Tessah, my associate Daphne and I were at an event a month ago, whose
policy regarding reimbursement for participant expenses gave us a
pleasant surprise.

We each have a household income which puts us in the lowest decile,
not just quintile, of income. Therefore, unless our expenses can be
fully paid (door-to-door) we cannot participate and thus contribute
our perspective at events we'd otherwise want to attend.

What made this event different from all others we've attended in the
past was that travel and accommodation expenses were offered to all
participants, regardless of income status. So for the first time,
Daphne and I didn't have to justify our need for assistance. We were
treated equally, just like everyone else.

How many of the participants who could afford to pay their own
expenses actually applied for reimbursement I've no clue. I suspect
that, in support of the organization that hosted the event, most of
them didn't.

Ocean
---
WISE Book - Policies of Exclusion, Poverty & Health: Stories from the front
Podcast Channel: http://bcseawalker.podbean.com/
Personal Blog: Challenging the Commonplace - and other irreverent activities
http://challengingthecommonplace.blogspot.com/


On Mon, Jun 9, 2008 at 8:38 AM, Tessah Woodman <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> Hello,
>
> A small group of us at the Nova Scotia Department of Health Promotion and Protection are trying to come up with a workplace policy regarding compensating volunteers from the community for their participation in focus groups, photo shoots (for use in printed materials), and committee work. We would like for this policy to be based on best or current practice in other areas in order to ensure fairness. Some of the issues we are looking at include the appropriateness of paying volunteers for their time, determining the appropriate amount of compensation for different activities and populations, and the effect of advertising compensation as an incentive for participation.  I would be interested in any literature you might know of, especially from the area of community development, which addresses these issues. Alternatively, if you have any policies or guidelines you follow with your own health promotion work with the community, I would love to hear about them.
>
> Please contact me at [log in to unmask] if you have any comments or suggestions.
> Thank you!
> Tessah
>
> Tessah Woodman
> Health Educator
> Department of Health Promotion and Protection
> 5th floor Summit Place
> 1601 Lower Water Street
> Halifax, NS  B3J 3P6
> PO Box 487  B3J 2R7
> Phone: (902) 424-3014 / 424-3135 (fax) / 220-5486 (cell)

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