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Last summer, I threw upon the Clog what I thought was a casual question: is canvassing exploitative?
You know who we're talking about: the youngish, idealistic, earnest folks asking if you've got "a minute for the environment," or somesuch, that you see all over Center City — especially during the summer.
The origin of the question was a personal experience with a friend who had moved to Philly to work not as a canvasser herself, but as a manager of other canvassers. Her work stories were eyebrow raising, to say the least: she'd work 60, 70-hour weeks; she'd work weekends; she was required to put in what she characterized as mandatory "volunteer" time; she'd get sent out of town for trainings and have to sleep on a colleague's couch.
The little post drew considerable response, including a links to a veritable mountain of writing on the topic, ranging from worker treatment issues to the canvassing model of fund-raising itself and the companies and organizations behind it.
It being about as summer as summer gets right now — I thought it high time for some follow-up.
So I'm putting out the call: canvassers, field managers, directors — former, current, friends-of, and especially those of you based in Philadelphia — lend me your tips, tell me your stories.
Comments are always welcome below (don't mind our troll — it's harmless, and amusingly incoherent), but also feel free to contact me directly by email, especially if you have a story worth a little chat time.
To those currently employed and a little nervous: we can certainly talk about anonymity.
wow, inappropriate much?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/katine/katine-chronicles-blog/2010/jun/29/just-give-money-cash-transfers
Poor guy in the photo - on crutches so he had no chance of getting away!
While the people outside Whole Foods are annoying - and I have admittedly been suckered into joining Greenpeace by them - the thing that really upsets me are canvassers who knock on doors. First of all, I thought soliciting at people's doors was illegal. From what I remember, they put a ban on that after suburban kids realized it was no longer safe to knock on doors selling cookies. When someone unexpectedly knocks on my door at night, it's either a canvasser or a crazy person looking for money. Knocking on someone's door at night isn't safe for the resident OR the canvasser. Plus, telemarketing calls are bad enough. Do I really need someone interrupting dinner/sleep/work/sex/TV or waking my baby? It's appalling and needs to stop. And yes, I have contacted the environmental organizations about this because I think they are giving a very worthy cause a bad name.
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Philly City Paper, Philly News Now. Philly News Now said: Are canvassers exploited? 2010 update and call for tips!: Last summer, I threw upon the Clog what I thought was... http://bit.ly/9TjKAt [...]
[...] else in the daily homeless/insane/religious street parade. But City Paper has a curious question: Are these kids being exploited? Probably, but sympathy is tempered here by the fact that A) you’ve gotta be stupid to take a [...]
get over it ya crabby old bag people are just trying to make a few bucks go to wal-mart buy a $2 no soliciting sign problem solved, and trust me no one is interrupting YOU from sex with your dusty ol' snatch that hasn't been touched by a man scine the great depression.
It works like this - if you suck at it you're "being exploited". If you're good at it, it's a fun, well-paying job.
oh, and i know because i was a canvasser for four years.
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