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The Marketplace of Ideas: 8/15/08
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Peter Drucker once wrote that every important idea for social change in the last 100 years has come from the nonprofit sector. And when we look around, there's no denying it. Ideas that have been nurtured and grown in the nonprofit sector include the idea that disabled people should not face discrimination, that women should have equal rights with men, that the earth needs to be cared for, that patients should participate in their health decisions, that being gay/lesbian is not a mental disorder, that people of color still face deep discrimination, and that animals should not be mistreated.
The nonprofit sector is also where many ideas have sprung up and yet failed to gain traction. That's why our sector can be called the "marketplace of ideas." Ideas come to the sector and find embodiment as nonprofit organizations, and some grow and become part of our collective consciousness, while others fade out. We are more than service providers and theatres. We are the crucible for the ideas and movements that change the world.
As you know, in every issue of Blue Avocado we have at least one news/feature story, one practical article, and one fun article. This issue you'll see an article on unfair mileage reimbursement rates for volunteers, practical articles on when to get an audit and how to manage FMLA issues, and fun articles on cookies and on fingernail clipping in the workplace. Enjoy the summer! -- Jan Masaoka
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Gas Rates, Volunteers, and Justice: Reader OpEd
Many people don't realize that on their personal tax returns volunteers can
deduct mileage expenses incurred as part of 
volunteering. For example, if a
volunteer drives 30 miles to volunteer at an art school
or drive a patient to chemotherapy, the volunteer can
deduct $4.20 on her next tax return. Even fewer people
realize that in contrast, if this same person drives 30
miles for her business, she can deduct $17.55!
Clearly we need to help volunteers claim the deductions
they can. And in this Blue Avocado Reader OpEd,
activist Susan Ellis talks both about how we can change
the law, and steps we can take now to
supportvolunteerism in an era of high gas prices:
You may know that the IRS just raised the rate for the business-related mileage
deduction to 58.5 cents. But did you know that the charitable driving deduction
remains at only 14 cents a mile? So volunteers, who often use their cars to provide
life-or-death services to people in need, are deriving less tax benefits as their driving expenses rise.
This issue is particularly important since, as the cost of gasoline soars, Americans are trying to drive less. The high cost of driving is already> Read more
Can an Employee Come and Go Using Family or Medical Leave?
Dear Rita,
One of our exempt employees -- a children’s therapist -- is 
keeping me up
nights by taking unscheduled and intermittent leave under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA).
We’ve been able to plan schedules when other employees have requested
either a 3-month leave or regularly scheduled intermittent leave, but
this employee has rheumatoid arthritis and she never knows until she
wakes up if she will be able to come to work on any particular day. We
can't count on her to keep appointments with our clients. We know that
leave under the FMLA is protected, but there must be something we can
do without these continuous disruptions to our services. Help!
-- Sleepless
Dear Sleepless: The administration of intermittent leave can create a headache for the employer. You do have some options -- and some tools -- that can help you
> Read moreIs It Time for an Audit?
Blue Avocado reader Bill Mitchell writes: "As a board member
of both a small($400k/year)
and a much larger ($1.8m/year)
nonprofit,what are the criteria to
determine whether or not to conduct a formal outside audit? I have
worked on staffs, sat on boards and have been a foundation program
officer and I have never had a clear set of guidelines. Thanks!"
Blue Avocado columnist Jeanne Bell replies:
Dear Bill: In these tough economic times it makes perfect sense that a board of directors would weigh the costs and benefits of spending $10,000 or more on this administrative expense. The short answer to your question is: "As soon as you have to."
The longer answer: A first tier for nonprofit audit requirements may be set by whether or not you receive federal funding. The federal government has not > Read moreHave a 3-Minute Staff Retreat with Cookies
You need a 3-minute vacation. You feel like eating a cookie. There's a wrong way and a right way to have a 3-minute cookie vacation. The wrong way: eat it while working. The right way: Go out and buy a box of cookies (if desperate, buy 5 packages out of the vending machine, but you have to be really desperate). Announce to a few co-workers that you're having a 3-minute staff retreat at your cubicle in 15 minutes. Pass out the cookies and talk (no working!) while you all enjoy the cookies.
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I Hear the Sound of Fingernails Clipping
Last issue we asked Blue Avocado readers how they would react to hearing the activity of a co-worker in the next cubicle clipping his fingernails. Ack! Some readers provided
humorous ideas and others gave practical advice, perhaps because of personal
experience? Here are just a few of the letters:
Those of us who have lived in cube environments for years have found the best way is to ignore them with music and headphones. And a few of us can just turn off our hearing aids, which we need as a result of using loud music to drown out the fingernail clipping noise. -- Dave Cannard, Portland, Oregon
I actually witnessed my supervisor clip her toenails into a trash can about two feet from me. What did I do about it? A week later she applied deodorant and I quit. -- Louise
Clearly your co-worker doesn't have enough to do. Since there is rarely a shortage of work in most nonprofits, maybe you should tell him that you're happy to share items on your to-do list. -- Michelle Johnson, Davis, California
Leave an anonmymous bottle of flaming red nail polish and an emery board on "The Clipper's" desk with a note: 'Here's a little something extra to put on your freshly clipped nails." -- Alan E. Yue, Life Foundation, Honolulu
I was the person clipping! For years I thought that talking on the phone at work was the perfect time to clip my fingernails. But one day I overheard two people complaining about someone ELSE who did it. I was stunned to realize this was considered too uncool for words, and embarrassed that no one had ever told me. In retrospect, I wonder if my two co-workers staged that conversation for me to overhear. So remember: some of us are just ignorant or from a different culture, and we would appreciate a gentle soul clue-ing us in. -- Jan Masaoka, Blue Avocado, San Francisco
Lean over the top of the cubicle and ask: 'Would you like to be alone, this seems like an intimate moment for you? Or go to the doorway with your trash bin and at the next clip yell, 'Two points!" BUT, since my boss has been known for the same bad behavior, I'll remain anonymous! -- "Rad-Raw"
Queries and Help Wanted August 15
Hey, it's so great to hear from so many of you! Thanks especially to the 25+ people who wrote in about their personal financial situations as lifelong nonprofit workers: the three-part series on nonprofit retirement starts next issue. Now we're looking for:
* Are you one white person on a nonprofit board of an organization based in and serving a community of color? If so, would you be open to being interviewed on the phone?
* Still looking for someone to work very part time selling ads for Blue Avocado, on commission. Send message and requested rate.
* How does your board sort through taking public policy stands? For example, your organization may often be asked to sign onto various letters and petitions. How do you handle these?
This issue's requests . . . click here to send email to the editor
