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Volunteer hooky
By Cam Tait
July 31, 2006
And we thought the majority of nonprofit staff would be on holidays during July. We thought wrong. The comments on volunteers not fulfilling their commitments came in gushes last week, and as always, they were both interesting and enlightening.
From Kellie: "I have found that the warning time/bailing option equates to the type of volunteer position or the work they do. Committee members are usually a diverse, highly functioning group bonded by the common cause.
"The volunteer who bails is usually the younger one, like students. Maybe they have recently had a parent or friend diagnosed [with an illness] and their wind is up to beat the disease. If the commitment is to something boring, but necessary, like office work, and there is no other friend to 'hang with', the last-minute bail calls increase. In my experience, thank heavens, it is very rare that anyone bails on the day of a big event. The bailing at an event usually occurs when they haven't enough to do at the event, are bored, and then they want to leave early."
Beth says no-shows have to be factored into the equation: "We just recently completed a major festival in our small rural community that relies almost entirely on volunteers to carry out the activities and staff the event. As the coordinator of the festival, I always know that I need to over-recruit volunteers in order to cover off the duties of people who (a) call the night before to say they can't come, or (b) leave me an e-mail after they know I am no longer in the office, or (c) just don't show up at all."
Lisa writes: "This topic is one that I have ranted about many times. I think there's a vicious cycle that gets started at some organizations. A volunteer position is created, initially as a support role for staff, and the volunteer knows that the organization can 'make do' without her and so sees attendance as optional. Because of this lack of consistency, the organization is hesitant to create 'essential' volunteer positions, and volunteers continue to see their roles as non-essential. It's frustrating how many volunteers don't even bother to call in; they just don't show up.
"If I need to fill an essential role with a volunteer I choose carefully and move in an established volunteer who has proven their commitment. This approach is usually successful, but we can only have as many positions as we have committed volunteers, which are few and far between. Solutions elude me. With paid work, people are commonly motivated by fear to show up. They know if they play hooky one too many times they'll get fired. I have no leverage with my volunteers. The only thing I can do is try to make them feel needed and important, and hope that's enough to motivate them."
We'll save the last few words for Lana, who writes: "As someone who twice a month volunteers to cook, I try to let them know as far in advance as I can if my plans have to change. Having worked with volunteers for years, I know the value of their work and when someone you are counting on doesn't show up or cancels at the last minute it can be a real problem. I make a point of not committing to something unless I know for sure that I can fulfill my commitment. My volunteering is for Fridays between 4 and 7 p.m, and while I might be tempted to cancel at the last minute, I am always happy that I did go to help out instead of taking the time for myself and/or my family."
Cam Tait is a sports reporter for the Edmonton Journal. He covered charitable issues for almost 20 years. Thoughts, comments, ideas or a simple hello are welcomed at cam@charityvillage.com.
Opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of CharityVillage.com®.
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