I worked at Maple Ridge Retirement Community with RLC for just a little over 3 years as a dining room and kitchen staff member. Looking back on my time with the company now, I have some concerns that I'd like to address for the benefit of any family considering moving a loved one into this facility, or a prospective employee.
For those concerned with the client experience, please know that this facility, though adversitied as a luxurious "resort," is really nothing more than an apartment building with a dining room. There is a frightening lack of security measures in place for the safety of the residents; They are given the option of a life alert necklace and are able to hire their own live in help or part time caretakers. Besides these few items, there is not much that separates this "adult living" facility from a regular old apartment. PLEASE know the difference between a place like Maple Ridge and a nursing home. If your loved one is coping with memory loss, chronic illness, or physical disabilities or weaknesses, they will not be safe at Maple Ridge! If they are comfortable living alone and capable or safe, independant mobility but wish to spend time with other retirees than MR is an appropriate fit. Some residents moved in following the loss of their spouse to readjust to life without their soulmate while surrounding themselves with a supportive atmosphere of like minded folks. If that is the case with you or your loved one I think you'll find MR is a great option. But again, be wary of the lack or security, precautions, and medically trained staff if there are medical concerns. There was a woman living in MR who was 104 years old. I am not sure what her family situation was, and I am not sure why she was living there. It was an obviously dangerous place for her. She had severe memory loss and extreme difficulty walking. I swear to god, it was the closing servers duty to walk this woman up to her room and lock her in her room. Keep in mind I was a High-School student at the time and most other servers were as well. Why on earth did management allow this poor, sweet woman to become the responsibility of lazy, unreliable teenagers? Absolutely unacceptable and dangerous. She should have been in a nursing home if not a hospital. I cannot emphasize this enough: If your loved one has significant health concerns they can not live in a place like this! It is so dangerous and shady, and your family member deserves more respect. :) On another note, the place is ridiculously overpriced for the quality of staff, meals, and events that are provided. There are plenty of other homes in the area with lower prices and surely higher quality service. Please keep your options open! Many residents I knew moved out for another in the area that provided more security and medical attention at a lower cost! If you like at MR and seek a 3rd party caretaker service you will be paying twice as much as you could be in a nursing home. Seperately, if food quality is important to your party please note that Maple Ridge is basically the same quality of a Jason's Deli. Not great, not awful. There is a very high turnover rate in the kitchen though, and consistency is absent. In just the 3 years I worked at Maple Ridge I became the most experienced person working in the kitchen and dining room combined. (The entire staff consists of about 20 people.) There is a bus service that takes a round trip to the local Target from MR so that is perhaps the better option for meals if your prospective resident is comfortable or willing to cook for themself. Keep in mind, your rent and expenses pays for the kitchen budget regardless.
For those concerned with employee experience, I would not recommend this specific facility. The pay is exceptionally low in return for very physically grueling and emotionally draining work. Part time hours are scarce, management is incompetent, inexperienced, and uninterested in the work of a kitchen or dining room helper. The first set of managers I worked under came from work as prison guards and the second came from car sales. I have absolutely no clue how RLC finds these managers and assigns them to the facilities but it seems to create low level chaos for all workers. The head chefs are worked to the breaking point with painful work and absolutely brutal hours. Unfortunately the extreme stress out on the higher up kitchen staff was frequently turned into disrespectful, impatient, and condescening attitudes towards the minimum wage working folks in the kitchen , dishes, and dining room. I honestly don't blame them for this due to the extreme stress they were under, but it is important to note there are a lot of problems at every level of work at MR caused by the problems of the level above. Perhaps this is the reason for the sky high turnover rate of employment! In sum, I do not recommend you apply for work at this business unless you have a hell of a lot of patience and emotional stability. read more
