The Division of Labour: Volunteers, Employees, Volunteer Management and Unions

The Division of Labour: Volunteers, Employees, Volunteer Management and Unions

In this Keyboard Roundtable, we’ll explore one of the perennial issues of volunteerism:  When should work be done by volunteers and when should it be done by paid staff?   Convening Editor Rob Jackson brings together a range of perspectives to explore this issue. Our participants will look at why we have differing views from each other on this important topic, and what common ground we can find between proponents of volunteering and those whose goal is to defend the rights of paid workers.

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Sun, 01/25/2009

These issues, as presented, are very complex and we seem to be letting the tyranny of the "or" take over. I have always believed in the brilliance of the "and." Because the largest union in our province has hired me to do several training sessions on volunteer engagement (with several different groups of union members) in the past two years, I have come to an understanding that a group of people who primarily views the workplace as adversarial has difficulty then working with an abundance mentality.(What are we capable of achieving? How can we get this done? What exciting things are there for us to learn?) It is hard for people to change how they view their workplace. And I'm not sure leaders are finding a way for this to happen. For many it will always be about us and them. Can we really examine changing how we view it to be about people first - all the people, paid and unpaid? That is the way to deliver our missions. A focus on people - all people - and delivering our mission.

Tue, 02/17/2009
I am sorry that there has been little response to this keyboard roundtable as I think the relationship between organized volunteerism and organized labour is one of our greater challenges over the near future, as we try to rethink how to support vulnerable people, achieve missions, and respect the legitimate rights of employees and the mandate of the labour movement. Still, it is very complex, and it's hard to know where to start. So, I respond to Colleen Kelly: your message sounds pessimistic. We are aware of the tendency towards adversarial industrial relations, but the very fact that you have been called in by union leaders to talk about volunteering is surely a hopeful sign. How might others from the volunteerism field reach out to labour leaders to continue the dialogue? Who might the volunteerism leaders be? What messages might be helpful, of interest, well received?

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