Put yer backs into it! ;)....

[Geist]

OK, here's an invite for you all - turn up with your caravan at your local Tesco store (or Asda, or Morriosns, etc etc). Site your van in the car park (it will be free for the duration, whoopee!) then go and be allocated a work assignment. How about some painting?, digging the flower beds?, clearing litter?, removing graffiti? - whatever takes your Fancy.

You won't receive a penny in wages - but you will be allowed to keep your van on their property for the duration of the work - so you'll be able to tumble conveniently into it after a days hard graft, nd you'll have the satisfaction of knowing that you're helping the supermarket to make bigger profits.

The upside for the company is lots of free labour. The upside for you is....well......thinking about it, there isn't actually any upside for you - but never mind

Tempted by the offer of a weekends hard unpaid graft to further enrich your local supermarket? I suspect not

However, turn to this months CCC magazine - and, wonder of wonders, they (once again) have managed to persuade gullible members to do exactly that! - work like Navvies for no other reward other being allowed to park their caravans on club sites while they, er, work like Navvies!

Why? - presumably because those taken in by this cruel hoax are under the impression that it's 'their' club, that 'they' own the sites, and that by their unpaid toil they are being good club members.

Well, they don't 'own' the sites - nor the property thereon, nor the substantial club bank accounts, nor the investment portfolios - in fact, they 'own' nothing, zilch zero, diddly squat.

They are as good as their next membership renewal fee - and nothing more. If hey turn up later in the year without sufficient funds, they'll be shown the door in no uncertain manner - and it will be no use them pointing at the toilet block nd saying, "I painted that for free!"

What a brilliant business model! - the club directors live handsomely, with generous salaries, very decent expense accounts, and enviable pension rights, while Mr & Mrs Muggins Member are treated like simpletons and duped into performing unpaid work on sites that they can barely afford to use in high season!

Why on earth don't the club mandarins abandon all the silly nonsense about 'doing it for the good of the club' and just order their brain-dead free workforce round to their own private homes to do a spot of gardening or building work, or perhaps some painting and decorating?

They'd only have to tell 'em that they were sweating away 'for the good of the club' and members would trample each other in their eagerness to be their skivvies.

Sheesh! - what's the matter with these people? - can't they see they're being used? The CCC is a wealthy and profitable business - if they want their sites maintained, let 'em pay the going rate for the job - not conscript the very people who pay their salaries!

All that's needed now is an auction block at Greenfields house to enable the directors to pick the healthiest and strongest club members for work details!

 

[Damian]

It is possible that those who go and do the work, do so because they actually like doing it!!

It is a bit like the conservation work scheme, many people enjoy doing something a bit different and in their own way, giving something back to others.

Presumably by your take on this, you never shop in a supermarket, never buy calor gas, never buy a new caravan, after all, you are contributing to the Directors handsome living, generous salaries, decent expense accounts etc etc .................

 

[Geist]

If I shop at Tesco, or buy gas, or purchase a caravan, I know the deal - they offer a product, I decide if it's good value, and I buy it (or not, as the case might be)

I'm a member of the CCC - I pay my fee, I know what they offer, and I buy those things that I choose to (weekend rallies, as the club sites are wildly expensive)

Mr Tesco has never once told me that my local supermarket is 'my' store, nor has he ever tried to inveigle me into doing unpaid work on the premise that I, as a part owner of Tesco, will be doing something to my own benefit.

The CCC, on the other hand, strongly encourage the more simple-minded members to attend 'working party weekends', to perform work on a voluntary basis - thus saving the directors the cost of having the work performed professionally.

The resultant savings find their way into the directors pockets, not mine!

The CCC is an extremely hard nosed business - so it's time to stop pretending that it's a closely knit group of happy amateurs, all pulling together for the common good. If they want me to work for them, they can pay me the going rate - or get up off their jacksies and get their own manicured hands dirty.

It's the blatant cynicism that I object to - a multi million pound business masquerading as a group of chums who do things voluntarily to help each other out!

