Posts Tagged volunteering jobs

Volunteering on the rise in the tough areas

June 5, 2009 at 11:05 am · Filed under volunteering ·Tagged , , , ,

There have been stories in the news lately about the rise in volunteering since the recession hit. We have seen volunteer centers unable to cope with the demand for volunteering jobs, and seen people previously employed in middle to high ranking jobs become unemployed and opt for volunteering whilst they look for more work.

Volunteering may seem like a soft option for some. The volunteering jobs that spring to mind are things like assisting in a classroom, clearing a river of rubbish, or driving the elderly to the supermarket, and many have assumed that these are the areas that the new wave of volunteers have charged into as they seek to boost their employment credentials.

This, it seems, is not quite the case, or at least, not completely. Some volunteers have thrown themselves in at the deep end with “hardcore” volunteering.

The British Red Cross announced that volunteering enquiries have quadrupled over the past year. The average of 300 per month in 2008 has risen to 1,400 per month now. A spokesperson from the charity also said that the majority of enquiries in March and April 2009 came from young people.

All of this is fantastic news. Just when people are relying on charities the most – during a recession – others are volunteering their time. This is particularly relevant when charities are struggling due to a decreased rate of donations.

Meanwhile, the British Red Cross has been so inundated by enquiries that it has had to increase its ranks. Maryanne Burton, head of volunteering for the charity, said that it had increased the number of internships and volunteering roles to make the best use of everyone who wished to help.

Volunteering may not bring home the bacon right now, but it does help to lay the track for a fantastic future in an ethical job or a public sector career. If you are unemployed, looking to retrain or simply want to learn new skills, a volunteering job could be just right for you. Give it a try!

Author
Rachel Charman, a writer for JuicyJobs; Ethical Jobs UK – an environmentally friendly green job search board which offers free job listings to Environmental, NGO’s, NFP’s and ethical companies promoting green, fair trade services and support sustainable living.  For job seekers Juicyjobs can help you find the ideal ethical jobs in London.

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Protection rights for volunteers

March 12, 2009 at 12:49 pm · Filed under volunteering ·Tagged , , , , ,

Sometimes, volunteering can be a difficult world to operate in. Volunteering jobs can be wonderful things for both the volunteers, who gain contacts, training, skills and confidence, and the people on the receiving end of their services. When things go wrong, however, who can volunteers turn to? As they are not technically employees of the organisation they volunteer for, employment tribunals are not an appropriate way to redress grievances. Often, volunteers who have been in a dispute with their organisations or fellow volunteers can feel that nobody cares as the sector is generally misunderstood anyway.

Since the recession started, focus on volunteering has intensified. With unemployment rising and the need for greater help in many areas as people become poorer, volunteering seems like a perfect cure; helping retrain unemployed people whilst still delivering services to those who need them, within budgets. For this reason, there has been more attention on the role of volunteers and the protection they should enjoy.

The Lords last week debated whether volunteers should have the same equality rights as paid employees. Labour Peer Baroness Thornton said that equality rights, backed up by equality legislation, are not necessarily the right answer, but suggested that an ombudsman for volunteers might be a good idea.

It’s about time there was an official figure to whom volunteers with issues can turn. The Lord’s debate centered around an incident at the much-overworked York Citizens Advice Bureau, where 28 volunteers walked out following the dismissal of a colleague. Since that, a report has found that the CAB is not properly following governance and management rules.

This kind of thing is not uncommon. Last year, volunteers walked out of Pride London, the capital’s annual gay pride event, following the overnight and unexplained sacking of long-term, senior and hardworking volunteers. As has been said before, charities and voluntary organisations need to be subject to regulations and check as rigorous as those in the private sector, in order to protect people in volunteering jobs. It looks as though the Lords have taken a step in the right direction.

Author
Rachel Charman, a writer for JuicyJobs; Ethical Jobs UK – an environmentally friendly green job search board which offers free job listings to Environmental, NGO’s, NFP’s and ethical companies promoting green, fair trade services and support sustainable living.  For job seekers Juicyjobs can help you find the ideal ethical jobs in London.

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Boost the third sector: Boost the economy!

