Workers Bowl

Fighting for Decent Work!

FAQ

To make a general donation to Workers’ Bowl 2021 click > HERE
You will receive an official tax receipt for your donation.

So, what are we raising all this money for anyway?

To help an important initiative that just can’t get funding anywhere else.

The OEERC — in partnership with WAC — offers a solution for marginalized workers without options. We reach out to our workers through workshops at ESL classes, libraries, employment resource centres, immigrant settlement agencies, and various information centres, but only we provide the comprehensive service that these workers need.

Every year we help thousands of contract workers, casual relief workers, migrant workers, union-less workers, the involuntarily unemployed, and those struggling in low-wage and part-time work. When they come through our doors, we not only offer them support and advice on the issues that they are facing at work, but we also give them a community they can be a part of, and the opportunity to learn about and get involved in the labour movement.

And if this isn’t enough of an incentive for you, we have lots of great PRIZES!

I’m a Team Captain. What the h+#% do I do?

A Team Captain builds a team of 6 people to be part of a team. Each team member has to raise $200 (minimum). Therefore, the team as a whole will raise $1,200 (minimum). Of course, the sky is the limit on how much you can raise. The winning team takes home the “Stanley Cup” of fundraising, the Workers’ Bowl “Top Fundraising Team” cup. Will it be your team who takes it home this year?

As a Team Captain you should rally your troops and …

  • Encourage them to raise money in any way that works (short of losing friends or getting fired ;). Some favorite techniques: “cajoling, bribing, reverse psychology” etc. “The sky is the limit”.
  • Customize the team’s webpage so that it reflects your team’s personality.
  • Remind and encourage your team members to login, personalize and use their personal webpages. Make sure to communicate to our team any information or requests that come from us (the Workers’ Bowl organizer).
  • Coordinate with our team as to what you’ll be wearing for the event. Dressing-up is so much fun!
  • Have fun!

I’m a participant. What do I do?

  • Register yourself on our website and personalize your webpage with photo and text. Let your personality shine! Go to Register Now and follow the prompts.
  • Encourage your friends, family, neighbors (and anyone that doesn’t hate you) to sponsor you so that you can reach your target of $200. You can use your home site to send emails, twitter, and to Facebook your friends.
  • Help your team captain and your team mates to come up with cool ideas for the event. If you are a ‘new-age’ type of person, think positively about raising money and imagine yourself winning the “Top Kick Ass Fundraiser” trophy (Let us know in if this strategy worked.)

How do I register myself on the website?

  • Contact dwilliams@oeerc.org to Start a Team (if you are the team leader) or Join a Team (if you are team member). Please note that if the participant (team member) is joining a team there has to be a team already started online.
  • Type the name of your team in the Team Name box
  • Enter all the info it asks for and create a password, and click Next, followed by another Next and click on SUBMIT
  • After you register the system creates a  ‘’fundraising webpage’ for you. You can let your friends know about your fundraising by pressing TELL A FRIEND or the SEND EMAILS tab.

How do I know who has sponsored me?

It is easy!
1. Login to your account.
2. Click on MY PROGRESS and click on CREDIT CARD DONATIONS.
That is it!

How do we record donations for the whole team?

In order for your union, law firm or rich aunt to make a donation for the whole team (cheque or cash) you have to have a “General Donations ” player registered on your team.

You do this clicking the Register Now button and adding a “General Donations” player in your team just like you would register yourself online. For example, if the team name is LUCKY STRIKE, once you have registered the First Name = Lucky Strike and Last Name = General Donations, then you can tell your generous sponsors to donate to Lucky Strike General Donations.

Please note that if you get a donation cheque that is supposed to be split between two teams (assuming you have two teams), make sure that both teams have a ‘General Donations’ player and clarify by sending your instructions to Deborah Williams at dwilliams@oeerc.org or if you mail the cheque to the OEERC office before the event.

But how do I fundraise?

Here are a few ideas to get you started:

Make sure to a set a personal goal
When people visit your webpage and see that you’ve set a goal, they’ll want to help you achieve it. The minimum goal per person is $200 but the sky is the limit for fundraising.

Make sure you share your goal and your progress along the way – emails and Facebook are great tools for encouraging others and sending updates.

Share your reasons
Do your friends and family know why workers’ rights and education is so important to you? The more the more you tell them, the more the chances are that they will respond to your request.

Ask!
We know that for some this sounds scary but it’s easier than you’d think. Even a few small gifts can add up really quickly…five friends giving up their (organic fair trade) morning coffee for a week could add up to $100 in no time!

Keep a pledge form handy
You never know when you might run into someone you know, or you have a surprise visitors who would like to support your fundraising for this important cause.

Host an event
This can be whatever you want it to be (friends’ night in, garage sale, empanadas or sushi sale, game or poker night, the list goes on…). Just ask your friends for a donation to participate.

Give up gifts
Have a birthday or celebration coming up? Ask your friends & family to make a donation to your Workers’ Bowl fundraising campaign rather than buying a gift. Because really is there anything you really need other than supporting a great cause and winning the best trophy ever?

What if someone gives me cash or a cheque? What do I do with it?

If someone gives you cash/cheque donations you should keep the money/cheques until:
a) you have too much of it (e.g. more than $200) and you arrange with Deborah Williams (dwilliams@oeerc.org) for a drop-off/pick-up, or
b) you can deliver it to Deborah at the office (720 Spadina Avenue, Suite 206, Toronto ON M5S 2T9.

NOTE: Please do not make donations on behalf of anyone with your credit card because the tax receipt will print with your name not the actual donor. To change it we will have to cancel the transaction.

All cash/cheque donations should be recorded on the website. How? Follow these super easy steps,

  1. Login to your personal webpage or General Donations page (if you are the team captain and the donation is for the whole team).
  2. Go to the ‘RECORD PLEDGES’ tab and you’ll have a couple of options. One option is to enter your sponsor’s information in your webpage by clicking on ‘Add a Pledge‘ in this tab. The system will ask for names, email, etc. press enter all the information and you are good to go. The cool thing about this option is that the system will count your cash/cheque donations right away.  Another option is for you to print the blank pledge form and have the donors fill it. Submit the pledge form with the cash on the day of the Workers’ Bowl bowl-a-thon.

    NOTE: Email addresses are very important because we are emailing the tax receipts. However, if your sponsor doesn’t have an email address we’ll mail the receipts.     We will give tax receipts for donations = or greater than $10.00. If you receive cheques, these should be made payable to OEERC or Ontario Employment and Education Research Centre

I am having technical problems. Who do I talk to?

If you are having technical issues, email Deborah Williams at dwilliams@oeerc.org, or call her at 416-531-0778 ext.300. She will do her best to call you right away.

I want to participate but I don’t have a team or the mojo at this time to be a team captain. What should I do?

That’s not a problem. Send us email with your request and we’ll do our best to connect you with an already existing team. We have done it in the past and it has worked very well!

Do I get a tax receipt? Will donors get a tax receipt?

Absolutely! Because you are donating to the OEERC, which is a registered charity, you’ll get a receipt for donations equal or greater than $10.00. Donations online will immediately receive the tax receipt via email.

If you donated online and you didn’t get a tax receipt, we can resend a copy. Contact Deborah Williams at dwilliams@oeerc.org to have this fixed for you.