 

[JD6620]

My wife and I used to be volunteers with the Caravan Club, until health issues stopped us. We started it as we were interested in becoming wardens and wanted to know what it would be like to work on a site. We very much enjoyed the work and meeting members. In no way was it slave labour as you seem to suggest. We would work the mornings and have the afternoons to ourselves. In return we were given a free pitch and travel expenses. This also enabled us to get a great deal of use out of our van, something we really enjoyed and would not have able to afford to do otherwise. We actually done very nicely out of the arrangment. I don't know how the CCC run their scheme, but the CC run theirs extremely well and the volunteers are well looked after. The thing that did surprise us the most was the attitude and ignorance of some of the members, and the total disregard for the site facilities by some. Forunately the vast majority were very nice and made it all worth while. The CC certainly gave us as much as we gave them, and we would do it again in an instant if we could.

 

[Meister]

GEIST:

Whilst you may have a valid point with your original posting I feel that your latest one is way off and in danger of causing offence.

Steve

 

[Moderator2_5083849]

Two posts by Geist have been removed.

There was nothing "humerous" about the first and the second was uncalled for.

There is no need, and no tolerance, for personal attacks on other forum users.

 

[Geist]

Two posts by Geist have been removed.

There was nothing "humerous" about the first and the second was uncalled for.

There is no need, and no tolerance, for personal attacks on other forum users.

this is your forum, so you obviously call the shots - but it's a bit unfair to accuse me 'personal attacks' when you've removed the post.

Telling someone that they are indulging in 'finger wagging' would not, I suspect, be construed as a 'personal attack' by most sane people.

 

[nick_374224697]

Geist, I don't know much about what you're talking about.

But by the way you're talking you sound like you may have a heavy chip on your shoulder about the clubs.

You are in danger of making a right royal prat of yourself...

 

[Geist]

Geist, I don't know much about what you're talking about.

But by the way you're talking you sound like you may have a heavy chip on your shoulder about the clubs.

You are in danger of making a right royal prat of yourself...

Nick wrote:

Geist, I don't know much about what you're talking about. ⇦br/>

Hi Nick - don't let you lack of knowledge stop you from chipping in.

But by the way you're talking you sound like you may have a heavy chip on your shoulder about the clubs.

You are in danger of making a right royal prat of yourself...⇦br/>

I'll have to take the risk, Nick. Meanwhile, if you're up for some unpaid work, I've got some trees that need taking down to about 10 feet high. I've budgeted about

 

[Surfer]

If the post is correct, many people may not realise that they are breaking the law by not declaring earnings. If you work and get a free pitch for a night, that is regarded as an income and should be declared. If you are on benefits or a pension declaring this income may have an adverse effect on your income or you may have the revenue people chasing you. Has this been mentioned by the C & CC if this is a genuine post. Then we have the H & S issue if a temp gets hurt while doing work for a benefit. I am surprised that the C & CC think that they can get away with it and dupe members. As there is a benefit available to a member NI may also be involved.

 

[Geist]

If the post is correct, many people may not realise that they are breaking the law by not declaring earnings. If you work and get a free pitch for a night, that is regarded as an income and should be declared. If you are on benefits or a pension declaring this income may have an adverse effect on your income or you may have the revenue people chasing you. Has this been mentioned by the C & CC if this is a genuine post. Then we have the H & S issue if a temp gets hurt while doing work for a benefit. I am surprised that the C & CC think that they can get away with it and dupe members. As there is a benefit available to a member NI may also be involved.

Well, yes, of course it's true - otherwise I wouldn't have posted it.

I must admit that i hadn't considered the labyrinthine implications of tax, NI and our old friend 'Health & Safety' (not to mention a probable raft of European directives on the matter but you make a very good point.

My reaction was one of bewilderment that clubs as wealthy as the CCC could persuade members to turn up and work for nothing - while the club bigwigs stay indoors and turn up the central heating at Greenfields House.

The you get the absolutely absurd scenario of those same unpaid toiling plebs being given a vote of thanks by the Mandarins at the club annual dinner (to which the plebs aren't invited, of course), who stand up between the sweet course and the after-dinner brandy, adjust their gold chains of office (they do so like to wear Mayoral chains and grandly thank all the mugs who have worked for nothing in order to swell the club's coffers!

Serve 'em right if they *did* get sued into bankruptcy by unpaid volunteers who injured themselves while skivvying away!

 

[JD6620]

My experience with the Caravan Club was a free pitch was offered in return for a certain number of hours work. Travel expenses were paid at inland revenue published rates. Clothing and personal protective equipment were provided, and volunteers were covered by club insurance whilst working. I also attended a one day training course.

If people want to partake of schemes like this, which after all are voluntary, I don't see Geist's problem.

 

[GrahamSouthBrum]

You are taxed on your earnings yes, Cash earnings only.

