Tim McShane wrote:
>
> Our Board of Directors recently underwent a few Board Development
> Workshops, and volunteer management was one of the topics addressed.
> The workshop facilitator (who directed volunteers co-ordination during
> the 1988 Calgary Olympic Games, and has remained involved in community
> development) definitely recommended firing "bad" volunteers. We were
> also encouraged to recruit volunteers based on how well their skills
> and experience met our needs, rather than just recruiting "warm
> bodies." Personally, as a volunteer and as a manager of volunteers, I
> prefer to think of volunteers as "unpaid staff," with the same
> responsibilities and rules for acceptable conduct as any other
> employee. I know it's difficult to "let people go" when there's so
> much work to be done, but as Robert says, it can sometimes be more
> work dealing with a difficult person than that person contributes to
> the institution. And as for bad will, if management has a problem
> with a particular person, chances are other volunteers have problems
> with that person too.
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> Tim McShane
> Curatorial Assistant, Parks Canada
> (also, Co-Chair of the Museum Division, Arrow 2000 Project)
>
> Views and opinions expressed are entirely my own, and do not
> necessarily reflect those of Parks Canada or the Arrow 2000 Project
> Association
>
> ______________________________ Reply Separator ____________________________
> _____
> Subject: Re: volunteer horror stories
> Author: Museum discussion list <[log in to unmask]> ("Robert T.
> Handy" <[log in to unmask]>) at PCH
> Date: 2/1/99 2:36 PM
>
> Has anyone ever heard of the idea that you can and sometimes should, fire
> bad volunteers? How much staff time was wasted on, how much bad will was
> generated by this particular volunteer? Doesn't sound to me like it was
> worth it. Yes, she would be upset. Yes, it is difficult to do. But
> would
> you tolerate that from a paid employee? No. Would a paid employee be
> upset
> if he/she was fired? Yes. So where is the difference?
>
> ------
> Robert Handy
> Brazoria County Historical Museum
> 100 East Cedar
> Angleton, Texas 77515
> (409) 864-1208
> museum_bob
> [log in to unmask]
> http://www.bchm.org
>
> ----------
> From: Heleanor Feltham[SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
> Sent: Monday, February 01, 1999 6:39 AM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: FW: volunteer horror stories
>
> We had one little old lady volunteer who took over the desk at our branch
> museum one morning a week. She advised visitors that it would take them
> four hours to see the place (which you could actually do in under an hour
> without missing too much), told them off if she didn't like their
> behaviour or dress, argued with the visitor services staff & other
> volunteers - in public - and had fights with museum security. She was
> particularly awful with children. Teachers with unbooked groups (who were
> quite entitled to visit) might as well have tried to get past a dragon.
> She would also trap innocent visitors asking simple questions and drag
> them around the place for hours, given half a chance. Everybody was
> frankly terrified of her. We tried all the usual counselling techniques,
> quiet meetings over coffee, assessments, peer pressure - if she didn't
> think you were asking her advice about some other volunteer, she dismissed
> any criticism as rubbish. Myself (senior person on-site), the Volunteer
> Co-ordinator, our Department Head - we didn't actually involve the
> Director, but we thought about it - we all tried to talk to her. We
> suggested that since she had increasing difficulty negotiating stairs (she
> had taken possession of our branch sever years before, and now walked with
> a cane) she might prefer a nice behind the scenes job with our main
> library. She loved that - but still turned up at our branch on her
> regular morning - and used the 'walking problem' to avoid morning briefing
> sessions! She stayed, triumphant to the end, until our branch was
> actually closed.
>
> I can't recommend shutting down your museum as a means of getting rid of
> an unwanted volunteer (and she still haunts the library), but it
> certainly is effective!
>
> Heleanor Feltham
> [log in to unmask]
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-museum-l [SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
> Sent: Sunday, 31 January 1999 13:26
> To: MUSEUM-L
> Subject: volunteer horror stories
>
> I am presenting a session at our state museum conference on dealing with
> difficult volunteers. I'm looking for real examples of real problems
> you have encountered with a difficult volunteer, plus how you solved the
> problem!
>
> Regards,
> Susan Young
> Shiloh Museum of Ozark History
> Springdale, Arkansas
As the director of a small museum with over 80 volunteers, I can't
imagine a bad one. I have heard about them of course, but I suspect that
there are lots of bad employees too, so I want to encourage an outlook
that is so damned positive you've got to have good volunteers. It works
100 percent of the time for us!
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