Great for the Soul, not the bills - Recreation Specialist Cincinnati Parks Employee Review

Working outside, independent work, holidays off, overtime opportunities, co workers.

Pay for seasonal is a little weak.

Easy-going compared to private landscaping, great coworkers and bosses (may vary), flexible hours, and you have the chance to learn a lot depending on where you're assigned.

There are no step increases in pay for added responsibility or experience. By my 3rd year working for the parks, I was making the same low wage I always did ($15 an hour) but doing essentially the same job as the full-time florists and responsible for 2 parks, including an important downtown park in OTR. There is no paid time off, no holiday pay, no paid sick leave, or any benefits at all. It is essentially impossible to support yourself on a seasonal wage of $15 an hour, especially considering the major run-up in inflation and housing prices since 2020. What you do and what you learn is highly dependent on your coworkers and where you happen to be assigned. I learned a lot about horticulture because I was given a lot of mentorship and responsibility, but I had a coworker who barely got to learn anything at all since he was assigned to string trimming and picking up trash most of the time.