The Post Traditional Volunteer
I want you to think about what the following four people have
in common?
Luke is passionate about his volunteer work. Luke lived on the
street for several years. He reckons that one of worst things about
being on the street is hanging around with little to do, except
survive. So he began volunteering and now is a youth advocate for
the Brisbane Youth Service. He aims to involve young people who
live on the streets in a range of volunteer projects. But first
he is speaking out to convince community organisations to put aside
their prejudices about those living on the street and young people,
and to consider reimbursing fares and lunches.
Mary lives with bipolar disorder and was in and out of hospital
for many years. Around 10 years ago she set up LINKs, a self-group
which assists people with mental health issues. It is a tremendously
effective group, making a real difference in people's lives. Mary
has for the most part actively avoided seeking funding. She believes
the group works because everyone volunteers and almost everything
is donated.
Ann moved into Carole Park and she didn't like the area much when
she moved there - so she decided to get involved and change it.
She now plays a key role in the community centre - provides workshops
and has developed a range of childcare options for residents. More
importantly she has developed a range of funding and business support
from the council and with businesses in the area - which has brought
very positive financial rewards for the community. She is a social
entrepreneur.
Don stood up in a workshop in Cairns and announced rather dramatically
that volunteering saved his life. After 25 years as an accountant
in the same firm, he was retrenched at 54. He was desperate to find
work and tried everything. He went on the Voluntary Work Initiative
and volunteered with Meals on Wheels. He found a place there five
days a week and started putting a range of systems into place. He
now has some paid work there and still volunteers for the rest of
the week.
Firstly I have had the great pleasure of working with these people
in various workshops and programs in the past twelve months. Secondly
they form part of the growing number of post-traditional volunteers
(PTVs)
There are many other people I could of chosen who represent this
growing group - virtual volunteers who volunteer through the Internet,
event volunteers who work with Goodwill Games or people who volunteer
as part of their corporate involvement.
These volunteers all challenge our views of volunteering in a
number of ways and I want to briefly discuss those.
1. The notion of pure altruism or selflessness linked to volunteering.
People are far more willing to recognise that there is something
in it for me as well as the community. Many people see volunteering
as a form of personal development and expression. For many others
it is a pathway to paid work. Others want to link their passions
/ their interests in whatever work they do.
This mix of motivations brings an added dimension to our work
environments as we aim to satisfy the goals of organisations and
the goals of individuals. It brings different skills and passions
that assist our communities.
It challenges our traditional idea of volunteering as helping.
We need to review this concept to one of reprocicity - how can we
help each other. Some traditional volunteers and organisations are
angry or upset that PTVs are in it for the wrong reason.
Yet perhaps in a world with so much work to be done, it is best
as Berholdt Brecht suggested to " worry less about being good
person, and worry more about leaving a better world.”
2. The classic separation between paid and unpaid work.
These new volunteers are seeking more innovative ways to link
their volunteer and paid work. The changing nature of work, corporate
volunteering, the idea of developing a portfolio of skills through
volunteer and paid work, the excitement around social entrepreneurs...all
challenge our idea that we can contain volunteer and paid work in
separate boxes.
This challenges us in a range of ways - we are anxious that volunteer
work does not replace paid work, we recognise that people need an
income to support themselves and their families. We are nervous
that governments will not adequately fund organisations or groups
because they know volunteers to do the work.
Yet I am sure it is possible to protect and develop paid work,
while being more flexible with our volunteer work. In fact to actively
support volunteering in such a way that it provides scope for developing
into paid work.
3. Volunteers as unquestioning assistants happy to do anything
to help.
Many PTVs are not willing to play the docile volunteer. They are
less willing to take poor treatment or meaningless work. If not
heard they will move on and choose other organisations or set up
alternative structures. The traditional allegiances to organisations
are dead.
And they are challenging hierarchical structures, questioning
traditional power relationships and testing issues of inclusion
and equal opportunity. Often we are unprepared and under-resourced
to deal with it. A further question is who will do the meaningless
work?
4. Volunteering as something you do in your spare time.
We are leaving behind the idea that volunteering is a regular
one-day a week commitment. Some people volunteer 7 days a week for
intense periods then take time off. Many others seek one-off projects,
or special days and events.
More importantly many of the people I work with see volunteering
as central to who they are. It is a passion for making a difference
in the world. Having agency. Being able to impact on our lives and
the community. Many see their paid work as something that supports
them to do their main role as volunteers and agents of change. In
their paid work many feel they are exchanging all their energies
and creativity for money.
And for those who can not obtain paid employment, volunteering
offers them a space and a place in which they can find meaningful
work, a chance to contribute, to learn new skills, develop networks
and them to act in the world.
This group offers enormous potential to enhance the role of civil
society. If we are to fully utilise and recognise the work of these
people there are some fundamental things we need to do.
We need to ensure that our definitions of volunteering are broad
and recognise volunteering in all its forms: formal and informal,
service and activism, community development and community renewal.
Social entrepreneurs are integrally involved with volunteering.
We need to challenge the assumptions about volunteering as service
and helping. Challenge our assumptions that volunteer work is only
about stuffing envelopes or assisting paid staff. Particularly challenge
our idea that volunteering is something you do in your spare time.
We need to develop more innovative and appropriate methods of
working with volunteers. We need to focus on the key elements of
inclusiveness, learning, meaningful involvement and meaningful work
and to paraphrase Samuel Beckett - we need to find organisational
forms that can incorporate rather than exclude the chaos.
Finally we need to give priority to, recognise and support the
development of community leadership within communities rather than
external to them. Community leadership needs to be re-conceptualised
as those who can facilitate effective action, those who can voice
concern, those who can build effective networks, and those who can
find common ground in community while maintaining certain values
of fairness and social justice. Many of these community leaders
are volunteers.It is volunteers traditional or post traditional
who bring their passions, their enthusiasms and their skills, makes
the work that I do and the world of volunteering such an exciting
and rewarding world to be a part of. I would be interested to hear
from anyone with further ideas or interests on this topic. You can
e-mail me at education@volqld.org.au.
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