In the “Do Good Talks” we put people in the spotlight. People who, in their own way, commit towards a better world. Because together we can achieve more; and because doing good leads to doing more good.
Michiel Dotinga started with Payroll Giving around 1,5 years ago and has since been a ‘Payroll Giver’
Why? We asked him.
“Since around 1,5 years ago, I’ve been giving to charities via The Social Handshake with Payroll Giving. My former employer Futurewhiz, known for Squla and WRTS, offered it as a benefit to its employees. I thought and still think it’s a great way of structurally giving to different charities. If you donate incidentally, on the street or at the door it secretly costs a charity a lot of money in fundraising costs. I think that's actually quite a shame. With Payroll Giving, I can support charities in an easy and accessible way. Because the donation is already deducted from your salary, you miss the given amount less. And through your employer who takes on the costs, and partly because of the tax benefit, you can make more of an impact than usual.”
How did you come to the selection of charities you’re supporting?
“Giving to charity is something quite personal. But in my case, it’s really a joint thing: I do this together with my wife. Together we looked at which themes we consider important and particularly relevant at present. In our case, one of them is ‘Environment and Climate’. Why? Well, look outside! It is one of the problems of our time and you can easily help with it.
We also consider ‘Children and Education’ to be important. Because I lived in South Africa, Kinderfonds Mama’s became one of the choices.”
Do you think it is important that the impact of a charity is tangible?
“Certainly. Especially with a charity like Trees for All, I feel like I can make a practical contribution. That’s why those impact facts are really helpful, as you can see what a charity does with your money. In this case, how many trees can be planted. Furthermore, I really like that the charities have been checked for transparency, efficiency and effectiveness.”
Recently, you were one of three employees who were “in the picture” because they took their Payroll Giving with them to their new employer. Why did you take Payroll Giving with you?
“I think Payroll Giving is a great way of giving to a good cause, precisely because of the ease and the impact that I can make. In my case it was extra easy to take with me, because my new employer, Lepaya, also offered Payroll Giving. But if that wasn’t the case, I would have worked hard to make sure my new employer offered Payroll Giving. Switching was very simple as Lepaya already offered Payroll Giving. With just one email, everything was arranged for me. In short, no reason not to!”
Michiel supports charities easily and monthly through Payroll Giving by The Social Handshake. Lepaya offers all employees this opportunity. Do you also want to participate in Payroll Giving? Register via your employer's personalised page.
Does your employer not yet offer?