Including volunteer work on resumes

Kate Southam, Editor

Ask Kate Column: I recently wrote about the unpaid leave provisions flagged in the Fair Work Bill to allow people to do voluntary work.

One lawyer feared employers could discriminate against candidates who list volunteering on their resume.

Reader Chris Duncan has a background that includes recruitment and he disagrees.

Read his comments in full

In response to the Ask Kate column entitled ‘Listing hobbies on resume could hinder your job opportunities’ in the Thursday, January 22nd edition of Quest, I would like to dispute the argument that volunteering activities should be left out of an applicants resume for fear of unfair and adverse discrimination.

As a volunteer for two reputable and respectable organisations, I would like to reassure the masses that volunteering is beneficial not only in terms of providing valuable content for one’s CV, but also as a means to provide valuable life skills to better yourself and your employment prospects.

With a current economic crisis and competition for employment steadily increasing, I am a staunch believer, based on my marketing, PR and recruitment experience, in the power of productive volunteering: volunteering that is not only in line with your vocation (preferred or actual), but that similarly challenges you in a manner that a paid position would.

When you look at it from an employer’s perspective, volunteering should be deemed as adding something to your repertoire as a candidate. For example, volunteering in a fruit orchard, while beneficial, may not be the ticket for attaining a career as a human resources manager.

Much like you would tailor your CV, tailoring your volunteer work experience is just as important. A career minded volunteer can harness employment based discrimination in a productive way by showing through their volunteering activities that they are not just perceived as being the best person for the job, but that they are, in-fact, the best person based on their added experience. Experience, volunteer or not, equals results in the employment sector.

In addition, with PM Kevin Rudd endorsing a new scheme at the 2020 summit allowing for HECS debt discounts for those part of a volunteering Community Corps programme, volunteering has an added benefit for those “1.3 million Australians with a higher educational debt” (‘Prime Minister Kevin Rudd plans to recruit young volunteers’, Packham, Herald Sun, January 28, 2009).

In terms of the industrial relations laws changes, I find it comical to think that 1) pre-screening is taking place on behalf of employers as a result of changes to leave requirements, and 2) this would be sited as a reason to avoid volunteering and/or highlighting your volunteering achievements on your CV.

A driven, committed and talented worker, whether they volunteer or not, is surely a decisive bonus for any organisation. In saying that, however, a volunteer should provide their organisation with respect in terms of leave notice.

With the advent of Virtual Volunteering activities, becoming active and involved is as easy as devoting your weekend or evening time to organisations in need. The notion of sacrificing paid employment time for volunteering activities is easily avoidable and mutually beneficial for all involved. However, even if volunteering takes place over paid company hours, most organisations will realise that two heads – the second being a talented employee/volunteer - are better than one; especially with the second head increasing their market value by improving their skills set to the benefit of all involved.

At the end of the day, there is no doubt that volunteering is changing in terms of the expectations for both the volunteer and organisation alike. The stakes are higher and the expectations greater, but with that comes improved rewards. Your volunteering experience could be that deciding factor in you getting the position of your dreams - it has been for me!

Article from CareerOne.com.au

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