There is a nonprofit local to where I live that facilitates parenting groups.
Most of the group leaders/facilitators are volunteers, however, they also have some paid group leader roles. It is the same job with the same duties, they just don't pay the volunteers.
I applied to be a paid leader. I have extensive experience with children and families, a degree in early childhood education, experience as a family advocate, etc. Unfortunately, I'm not in a place where I'm able to work for free at this time.
I received an email to schedule an interview with them, which stated “Your overall resume and extensive experience working with families make you very qualified for this role.” Cool.
I did the interview and then about a week later I received a rejection email about a week later, saying that for this position they are looking for “somebody with more direct experience in group facilitation and group management.”
Which I understand. (I also understand that there may have been another reason for them rejecting me and they're using this as an excuse, which is fine.)
What gets me, though, is that if a person applies to the same role, but as a volunteer, the experience and education required for the position aren't the same. They don't require facilitation experience any sort of experience working with children and families.
So potentially, if it were about wanting a group leader to have facilitation experience, they wouldn't take on volunteers without facilitation experience.
Essentially, its not that they necessarily require the people running the groups to be experienced/qualified people…its that they want people to run the groups for free.