AIBU to think these expectations of a charity shop manager are unfair?

The toil system works well and is standard all over the charity and non-profit sector. Employees must be organised and take their toil back. Many roles require evening and weekend hours as much of the work is volunteer and community led, so flexibility outside of school and work hours is really important. I make sure all of my staff take their toil - but it does require reasonable organisation skills in the same way one must be organised and book their leave.

A lot of charity shops are short of volunteers. At least one local one won’t accept any more donations ATM because (dh was told yesterday) of lack of staff.

I do wonder why some of those 1m workless young people don’t volunteer for a couple of days a week. OK, they wouldn’t be paid, but it’d look good on their CV and at least show that they can turn up on time and do something useful.

I think its an absulute cheek when unpaid volunteers are subjected to this kind of pressure. Its up to the paid manager to negotiate her contract with the charity managers and not for volunteers to be fretting over this. But the managers sound very unreasonable. More volunteers are needed for Sundays.

Can't they close on a Sunday? All the small shops are closed Sundays locally to me, apart from the big chains, coffee shops etc.

Costs have gone up for charities so staying open those extra hours may mean the difference between breaking even and making a loss.

But if that's the case then you have to ask if charity shops have any purpose. They started because it was a way to raise extra revenue. With the added bonus that it allowed people with little money to kit out their families.

The first idea is no longer working and the second idea has gone by the board, as in an effort to remain profitable the prices have gone up to a point where they are out of reach of the people it was supposed to help.

So apart from potentially allowing some clothing not to go to landfill, what is the point of charity shops now?

Interesting to read for me. Where I am from /Europe/ lots of shops only have one member of staff/owner working. They close for ther lunch break or to run errands. They wouldnt be able to run at all if they had to have two people or manager on site at all times.

Is this a usual set up in the UK what OP describes?

It looks like the manager needs to learn how to manage a rota between them and the deputy. Not rocket science

It would be really interesting if you could list the reasons that make you so sure?

Is it oxfam?

I have a friend in a very similar situation (charity shop manager) lots of pressure and barely ever gets a day off. They are all about human rights, but not their own staff it seems.

What a wonderful woman.

Pulls on the old heartstrings. Probably works as well.

Well that's what we're told on here. Charity shops aren't for the needy and there to make a profit for the charity.

So these people can pay their staff to work.

This is your manager's job to sort. One of them will have to change their shift patterns. It's not the volunteers problem and frankly charities take the piss out of their volunteers. I'll never do it again.

Then she's an absolute fool to work those hours at that age.

She needs to tell them the hours/days she is working - and quote the 48hr working directive.

She cannot be expected to LIVE there.

I also would encourage her to name and shame the "charity" on SM or to the local press.

The Manager (OP?) needs to be firm & refuse.
I regularly hunt in charity shops, & it's rare for them to open on Sundays.

My mother was an assistant manager at a charity shop , until they made her redundant at 74 (They wanted to make her retire when it closed , but she refused )

At first she would cover every so often to help out, unpaid , but suddenly it became every week , and an expectation , rather than a grateful acknowledgement . When she stopped giving up every weekend , they tried everything to make her continue , until she pointed out that what they would be doing is committing wage theft , and that she had also spoken to other managers across the area , who were being pressured into doing the same . And what a pity it would be if the charity were to be investigated by HMRC , because the penalties can be ruinous ( my brother worked for HMRC at the time)

Suddenly they stopped asking .

These charities don't care about people all they care about is money.

Charities get an 80% discount on business rates, it's why so many charity shops are still going while everything else is closing down.

The manager is being a wet lettuce. Probably being bullied into it under the whole "but it's charityyyyy!" whine.

Here and the deputy manager need to come up with a rota to cover Sundays between themselves. But there should always be at least one paid member of staff on the premises at all times. Expecting volunteers to be responsible for opening and closing, just them, is not okay.

Really though, the manager needs to be looking for a better job, or standing up for herself a bit more.

Another had shocking food safety because they were completely inclusive.
I don't understand this @ViciousCurrentBun? Because they were employing people who couldn't understand food safety? Or something else?

It’s very hard to get good volunteers. I would never offer to run the shop without FT staff there. I left one place because they had poor safeguarding. I reported this. Another had shocking food safety because they were completely inclusive.

As a volunteer you can walk away, look at all the posts about colleagues who are a PITA but you are stuck with ‘Sue’ because you need to pay the bills. When it’s voluntary you can just walk. it also depends on the ethos of a charity. Some will take anyone, others will not so some of your colleagues are very interesting.

Charity shop managers earn very little and I think for retail it’s harder than a regular shop. No idea what your stock will be, underpaid, taking staff you wojkd rather not.

Lots of charity shops are shutting, it’s business rates and utilities plus so many people sell on vinted now the quality of donations has gone down. That’s why they are pressurising your manager,

You posted about this exact issue months ago @SorcererGaheris , with the added detail that your manager doesn’t even get paid for working Sundays

basically - I think your manager is feeding you a load of garbage

My DD is a deputy manager - clearly not the same charity as their shops don't open Sundays. Either her or the store manager have to be present during all opening hours, which I assumed was normal for all charities.

It seems that the charity is treating her badly. I'd suggest that she goes to Citizens Advice to find out what her rights are and get some help with (hopefully) finding a resolution. If her paid colleague is having similar problems they could go together.

agree with PP that managers can just change their days and each do one weekend.... or leave.

what do they do if only one volunteer can come, or none?

You have zero idea of her financial circumstances