Here we go again-corporate sponsored United Way fundraising

[scout1222]

They just take, take, take, don't they??

[Brutus]

Much like Enron, UW takes in all this money, but where is the investors pay-off? I hear that UW just gives money away to all sorts of people. What the hell sort of way to run a buisness is that?

[Polycarp]

They even took the OP! Damn' corporations and their fundraising! :)

[PatrickM]

Don't let the sentimental UW-NFL commercials fool you. The UW can be a gigantic pain in the butt, especially when the suits upstairs in your company want to look good to the suits upstairs at all the other companies, and the way that they do so is to take your money and give it to UW. Giving to UW is voluntary, in theory, but if you work at certain companies and fail to give then your boss will make a black mark of that fact in your file at your next performance review.

Giving to charity is a good thing. Mandatory giving to UW at the behest of your boss is a bad thing.

[black rabbit]

This weeks Chronicle of Philanthropy includes their annual salary survey (http://philanthropy.com/free/articles/v14/i24/24003301.htm) for the top executives at the largest US nonprofits. Some of the amounts are truly staggering. The United Ways are some of the worst offenders.

Honestly, before you get suckered in to giving to your local UW, plug them into http://guidestar.org and see where the money's really going. It's also a good idea to research alternative umbrella charities in your area. This year, my employer was finally persuaded to include literature from Cincinnati Community Shares, a local group, along with all the other United Way junk mail. They don't distrubute money to discriminatory organizations like the Boys Scouts, so they'll get what little I've got to share this year.

[Lsura]

Ah, yet another benefit for having ditched the corporate world for the next couple of years.


I just hate to miss all the "kickoff parties" and constant reminders of how we need to pledge.

[thewiz]

The board ate my op.

It's that time of year again when our company does it's annual United Way fund raising. 2 weeks are spent having raffles, bake sales, and carnivals. Employees are "encouraged" to return pledge cards and return statistics are tracked for every department. Managers hold pep rallies to tell everyone how valuable their contribution's are.

You know what? I don't want to participate. Some of the charities I support aren't United Way agencies. The fact that employees feel "encouraged" to participate bugs me. The fact that there's nowhere on the pledge card to say "No Thank You" but you're supposed to return it anyway bugs me. The fact that thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours are spent holding a 2 week pep rally bugs me. The fact that the company matches the pledges (over $1.5 million dollars) when they're talking about layoffs bugs me.

Bah Humbug I say.

[Mtgman]

Heh, my company has a goal of 100% participation. That's right, they want EVERYONE to contribute to the United Way. They have all kinds of fun ways they can take your money, lump sum, payroll deduction(fixed amount or percentage!), credit card, etc.

/sigh The worst part? My company has a magnificent matching program for employees who donate. They donate $2 for $1 up to $500 the employee donates. That's right, for a out of pocket of $500, I can give my charity of choice $1500! That's amazing if you're not familiar with such matching gift programs. I prefer to spend my donation dollars the way I want. Local science museums, zoos, local charities that I'm familiar with. Donate blood, give clothing/food to local battered women's shelters, that type of thing. My wife and I alternate between local battered women's shelter and children's homes. We donate a good amount of gently used clothing as well as blankets and food each year. We prefer to be active in our charities, not just some line item in a budget.

I'm not saying the United Way is a waste, they are actually one of the leaner charities(something like 12% overhead costs last year as opposed to the average ~30% They run a tight ship). Still I'd prefer to give where I think it's needed most and I don't like the pressure of this time of year from the company. We had our "United Way kickoff" last Wednesday, a rally type meeting Thursday and we're supposed to have our pledge forms back by this Friday. Today my manager and supervisor were both on the prowl looking for people who hadn't turned in pledges yet. :(

Enjoy,
Steven

[Typo Negative]

I have never given to UW through my employer, and have always recieved excellent reviews.


If I wanted to give to charity, the last thing I would do is go through my employer.

[jackelope]

OK, folks, I have some inside experience here. I don't know about all UW chapters, but I had a six-week temp job at the UW of Des Moines, and I was appalled. I never said a word, because I needed the job, but that place was about as organized as a goddamned chimpanzee convention. I was the freaking TEMP, and they gave me the only key to the paper room (because I had worked at Kinko's before).

During those six weeks, I did AT MOST one hour of work a day, the rest of my time being spent playing solitaire, writing letters, taking naps in the paper room, walking around the building, smoking cigarettes, reading books, and occasionally even leaving to go down the street to the bookstore.

And when I left....

They threw me a party on my last day. No shit! They gave me gifts, they brought cake (I don't eat cake, but I forced myself), they told me what a wonderful employee I'd been, and they even offered me a full-time job. I couldn't stand it, and I will never, EVER, give a goddamned nickel to the United Way.

