The United Way of the National Capital Area accepted the National Vaccine Information Center as a member charity more than a decade ago. A group of page administrators and pro-science bloggers are trying to work together to end this relationship.
Posts: 3134 | Registered: Mar 2005
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My company is really into the United Way; I don't know how it works with other companies. We are pressured to donate, so I donate to the Girl Scout Council I grew up with, located in another state (bwahaha). We were given a presentation during lunch one day about the local emergency help for poor people organization and were encouraged to donate there (there was a stuff drive, I gave toiletries, toilet paper and food), but if you want to give money to anyone else you have to hunt them down in their lousy online system.
I suspect they won't catch people who were not already interested and knew about the group, though I'm against the idea of the implicit endorsement. I assume UW has some anti-gay "charities" as well?
Posts: 1757 | Registered: Oct 2004
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quote:Originally posted by theamazeeaz: As a scientist, ick.
My company is really into the United Way; I don't know how it works with other companies. We are pressured to donate, so I donate to the Girl Scout Council I grew up with, located in another state (bwahaha). We were given a presentation during lunch one day about the local emergency help for poor people organization and were encouraged to donate there (there was a stuff drive, I gave toiletries, toilet paper and food), but if you want to give money to anyone else you have to hunt them down in their lousy online system.
I suspect they won't catch people who were not already interested and knew about the group, though I'm against the idea of the implicit endorsement. I assume UW has some anti-gay "charities" as well?
We're pressured pretty hard to give specifically to the United Way. I even had to help put together the fundraising drive materials in our department. But the United Way does an awful lot of good, so I don't mind helping.
Posts: 21898 | Registered: Nov 2004
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posted
Ironically, the only time I have been pressured to donate to the United Way, was when I worked for an organization receiving money from the United Way.
When I worked for an organization that funded non-profits, there was never any pressure to donate to any one. When I worked private sector, no pressure to donate. But working non-profits, at least twice a year pressure to donate.
quote:Originally posted by theamazeeaz: As a scientist, ick.
My company is really into the United Way; I don't know how it works with other companies. We are pressured to donate, so I donate to the Girl Scout Council I grew up with, located in another state (bwahaha). We were given a presentation during lunch one day about the local emergency help for poor people organization and were encouraged to donate there (there was a stuff drive, I gave toiletries, toilet paper and food), but if you want to give money to anyone else you have to hunt them down in their lousy online system.
I suspect they won't catch people who were not already interested and knew about the group, though I'm against the idea of the implicit endorsement. I assume UW has some anti-gay "charities" as well?
We're pressured pretty hard to give specifically to the United Way. I even had to help put together the fundraising drive materials in our department. But the United Way does an awful lot of good, so I don't mind helping.
I hate being asked to give money, even for good causes.
Of course, the Girl Scouts didn't ask for money and now they do. I need to get off their mailing list.
Posts: 1757 | Registered: Oct 2004
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posted
I worked for a small business. The United Way ran contests, giving out ego boosts to the small business owners who got 100% of their employees to donate. The pressure put on each employee depended not on the United Way, but on how much the small business owner wanted that ego-boost and cheap plaque.
The owner of the business I worked for was very into ego. He challenged/threatened the managers to get 100% of the employees to donate or else.
One week after the company did a major "Pay restructuring" which was a fancy way to say the cut our pay, the managers came out and asked for us to donate to the United Way.
Since the pay cut meant I had trouble paying my mortgage, I refused to donate. This was not allowed. My immediate manager donated in my name, and in the name of the other 5 people in my dept who couldn't/wouldn't donate.
For the cost of $100+ he was not fired, his boss was not fired, and the owner got his cheap plaque.
Posts: 1941 | Registered: Feb 2003
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posted
I was making $4.30/hr in 1994 and the director of the grocery store where I worked put a lot of pressure on every employee to donate to United Way. I remember getting the feeling that opting out wasn't okay.
It bothers me more in retrospect than it did at the time. Minimum wage workers (well, in my case minimum wage + $.05/hr) are not the right people to target for this kind of thing. Especially not if you're their boss who makes at least ten times as much money.
Posts: 4287 | Registered: Mar 2005
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