Manager asks to volunteer for a charity they are connected to

[thezoz]

I work for a large employer and one of the priorities for 2019 for staff development was to encourage volunteering - everyone got a couple of extra days off, people are encouraged to share their charitable activities and stories on the intranet etc.
My manager organised a group volunteering opportunity for the team with a small charity. The choice was surprising for some people (not a pet / family / sports / health organisation, but rather supporting a very niche cause, not close to everyone's heart, and some even may say controversial). After some social media research, it turned out that the manager's close family member is involved in managing this charity (this was not disclosed to us), and it is very likely that another family member is a user of the charity's services.
AIBU to raise an official concern about this situation? I am all pro volunteering (and do volunteer and fundraise myself), but it does feel like we are just being used as free labour to someone else's benefit, and this does not sit right with me. Shouldn't there be a transparent selection process in such cases?

No to raising a concern, but surely volunteering is.... voluntary? When the senior manager at my workplace wanted staff to use their volunteering days, they pushed for activities that they particularly enjoyed. Not everyone shared their enthusiasm and sought out volunteering opportunities for themselves. Everyone happy and hopefully some good done.

I guess my issue is that the manager's family will get a tangible benefit from it (either in terms of career / promotion or directly in service)

I really don't see how you work this one out. YABVU.

Initially, I thought that the boss should have declared his interest in order to be transparent about it, but given that he is from the same nationality, I guess he thought it was self-evident. I don't see a problem in him organising a volunteering day with a charity that he cares about. You've said that you can opt out if you'd rather do something else instead.

I don't understand what's controversial about the organisation that you have described?

I wouldn't raise an official concern about this, the charity is a legit registered charity and it's more likely that your manager has picked it because he can organise the volunteering easier with an organisation/ people he or she knows than anything else.
If you don't want to participate you have the right not to, just say that you will be doing the volunteering with X as it's close to your heart/ you have links with them. for example: "I'm going to volunteer for Alzheimer's disease charity in memory on my grandmother".

OMG. I am not anti immigration or prejudiced, I am an immigrant myself.
It is not a refugee charity, rather a community / cultural centre. Not a country in a war zone or riddled by extreme poverty, actually quite high on the HDI list and popular as tourist destination. Think Hungary for example (it's not Hungary).
Controversial - because the opinions on whether this is a worthy cause or not differed behind the scenes.

First it supported immigrants with legal advice and English lessons and now it's just a social group, hm?

My manager organised a group volunteering opportunity doesn’t mean you have to do it. You can just choose your own or organize your own charity group activity.

I get you OP. Please come and spend your time volunteering at the Hungarian Cultural Centre. It’s such a worthy cause. And my nephew works there.

Nah. And I doubt many others would be pleased to do this either.

Yes, I can totally see that you might think this is not a particularly worthy cause, it is not one I would donate money to. But honestly, it is hard to get local charities to accept a group of volunteers for 2 days. Because they are not there long enough to train them to do anything useful. All they can do is unskilled labour type work.

Do you work for the same big company as me I wonder OP? we are always being encouraged to volunteer, almost forced to give reasons why we don't want to.

I always say that with very elderly parents, one with Alzheimers and a brother in his 50s with SN then I am very sorry but charity and volunteering begins at home.

Personally I would just refuse to participate moving forwards or chose your own volunteering session. If it is the same company as mine, it is an ongoing thing and not a one off.

But please don't think this will benefit the relative working there. It really won't, and they are more likely to be agreeing to the volunteers as a favour to your manager.

Bulgaria?

First it supported immigrants with legal advice and English lessons and now it's just a social group, hm?
It is not a social group, it is a centre that does everything - from providing legal advice and application support (on housing, welfare and immigration), hosting art exhibitions and poetry evenings, running playgroups in native language, and providing evening English courses for a nominal fee.

Why would it cause conflicting opinions to support immigrants with Citizens Advice in their own language and English courses?

