We recently became aware of a company that pays its employees to volunteer at organizations of the employee’s choosing. This community-centered company sees these opportunities as not only ways to connect to community, but also to give their people new skills and, potentially, leadership training.
Within the Arts District, volunteer opportunities run from greeting or tabling at events to selling tickets at the Speakeasy or serving on task forces and projects, writing articles, political cartoons, a comic strip or poetry. Except for board service which is ongoing, these opportunities are usually occasional.
We discovered that many of the staff at this company are still looking for opportunities, and there are more opportunities to be flushed out within the Arts District. Despite this perk being in place for many years at this company, we learned it’s surprisingly underutilized. But it got us to thinking: Are there other companies that award a paid volunteer hour for every X number of hours worked? It’s something to look into, for any reader who would like to volunteer anywhere but needs an extra incentive or needs to cover the cost of child care. If you have thoughts on this or would like to explore opportunities, email josh@northeastminneapolisartsdistrict.org.
By Josh Blanc and Margo Ashmore