Fired from volunteer position

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Spoonage

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Hi everyone. I'm just hoping to hear some opinions and perspectives on my current situation.

A few days ago I got an email from the veterinarian from the clinic which I had been volunteering. She basically asked me to stop coming in, just saying how they relied heavily on their volunteers and there was a waiting list, etc. with the gist of it being that I was unreliable.

Unfortunately, the day prior, I had to call in and say I would not be able to make it. I have been waiting to see a specialist in regards to a pulmonary embolism I suffered earlier in the year. They just so happened to have a cancelation and they called me that morning to say I should come in. Obviously I could not turn down the appointment as it is very important to my recovery (I may have suffered permanent damage to my heart and because of other factors having children is most likely out of the question).

Needless to say, I am extremely disappointed. I had no idea missing a day would jeopardize my continued volunteering. I had thought I was developing a good rapport with the vet and all of the staff. And I was not just blowing off days as I pleased. This was only the second day I had been forced to miss.

Has anyone else been in a similar situation? I keep trying to find something I did wrong, but I thanked them profusely every time for having me at the clinic, and did everything I was asked to do. I guess maybe I'm looking for reassurance that I didn't do anything wrong.

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It's hard to say if you did anything wrong or not, but I would definitely send an email back to the veterinarian if you haven't already. Explain the circumstances and that you very much appreciated the time you had there and you're sorry you're not able to continue. Offer that if they are ever short handed in the future they are welcome to contact you. And leave it at that.
I've worked in several positions where we had volunteers/interns and relied so heavily on them that even if they were calling out for good reasons we would let them go because we so needed the help. It's really hard when you have people calling out last minute.
 
You said you were only out for two days, but how long have you been there total? Two days doesn't sound like much by itself, but if you've only been working there two weeks, then that's a problem. How much notice did you give them when you called out? If you called out at the last minute both times and left them scrambling to find a replacement, I could see why they would be irritated, even though you had legitimate reasons for doing so.

It sounds like this is a very busy clinic with no shortage of volunteers, so it makes sense to me that they'd be inclined to replace someone who has left them shorthanded on more than one occasion. Especially since it sounds like your health problems are ongoing and may necessitate further doctor's visits and days off from work. It doesn't mean that you're a bad volunteer or that you aren't good at your job, it just means that they need more of a commitment than you are able to offer right now.
 
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i agree with both of the above - i volunteer with a shelter for about a year and when people didn't come in we ended up working twice our allotted times.

obviously your health comes first but when you consider the other side it's understandable that they need 100% commitment :) wish you the best!
 
You said you were only out for two days, but how long have you been there total? Two days doesn't sound like much by itself, but if you've only been working there two weeks, then that's a problem. How much notice did you give them when you called out? If you called out at the last minute both times and left them scrambling to find a replacement, I could see why they would be irritated, even though you had legitimate reasons for doing so.

It sounds like this is a very busy clinic with no shortage of volunteers, so it makes sense to me that they'd be inclined to replace someone who has left them shorthanded on more than one occasion. Especially since it sounds like your health problems are ongoing and may necessitate further doctor's visits and days off from work. It doesn't mean that you're a bad volunteer or that you aren't good at your job, it just means that they need more of a commitment than you are able to offer right now.

:thumbup:

So really, don't take it personally. Just explain your situation and see if you can go back. If not, look for another opportunity.
 
You said you were only out for two days, but how long have you been there total? Two days doesn't sound like much by itself, but if you've only been working there two weeks, then that's a problem. How much notice did you give them when you called out? If you called out at the last minute both times and left them scrambling to find a replacement, I could see why they would be irritated, even though you had legitimate reasons for doing so.

It sounds like this is a very busy clinic with no shortage of volunteers, so it makes sense to me that they'd be inclined to replace someone who has left them shorthanded on more than one occasion. Especially since it sounds like your health problems are ongoing and may necessitate further doctor's visits and days off from work. It doesn't mean that you're a bad volunteer or that you aren't good at your job, it just means that they need more of a commitment than you are able to offer right now.

This is basically what I was going to say :thumbup:
 
Ok so I'm curious... Are there a lot of clinics ( outside of govt. funded shelters ) that rely heavily on volunteers?

