‘One of the worst jobs I ever had’: former Citizen employees on working for the crime app

Working for the app, which feeds users local crime information, is very traumatic' and the managers don't appear to care'

Susan, a former employee for the crime app Citizen, applied for a job curating the platform's content and notifications in 2019 in a pinch". She had a writing background, was having trouble finding work in New York City, and thought she could make some money while looking for a better fit.

By the time she left less than a year later, Susan said, she was drinking to excess because of work stress, had trouble sleeping, and had, at one point, cracked her tooth clenching her jaw while listening to hours of talking on the police scanner. As her mental health declined, her bosses at Citizen were not supportive, Susan said.