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This looks like another example where cost and efficiency are prioritised at the expense of visitors, museum staff, and common sense. Museum security is an important role—but so is visitor engagement, and we need to respect the incredibly important job VEOs do. Job descriptions for these roles are all about making people's museum visit an informative and valuable experience.
I've worked behind the scenes in museums (including at Museums Victoria), but for many people, from locals and regular visitors, to children and school groups, to interstate and international visitors, VEOs are the face of the museum and the only museum staff they see and engage with. Let them do their job, while fully trained security staff do theirs.
Michael supported: Protect the Role of Visitor Engagement Officers in Melbourne's MuseumsAs a heritage professional and having worked as a security officer, there is no comparison between the two. Heritage professionals are passionate about the collections. They share intimate knowledge of the collections. Due to that passion, they are often highly educated, formally or informally.
Security officers do not share these qualities. Additionally, they present in an authoritarian manner as is the convention for their employment. This makes them unapproachable and intimidating to some. The aim of our cultural institutions is to house and care for heritage. If the doors are open to the public, public engagement is the next highest priority. Putting security officers into a visitor engagement roll defeats this.
It is myoptic to suggest that a security officer could replace a VEO simply to save money.
Deborah supported: Protect the Role of Visitor Engagement Officers in Melbourne's MuseumsVEOs are the first point of contact between the museum and visitors and their role is to engage, educate and make visitors feel welcome. This role should not be outsourced to security guards who are employed with a completely different purpose and in many cases, may not be able to make the museum feel accessible.
Anna supported: Protect the Role of Visitor Engagement Officers in Melbourne's MuseumsMuseums Victoria works best with VEO's engaging with the public. I regularly take my son to all 3 museums, and the most memorable times have been when a VEO has told him a story, or shared something with him, or played with him. They are who bring the museum's to life for him.
Leanne supported: Protect the Role of Visitor Engagement Officers in Melbourne's MuseumsI'm a member and have been for years, and I adore visiting the museum - in large part due to the kindness and passion of the staff. I often say to whoever I've brought along with me to visit that if I were ever to get sick of my current job I'd want to apply to work as a VEO at the Melbourne Museum. I would be devastated if this change were made - frankly I'd strongly consider cancelling my membership in solidarity. Museums are not simply a storage facility, they are an experience to cherish. No one who truly loves museums would ever consider a decision like this - it's clear that whoever is proposing this is completely divorced from the joy of learning, exploration, and wonder.
Alex supported: Protect the Role of Visitor Engagement Officers in Melbourne's MuseumsVisitor Engagement Officers are the heart of Museums Victoria. VEOs improve the experience of visitors to Melbourne Museum, Scienceworks and Immigration Museum, and we would be lost without them. A major restructure means reframing the visitor experience, and the loss of jobs and reduced contracted hours for VEOs. Some of our VEOs have worked at MV for 24 years. Their dedication, loyalty and commitment to the visitor experience is inspiring.
Nicole supported: Protect the Role of Visitor Engagement Officers in Melbourne's MuseumsHuman connection and storytelling are integral to education, knowledge sharing, and the museum experience. The role visitor engagement officers play shouldn't be taken for granted like this.
Luci supported: Protect the Role of Visitor Engagement Officers in Melbourne's MuseumsThe museum is a cornerstone of my childhood and into adulthood, without the veo's it would be nothing
Akiva supported: Protect the Role of Visitor Engagement Officers in Melbourne's MuseumsYou’re not alone — a community of supporters is ready to back you.
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