Hi Julie, In our institution, volunteers are subject to the same ethical and behavioral standards as employees. It just gets too messy otherwise. If a volunteer is unwilling to accept these conditions, we pleasantly thank them for their time but deny their application to volunteer. Just because an individual wants to volunteer does not mean you have to accept them or their unprofessional behavior. Be that as it may, you may have inherited this person. In that case, a one-on-one consultation with them privately would be in order. I'd tell them exactly what is unacceptable, provide them with acceptable behavior options, and ask them what conditions they are experiencing that give rise to being out of control. It would be entirely fair, in my opinion, then to give a warning that if they cannot modify their behavior within an acceptable period, they will be asked to volunteer elsewhere. Above all, keep your cool. Document, document, document. And invite a silent witness to attend the meeting if you feel personally threatened by this person. We don't always have medical or psychological profiles for our volunteers, and there may be extenuating circumstances for bad behavior. This isn't excusing the bad behavior, but you may be able to give the person more time to turn the corner if they aren't interacting with the public or small children. If you have a human resources person, she/he might be another source of help, but I personally have found precious little assistance from that arena, if the advice was being sought in regards to volunteers or interns. I've been blessed in the past with a steadfast group of "Regulars". We've become very close, but even families have their upsets, and I've certainly found myself in some strange, uncomfortable situations from time to time. Good luck! Shirley S. Albright Assistant Curator, Natural History Collections and Exhibitions, Collections Database Administrator New Jersey State Museum 33 W. State St., 3rd floor PO Box 530 Trenton, NJ 08625-0530 (Office) 609.292.6331 (Fax) 609.292.7636 -----Original Message----- From: Archives & Archivists [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Julie Holcomb Sent: Wednesday, August 16, 2006 3:37 PM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: volunteer question Hi all, I need to fire a volunteer and I would like suggestions on how best to handle this situation especially since I am doing this because of the volunteer's of increasingly aggressive and disruptive behavior. Please respond off-list if you have had to deal with a similar situation. I can compile the responses and post them later without attribution, if anyone else is interested. Thanks, Julie -- Julie Holcomb, MLIS, CA Director of the Pearce Collections Museum/ Navarro College Archivist Pearce Collections at Navarro College 3100 W. Collin St. Corsicana, Texas 75110 Phone: (903) 875-7438 ~ Fax: (903) 875-7593 E-mail: [log in to unmask] Internet: http://www.pearcecollections.us "A frank and honest effort in classrooms to face up to the darkest side of our past, to understand the ways in which social evils evolve, should in no way lead to cynicism and despair or to a repudiation of our heritage. The development of maturity means a capacity to deal with truth. The more we recognize the limitations and failings of human beings, the more remarkable and even encouraging history can be." David Brion Davis A posting from the Archives & Archivists LISTSERV List sponsored by the Society of American Archivists, www.archivists.org. For the terms of participation, please refer to http://www.archivists.org/listservs/arch_listserv_terms.asp. To subscribe or unsubscribe, send e-mail to [log in to unmask] In body of message: SUB ARCHIVES firstname lastname *or*: UNSUB ARCHIVES To post a message, send e-mail to [log in to unmask] Or to do *anything* (and enjoy doing it!), use the web interface at http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/archives.html Problems? Send e-mail to Robert F Schmidt <[log in to unmask]> A posting from the Archives & Archivists LISTSERV List sponsored by the Society of American Archivists, www.archivists.org. For the terms of participation, please refer to http://www.archivists.org/listservs/arch_listserv_terms.asp. To subscribe or unsubscribe, send e-mail to [log in to unmask] In body of message: SUB ARCHIVES firstname lastname *or*: UNSUB ARCHIVES To post a message, send e-mail to [log in to unmask] Or to do *anything* (and enjoy doing it!), use the web interface at http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/archives.html Problems? Send e-mail to Robert F Schmidt <[log in to unmask]>