I guess the whole volunteer ran clinic thing is odd to me because I've worked in 2 GP's and now the ER/ Specialty hospital and none of the 3 "rely" on volunteers for Anything-- that's what paid employees are for.. If you are going to "rely" on someone for the overall function of a hospital wouldn't you want to compensate them for their time? I guess I just feel like a volunteer is just that- a volunteer. That is the beauty of being a volunteer- you are not an employee and do not have the same commitment to the clinic than that of an actual employee.. I'm not saying you shouldn't bust your butt while you are there.., and hey if you are an awesome volunteer you may even be hired on as an actual employee.. But come on- using / relying on volunteers for a large portion of hospital function to me sounds like they "using" cheap (read- free) labor to run the hospital which Is pretty shady.

I can totally see this situation in a shelter setting where it must be ran off volunteers because the hospital is ran off govt. funds, or ran off adoption fees alone/ donations.. but in a private practice? I guess that concept is off to me. Sorry for derailing the thread, just curious.
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I think that whenever you make a commitment to a place, volunteer or paid employee, you owe them what you've agreed to; in this case: a certain number of hours each week. Whether or not that particular clinic truly/literally relies on its volunteers I find to be a bit irrelevant- if they've scheduled her to be working (and thus performing tasks that presumably the paid staff need accomplished but don't have time to do themselves) they are relying on her to help alleviate the overall work load on the clinic/staff. So they may mean "rely" in a more immediate sense - we've scheduled someone to work today to make up surgery packs all day and you call out last minute and now our paid tech has to wrap packs and the doctor has to scramble to prep for surgery when instead he could be seeing Fluffy the drop off (for example).
 
Ok so I'm curious... Are there a lot of clinics ( outside of govt. funded shelters ) that rely heavily on volunteers?

I guess the whole volunteer ran clinic thing is odd to me because I've worked in 2 GP's and now the ER/ Specialty hospital and none of the 3 "rely" on volunteers for Anything-- that's what paid employees are for.. If you are going to "rely" on someone for the overall function of a hospital wouldn't you want to compensate them for their time? I guess I just feel like a volunteer is just that- a volunteer. That is the beauty of being a volunteer- you are not an employee and do not have the same commitment to the clinic than that of an actual employee.. I'm not saying you shouldn't bust your butt while you are there.., and hey if you are an awesome volunteer you may even be hired on as an actual employee.. But come on- using / relying on volunteers for a large portion of hospital function to me sounds like they "using" cheap (read- free) labor to run the hospital which Is pretty shady.

I can totally see this situation in a shelter setting where it must be ran off volunteers because the hospital is ran off govt. funds, or ran off adoption fees alone/ donations.. but in a private practice? I guess that concept is off to me. Sorry for derailing the thread, just curious.
.

I volunteered at a zoo and they definitely "relied" on their volunteers. Basically, volunteers did a lot of the work. I told them I could commit to x number of hours per week, but they kept asking for more. Not only that, but the volunteer coordinator was a jerk. He treated his volunteers like dirt and was constantly berating me/the other volunteers. I basically called in one day and said I was not returning. I did not deserve to be treated that way when I was doing them a favor as it was and I kept adding in more and more hours than I had told them I would be able to do.

Yeah, I do find volunteers in a clinic and relying on them to be odd. Probably because we never let people volunteer at the clinics I worked at. It was just too much of a liability.

OP, I agree with what everyone else has said. Send them an email explaining the circumstance, tell them you would still love to volunteer/help out if they need it ever and then thank them for their time and patience.
 
Shelters (as an aside, most are not government funded), rescues, wildlife rehabilitation centers, zoos, nonprofit clinics... all truly rely on their volunteers. The system of volunteer shifts depends on the organization. The wildlife center I volunteered at was equally serious about shifts as a paid workplace. You were expected to be there and if you couldn't, to find someone else and to give plenty of notice. On the other hand, the bunny socialization program through the same umbrella organization had me just show up whenever I felt like it for as long as I wanted.
 
Sorry guys! My post is not directly relevant to the OP, but I figured I would go ahead and ask while on the topic of volunteers. I've always wondered about the " clinic that relies heavily on volunteers" - if that happened alot in GP, and also why it happens... Why are these practices not functional without volunteers?

I always thought of volunteers as an extra hand, but not someone you actually "rely" on because the practice is/should already be functional without any volunteers. We don't have volunteers in the practices I've worked.. I have volunteered for a rescue, but we did in home foster so it's not like we had "shifts" at the kennel. I am totally naive to the in practice volunteer topic. :oops:
 
I spent about a month at the clinic last summer, and had been there since the beginning of May this summer. The first day I gave them a week's notice and everybody said it was totally fine, there was no indication that I was jeopardizing my position. The second time, I was called from my doctor at 9am and immediately called the clinic letting them know I wouldn't be in at 1pm. It's just frustrating because it was never implied how serious an offence it would be to miss a day, and the veterinarian was well aware of my medical situation.

