Employers behind valued volunteers
Business and volunteering are often paired at opposite ends of the work spectrum, but Aucklandbased Electrix considers having a volunteer firefighter on staff part of its corporate social responsibility commitments and willingness to support the community.
Electrix is a field service provider for Vector, covering the wider Auckland area on its natural gas network and employs Shaun Barron, a volunteer firefighter with the Greenhithe Fire Brigade.
It’s one of the many businesses around that country that’s been recognised in our Proud Employer campaign.
Stuff partnered with Fire and Emergency to recognise the local businesses who support this important work by giving them the Proud Employer mark, acknowledging the role they play in keeping communities safe.
Electrix displays the Proud Employer mark in its office – a stylised flame in the shape of a matau, or fishhook, with entwined lines representing the collaboration between volunteers, their employers, and Fire and Emergency – but business unit manager Stuart Price says it’s pretty much business as usual with a volunteer on staff. The flexibility that’s required to allow a volunteer to attend the occasional emergency during working hours is compensated by the extra skills they bring to both the workplace and the community.
‘‘We do it to help people out, that’s what we’re about,’’ says Price. ‘‘Shaun got some supportive comments from members of the community as part of the campaign, but it’s pretty much business as usual. Employing volunteers works well for us and it’s something we are more than happy to do.’’
While communities rely on volunteers to be there during a crisis, the volunteers rely on the support of their employers to allow them to respond during working hours.
Barron is one of nearly 12,000 people who volunteer for Fire and Emergency. Their employers are part of their support crew.
While it’s not always possible or necessary for employees to attend every single call-out in their area, companies such as Electrix develop systems that allow for other members of the team to cover their roles if necessary.
Volunteering with Fire and Emergency isn’t just about fighting fires and attending road accidents – riding the trucks isn’t for everyone.
There are also roles in operational support, brigade support and administration.
Barron says he’s grateful for the support he gets from his Electrix. He’s also proud that the skills he’s picked up through Fire and Emergency training can sometimes be transferred back to his workplace and he’d recommend other employers consider encouraging their staff to be involved in a volunteer role.
‘‘It will develop the skills, confidence, maturity and leadership of your employee.’’
❚ This article was commissioned in response to a commercial partnership. We have produced it independently, to the same standards applied to the rest of our journalism.