AIBU to refuse to volunteer (and maybe even email my boss about it)

[Funkyslippers]

Myself and my team work on a term time only basis. We finish for the summer v soon. We've been working from home since lockdown, our normal hours.

We've now been emailed to ask us to volunteer over the summer to go in for a few days to prepare for next academic year but we won't be paid or get time off in lieu. Her words were "I'm relying on your goodwill at this time as I've supported you all over the past few months". Actually I feel it's the other way round! I've barely heard from her in the past few months.

We are under no obligation to go in and I feel like emailing her to say I could go in (but be quite vague about it as I have alot going on over the summer plus childcare) but to say I'm disappointed not to be offered TOIL or pay? I think most of the team feel the same.

Ignore and delete.

@sashagabadon Don’t despair you don’t know me and you have no clue the amount of work I’ve been doing during lockdown so leave it out.

Who asked?

Are you a teacher or a TA?

To be fair, in my old school, everyone would go in. Teachers because they needed to get the classroom ready and TAs because they wanted to help and were appreciated.

Depends on the school

Not to mention she’s being asked to do her job for free.

Its emotional blackmail. Maybe the government should put in some extra unpaid hours?

Most people have this kind of job because they have children. Just email back saying you cant get childcare & will be away

The thing about doing things to be beneficial for the kids is rubbish anyway. What would benefit the kids is if all teachers agreed to work for an M1 salary, then we could have plenty of TAs or lots of small classes. But people expect to be paid a fair salary for their experience, understandably. It's not unreasonable for non-teachers who work in school to be expect to be paid for extra hours worked, regardless of whether it benefits the children or not.

I'd just ignore the email. She's a cheeky mare.

Many teachers in schools do endless volunteering eg D of E expeditions ( weekends), Drama (school plays) , music performances, Year 11 Proms, Year 13 Proms, sports fixtures. So many things require a level of staffing if they are to happen.
Should teachers and school staff always be paid if they turn up to things like this? (in my experience, staff are always being asked to volunteer and I have never known them be paid)

If you've delivered your normal amount of work in lockdown, say no.

If you haven't, and thus the possibility of them managing without you might rear its head, do a bit if you still want the job.

At most, suggest you'll do a max of 3 days providing she pays your childcare and travel expenses. But stress it's a one-off.

@CuriousaboutSamphire

What team?

Most teachers would recognise this as the usual start of the new school year: going in, checking everything is where it should be and even getting ahead of the usual class tasks.

It's one of those things teachers try to explain when they are told they don't work any more, harder etc than anyone else.

But teachers aren’t laid term time only like the OP

PAID

@iklboo

Why wouldn't you go in to help out your team? Doesn't sound like thar big an ask. I've done plenty of volunteering in my time as school governor , in fact hours and hours of it, weekends and evenings and help often in a local activity centre for adults with learning difficulties with no expectation of anything in return.

But would you go into your own place of work on a voluntary basis? Choosing to volunteer is different to bring emotionally blackmailed into it.

Yes of course i would and indeed do. I also volunteer to help other people's kids. I spent 5 years being a school governor and not at my own kids school either. If i added it all up it would be hundreds of hours for which i received nothing. But i am a team worker type of person and like to help others. Some people aren't. Just glad i don't work with them.

*Work? = Pay.

No pay? = Fuck off*

Well, except when it's volunteering. You don't have to, but hopefully other staff have a better attitude.

I would do it if it were me!

sashagabadon - and very humble and modest too!

@GnomeOrMistAndIceGuy

So you work in a school? Do you mind saying in what capacity? Many of the teachers and TAs at mine will all be popping in a bit over Summer as they recognise that even though they've been working from home for the last few months, that in NO WAY compares to working their full hours in school.

I agree with this. These are extraordinary times and I would hope some people are prepared to show some goodwill. I can see why the head has asked and hopefully enough staff will offer to help. Not sure whether you’re a teacher or support staff but our support staff have certainly not worked their full hours since schools closed, even if you include wfh.

Some of it, for me, might depend on the attitude of the head up to now.

I’m a TA. In my previous job (not in a school) I had little things nit picked at and criticised to the point I had no confidence left and hated going into work. There was also a culture of ‘I don’t give a shit about your life outside of work. If you have stuff going on it’s not our business. You need to be here and doing your job. We don’t want to know.”

Current job - Head is brilliant. She is so appreciative of what people do. But also, I have had a couple of times when my children have been ill, or something has happened, and her attitude is “You need to go home and sort it out, we’ll manage.” Result is I have worked extra hours when needed, I volunteer for things, I have shifted days off around to help out, I have brought things home to do...

If your boss is more like the one in my first job, no way would I volunteer. It wouldn’t get me anywhere, there’d be no recognition, and certainly no flexibility back the other way if needed.
If they are more like my head now, then absolutely I would. I know if I volunteered now, then I know as soon as I needed some flexibility I’d have it in spades.

Yes of course i would and indeed do.
I also volunteer to help other people's kids. I spent 5 years being a school governor and not at my own kids school either. If i added it all up it would be hundreds of hours for which i received nothing.
But i am a team worker type of person and like to help others.
Some people aren't. Just glad i don't work with them.

But people who volunteer to be a school governor are volunteers already. The comparison would be are you willing to do several days or a week off unpaid overtime in your paid employment?

The OP doesn't have to be a teacher or TA. They could be a cleaner or catering, or work in a library or coherence centre at a university or all manner of jobs.

They're asking for volunteers. Just say you can't do it if you don't want to.

conference centre

@Etinox teachers are only paid for 32.5 hours term time plus 4 weeks holiday a year.

If it were only for a few days, and for the good of the business, then I would probably go in.

I'd go in and help.

I’m paid term time only in a school, Ive been doing well over my usual hours for weeks now, and I will be going in in the summer despite not being paid. It’s just what needs to be done for us as a whole staff team to do the best we possibly can for our children in these crazy times.

Maybe the difference though is that I’m made to feel valued and appreciated and well supported, my boss doesn’t need to ask for volunteers because she runs a good enough team that we offer when something needs doing. I think if you don’t feel valued and appreciated in your job, then it’s fine to say no.

Like someone else said, goodwill doesn't pay the bills.

I'd ignore the email personally. You are not her slave, you don't work for free.