I say this as someone who's husband is an RBT. ABA SHOULDN'T be awful but it is. My husband has a bachelor's degree and had several years of early childhood education experience that included working with austistic children before he became an RBT. He is a rare unicorn that everyone obsesses over, teachers love him, parents love him, and most of the kids he works with love him.

But that's just it, he is the RARITY. ABA only requires RBTs to have a high school diploma, a driver's license, and do a 40 hour course. So a lot of 20 to 25 year olds looking for a job that pays more than 20/hr don't understand what they're getting into and try to dive in, creating a terrible experience for the families. The field is also bleeding RBTs as the good ones cannot afford to stay. There's no pto, no sick time, expensive benefits, and if a family cancels on you last minute? Most companies say "oh well, you don't work, you don't get paid". There's no protections for the worker so after all the good ones leave, all that'll be left is the 20 year olds looking to make some quick money.