And the email seemed inconsistent. She said she had a waiting list of volunteers, but when I emailed her about coming back this summer she immediately agreed. And when I asked to come in more often it was an immediate yes, which I would have thought would be offered to other volunteers. But from my experience, I was the only one ever there.

And as a volunteer, I actually wasn't needed that much. I spent most of my time vacuuming, mopping, general cleaning, doing laundry, taking out garbage etc. and watching whatever procedures were being performed that day. But this at most took up 50% of my scheduled time. For most of the day I was twiddling my thumbs and looking for things to do.

Part of me thinks that I was let go because I witnessed a lot of inappropriate in-fighting and unprofessionalism amongst the vet techs and the vet.
 
Weighing in with my experience:

I would say that none of the private practice clinics I have volunteered or interned at "rely" on volunteers in the sense that they can't do everything without volunteers, but the smaller clinics have definitely had the attitude of "Oh good we have a volunteer! Now we can stop being frantic and merely be extremely busy" or "Oh good we have a volunteer! Now those things that aren't vital but really should be done can be done now and not by someone who's working overtime."
 
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Ok so I'm curious... Are there a lot of clinics ( outside of govt. funded shelters ) that rely heavily on volunteers?

I guess the whole volunteer ran clinic thing is odd to me because I've worked in 2 GP's and now the ER/ Specialty hospital and none of the 3 "rely" on volunteers for Anything-- that's what paid employees are for.. If you are going to "rely" on someone for the overall function of a hospital wouldn't you want to compensate them for their time? I guess I just feel like a volunteer is just that- a volunteer. That is the beauty of being a volunteer- you are not an employee and do not have the same commitment to the clinic than that of an actual employee.. I'm not saying you shouldn't bust your butt while you are there.., and hey if you are an awesome volunteer you may even be hired on as an actual employee.. But come on- using / relying on volunteers for a large portion of hospital function to me sounds like they "using" cheap (read- free) labor to run the hospital which Is pretty shady.

I can totally see this situation in a shelter setting where it must be ran off volunteers because the hospital is ran off govt. funds, or ran off adoption fees alone/ donations.. but in a private practice? I guess that concept is off to me. Sorry for derailing the thread, just curious.
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:thumbup:

As you say, a volunteer is just that. We currently have a "volunteer" at our clinic that comes in when the dvms do and does nothing. So to my thinking, he is a shadower, not a volunteer. Every other volunteer that I have ever worked with has been eager to learn and asks lots of questions but not this guy. I also feel that a volunteer or shadower should not be hands on with the patients. It is a risk that I am not willing to take with our patients for a multitude of reasons. Also, we have paid techs to do the work so we do not rely on volunteers for daily operations.

To the OP, don't be disheartened. Do as the others have suggested and contact with an explanation and a thank you. It is all you can do.:)
 
I worked at a smaller clinic where I was shadowing/volunteering.
They let me get as involved as I wanted/could...

That was until a Chow bit me on the neck and their corporate owners found out about it. Then all I could do was gather dust for a while.

But then the vets said screw that and I was back to doing stuff again. It was kind of funny. The vets had recently sold out and weren't too happy about it obviously.
 
Sorry guys! My post is not directly relevant to the OP, but I figured I would go ahead and ask while on the topic of volunteers. I've always wondered about the " clinic that relies heavily on volunteers" - if that happened alot in GP, and also why it happens... Why are these practices not functional without volunteers?

I always thought of volunteers as an extra hand, but not someone you actually "rely" on because the practice is/should already be functional without any volunteers. We don't have volunteers in the practices I've worked.. I have volunteered for a rescue, but we did in home foster so it's not like we had "shifts" at the kennel. I am totally naive to the in practice volunteer topic. :oops:

It's illegal for for-profits to rely on volunteers like that...
 
Eh.

I just can't help but think this is one of those stories with two sides, because it's too ... something. I dunno. It's the kind of story that used to send up major red flags when I interviewed people in my last career. After all, if the OP really did fully inform the vet about the possibility of missing on short notice because of health issues, and the vet really did say "ok, we'll work with that" and then the vet really did say "thanks, but don't return" after it actually happened ... I dunno. It's just the kind of thing that made me think "um... yeah... I'm not getting all the info here."