That's right; my seven hours a day of slacking were paid for by tax-deductible charity donations. I'm not proud of it, but, as stated above, I really needed that job.

[Cheesesteak]

Actually, I very much prefer to give to charity through my employer. They take the money I donate straight from my paycheck, they have a TON of charities I can choose from, and I only need to set it up once a year. I don't give a lot, but it's pretty easy to donate $XX per month and just have it vanish from your paycheck.

I never gave to a single charity until I had an employer based option, so it DOES do some good. At my company, I don't think your performance has anything to do with your charity work, but if you are a high level exec, it will look VERY bad if you're not donating to someone, I believe it may even be manditory.

[LurkMeister]

Ah yes, the annual Beg-A-Thon. The signs have started going up around my office. In addition to the kickoff meetings and pep rallies, a lot of the various departments at my office has raffles, bake sales, taffy apple sales, lunches, ad nauseum. This goes on for two months, during which time my e-mail is flooded with reminders about every little thing being done to raise money for the Combined Federal Campaign. The e-mail situation is particularly annoying because our secretary (and occasionally one of the managers) feels it is necessary to send out copies of everything of remotely general interest, even if the to line shows that the original sender had used the group code to send it to everyone already, so I often get three copies of the same e-mail (I've complained about this in the past, but no one else seems to care.)

Last year there was so much crap sent out that twice when I was off work for two days in a row I returned to find a notice in my e-mail that it was filled and no further mail could be delivered. Why? Because there were three copies each of two different e-mails plugging a fund-raising effort which had huge attachments (with animations!). I finally put a filter on my e-mail deleting anything with CFC in it, which eliminated that problem.

[elf6c]

Originally posted by Mtgman

I'm not saying the United Way is a waste, they are actually one of the leaner charities(something like 12% overhead costs last year as opposed to the average ~30% They run a tight ship). Still I'd prefer to give where I think it's needed most and I don't like the pressure of this time of year from the company. We had our "United Way kickoff" last Wednesday, a rally type meeting Thursday and we're supposed to have our pledge forms back by this Friday. Today my manager and supervisor were both on the prowl looking for people who hadn't turned in pledges yet. :(


The Washington Post has had a series of articles on the contining problems of the higher level people at the United Way mis-using funds and living the high life on donor money. As mentioned in the Savation Army thread, the case law on the United Way's past leadership was shocking. After reading the cases, I wow never to give them a dime. My money goes direct to the charities I like, thank you very much. I couple of attorneys I worked with also felt the same way at my last firm-- we flatly refused to play along.

United Way is still a bunch of assmonkeys, IMHO. Links:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A51992-2002Oct6.html

The organization, which each year raises tens of millions of dollars for charity with its fall fundraising drive, targeting private businesses and federal agencies, has been rocked by financial improprieties in recent months.

Among the revelations: that the charity's top officials hid a critical audit from their board of directors; that Taylor overspent the group's budget last year by $1.1 million; and that his predecessor, Oral Suer, charged televisions and other gifts for employees on his corporate credit card.

The group has acknowledged withholding money from area charities, inflating its pledge totals and taking more than 50 percent from some contributions to cover its overhead.



More:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&node=&contentId=A34603-2002Sep3&notFound=true

"Honesty, whether espoused by volunteers or staff, has been generally punished," Unzicker wrote in the memo. "My attempts to air my concerns about the serious ethical and accounting problems, which are now the focus of various investigations, have been rebuffed or ignored by [chief executive] Norman Taylor and others in control of the organization. . . .

"After my repeated attempts to correct these dishonest practices, I was removed from the decision-making process and increasingly found myself viewed by Mr. Taylor and his inner circle as an outsider."

The United Way of the National Capital Area, one of the region's largest charities, has been beset in the last year by repeated disclosures of financially questionable practices. Among them: that it withheld millions from charities it had collected money for; that its former chief executive, Oral Suer, took an early pension payment that was not authorized under pension rules; and that in the case of donations not earmarked for a particular charity, as little as 38 percent of the money flowed to charities.



http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&node=&contentId=A15237-2002Sep13&notFound=true

Nice.

:mad:

[ivylass]

I was turned off the United Way years ago. I was working in CA, and we had to stay after work to listen to a spiel. The UW guy went on this tearjerker story about a boy that was sexually abused by every male in his family, and how he was taken away to a foster home. He was sexually abused there, too, and according to the UW guy, this was a good thing because this attack moved the boy to the top of the list so they could help him.

My jaw dropped open and I vowed right then and there never to give UW a dime.

[elf6c]

Aramony's criminal fun at the United Way for years and years:

http://www.law.emory.edu/4circuit/jan99/974363.p.html

and

http://www.law.emory.edu/4circuit/jan99/974363.p.html

and

http://www.courts.state.ny.us/nycdlr/issue4/vaccov.htm

Pure assmonkeys.

