What do you do ?

[chill123]

I run a Pheasant and Duck shooting syndicate . All members are reminded at the start of a new season that they must attend work party's throughout the year . My problem is it's the same people who turn up to the work party's . I have had all the excuses why they are unavailable but always reply they are never to busy miss a shooting day. My question is has got a system that will help in getting the non attenders to work party's or compensate the people who do turn up ?

Chill

 

[SimpleSimon]

I run a Pheasant and Duck shooting syndicate . All members are reminded at the start of a new season that they must attend work party's throughout the year . My problem is it's the same people who turn up to the work party's . I have had all the excuses why they are unavailable but always reply they are never to busy miss a shooting day. My question is has got a system that will help in getting the non attenders to work party's or compensate the people who do turn up ?

Chill

The small syndicate I used to shoot on would fine members for missing more than a certain number of work parties.
It doesn't make it any easier for the few who are putting in the effort, but it does at least act as an incentive for people to get their finger out.

 

[Woodsmoke]

Nope, afraid not. It's been the same with each and every syndicate I've been involved in. The same members shirk the work days with a wide variety of ever more-inventive and outlandish excuses, but miraculously seem to have a clear schedule when it comes to shoot days. You all know who you are, and you fool nobody.

 

[Essex stalker]

I run a Pheasant and Duck shooting syndicate . All members are reminded at the start of a new season that they must attend work party's throughout the year . My problem is it's the same people who turn up to the work party's . I have had all the excuses why they are unavailable but always reply they are never to busy miss a shooting day. My question is has got a system that will help in getting the non attenders to work party's or compensate the people who do turn up ?

Chill

Sounds about the norm, ours is just the same. It's made worse by the fact some members live quite a distance away and for a few of us it's on our doorstep.
If someone consistently doesn't attend work parties then the shoot captain will give them a specific job outside one of the normal work parties, I.E. tell them to go and fill a couple of hoppers one night in the week.
doesnt work brilliantly and you always get some who completely ignore it. Be interesting to hear how others handle it

 

[Malxwal]

Always the same tossers, " have to go shopping", " I'm playing golf" etc etc, and usually the ones who could easily afford to just buy days. Also notice they tend to not turn up later in the season once the birds thin out.
Possibly make it a two tier membership, working and non working, and if they dont do the work, exclude them from days from the start of the season?

 

[Monkey Spanker]

Make one of the last shoot days a 'Work Party' shoot day which you can only attend if you've attended a specified amount of work party's.
MS

 

[goldypurple]

Members who attend the work day pay a lower rate, those that dont attend the work day pay more. work out what you would class as reasonable to charge extra.

 

[Minto]

Could you make it a condition of joining the syndicate that they must come to so many work days a year. You could take back a days shooting from them for everyday they don’t help out, better than a financial penalty

 

[BryanDC]

Could you make it a condition of joining the syndicate that they must come to so many work days a year. You could take back a days shooting from them for everyday they don’t help out, better than a financial penalty

I was just about to suggest exactly the same

 

[TH4]

If they are not prepared to work then bin them and get someone who is. After you get rid of one the rest will soon change.

 

[FISH BOY]

Its the same on my small syndicate, same folk time after time.

Have raised the working/gentleman gun disparity for years with the shoot captain but nothing ever gets done.

At my fishing syndicate however all members are required to do two work parties a year. Failure to do so results in a £20 fine per session..

 

[Malxwal]

Make one of the last shoot days a 'Work Party' shoot day which you can only attend if you've attended a specified amount of work party's.
MS

I would make that the first days.

 

[BryanDC]

Be sneaky and organise a shoot day just for them. When they turn up hand out the work tasks for the day and tell them to get on with it.

 

[Swedish]

A lot of clubs in the USA deal with this issue by charging a 'work bond'. Upon the start of the new season everyone pays their subs plus a bond of say £100. Members get the chance to earn their bond back at a set rate for shoot duties. Those that don't turn up simply forfeit their bond. The money either remains in the club kitty for ad-hoc expenses, prizes etc... or is divided up amongst those that have worked on a pro-rata basis. It generally works quite well and goes a long way to eliminating bad feeling with the club.

 

[enfieldspares]

My problem is it's the same people who turn up to the work party's . I have had all the excuses why they are unavailable but always reply they are never to busy miss a shooting day.

As said many solutions. Simplest is to decline to invite them for membership at the end of the season.

Collecting extra money of fines is OK except what if they refuse to pay up?

All you can do then is invoice them before the first day and if they haven't paid get the agreement fo the majority to cancel their membership and return their subscriptions. But if the shoot hasn' that money available then what?

 

[old keeper]

It's almost as bad as those who say they will do a particular job, the classic being filling feeders and then don't do it. In the end it's easier to do it yourself!

As far as work parties, on small syndicates it should be made clear that there will be say two work parties for everyone to attend, those who don't, unless there's a really good reson will not be allowed back the following season.

 

[bobjs]

this has been going on longer than man has had a hole in his backside.

sad unimportant people hanging off the back of those who give a toss,

sack them and as said get someone who gives a toss, and when you write the next syndicate include this as part of the joining rules, and the clause if they leave early then there is NO refund of membership fee's

wonkers.

bob.

 

[norma 308]

I’d rather do it myself anyway I used to have a work party but too many chiefs not enough Indians
I had to check the work any way after And put it all right

 

[Overlay]

I run a Pheasant and Duck shooting syndicate . All members are reminded at the start of a new season that they must attend work party's throughout the year . My problem is it's the same people who turn up to the work party's . I have had all the excuses why they are unavailable but always reply they are never to busy miss a shooting day. My question is has got a system that will help in getting the non attenders to work party's or compensate the people who do turn up ?

Chill

Cured it when I had the same problem, sent an email out to all with dates( 4 ) each member only required for two of the dates in total. ( excluding emergencies)

( forget the compensation bit, you need people on the ground to help )

with the proviso that if you didn’t do two days out of the four , your syndicate place will not be available to you the next year. As you have shown that you have no interest in the shoot

all of a sudden - plenty of volunteers, had a couple if wingers, so I offered them their money back for the coming season, never had a problem since with attendance

 

[Tim.243]

Fishing club ones used to make Dad and I laugh, toy wheel barrows garden gloves shinny stainless spades trying to load the barrow. Granted they had turned up but what a fuss….

Me and Dad would put down 2 8x4 sheets of ply and knock up concrete by hand with the toy barrows taking it to the pour.

I do the pheasants myself with the odd night off for stalking, things always need a tweak so explaining what needed doing would be to painful….lol


Tim.243