Volunteer Eligibility:
General eligibility:
- Volunteer Engagement is an exclusive benefit only for PEMAC members
- Committed to the association and its mission, values and goals
- Must abide by applicable statutes, policies and regulations
- Must abide by all PEMAC's policies, including the terms outlined in this handbook and the Code of Conduct
Role-based eligibility:
- Must follow the Volunteer Engagement process as set out in this manual
- Must have the skills, experience and knowledge relating to competencies for any role applied for
- Must provide feedback on volunteer activities by completing assignment reviews
- Must regularly book 'Community Participation' related CPD hours based on hours contributed to PEMAC initiatives
- Keeps PEMAC related information confidential to PEMAC
- Reliable, resilient, consistent, committed, mature and flexible
Screening, Selection and Assignment of Volunteers
There are 4-primary steps in this stage: 1.Self-screening, 2. Screening, 3. Selection and 4. Assignment.
Pre-Screen/Self Screening:
Each candidate must decide if this is the right time for a serious commitment. When reviewing potential roles, we ask that candidates give serious consideration to the following:
The competencies required: Although PEMAC welcomes volunteers from entry-level -->Expert, candidates must have the essential competencies outlined in the role description. If the candidate applies and does not have the essential competencies, they may be denied for the role; however, they may still be considered for future roles.
The time commitment: PEMAC hopes that every candidate will aim for 100% attendance for meetings and timely submission of project deliverables; we do understand that life happens, and plans can be made with the Volunteer Steward when an arrangement around attendance is needed relating to health and emergencies that may arise during the assignment. Generally speaking, we ask applicants to be as sure as possible, before applying, that they can follow through on the commitment made as it was presented in the posted Role Description.
For volunteers engaged in multiple commitments: PEMAC's work relies almost completely on the efforts of volunteers to advance its work, and we are grateful to those who selflessly give their time to PEMAC initiatives. Over-commitment can lead to burnout. As an effort to support the well-being of our volunteers, we encourage all candidates to consider their ability to deliver top-quality work based on the level of commitments made to PEMAC before applying for another engagement.
Screening:
The formal screening stage begins when a volunteer candidate completes an application form.
The VES will pre-screen new and pre-qualified candidates to ensure they meet the basic competencies for the role by completing an interview as described below:
Regular candidates: Volunteer candidates who are new to PEMAC or are unknown to the Volunteer Steward. These volunteers must complete the entire interview.
Pre-Qualified (PQ) candidates: Are volunteer candidates who have already done the role they are applying for or are known by the Volunteer Steward to have the skills for the role. These candidates do a modified interview and move to the assignment stage immediately.
All volunteers must complete the appropriate Volunteer Interview once so that their skills are documented. After that, they will only have to confirm that they have the competencies for subsequent roles. This confirmation of competencies is included as described below in the Assignment steps relating to that role.
Selection:
Regular candidates: When it is established that a candidate has the skills and commitment for the role, the VES will send a briefing about the candidate along with their email to the Volunteer Steward. The Volunteer Steward will contact the candidate to ask/answer questions about the assignment and to get to know the candidate better. The Volunteer Steward shares the outcome of the conversation with the VES who will follow up with the candidate to either do the assignment paperwork if approved, or find a new role for the candidate if not approved.
PQ candidates: Are exempt from this step and move on to the assignment steps email immediately.
Assignment:
When candidates complete screening and selection stages, they move to the assignment step where they receive an email that outlines all steps required to become assigned to their role and begin their role. Note: A new Volunteer Service Agreement and COI disclosure update are required for each new role a volunteer is assigned to. The assignment steps email includes,
Declaration of Competencies (only for candidates who completed the (modified) Volunteer Interview): The assignment email will contain a list of the competencies required for the role. The candidate will be asked to confirm that they have all of the competencies outlined in the role description and include a-line-or-two indicating where they obtained those skills or experience.
The Volunteer Service Agreement (VSA): Is the contract between the volunteer and PEMAC that outlines the roles and responsibilities and obligations of each party. Volunteers must carry out their assignment activities as described in the VSA. The VSA is the reference point for performance support, management and any potential discipline/termination.
The Volunteer Handbook: Volunteers must review this document so they understand the terms of their involvement and fully understand their rights and responsibilities.
Conflict of Interest Disclosure: Each candidate must have a current Conflict of Interest Disclosure. See url: https://www.pemac.org/members/pemac-volunteer-central/conflict-interest- management-volunteers.
Pre-qualified candidates will provide a statement that describes how they will manage COI in context of the new role, rather than submitting another COI disclosure form if the new role occurs within a year of the most recent COI disclosure.
Photograph for member profile/Team page: For candidates who have yet to submit a head shot of themselves, a request to share a photo will be included in the assignment steps email.
Welcome Email: When the assignment documents are complete, the VES sends a Welcome Email to the volunteer, cc’ing the Volunteer Steward. This email confirms that the screening and initial orientation steps are complete and the assignment activities can begin.