[Scylla]

I'm a United Way "Captain" at my company, having been coerced into the job. We have one of these 100% goals as well for all employees, and oh yes! We Will have 100% participation because that is what Senior Management has decried.

At the United Way meeting I attended they were very clear that they were against arm twisting, and for education. At my company it was never said, but it's absolutely clear that I am supposed to twist arms. Those pledge cards must be returned, even if they are just filled out with the "decline to pledge" bubble filled in. But, I think filling in that bubble would not be a good career decision, as it would demonstrate that you're not a team player, and not committed to community service.

Like everything else, there is bad and there is good in it. It shouldn't be this way, but it is.

[Eve]

Oral Suer?! The United Way had a director named Oral Suer?!

[Eve falls off her chair laughing]

[GrizzRich]

Ever since the William Aramony (president of United Way of America, fired for stealing UW funds to support a jet-setting lifestyle) debacle in 1992, I've refused to give to the United Way.

A Google search on his name turns up all SORTS of information.

I worked for a company that, in 1992, was providing travel services to UWofA and, more specifically, to Mr Aramony. I saw the goings-on first hand.

The United Way was a charity that I supported in my work-life trying to keep their travel costs under control; and in my personal-life through workplace contributions.

No more.

If my superiors want back the pledge card, they'll have to dig it out of the waste-can under the shredder.

Fool me once, shame on you.
Fool me twice, shame on ME.

[hajario]

Damn you all for reminding me of those fucking dredful United Way drives. Four years ago I had an eight year stint with a fairly large company. Every year the signs would come up along with the "mandatory" meetings. I never donated a dime and after three or four years I quit going to the meetings. I always threw my pledge card in the garbage and never faced any repercussions. I don't think that they tracked the donations of peons but they may have for executives. Every day they made a big deal out of updating the lame-ass "thermometer" showing percent of participation.

I do donate to charity. Every year. I donate to my charities which are no one's fucking business but my own. That shit is totally inappropriate in the workplace.

Haj

[EchoKitty]

I was an arm twister for a campaign at the company I was working for, but I had to quit because I had no intention of giving money to the UW. In our area, they support the Boy Scouts, and I simply won't support them in any way, shape, or form. Period. And Haj is right... there should not be beg-a-thons at work.

[GrizzRich]

Originally posted by Eve
Oral Suer?! The United Way had a director named Oral Suer?!

[Eve falls off her chair laughing]

Just imagine if he had a twin brother. What would HIS name be?

"Anal"?

:D :p

[Eve]

Prissy schoolmarm: "Oral Seur, you have afilthy mouth!"

[Barbarian]

My company attached pledge forms to paystubs two weeks ago-- and about half the office immediately tore them off and tossed them in the recycling boxes.

But I still get to see the UW poster every time I pee (nice placement there...), and I've had the chance to read through the list of all the agencies they help-- and had the chance to spot that they list every charity three or four times.

Nobody here will ever ask why I haven't donated, but if so, I'll tell them that I give my charity dollars directly to the groups that I support, thus eliminating overhead.

[The Green Feather]

Years ago, my company gave us all Christmas presents each year. They were always high quality and greatly appreciated. Because the contributions to UW were falling off, probably because of all of the UW scandals, the company anounced they were giving (the money used to buy our) Christmas presents to the United Way Campaign! I hate the United Way! They already have several years worth of my Christmas presents. I think I have already contributed more than my fair share.

:(

[Kiki]

My company is really big into everyone donating to UW too but I've resisted their efforts to take my money. There is a check box on the form that says "I have no contributation for UW this year" and that's the box I always check. There are other worthwhile charities out there that will use my money and other donations to benefit those who really need it. That's where my donations go. I really liked reading the links black455 provided. Really opens your eyes up to the greed of some people.

Someone made the comment earlier that if an employee didn't donate to UW their raise might be affected. While I think that could be true I've worked here for almost 5 years and have not donated to UW once and it hasn't affected my performance reviews. I would think that that kind of information would have to remain confidential and your supervisor couldn't find out about it. My UW form goes to one of the committee members so my boss never even sees it. The committee is pretty sneaky about letting everyone know who has and hasn't donated though. Those that donate get these nifty little certificates that say "Thank You" (in Spanish but I don't think I'm spelling it right... Muchos Grasias?!?) so I guess if people don't see one on my desk they'll know I didn't donate.... shame on me. :eek: :rolleyes:

[Eva Luna]

Well, unfortunately the UW campaign is not restricted to the for-profit world. I worked for a jewish Federation agency, and we had the joy of the JUF campaign, followed closely by the UW campaign. Since I was earning so little that I was eligible for most of my agency's services, I chose not to donate (actually, that, and my mom had worked for a UW agecy when I was little, and they cut her budget by 80%, after which she was unemployed for quite a while. Plus I prefer to donate directly to small, local charities with missionsrather more controversial than what UW funds, and that's my business.)