Which means giving advice about how to deal with the issue is pretty pointless.

Anyway, OP, my only real piece of advice is to be honest. You described it as being "forced to miss." You weren't forced. You weren't coerced. Nobody made you miss. You committed to volunteering and then you missed because you chose to give something else a higher priority. At least one of those times it apparently was a significant health issue, which makes it pretty justified. I'd miss work for something like that, too. But it's still your choice, not you being 'forced'. Describing it as being forced is a between-the-lines "but it's not my fault!" statement. And as someone who has done a reasonable amount of hiring, I really tried to avoid people who didn't take responsibility. Perhaps the vet you were volunteering for is like that, too, and just decided to wash her hands of what she perceived to be a problem.

Not trying to be mean. I just think you'd do well to consider it from the side of the person who was relying on you to be there.
 
Eh.


Anyway, OP, my only real piece of advice is to be honest. You described it as being "forced to miss." You weren't forced. You weren't coerced. Nobody made you miss. You committed to volunteering and then you missed because you chose to give something else a higher priority.


I'm sorry, but I do think I am completely justified in giving my health higher priority. I almost died as a result of the pulmonary embolism I suffered, and though I would much rather not have to spend my time running to specialist appointments, I would also like to continue being alive.

But like I previously commented, I do think part of the reason I was asked not to return has to do with some of the things I observed at the clinic. Like the vet tech calling the vet "a horrible human being" and watching the vet freak out on the techs for a dog not being fully anaesthetized during surgery.
 
Eh.



Anyway, OP, my only real piece of advice is to be honest. You described it as being "forced to miss." You weren't forced. You weren't coerced. Nobody made you miss. You committed to volunteering and then you missed because you chose to give something else a higher priority. At least one of those times it apparently was a significant health issue, which makes it pretty justified. I'd miss work for something like that, too. But it's still your choice, not you being 'forced'.

I'm sorry, but I do think I am completely justified in giving my health higher priority. I almost died as a result of the pulmonary embolism I suffered, and though I would much rather not have to spend my time running to specialist appointments, I would also like to continue being alive.

But like I previously commented, I do think part of the reason I was asked not to return has to do with some of the things I observed at the clinic. Like the vet tech calling the vet "a horrible human being" and watching the vet freak out on the techs for a dog not being fully anaesthetized during surgery.

As you can see in the bold lettering... LIS agrees that the appt needed to be attended to.. His only point was that you were not " forced " to go.. Instead it was a choice to go..
 
I'm sorry, but I do think I am completely justified in giving my health higher priority. I almost died as a result of the pulmonary embolism I suffered, and though I would much rather not have to spend my time running to specialist appointments, I would also like to continue being alive.

But like I previously commented, I do think part of the reason I was asked not to return has to do with some of the things I observed at the clinic. Like the vet tech calling the vet "a horrible human being" and watching the vet freak out on the techs for a dog not being fully anaesthetized during surgery.

You're missing the point (and, you clearly didn't read what I wrote). It's not about how justified it is. I agree that attending to major health concern is more important than work. But that doesn't mean that missing commitments is suddenly without consequence.

Your feeling is "geez, this was legitimate, how can they let me go for that?!". But you need to look at the other side. In the end, why you missed isn't really as important as the fact that you didn't meet your commitment, and they (apparently) need people who are reliable.

Even if your excuses for being unreliable are good ... it's still unreliability. If they put a high value on reliability, you aren't a good candidate for them, even if your reasons for being unreliable are pretty good.

Anyway, I interviewed people for years, both as a news reporter and later as a hiring manager. My ears are pretty attuned to half-stories, and I'd bet my right arm this is one of them. There's more to this story. *shrug*
 
I apologize, I did read everything you had written. I don't want to turn this into a keyboard war, but as you can probably understand, I am very upset over this issue. I absolutely did not have a gun pointed to my head, but I don't really think there was a choice since the appointment was very important to my continued health.
I am just very upset because I had thought I was developing a good relationship with the veterinarian and the seriousness of having to miss the day were not impressed upon me. I was very shocked with the news that I was not invited back.
And I am absolutely not telling half of the story. The vet was well aware of my health concerns. I know I gave them very short notice but I had no way of knowing an appointment with my hematologist would suddenly become available.
Thank you everyone for your perspectives on the issue. I've been fortunate enough to find several other places that will let me volunteer.
 
