Employed people and volunteering
Volunteering doesn't have to take up a lot of time. You can choose a voluntary task that fits with your busy schedule.
Some people volunteer just once or twice a year, others get time off to volunteer as part of an employer supported volunteering scheme.
What do employed people get out of volunteering?
- personal & career development
- taking on new challenges & experiences
- developing new and existing skills
- meeting new people and making new networks
- raising community awareness
- putting something back
- fun ……….& as an antidote to aging!
No wonder then that many companies encourage their employees to volunteer, often giving them time off to work in the community (perhaps an afternoon a month for an individual, or a day a year for a team challenge).
Individual volunteering. Employees can use existing skills to help in the community e.g. a person with an HR background becoming a trustee of a charity and attending quarterly management committee meetings. This experience can be part of a personal develop plan and contribute to career progression.
Alternatively a volunteer might wish to do something completely different as a complete relaxation from work e.g. conservation work for someone who sits at a desk all week. Volunteer Centres can help you find a task which fits your interests and time available.
Group / Team volunteering is great for team building exercises and the publicity is beneficial to everyone. Local organisations often need a blitz of voluntary help to complete a particular piece of work and many businesses enjoy involving themselves in such activities.
Examples of projects undertaken by employees from companies include: -
- Mural painting at a school for children with special needs
- A work-based fundraising activity for a nominated charity
- Creating a new shrub border at an elderly care unit
- Redecorating a Women's Refuge
- Creating a wild life pond at a unit for adults with learning disabilities
- Planting spring flowering bulbs at the Hospice