The Director of HR visited, called, and wrote me letters giving me specific deadlines to "join with my colleagues in the team spirit" and contribute to UW. I told her that my charitable contributions were my own business, and that the Jewish concept of tsedakah (charity) is ideally anonymous, and so I intended to do my own thing. (Colleagues suggested taping a nickel to the pledge card and sending it back to her, but by that point, it was a matter of principle for me.) Needless to say, the politics at that place generally sucked big rocks, so I quit shortly thereafter for a better job. I don't like people telling me exactly how I should help humanity; I can decide that myself.

[Sunshine]

My company has also chosen UW as their charity of choice, and we just got through with the big annual pledge drive. They also have a goal of 100% return of the pledge cards, and we are strongly encouraged to return them no matter if we donate or not. I felt a LOT of pressure to donate even though I didn't want to, so finally I put $1 in the envelope and got the little sticker for my badge so everyone would know I "donated". Figured it was the easiest way to appease everyone.

[hajario]

Oh yeah. We had those lame badge stickers too. So much for anonymity.

Haj

[Otto]

If only the UW coerce-a-thon were restricted to one or two weeks a year. I get as many as three emails a day from the rat-fuckers here begging for money. It got to the point where I was replying to every UW email "please remove me from this email list." I got an email back stating that since the UW uses a distribution list there's no way to remove individual employees. Bullshit, because the UW has its own distribution list with a separate title. When I pointed this out, my email got forwarded to the V.P. of Human Resources who said:
[Otto] as an employee you [sic] name is included in this distribution list to ensure you receive all communications the company feels important which includes our support of United Way. Please refer to our shared values, specifically the value of being a Good Citizen. As [H.R. flunkie] stated earlier you have the option of deleting these e-mails, however we would hope you would support the campaign, thanks.
So now I'm a "bad citizen" because I request that my company not dun me for my hard-earned money on a daily basis. I had involved my boss in my attempt to free myself from these grasping creeps and I showed her the above email, which prompted her to refer to the veep as a "dumbass." Everything from United Way is now routed to the trash, but unfortunately random people send out UW shit under their own ID as well so it doesn't get rid of everything. Fuckers. Evil bastards. May they all rot.

[Polycarp]

Mtgman, the United Way campaigns I've seen (three counties in two states) have designated-gift programs where you can target part or all of your pledge to a particular member (and in most cases non-member) charity. And the overhead is minimized for such contributions -- the one time I inquired, it was 2% of the gift, effectively to cover the cost of printing campaign literature and passing through the funds to the recipient charity.

About 75% of my wife's and my contributions, through the state and federal joint campaigns (run by civil-service volunteers with UW staff support) and through UW, were as designated gifts.

[hajario]

Designated Gift is a scam. They can just give a bit higher of a percantage from the general fund to the other charities and a bit less to yours to cover the difference and in the end it's the same. Give the money directly to your charity of choice and they can save the 2% processing fee.

I still maintain that solicitation, especially heavy handed solicitation, is entirely inappropriate at work.

Haj

[elf6c]

Not to meantion the failures to deliver the earmarked funds as noted in the stories linked to above.

Avoid Satan's Charity and give directly to the charities. That's what I do now. Fool me once. . . .

:mad:

[thewiz]

The thing that bugs me the most is the level of attention given to just this one campaign. We get other charitable solicitations throughout the year (especially around Thanksgiving and Christmas) and don't get me started about the PAC donation letters sent out annually. But each of those are generally a single email or letter saying "If you're interested, here's how you can participate." I can handle those because I get to choose how (or if) I want to participate. I can also submit a form to get personal charitable donations matched by the company. But no other campaign gets 2 weeks worth of undivided attention, automatic payroll deductions, and statistical analysis on how many people participated.

[Homebrew]

Originally posted by GrizzRich

Fool me once, shame on you.
Fool me twice, shame on ME.

I thought it went like:

"There's an old saying in Tennessee -- I know it's in Texas, it's probably in Tennessee -- that says, fool me once, shame on ... shame on you. Fool me ... You can't get fooled again."

[elf6c]

Originally posted by Homebrew


I thought it went like:

"There's an old saying in Tennessee -- I know it's in Texas, it's probably in Tennessee -- that says, fool me once, shame on ... shame on you. Fool me ... You can't get fooled again."

Man, don't make me go "knu-clure" on you!

;)

[PhiloVance]

Posted by Scylla:
"decline to pledge" bubble


Wahhhhh! You had a "decline to pledge" bubble. I feel cheated. Mine only had spots marked:


Give!
Give More!

[Mtgman]

Hmm, guess the blurb about their overhead and decent financial records was propaganda or misinformation. Thanks for the clarification.

Enjoy,
Steven