Why is it acceptable
To offer unpaid work
Expect someone to carry out
The duties others shirk
Without the basic dignity
Of taking home a wage
To compensate them for the time
They’ve bottled up their rage
To cover bills and buy their food
And clothing, pay the rent
Do people somehow think
That volunteering’s time well spent
When everything around us
Has associated fees
(We buy natural resources, water,
Light, heat, air and trees)
Save workers from stupidity
And keep us free from debt
You can’t afford to go without
The things we do, and yet
You’d rather keep the cash
Than spend it on a junior role
So tell us why your profit costs
Another man his soul?
Katherine Shirley 