I'm not pioneering and have no intention on doing such anytime soon, if ever. However as of late, I count time for anything and everything related to field service. Part of my reasoning is related to training I had to do recently in relation to FLSA(Fair Labor Standards Act). With this Act, companies have to pay their employees for necessary activities related to the job even while not at the job. For instance, if an employee works in a field that responds to disasters or chemical exposure, when that employee even at his own home, begins to don a Hazmat Suit, he is to be compensated from when he starts dressing. If while at home, your employer contacts you and you discuss work related matters to the point that your conversation benefits your employer, whether that be email, text message, or phone call, you are to be compensated for that communication. One last thing about this act, while much emphasis is placed on the importance of the employer compensating the employee, this Act also emphasizes that the employee report all time worked, including work done during their lunch break, and overtime, whether that be at the site of the job, or overtime done at home. So it's a 50/50 deal of participation when it comes to adhering to the mandates of this Act, and both the employer and the employee are responsible for what's reported, and what's compensated.
Now, lets look at Field Service. For one thing, the Watchtower loves to call it, voluntary. You and I know that is not the case. It's voluntary in the sense of someone aiming a gun at you and you voluntarily handing them your wallet as the poster Wha Happened? illustrated. The Watchtower uses guilt trips, fear, peer pressure, and social standing within the congregation hierarchy to ensure that the majority of the congregation is peddling the WT's literature. On top of that, the WT also mandates that the time you spent "voluntarily" peddling their literature, is reported to the Congregation Secretary every month. What that time reported doesn't mention, is the amount of money spent on gas, clothing, shoes, vehicle maintenance, preperation for presentations delivered at the door, and other necessary aspects of this "voluntary" service that are slipping my mind at this time. Not to mention other financial burdens placed upon JWs in the form of Assemblies, Conventions, and Meetings. Not to be forgotten is many JWs aren't exactly living prosporous lives as it is considering the discouragement of education and the resulting ignorance and lower income as a result of the Watchtower's views on education.
Considering all of that, it goes without saying the Watchtower isn't concerned about your or my financial situation. All they're concerned with is that you do more, more, and even more to benefit their organization. They're not providing any assistance financially or any practical assistance all the while pressuring you to continue volunteering your time and resources for their organization. That being said, would it be unethical for a Pioneer, or any publisher for that matter, to start counting their time when they start getting dressed? I don't think so. I used to start my time by stopping at a laundromat before meeting the group for Field Service. That way my time would start at roughly 9am, as opposed to 9:45-10am which is when we'd make it to the territory. Nowadays, from the time my alarm clock goes off until I'm done with field service, I count that time. I count any time when I'm on the platform during the Service Meeting or the School as its all related to Field Service. When I feed the speaker, I count that time. I also don't donate anything of monetary value to the organization as they've siphoned off enough of my money for the past couple decades, including most importantly, my own personal time which is essentially my life.
One last thing I wanted to mention is the Watchtower is about to cash in BIG TIME on their properties in New York and in other parts of the globe. They're recieving voluntary labor and contributions to assist them in their building efforts, all the while making money in Real Estate. They're invested in various companies, including Rand Cam which is known for manufacturing, Smart Bombs. They're making money off of the interest generated by Kingdom Halls despite it being the individual congregation who originally fronted the money to build a Hall in the first place. It's all one gigantic pyramid scheme with extraordinary social pressure exerted upon individuals to continue performing on behalf of the larger group regardless of whatever burden that person may experience. That being said, I see absolutely nothing wrong with an individual counting time for every and anything related to the organization. Besides, this organizations purpose is to spread the good news of the Kingdom and glorify God's name, is it not? So that means anything done on behalf of the organization is related to those goals, and should be counted as field service time.