You are allowed to work voluntary & claim expenses tax & NI free.

We have always been allowed to trade work for goods or exchange goods for goods, this is not taxable & never has been.

If you were to trade me your caravan for eg a bag of apples, then I sold the caravan for cash I would then be liable for tax.

I am a volunteer with St. John Ambulance, I get free training & uniform prviding I attend 12 training sesions & give 30 hours of my time for duties per year.

Some of my neighbours attend the Q.E. Cancer unit 1 day a week as members of the W.R.V.S. helping the needs of patients.

It is up to the individual what they do in their spare time.

Geist, do people you work with think you are mad, taking a wooden box, placing it in the middle of nowhere, in a muddy field, when you could be sat at home in the warm watching tv.

Rant over the Tax man is asking me for a shoe lace as payment for my uniform.

G.

 

[DeliDave]

you may find that free sites etc are treated by HM tax inspectors as 'Benefits in kind'should it come to an inquiry(hopefully unlikely)a few days would probably be ignored.However I can think of a lot more deserving cases for free labour than caravan club even tho I probably benefit from the work.

 

[Essexeddie]

I cant see no problem with it. If people want to help out why not. They probibly get something out of it.

Thats the trouble today, money is everything.

Ever heard of charity. Even charity shops earn a profit.

I new someone who ran a charity shop as a part time job. He packed up the full time job [Fire] and made a very good living from the shop and now retired to Spain.

Edd

 

[Surfer]

You are taxed on your earnings yes, Cash earnings only.

You are allowed to work voluntary & claim expenses tax & NI free.

We have always been allowed to trade work for goods or exchange goods for goods, this is not taxable & never has been.

If you were to trade me your caravan for eg a bag of apples, then I sold the caravan for cash I would then be liable for tax.

I am a volunteer with St. John Ambulance, I get free training & uniform prviding I attend 12 training sesions & give 30 hours of my time for duties per year.

Some of my neighbours attend the Q.E. Cancer unit 1 day a week as members of the W.R.V.S. helping the needs of patients.

It is up to the individual what they do in their spare time.

Geist, do people you work with think you are mad, taking a wooden box, placing it in the middle of nowhere, in a muddy field, when you could be sat at home in the warm watching tv.

Rant over the Tax man is asking me for a shoe lace as payment for my uniform.

G.

Graham, I don't think you get a "benefit" on kind, i.e. free house or office as you volunteered.

 

[john_374325148]

Theres only word for these people..MUGS..

WAKE UP PEOPLE, if you wont to do unpaid work, dont work for this charity,?.. work say for rainbows or somewhere equaly as good, and help these out, your help will be more apprecatide , more than these fat cats, who are laughing all the way to the bank, no thanks to you??????? amkes me wonder if some people come from the same planet as the rest of us? john, oh by the way iv got a few rooms need decorating, lets see a show of hands, and you wil get paid the same wages as you get from the sites, didly big nowt?

 

[Surfer]

I can see it coming.

Right sir, you want a pitch? No problem, we have some excellent pitches available. The pitches are now graded so it depends on how well you mow the grass and clean the toilets to obtain a good grading. If the toilet is cleaned with a toothbrush then you get the second highest grade from the bottom. Top grade pitchs are only resevered for those that come begging for work as they save us even more money as we can depend on them to do every thing for nothing. Rememeber we have to maximise our profits to pay fat cat salaries to our poor underpaid directors.

The lowest grades are for those that will only pick up drunks and dog poo!

In the event of an accident on site, don't worry as our insurers will arrange burial next to your favourite pitch. Of course there will be a small fee involved as again we would like to maximise our profits even more for our more under[paid starving directors who work 24 hours a week! You can appreciate how stressful thsi can be for them when they should be sunning themselves in Majorca.

Once you agree and sign on the dotted line to clean the Elsan point we will be able to allocate you a suitable graded pitch in the bottom grades! By the way sir, you will also need to help contribute towards our wages before we can allow you to clean the Elsan point for your graded pitch. Surely you didn't expect everything, including your pitch just for mowing the lawn and cleaning the toilets? For that we have a more intensive cleaning program.

 

[bigbilly]

I think that if people want to do the work then they should - it's a free country - apparently.

What is worrying though is that I was talking to an elderly couple at a rally last week who genuinely thought that the C.C. was a non profit making organisation. I wonder how many people there are that think that.

Bill