I HAVE A JOB!!!!

[sibelian]

£20K!!!! Voluntary Sector!

YAAAAAY



Starting this morning I will be Policy Officer for a Voluntary Sector oversight group!

[Gothmog]

1. Congratulations

[lumberjack_jeff]

2. Nice!

[2naSalit]

3. Congrats!!!

I was fingerprinted today for my job that starts in May. I won't make as much but I will be making more per hour than most folks in my area.

Good for you, sounds like a good job for you!

[sibelian]

31. Fingerprinted?

uuuuh, is that a euphemism?

[2naSalit]

32. No.

It's a federal job that requires a big background check (public trust thing) which includes fingerprints as part of the investigation. Doesn't matter too much because my fingertips are such a mess the prints are useless, but I have to go through the motions. Had it done on a Sunday because a friend is an LEO and was on duty yesterday. I was a fingerprinting tech a few years ago but you can't do your own whether you have the kit or not. There will also be an oath of office recital when I start the job and some other security stuff... I'll even have an agency e-mail account, I'll wear a uniform and all that... but no gun!


Too bad it's only a summer job.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

4. Congrats, my dear sibelian!

I'm really glad for you!

Um...could you explain just what Voluntary Sector is? This is foreign to me....

[sibelian]

11. People doing work for nothing. Charity work!

There are a lot of organisations in Scotland that coordinate volunteering. For example, the Women's Royal Volunteer Service looks after a lot of the staff canteens in the NHS, and a lot of the in-hospital cafe's.

The culture of volunteering is a left-over from WWII, very strong in Scotland. There are people that volunteer to care for the elderly and demanded, people who volunteer to do gardening work on estates, all sorts of stuff. I have a friend who runs a permaculture farm in Wales who depends heavily on volunteers. In the UK, people with voluntary work on their CV (sorry, I mean resume!) are taken more seriously than those who don't, it demonstrates personal responsibility and the ability to focus on a goal for its own sake rather than an incidental fiscal reward.

The amount of work done in the UK through volunteers is huge - sufficient for it to be referred to (although not very publically!) as the Third Sector.

David Cameron tried to involve volunteering as a bigger part of the UK picture with his whole "Big Society" idea, which was a great idea except you can't motivate volunteers from the top down, all you can do is accept their motivation from the bottom up, so there's almost no point in politicians trying to make it happen.

All this means you have a workforce with extremely unusual needs and a culture driven by the rewards of the work itself.

Lots of stuff to think about for me, trundling in after 20+ years in health-related public service...

[Delver Rootnose]

21. Well it certainly ....

...sounds better to this american than the involuntary sector.

Congratulations.

(At first I though about making a joke about managing various sexual positions but couldn't quite think of one)

[sibelian]

22. Hm, that would have been fun too

Maybe that's my NEXT job...

[MannyGoldstein]

5. Congrats!

At the risk of sounding even stupider than is commonly known... what's the "voluntary sector"?

[sibelian]

8. Charity work. Volunteers!

http://www.volunteeredinburgh.org.uk/home

You can volunteer to do anything. Some of the opportunities on that page are

Driver - Oxfam Shop

Nursing Home Volunteer - TOR Christian Nursing Home

Community Publicity Worker - Volunteer Centre Edinburgh


Basically it's the part of the workforce that does things for doing them rather than for money. I've done a bit in my time. Now I'll be helping to coordinate bits of it.

In the UK it's often referred to as the Third Sector (after public and private)

[Hoppy]

6. Non Profit

[sibelian]

9. yup.

[daredtowork]

7. Congratulations! :) nt

[DavidDvorkin]

10. Congratulations.

[Behind the Aegis]

12. Congrats!

You seem happy, so I assume it is something you desired.

[sibelian]

30. Thank you!

While not being my dream job it is worthwhile and the people seem lovely. So, points all round...

[eridani]

13. W00t!!

[renate]

14. congratulations!!

[Recursion]

15. Woo-hoo! (nt)

[ND-Dem]

16. Congratulations! Hope it turns out to be a happy experience for you. Please pray or the

equivalent that I will get one too, if you think of it.

[lovemydog]

18. I just did, for you.

Good luck to you ND-Dem!!!

[ND-Dem]

19. thank you for your kindness. seriously, it meant a lot to me tonight.

[lovemydog]

20. Any time ND-Dem. Best of luck to you.

[sibelian]

23. I beam good luck vibes at you.

BEEEEEAM

(Please all the gods, smile on good guy ND-DEM)

[ND-Dem]

24. have them smile on ND-Dem too. :) thank you. and happy days to you!

[sibelian]

25. Fuck!

Vibes RECALLED and resent...

( )

[ND-Dem]

27. I know who they were meant for, it's ok.

[riderinthestorm]

35. (((Vibes))). I'm not a believer in religion but I believe in you!

Go get 'em!!

[ND-Dem]

36. thanks for the good wishes. your thoughtfulness is much appreciated.

[lovemydog]

17. Congratulations! Have fun!

[TerrapinFlyer]

26. Good Luck

Enjoy your new position.

[Phentex]

28. Congrats!

Happy to hear it!

[PeaceNikki]

29. Mozel Tov!!

[closeupready]

33. Glad to hear it.

[niyad]

34. congratualtions. may this be the start of a wonderful and fulfilling chapter in your life.