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.

Dont most teachers/school workers go into school over the summer to prep?

OP hasn't actually said she works in a school, everyone seems to be assuming she is either a teacher or TA. There's a lot of roles in colleges and universities which could mean full time work even working from home. I'm not familiar with primary schools but high schools sometimes have several members in a finance team for example, they might have been working full time from home. And I know our learning mentors have been working a lot more than many TAs, doing days in school with vulnerable pupils and home visits/zoom calls on other days.

Very narrow views of the roles in education on here.

Unless you’re a class teacher (when going in over the summer and working during holidays iis necessary), then YANBU.

It depends on a few things for me:

a) during lockdown since March have you genuinely been work as much as you usually do?
b) what is the work culture like? Will you be the only one not coming in for the unpaid over-time?
c) do you like your boss/place of work
d) would you have to pay for child care in order to come in?

Depending on the answers it would determined if I was to go in.

So many posters adamant about not volunteering at work in any capacity. I do hope these posters do not expect D of E courses and awards to be run in schools. That they do not expect school plays or end of term concerts or whole school sleepovers (primary) or fun runs or Book Weeks or post GCSE open sessions during the holidays or the hundreds of events that would not run if teachers did not give up their time voluntarily.
Or even bad weather days (snow) when extra lunch time supervision is urgently needed. Students who turn up at the end of the day for help with project work, advice about options etc etc.
I cannot imagine how schools would manage without the enthusiastic support offered by so many teachers and school staff in general.

Unless you’re a class teacher (when going in over the summer and working during holidays iis necessary),

Primary it may be necessary, secondary it certainly isn't.

I'm not sure "I'm not sure I should do my normal job for nothing" is a miserable attitude to have. Is this specific to people who work in schools? For eg. If a private sector employer decided they could make more money if their staff worked for free, would they be a reasonable request?

On a regular permanent basis? No they shouldn’t. But in a one off, unprecedented situation, it’s entirely reasonable. I’ve done it in the past and not been a grinch about it. We once had a situation where we were moving offices. The company we hired to pack up everything over the weekend to be moved on Monday cancelled very last minute. We had absolutely no choice but to muck in and do it ourselves as the moving date couldn’t be changed. There were some staff who genuinely couldn’t do it but we got a decent sized team and got the job done. If you aren’t willing to help out in a situation without sticking your hand out and expecting payment, I’d question your loyalty to the team.

It’s interesting that “loyalty to the team” is mentioned when your employer will happily lay you off and your former colleagues will soon forget you when you leave. It’s really just a job.

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.

If it's that, then yes, I'd do it, but at a time of my own choosing as normal. But it sounds as though OP is being asked to do things that she wouldn't normally expect to during the holidays. I wouldn't be going in for additional INSET days or whatever this is.

Loyalty to the Team? It's a fucking job, not a Saturday afternoon game of hockey.

Notthemessiah- exactly!

I’ve never actually felt loyal to any employer. I turn up when I’m told to, do my work to the required standard and go home. I’m pleasant and polite to my colleagues. Not loyal. I couldn’t really care less - pay me the money and I’ll carry on with my usual
good standard of work.

Lottery win and I’m never going back with zero fucks given.

I used to work term time for the LEA lots of term time only jobs in education other than school teachers and TAs. I have always worked with give and take. I have done unpaid work but generally in the knowledge that I will gain in other ways.

If you've truthfully been working all your normal hours from home, producing all your normal work, and the business you work at is under normal levels of pressure then of course say no.

But there's got to be some give and take. Many of us have reduced hours at least in the early days, or been a bit less productive with kids around, and many businesses have been under immense financial and logistical pressure, in which case I think you have to be careful about being a jobsworth.

I am an early retired teacher and I used to go in over Easter for 3 full days unpaid. 1 day for GCSE group, 1 day for Year 12 AS and 1 day for Year 13 A2 for revision. I also came back from holidays for 3rd Thursday of August Res UK ltd day for 27 years in a row. It is good to help the kids you teach.

@mrsmuddlepies

So many posters adamant about not volunteering at work in any capacity. I do hope these posters do not expect D of E courses and awards to be run in schools. That they do not expect school plays or end of term concerts or whole school sleepovers (primary) or fun runs or Book Weeks or post GCSE open sessions during the holidays or the hundreds of events that would not run if teachers did not give up their time voluntarily. Or even bad weather days (snow) when extra lunch time supervision is urgently needed. Students who turn up at the end of the day for help with project work, advice about options etc etc. I cannot imagine how schools would manage without the enthusiastic support offered by so many teachers and school staff in general.

Well said. Teaching is a vocation and school staff often go above and beyond. Staying overnight for a week’s school journey is a perfect example of staff volunteering and not being paid. If we didn’t do it, there’d be no school journeys. We do it for the kids.

I suspect if it was asked, it is because the level of work that was done at home was nowhere near normal and there was indeed at least some point, maybe at the start, a number of days where you could enjoy the nice weather in your garden.

Ultimately, he'll soon find out those committed to the school and those not so.

For me, it depends how much wfh you've actually done. I know among my friends and acquaintances it varys tremendously, some have really worked as usual, even been busier than usual, some have done very little. If you've had a lot paid free time over the last few months, I think a few days "goodwill" is a reasonable request.

I wouldn’t do anything. Sometimes the more you kick up a stink, the more belligerent the other person becomes and it turns into a battle
Of wills.

She’s asked for volunteers, just don’t volunteer and leave it at that.

If you don't, then don't expect any leeway back if you ever need it.

In theory Primal I can see your point, but many of us discover that flexibility at work only comes in one direction.

You could talk to the team that you work in. It would be stronger if you all collectively said no unless she pays you. But if some people want to volunteer the conversation could be awkward.
I would probably just said no, you don’t have childcare or have other commitments.

Absolutely @Goingdownto. I work in education and whilst I'm working outside of my normal hours currently to accommodate my students under normal circumstances I don't. When my employer stopped being flexible, many of us withdrew our goodwill. If it was my employer making this request, it would fall on deaf ears I'm afraid. Ten years ago, it would have been a different story.

Why is working for free a given in education? And everyone thinks it’s ok?

How many others jobs would it be ok to say well your off for two weeks however here is 10 hours worth of work and also you actually need to come in for quite a few days... everytime you have a ‘holiday’.

For most secondary teachers due to expected ‘revision’ the only time your actually allowed to go abroad if the first two weeks of six weeks holidays. Becomes quite restrictive. Don’t say we get loads of holidays because really the demands do not make that worthwhile!

It’s interesting that “loyalty to the team” is mentioned when your employer will happily lay you off and your former colleagues will soon forget you when you leave. It’s really just a job.

I totally agree with this! Unless your employer is an exceptionally good one, and would never stab you in the back, then I wouldn't be volunteering either. I've had zero "loyalty" from my past employers, despite them praising me for mine. Never again.

@sashagabadon

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. It's nice to help out if you can without demanding things in return all the time. Particularly if it helps where you work which presumably helps the kids in the end assuming you work in school?

Volunteering us a choice. Nice for you if you want to 'help'.

Employment is different, you do work for money, not to 'help'.

Money.