Genoa City Council seeks guard-assistants for Nervi museums... to work for free

The City of Genoa is looking for volunteers to provide surveillance and assistance in the museums of Nervi, the district of the Ligurian capital where, from April 21 to May 6, 2018, the 11th edition of Euroflora, one of the largest flower and plant exhibitions in the world, will be held. Given the high attendance and the number of tourists who will travel to Genoa from all parts of Europe during those days (it is worth remembering that Euroflora is held every five years, and moreover the 2018 edition is two years late: the last one was held in 2011), it is a foregone conclusion that the museums in Nervi will also experience a temporary increase in visitors. In fact, four major museums are located in Genoa’s Levante district: the Gallery of Modern Art, where a substantial collection of hundreds of pieces from the late 19th century to the contemporary period is kept, and three institutes that originated from as many family collections, all of which are relevant for the variety and quality of the pieces, namely the Giannettino Luxoro Museum, the Frugone Collections and the Wolfsoniana.

For Euroflora, which will take place at the Nervi Parks, special events, special openings, and exhibition openings are planned: therefore, museum visitors will increase, as has been expected for months, resulting in the need for a temporary increase in museum staff. In the meager advertisement posted on the City’s website, however, there is no requirement whatsoever, and no special skills are requested of applicants: to participate in the selection process, all you need to do is fill out a form with your name, surname, phone number and email, let them know if you are already a member of any volunteer organization, and indicate your availability by ticking off the shifts(as many as six hours long) that you are willing to cover.

The reactions of Facebook users are discounted. Almost all of the comments brand the Genoa City Council’s proposal as shameful, and many are the users who remind that work should be paid for and that volunteering (which, moreover, is defined by law as that activity “performed in a personal, spontaneous and free way, through the organization of which the volunteer is a member, without the purpose of profit even indirectly and exclusively for the purpose of solidarity”) should be done for other causes.

Genoa City Council seeks guard-assistants for Nervi museums... to work for free

Warning: the translation into English of the original Italian article was created using automatic tools. We undertake to review all articles, but we do not guarantee the total absence of inaccuracies in the translation due to the program. You can find the original by clicking on the ITA button. If you find any mistake,please contact us.