Ask an Advisor Answers

Question: I volunteered for 14 months as the Director of Volunteers for a virtual agency dealing with domestic violence. I left the organization recently by resignation citing breach of policies and other volunteers having their own personal and confidential items shared with me and others within the organization. Since I have resigned a meeting was held telling the volunteer advocates that I resigned because of a alchol abuse problem and for having a daughter who is in a rehab center for substance abuse... How do I make a report on the agency as I am not the first one this has happened too. Really not sure where to start...thanks for this tool box..
Answer: We're sorry to hear about the situation you describe. While we might wish it were otherwise, a full answer to your question is really outside of our scope, for we are not lawyers and cannot offer what may come close to legal advice. But we can offer a few informal comments. Assuming the that the allegations against you are not true, you could politely but firmly write to the organization, copying all members, specifically denying the allegations and asking for a written retraction. You might also respectfully suggest alternative policies and procedures for dealing with personnel disputes should they arise in the future, since neither you nor presumably others want to see this type of situation happen again. You also do have the option of seeking legal advice where you live, and being guided by it. We are not certain if you have legal recourse. In a very extreme situation, you would also have the option of communicating the situation to other domestic violence providers in your area. However, this does have the possible downside of negatively impacting local domestic violence services in general, and one would want to be very cautious about embarking on such action. We hope some of this may be might be helpful, although we must reiterate that it should not be considered as legal advice. Thanks for writing us at the Community Tool Box. All best wishes for a successful resolution. _____________________
Question Date: Thu, 01/21/2010