This is mainly going to be a rant. Since I haven't been able to find a job, I applied for volunteer work with UNICEF. I like to be socially conscious and I find the protection and education of children an important issue, so why not. So far I have done several unpaid translation jobs for them, on top of helping out in the office and assisting at events.

Today there was another event in their organisation, a yearly 'climate conference' for high schoolers, where they can learn about the importance of environmentalism in a fun manner. I thought cool, sounds like fun, I liked the tasks they offered volunteers to do. I've read all the necessary documents, completed a 'child safeguarding training', submitted all the necessary papers and have been in contact with the girl responsible for the coordination of volunteers for weeks now regarding this one event.

Once I arrived to the location, I quickly realized that there were too many volunteers scheduled for the same time, and the set of tasks I originally applied for (escape room supervision registration at the front desk) were either already given to others, or didn't exist at all. All the instructions on what was happening exactly and what we were supposed to be doing were very unclear. Along with other volunteers, I spent hours waiting, just being in the way or dying of boredom, asking around if anyone needs help. Some of the employees and other volunteers who got to do the cool tasks were super rude or simply wouldn't reply at all.

I literally did one thing throughout the entire day (removing and rolling up a building banner) which was intercepted by another volunteer who almost took it from my hands because 'she wanted to do it herself'. I was already pretty pissed at that point since I felt like this organization was very disrespectful with my time and I couldn't believe how bad the planning was.

After this, the girl who was responsible for coordinating the volunteers walked up to me, and said she had a task for me. She told me to take all their props from the conference, get in a cab, go to their headquarters and unload and carry everything up to the office.

I am a woman who also has health issues, and we are talking about a room full of heavy stuff. I specifically only applied for tasks that weren't physically demanding. I told her of course, just give me a minute, then after she left the room I walked out of there and came home.

I found it humiliating that she would lie to me about my role in this conference and make me waste my time there, just so then she can attempt to have me perform unpaid physical labour for them.

Btw as I said this wasn't my first event with them and all the previous ones were incredibly badly coordinated as well with people who were treating the volunteers like s***, and tasks such as sweeping the floor and carrying crates of bottles of wine for them, but this was the first time that what I was promised I'd be doing didn't occur at all. Needless to say they advertise volunteer work for UNICEF as this groundbreaking and exciting opportunity where you can gain valuable experience and meet amazing people while supporting an important cause.

Moral of the story, volunteer work is bullshit, you gain no real experience, they treat you badly as if you weren't the one doing them a favour, and it's a complete waste of your time and energy for nothing in return, all it's gonna do is make you mad at the people who actually get paid while being terrible at their jobs.