On 8/11/06, Erik Zachte <erikzachte(a)infodisiac.com> wrote:
Anthere quit/lost (no idea which) her job while being
a board member, as she
professed publicly some time ago, so I can quote that. She also told she
works nearly full time on the project and given her omnipresence, this might
well be an understatement. I think we should be grateful she is putting so
much time in the project. And I am sure everyone is. But maybe we ought to
taken a moment to discuss the consequences.
If I remember correctly Anthere responded to a question from the audience.
Candid as she always is, she explained her financial situation (again). So I
feel I can comment on that some more.
I don't know many mothers with three young children who can afford to spend
so much time pro bono. Of course there must be more Wikimedians in a similar
situation, who show as much commitment. Still I feel the organisation has a
special obligation towards its official representatives. If only people who
are financially independent can afford to work for the organisation in
central positions, and others do it to their own detriment, I think the
organisation (not on purpose but still) puts a bias on its central workforce
which is unwanted. These issues have been discussed before. But we have
grown from a small village to a large city, and our budget has increased
with it. We can even afford to delay fundraisers so it is not that we are
entirely unable to even discuss this due to lack of funds. Brad commented to
this effect.
I have no idea how other non profit organisations handle this, but frankly I
think we should make up our own mind.
Well, I think we should follow the lead of other non-profit organizations.
Being a board member shouldn't require a lot of time - a couple hours
a week at the most. If a board member wants to spend more time
voluntarily, that's fine. But if someone wants to spent 40 hours a
week helping Wikimedia, and isn't in a financial position to do that
for free, and Wikimedia agrees to pay them for this, then they
shouldn't be a board member. It's too much of a potential for a
conflict of interest.
I don't mean to say this as though it's a simple change to make. But
it's extremely important that the change be made.
Anthony