February 19, 2009 at 7:31 pm · Filed under volunteering ·Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Great news this week; Cabinet Office minister Liam Byrne announced that the government will grant a massive £42.5 million to charities, voluntary organisations and social enterprises to help kickstart the economy, help deliver services to communities, and give those made redundant a positive activity that will help them get back into work. The news follows on from calls for more and better volunteering opportunities, and more funding for charities as more and more people plunge into debt. Not everyone is happy, however, and it’s easy to see why.

Social Enterprise London is optimistic about the grant. CEO Allison Ogden-Newton cheerily said:

“At a time when our economy and our society are facing such challenges, it is deeply encouraging to see social enterprise at the heart of the government’s plans for recovery.

“The time for social enterprise is now, and with this kind of support we can ensure that London continues to lead the world in running business for social purpose.”

The grant, however, is too little and a bit late. Charities alone have been calling for better funding for months, and asked, as expected, for much more than the cut of the £42.5 million they will be getting. Some voluntary organisations are unhappy too. Steven Bubb, CEO of the Association of Chief Executive Officers of Voluntary Organisation, said:

“More is going to be needed as the recession unfolds, and in two or three years, £500m may end up being the total sum. Those smaller charities who support people who have lost their job will be coming back to the government and asking, ‘how can you support us more?’”

Following from last week’s rebellious outburst from Ron Aldridge, of the Aldridge Foundation, £16.5 million of the grant will go towards funding mergers and partnerships between third sector organisations. Aldridge last week called for a streamlining of the sector, through eradicating inefficient charities and merging similar ones to better share back office costs and combine other resources. It would seem that he is about to get his wish. Perhaps, using the funding to streamline the sector, rather than throwing more money at it, will be a more effective way of improving the services it delivers.

Whether the streamlining happens or not, however, the grant is great news. The government has finally latched on to the power of volunteering jobs, to give the unemployed skills, training, experience and a constructive and positive use of their time, all of which can help them get back into work.

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Rachel Charman, a writer for JuicyJobs – Ethical Jobs UK – an environmentally friendly green job search board which offers free job listings to Environmental, NGO’s, NFP’s and ethical companies promoting green, fair trade services and support sustainable living.  For job seekers JuicyJobs can help you find the ideal ethical job in London.

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Recession boosts number of volunteering jobs

January 8, 2009 at 12:10 pm · Filed under ethical jobs ·Tagged , , , , , , , ,

A volunteering job can be a great way to find a path into an ethical career with a charity or environmental organisation, or simply provide people with a way of giving something back. One upside of the credit crunch, it appears, is that the voluntary sector has been given an unexpected boost.

According to VSO, there has been a sharp rise in interest in volunteering jobs abroad, particularly in developing countries. Since October, VSO reports that inquiries about long-term volunteering have doubled compared to the same time period in 2007.

Projects Abroad is the world’s largest organisation for foreign volunteer work. Dr Peter Slowe, director, told the Guardian Unlimited that, whilst volunteering has always been and continues to be popular amongst students, there has been a marked rise in interest from older people who are perhaps already mid-way through a career.

Dr Slowe said: “It seems to be people who, because of the current economic problems, have taken early retirement or voluntary redundancy, and see this as an opportunity to do something they’d always had at the back of their mind.”

Neil Finnie, of Global Vision International, also reports that there has been an increase in interest in volunteering jobs amongst people aged 30 to 40. Mr Finnie says that part of the attraction of volunteering is the opportunity for quality training.

“We do offer all sorts of training; from dive qualifications to teaching, to something like a Btec in biological surveying,” he said.

“We also offer training programmes for people who want to continue to work with us, and go on to run field expeditions or manage projects on the ground. It seems that rather than thinking of the credit crunch in negative terms, people are determined to turn it into a positive and use it to do something worthwhile,” he continued.

Volunteering can open job-seekers’ eyes to a new career path that they may not have considered before, or help them find top notch training and experience impossible to get elsewhere. It can also help make important contacts, essential for starting out in a new ethical career, and even give job-seekers a better idea of the organisations and job roles available out there. Volunteering can also mean that, if a paid position becomes available, job seekers who have volunteered with an organisation have an instant advantage.

To stay informed on great volunteering positions, government policy on the third sector and all volunteering news, keep checking JuicyJobs.biz.

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