Ok so I'm curious... Are there a lot of clinics ( outside of govt. funded shelters ) that rely heavily on volunteers?

I guess the whole volunteer ran clinic thing is odd to me because I've worked in 2 GP's and now the ER/ Specialty hospital and none of the 3 "rely" on volunteers for Anything-- that's what paid employees are for.. If you are going to "rely" on someone for the overall function of a hospital wouldn't you want to compensate them for their time? I guess I just feel like a volunteer is just that- a volunteer. That is the beauty of being a volunteer- you are not an employee and do not have the same commitment to the clinic than that of an actual employee.. I'm not saying you shouldn't bust your butt while you are there.., and hey if you are an awesome volunteer you may even be hired on as an actual employee.. But come on- using / relying on volunteers for a large portion of hospital function to me sounds like they "using" cheap (read- free) labor to run the hospital which Is pretty shady.

I can totally see this situation in a shelter setting where it must be ran off volunteers because the hospital is ran off govt. funds, or ran off adoption fees alone/ donations.. but in a private practice? I guess that concept is off to me. Sorry for derailing the thread, just curious.
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I feel the same... The fact that the clinic heavily relies on volunteers seems very very strange.
 
Most of my volunteer time at shelters and vet clinics have involved me coming in a a schedule time. I have missed more than a few weeks at my last clinic because of a transit strike. I was allowed back and I also cleaned and twiddled my thumbs a lot.

I just wanted to comment on the topic of a place relying heavily on volunteers.

I had a job interview last week at a privately run animal shelter.

They hire staff to do the cleaning. The only thin volunteers are allowed to do in the shelter is socialize with the animals. He explained why. Because volunteers are more unreliable than staff. If they want to take off on vacation for two weeks, why should they honor their shift at a shelter? They're not being paid. Some of them don't do as good a job cleaning because they aren't being paid. You have to have a larger volunteer roster in order to make up for the people who can't come and it can be more difficult to keep tabs on them when it comes to cleaning, caring for the animals, and dealing with the public.

This place sounds wishy-washy. If the staff is being treated like crap and its making you uncomfortable, cut your losses and try to find something else to do with your time.
 
Sorry guys! My post is not directly relevant to the OP, but I figured I would go ahead and ask while on the topic of volunteers. I've always wondered about the " clinic that relies heavily on volunteers" - if that happened alot in GP, and also why it happens... Why are these practices not functional without volunteers?

I always thought of volunteers as an extra hand, but not someone you actually "rely" on because the practice is/should already be functional without any volunteers. We don't have volunteers in the practices I've worked.. I have volunteered for a rescue, but we did in home foster so it's not like we had "shifts" at the kennel. I am totally naive to the in practice volunteer topic. :oops:

KP- When I shadow for my equine vet, sometimes I am "relied upon". Not in the way that the practice wouldn't function without me, but in that they will make the schedule for the day depending on my presence. They have fewer vet techs than vets, so they always schedule farm calls that need techs for the day carefully. Since I'm fully capable of holding horses, holding x-ray films properly, jogging horses for lameness exams, etc, they will have schedule calls like that with the vet I'm with and that way can save their techs to be available for things requiring their training. If I canceled that morning they'd be in a bind, because they would have scheduled differently otherwise.


To the OP- it sounds like they were using you for a free cleaning service anyway, which is not really the point of shadowing. You should be observing the vets and learning, not mopping floors. Unless you are wanting to get work experience to lead to future employment. Just my opinion though.
 
This is a general suggestion, for the OP and others:

If you're going to miss shifts for whatever reason, demonstrate your commitment in other ways. I probably miss a weekly shelter shift every 6-8 weeks (travel, needing extra study time, family stuff, etc), but I don't think I'd ever be scolded for it because I get a lot done when I am there, I always stay for an extra hour past my shift end time, I'm always trying to learn new skills and gain responsibilities other volunteers don't have, and I come in on special days when they need even more help. (I've always been thanked for calling in ahead when I miss a day, as many volunteers just stop showing up or only show up sporadically, without any notice to staff.) Strive to be a stand-out volunteer, which should buy you some leeway on occasional missed shifts.

:thumbup: Same experience - I may not have been the most consistent volunteer at the GP I did most of my vet hours at, but damn if I wasn't one of the most productive by far. Things that I organized and labeled are still set up that way, and I feel like I took a lot from the experience while other students at the same clinic just considered it drudge work.
 
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