At my job I work with many companies that offer volunteer opportunities to their employees. They say that volunteering creates a better work environment and a happier employee but some have told ne that having to volunteer when they don’t really want to makes them not want to be in that company. What do you think? Is it important for a company to offer volunteer opportunities and what kind of culture is it on a company when everyone is out for themselves and the condition of society at large is not considered important.
I love seeing companies that offer something like - 3 days off for volunteer work, not counting towards PTO. I think the optional aspect makes it more appealing, as I know employees tend to place importance on a work-life balance and having control of their lives. This model encourages community involvement as well as personal choice.
I volunteer as a crew leader for an outdoor stewardship non-profit. We basically take people out on the weekends and build and repair sustainable trails for others to use.
We encourage corporate groups to come out and I have had the pleasure of working with a few different groups of people who came because their company saved some spots. I have seen how these groups interact, some of them are people that already are very familiar with each other. We also get groups from larger companies where they don’t ever work with the other people that came out. I have definitely seen how these co-workers get to know each other and form bonds from doing good work that benefits the entire community.
With all this said, I think it is important that companies provide volunteer opportunities. I don’t think that it should be a requirement as the people who want to volunteer will find opportunities on their own if the company does not provide them, but by having options it can certainly provide a sense of togetherness for groups within the company. Some people just want to go to work, get their work done and spend the rest of their time however they choose rather than being forced into a certain number of hours of service, and if they are otherwise good employees there really is no point in forcing it.
I agree with everything mentioned - specifically like the idea of companies offering x number of days a year to volunteer without it affecting their PTO. I think this is a considerate way of promoting volunteering but not forcing anyone to volunteer if they don’t want to.
I also think it’s a great time to bond with coworkers outside of work. It can be nice to see people outside of a work atmosphere and it can certainly foster better relationships at work.