Was I wrong to help my professor

[gradstudent777]

Recently, I met with a professor for advisement while he was setting up for an class exhibit which was opening that evening (I was not in the class which was exhibiting ). He was clearly overwhelmed, behind schedule and was not going to have everything ready for the opening. I mentioned I was free for an hour or so and helped him assemble some booklets. A classmate (she is in the same class taught my this professor)  who was exhibiting in the show pulled me aside and reprimanded me for giving my unpaid labor to the professor. I explained that it looked like he needed help and continued to help him.  In the days that followed she has ignored me completely. Was I being  unethical by offer help to my professor? Maybe she thinks I have an advantage in the class because of this? Or is she just being petty and jealous?

[PsyDuck90]

.....I don't see anything unethical about helping someone assemble some booklets. I think that person may be over-reacting. 

[Quickmick]

It sounds like she might be more upset about the "unpaid" part than the actual helping? I second the possibility of overreacting...

[AP]

Unethical? No.

You saw someone in need and offered help. I can say this having gone through grad school: not all labor is paid with money. Maybe in a couple of years this professor highlights your camaraderie in a LOR. Or maybe they offer you a RAship because you have empathy. Or maybe they drop your name to someone who is looking for your type of profile. 

If you are certain that you helped voluntarily without any fear of reprimand for not helping, you were a kind person. We need more kindness in this world.  

[Modulus]

I certainly think there was nothing malicious or ill-intended about your actions. (Sounds like you're being a nice and helpful person and I hope that my future program-mates will act similarly!) However, if your graduate student body is unionized, you might want to talk to a union representative about how to best handle these situations. Unfortunately there can sometimes be a fine line between helping out and contributing to a culture of unpaid work. 

[Sigaba]

23 hours ago, Modulus said:

 you might want to talk to a union representative about how to best handle these situations. 

If you have such a conversation, please do remember remember that the best solution for the rep or the union is not automatically the best solution for you or the professional identity you want to build.