Ultimately this is no skin off your nose, is it? You will presumably be paid, it's just that for a couple of days you will be working for someone else.

@thezoz im really still struggling to understand why you are against this chsrity or why you deem it controversial? It is coming across from your posts that your a bit prejudiced....

YABU. I don't think I could say otherwise unless I knew what the charity was. You could refuse to take part if you have a moral opposition to it.

A quid says the OP voted leave.

My manager organised a group volunteering opportunity

I think opportunity is the key word here, it’s not compulsory.

Personally I would use my volunteering time helping somewhere I value, I already have things I’d like to spend more time helping with. However, if I didn’t and someone at work offered the opportunity to help out somewhere their family member would benefit from I’d be very happy to help...IF I agreed with the charity.

It’s an opportunity, stop being wet and just say ‘Hope it works out well, I’m going to be doing x’.

Companies organise group volunteering because it is team building and helps their company image. So I am surprised that you can opt out of it.

Tricky one OP - but you are correct to be sceptical and ask questions - especially if the manager in question was not open about personal / family connections with the charity.
Regrettably there is a real 'gravy train' in the charity sector and it is vital that people ask questions to ensure that their efforts and resources go to support good ethical charities. Before donating / supporting I take a quick look at the background. eg - I don't support the RSPCA but prefer to support local animal rescue charities and I no longer donate to Women's Aid but donate to smaller individual women's refuges - in both cases I have ethical questions about some practice with the bigger charities and concerns about the salaries paid to those at senior levels. So I donate where I am certain it is best used.

YABU: if you don’t want to do it, don’t!

I declined to volunteer when my team went for a day litter picking in winter in mud on the Thames, at the time I was sleep deprived and depressed and just couldn’t face it! I had a nice day womanning the phones and emails back in the office.

How offensive bob. This divisive shit is crap on all levels. I voted remain. I don’t know how the OP voted. She’s entitled to an opinion.

And agree with truth. I am increasingly sceptical about the charity gravy train. The Times has an absolute shocker of a story this week about some of the corruption still ongoing in the charity sector around the Rotherham scandal. Family members of the accused running charities on the issue of abuse, funded by the govt sector.

I do value MN as a place where people can say unfashionable things. Look at all the work and thinking that’s been done here on Mermaids et al. We don’t get to do that if we also sneer at people who disagree with the accepted view. “Oh I bet you voted leave” is a way of silencing dissent and we have to listen to all dissent.

YANBU.

Not all charities require, nor even expect the time of outside volunteers.
They don’t all have relieving poverty/suffering/ illness as their goal. Organisations may seek to achieve charitable status as there are tax benefits. Amateur sport, religion and education are eligible charitable purposes, which means that top public schools are charities. No one would ever suggest that you all go and volunteer at Eton.

I can completely understand that if the manager is involved with a (for example) Polish club/charity and his relative works there, that it does look a bit fishy and self serving. Completely understandable that some of OPs colleagues would prefer to give time to charities that are more about helping those in need, rather than helping those whose principal problem is language barrier.

BTW, I’m not knocking such organisations: My DGP were Polish and took me and DB to a local Polish club in the 70s and 80s; my friend was involved in his local Ukrainian club in Yorkshire when he was growing up, and my DFIL is also Eastern European.

I am probably BU to an extent. I just expected the team volunteering effort to be for a cause that is a bit closer to everyone - e.g. almost everyone probably has some familiarity with cancer or mental health, many people have pets etc.
I fully take on board the point that we did not provide any special service (we didn't, it was unskilled labour). It was a paid day off.
I did not vote Leave, I didn't even have a right to vote in the referendum. I am a moderate remainer, but it does not mean I can't see that immigration is a controversial topic.
For a full disclosure, I started this topic after a discussion with a colleague on Monday. He also was a bit about the opportunity. I guess we felt pressurised to join, but now with the benefit of hindsight I think it was self-imagined.