Saturday 11 April 2015

Volunteering

From the BBC

A Conservative government would offer up to 15 million workers three days' paid leave a year for volunteering.

Under the party's plans, a new law would be passed requiring public sector employers and companies with more than 250 employees to give staff up to three days a year to do voluntary work.

David Cameron said the plan would help to "build a stronger society".

But Labour called the plan "irresponsible" and asked where the funding was "going to come from".

Let's go with an approximate number, of people working approximately 4 days a week. Once you take out holidays, bank holidays, sick days, staff meetings and training, that's about the useful stuff you get left with. So, that's around 208 working days a year. If 3 of those are now training, that's effectively like those employers having 1.5% extra on employer's NI, or in the case of state employees, an extra 1.5% on the tax burden. Seriously, good luck with many UK companies remaining as bigger than 250 employees as opposed to split off into separate companies after you do this.

Now, I know that people think this helps employers, but that's just bullshit. I've worked with people who went off to Peru with Operation Raleigh to help people build bridges and they came back the same, but with nice photographs. You learn better how to write software by writing software than by building wooden bridges.

As it happens, despite being a "pledge", I'd be surprised if it happens. It's just some half-baked Cameroonian nonsense.

8 comments:

Steven_L said...

I'll be volunteering for my cricket club and taking 3 days off in the summer holidays to 'coach' cricket.

Tim Almond said...

Steven_L,
Victoria's Secrets have charity events. I'm sure I could find something they'd like some help with.

Mark,
Yeah. I long for the age of serious politicians who made "pledges" and stuck to them, because that word meant something.

Random said...

http://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/apr/11/cannabis-smokers-risk-poorer-grades-dutch-study-legalisation
Piss poor reason for opposing legalisation.

A K Haart said...

If this is ever introduced, then many people in the public sector will game the system so it becomes yet another holiday. It's what they do.

Bayard said...

AKH, when I was a civil servant, it was accepted practice to treat sick leave as annual leave. Indeed, when I mentioned to the personnel officer that I'd been ill whilst on holiday, he immediately, without being asked, changed the days I'd been ill from annual leave to sick leave. So yes, that is what will happen.

Random said...

What about a company with 249 employees? ;)
What is the name for this - business means testing?

Bayard said...

R, there'd be lots of those.

Tim Almond said...

Bayard/Random,

There would also be a lot of 250-1000 man companies that would outsource even more jobs.