extra.  There have been recent attempts to fix the culture and I am hoping they will work.  I find that bullying in disrespect is tolerated for too long before something is done about it.  I also find it very hierarchical with most of the executive team being very inaccessible.  Kind of an ivory tower mentality, not all but most.  I also find that employees are nickled and dimed while executives and higher ups seem free to spend.  Our travel per diem is a good example, max of $50/day to eat for the regular folks which does not cut it at all when you are stuck in airports and hotels.  Change is slow and that can be frustrating.  Staff are constantly asked to cut costs and settle for small annual increases while each year we can clearly see what the executive team is making.  I think the ratio is quite off.  I also think that we need some fresh minds at the top.  The CEO has been in place too long and while I understand that consistency has some benefits when the CEO has been there for 15+ years there are just no new ideas and improvements really coming out of the EMT anymore. That said we have a lot of fantastic, dedicated managers who are the reason many of us stay.  I am hopeful that the new direction will actually make a difference as I believe with some changes this organization could be really great.

What is the best part of working at the company?
One of the greatest perks of being part of this company is the uplifting atmosphere and vibrant culture we have cultivated. Every day, I am energized by the positive interactions with my colleagues and the sense of unity that pervades our work environment. This culture of encouragement and support not only fosters personal growth but also enhances teamwork and innovation.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The most challenging aspect of working at our company can be the demanding pace at which we operate. The ever-changing landscape of our industry often requires quick adaptation and a high level of flexibility from all team members.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
At Canadian Blood Services, the work environment is characterised by a sense of purpose and dedication to serving the community. The culture is deeply rooted in compassion, collaboration, and excellence. Team members are united by a shared mission to enhance the health and well-being of Canadians through the collection and distribution of blood and blood products.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
A significant part of my role includes offering organized refreshments to donors and closely monitoring them for any adverse reactions following their donation. In addition to donor care, I engage in individual work such as conducting research and drafting documents.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Benefits are the only good part about working here

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Supervisors in certain departments are absolutely horrific, bullying (which they perportrate), no support, toxic environment that is apparent from other departments prespective.  No accountabilty and coworkers will throw you under the bus as fast as you can blink for self preservation.  The walls have ears, private conversations are not private, there is always someone lurking around to get dirt and watch your every move, just to use it against you.  Doesnt matter how good your work ethic is, this place will tear you down and reduce you to nothing but your mistakes, dont expect praise or even a "good job" it will never happen.  You might as well be an office chair certain supervisors have no empathy and its almost like they have complete disdain for their employees.  There is a reason why there is such high turn over in one specific department.  Run. Run fast run far.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Bullying is prevalent, toxic, catty. But not all departments, some are great.  All depends on your supervisor.  Think of the Hunger Games if it was in an office setting

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Typical work day? You mean the days where you want to pull all your hair out, crawl under your desk and hide, or just get in your car and drive til you run out of gas.  Pick one

Great co-workers, but that's about it. Rotating shift schedule & revolving duties of a grueling work load will run you into the ground in no time (as it did me). Absolutely horrible work experience there over-all. Very early mornings, afternoons, and evening shifts (all VERY laborious) that are done on a weekly rotating schedule will make a "zombie" out of anybody in short order. Then after all those mind and body numbing shift changes, you are expected to drive long distances to set up remote blood collection sites, then sit at head tables in front of everybody at those remote blood collection sites, where you are then expected to be (and look) alert and happy while you toil away, then take it all down and drive back to home-base, then do it again and again! Management is dictatorial, and has no time for complaints. It is what it is. When I quit they told me that head office will be calling me for a so-called "exit-interview" to assess what happened and why I was leaving. Well guess what? They never did, and no doubt because they know EXACTLY why I left and they just don't want to hear it again! It's a revolving door for drivers there with the ridiculous work load and multi-tasking involved because driving is only a small fraction of what you will be doing. Still want to work there? Then get ready to work to the point of extreme exhaustion and after all your efforts, pay is mediocre at best! Beware!

I have run into two complete strangers who were former CBS employees in the relatively short time since I left CBS, and neither had anything even neutral to say about the work environment. That says a lot. But they give you fabulous benefits so it's very difficult to leave once you realize the situation you're in. But don't worry because there's a good chance you'll just get laid off at some point anyway!

The culture is very unwell, particularly at head office. Talk is valued, not action. This means that people who talk the talk but avoid accountability or action are those that rise to the top, generally (of course there are always wonderful exceptions). If you care about your own wellbeing, I strongly advise you to steer clear of this workplace.

If those who had the power to change things put any of the effort that they put into telling employees that they care into actually caring, there would be huge improvements. The resources and the people are there. Genuinely caring and wanting to effect change makes it a struggle to work at CBS because you won't see it done but you will constantly be told how much leadership cares.

A typical week working as a Research Technician includes planning future experiments, running the experiments, performing analysis and reporting results and suggesting future direction to the principal investigator.

As with any new research position I have had only base and theoretical knowledge entering the field but have accumulated a wealth of related experience over my time working here. Previous and unrelated experience has carried over to help with an 'out of the box' style, and this will likely help with any future direction that I choose.

Laboratory management can feel somewhat disconnected from the principal investigator and some more experienced staff can feel intimidated by the younger staff. This can lead to a generally uncomfortable environment at times when older staff are treating younger staff no different then the academic students within the lab.

I enjoy working under stressful conditions when running clinical diagnostics and enjoy evaluating and optimizing experiments where and when I can. I find that previously gained experience can help with optimization and help seek resources to solve unique problems.

Where to start.....gossip, stress and minimual support from management. To much negativity in the building. Employer has very little understanding of how thw jobs r being done. Example. A driver only drivers 20% or so the rest is setting up computers, shipping the blood organizing rhe blood tubes during clinics. Oh an id ur scheduled to be finished at 8pm dont count on it book ir plans for the next day.. oh wait cant do that.. why u ask because the next day ur shift starts at 4am. Each day drivers have a different start time n end time .. shifts range from 4hrs to 14hrs through the week with very little consistency. Now as for job description. Good luck CBS has been telling employees they will have a job description for the new positions ppl are currently in, that was 2 yrs ago( staff r still waiting). 
I could write a book about how the moral is plugged to an all time low.  Great company when it was a small setup, employees would take part in all areas of the job regardless of assigned duties. Now it is not so nor will it every get bk to that. 

If u have no love ones n just want to work no questions asked regardless of the hours.. this place is for u

I was lucky enough that I got along well with everyone. A lot of the people were very friendly and genuine and still keep In touch with them. There is a gossiping culture to be aware of.Longtime employees working as DSRs are very nice and friendly for the most part. There are one or two you’ll get that don’t commit to the job because they’ve been there for so long which is fustrsting for the newbies cuz you have to pick up their slack. There’s not much management can do about disciplinary measures cuz of the union so you’ll have to suck that up. Overall I really enjoyed working there mostly because of the work colleagues. The donors are nice for the most part but you do get rude people. So if you don’t have  good customer service experience and know how to deal with rude people and still smile this is not for you. The pay is not fair. Same positions across the country were paying almost $10 more. Vacation and in leiu of benefits are really good though. 

Top Job Titles	Average salary
Camionneur 1 salary reported	$25.89 per hour
Superviseur 4 salaries reported	$69,300 per year
Avocat 4 salaries reported	$61.50 per hour
Truck driver 2 salaries reported	$24.04 per hour
Technicien 3 salaries reported	$38.50 per hour

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