fandomsecrets | [ SECRET POST #2783 ]

[ SECRET POST #2783 ]

⌈ Secret Post #2783 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

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Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I've been volunteering 15+ hours a week for this place, for 2 years, while simultaneously looking for a job (and making it known I needed a job BAD) to pay down my student loans. And watching 2 other volunteers get hired at the place instead of me. For both of them, it's their second job. My family's like, fuck 'em, volunteer somewhere else...

They're good people. I genuinely like being there with them and doing the work. I can't believe that they're screwing me over specifically. I just feel like volunteering is a fucking joke system, and won't get me anywhere.

I don't know if I can put myself through another round of slave labor on the off chance it gets me anywhere.

By volunteering do you mean.... unpaid internship? because if you can't understand the purpose of volunteering, I don't know what to say. Hint: it's not so you can get something out of it.

Fuck if I know. People tell me volunteering somewhere leads to a job. Apparently that is bullshit.

No, volunteering doesn't "lead to a job" any more than your degree or your previous jobs lead to a job.

It is experience (which you can put on your CV/resume), and it is an opportunity to network. If you have no interest in doing unpaid labor, or talking to others to see if they might know of a job opening, then maybe volunteering isn't for you.

Except that in this instance it clearly did lead to a job--for your two colleagues. So maybe before you dismiss the whole idea as bullshit and "a fucking joke system," maybe you should consider that if they were hired and not you, it might be that they brought more value to the organization than you. If your attitude in this thread is any indication of your attitude on the job, I wouldn't want you on my team either.

It looks good on a resume, basically. Employers feel better about hiring you if they know you'll do unpaid work, not because they plan on shortchanging you or anything, but rather because that probably means that the paycheck isn't going to be the only thing on your mind.

Sorry about your bad luck, though. I'd say keep at it, and keep applying to places. Make sure your resume stands out a bit, too.

I know the feeling :( I've been in similar situations.

Since you've said they're generally good people to work with, is there anyone there you can ask about it? Like, not in an aggressive way, but framed as "is there something I'm not doing or that can be improved? I want to be employable, please help me to be awesome <3" instead of "y u no give me work, you losers??".

I don't get volunteering in that here the process to become a volunteer at any reputable place is more difficult than getting a job. I've been told it's to help you network and get a job too. But the way I see it, if I'm going to be putting all this effort into finding a volunteer position that isn't going to pay me, I might as well divert those efforts into find a job that will.

In your case, it might be a case of free labor for them. Which is unfair and is the way I feel about a lot of internships. 8 weeks full-time for less than $1000 doesn't sit right. And these companies are getting away with it. I'd much rather to through trial hires than that.

If you're equating volunteering with slave labor, volunteering is not the route for you. I don't know the specifics of your job, but if what you're doing is equivalent to a paid job...you're getting screwed. But if not? You're just a volunteer doing bit duties to pick up the slack, and that happens a lot. Get the experience on your resume and find somewhere else.

Since you brought it up, though, another thing you might want to consider is that the practice you're at can't afford to pay someone a living wage. Did the other two volunteers have an hours increase? It's a little telling that it's a second job for both, and the people you work with might just be avoiding hiring you because they know they can't pay you that much.

Since you brought it up, though, another thing you might want to consider is that the practice you're at can't afford to pay someone a living wage.

My guess is that this is what's going on, because I've been in the same situation before. I volunteered for a place who loved me and the work I did and was even awesome enough to be able to pay me for my work for a few months when I was in a really tight spot, but who couldn't hire me permanently because they just didn't have the funds to be able to pay me a living wage. The other people who worked there worked part-time as a second job, so the pay rate wasn't as important to them.

Volunteering only leads to something if you have some pretty good networking skills. And anyone with good networking skills can get a job using something else.

Other than that, you're only getting some experience to put in your resume.
~~Also, some employers think that someone having experience volunteering means they don't need money and it's ok to pay them less. That's not true for all employers, but my experience was like that.~~

Because you enjoy it? The above anon is right, if you're thinking of it as "slave labor" or as a "fucking joke system" then I'm not surprised you didn't get hired. You clearly aren't there because you enjoy what you're doing and that's probably coming across to the the people in charge.

Volunteering isn't supposed to be a guaranteed path to a job. Lots of people volunteer just because they want to, with no intentions of turning it into a job. It CAN lead to a job, but you shouldn't go into volunteering with the hopes of landing one. You should do it because you want to give your time to a cause.

I am not in the mood to explain things to you, but FYI - you're wrong.

agreed. OP sounds pretty entitled, not going to lie. Volunteering can teach you skills, or give you experience relevant to a job you want to pursue. But if you volunteer and all you can think about is yourself, then you probably don't have the passion required to be in whatever field you're pursuing anyway. super shame on you if it's some kind of direct help group and you're bitching that it's not helped you find a job.

Exactly. Volunteering is about giving to others. Most places that accept volunteers do so because they can't afford to pay people for the work, usually because they're non-profits.

I volunteer for a non-profit that does work in a field that interests me. As much as I'd love to work for them, they can only afford to have three full-time staff, and I know this. They rely on volunteers for everything else.

However, they did give me excellent recommendations, and they helped point me in the direction of other similar organizations that might be hiring. The experience also looked good on my resume because it was in my field of study.

Doubt it's a money issue if 2 people other than OP were hired. 2 is more than 1.

OP said it was a second job for both of them, though, which means part-time. OP likely wants a full-time job that pays well, whereas the other two people might have been willing to accept low pay because it isn't their only job.

Amazing how the collective opinion here is: No money > Any money at all

Jesus christ.

The point of volunteering is to meet people, devote some time to causes/organizations that you believe in, and/or learn some skills that you might not otherwise have the chance to learn. It is not to get a job.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ SECRET POST #2783 ]

What's the point of volunteering?

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