A mental health firm that reportedly pays Prince Harry just under £800,000-a-year has been branded a “toxic train wreck” by past and present staff.
The Duke of Sussex has been involved with BetterUp since 2021 and, as its chief impact officer, is responsible for guiding “the company’s social mission” and being an “advocate for mental fitness”.
However, the US-based company has been accused of being a “psychologically unsafe place to work” where “everyone is uncomfortable and living in fear”, the Daily Mail reports.
People believed to be past and current members of staff have taken to Glassdoor, a platform publishing company ratings and reviews by employees, to hit out at BetterUp. One comment claimed the company was led by an “elitist club of leaders”, who “have no moral compass” and “lack self awareness”.
Prince Harry has made frequent appearances on-stage for the company, as well as on live streams, over the past three years.
Last month, the 40-year-old appeared with a former NBA star and friend of the late Kobe Bryant to discuss mental health and helping people “find their flow”.
The Duke has visited the company’s offices in San Francisco, California, and Austin, Texas, where staff have office dogs, yoga studios, as well as armchairs to unwind in.
However, despite these apparent luxuries, staff at the company have been less than satisfied with their treatment.
In October a former employee dubbed BetterUp a “literal circus”.
“The company is a mess”, they said. Adding: “Executive leadership is so detached from everyone else, engages in weird trips and spending, constantly shifts strategy and shuffles team functions.
“As others have mentioned, there is a rampant favoritism with select employees being able to use the company as a open playground: sidestepping any process, being put into multiple VP roles across org functions regardless of qualification, escalating (often via text) to the founders the second they don’t get what they want, never being at risk of layoffs.
“This often results in one person being able to single-handedly derail an org-wide project at a company of 700+ people”.
Prince Harry and BetterUp has been approached for comment.
