They are afraid to pay to volunteer

Photo Antoine Lacroix
Nathalie Roberge, the director-general of the Centre d’action bénévole de Granby, and the volunteer Roger Desbiens are joining together to criticize the regulation of parking of the integrated Center for academic health and social services of the eastern Townships.

Antoine Lacroix

Monday, 7 August 2017 22:56

UPDATE
Monday, 7 August 2017 22:56

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Volunteers of Granby, which lead the sick to the hospital are upset that the CIUSSS of the eastern Townships do pay for parking before free for their help.

Even if they are beneficiaries of the transport service who are supposed to pay the fees, many worry that these are volunteers who écopent.

“We’re talking about a customer base aged, the sick, and for the most part low-income. We understand already that they will not have the means to pay the parking fees and that this will be the volunteers who will have to pay, ” says the director general of the Centre d’action bénévole de Granby (CABG), Nathalie Roberge.

The towns of Granby and Cowansville are now annexed to the eastern Townships for the health services and social services. This is a major change for the CABG compared to the time when he was in the area of the Montérégie.

“We would do anything to go back there,” said Ms. Roberge. She feared even that some users decide to space their visits to the doctor since they will have to pay for parking.

“That comes to play with the health of the people. We request $ 7 per transport so that it remains accessible. It is necessary that care is accessible, it is essential, ” says the director-general.

Unmanageable

The $ 7 fare for the transport is among the lowest in Quebec, ” she says.

“Often, it only gives me not even the money accurate, because they don’t have enough, I dare not imagine what will be when it will be necessary to pay the parking,” said Roger Desbiens, a volunteer frustrated by this regulation.

Ms. Roberge also believes that it will quickly be unmanageable for the volunteers of having to collect money from users for parking tickets.

“After several requests, the CIUSSS was agreed we would leave the parking lots to 50 %, which is at $ 3.75 for a permit every day at Granby. Except that a problem is present. The volunteers will have to make all the money management, so that it is not up to them to do that, ” laments Nathalie Roberge.

It is concerned that many volunteers decide to completely drop it because of all the constraints.

“It is already difficult enough to keep volunteers, they are so valuable,” breath she said, disappointed.

“I don’t have the impression that they value the role of volunteer, I écœure the end “, lance from his side, Roger Desbiens.

In 2016, 3304 transport have been carried out by the volunteers to 562 beneficiaries different.

Fair

Called upon to respond, the CIUSSS of the Estrie region has stressed that it wants to ” establish fairness for all of its users, but also on the territory “.

“It was already common practice for organizations in the Estrie region [to pay for parking]. We also wanted to be fair to the people who are accompanied by a family member, a friend, a neighbor, an acquaintance, who in turn, must pay their parking fees, ” said Marie-France Thibeault, the communications department of the CIUSSS of the eastern Townships.