QUERY: Do employees have to be paid for hours they do volunteer work supported by the company?

RESPONSE: The following material is found in Ceridian's HR Compliance Reference System:

The Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) covers all individuals employed by a covered employer, though certain employees are exempt from some or all of the law’s requirements.  These exemptions include “bona fide volunteers.”

Bona Fide Volunteers

When determining whether a person is a “volunteer” rather than an “employee,” the Department of Labor generally considers who receives the benefits of the individual’s work, how long it takes to render the services, and whether the services are typical volunteer activities.  Volunteers on a part-time basis for public service, religious or humanitarian objectives generally are not considered the employees of religious, charitable, and similar non-profit corporations receiving their services and, therefore, need not be paid minimum wage.

The exemption for volunteers does not apply to private employers when an employee spends time working for a public or charitable purpose at the employer’s request or direction.  All time the employee spends working as a volunteer is considered hours worked whether the time spent is on the employer’s premises or that of the charitable organization or public agency.  The hours spent volunteering at the employer’s request, being part of total hours worked, then could subject the employer to overtime compensation obligations.

 Example:  All employees are required to participate in an annual highway clean-up day, which is held on a Saturday.  The time these employees spend volunteering is considered hours worked.

 Example:  An employer loans a secretary each year to a charity’s annual corporate giving drive.  All time the secretary spends working for the charity, whether or not the work is during regular working hours, is considered hours worked.

 The time an employee voluntarily (in other words, not at the employer’s request) spends working for a charitable purpose outside of normal working hours is not hours worked.

 Example:  The employer posts a notice on the company bulletin board that a local charity is in urgent need of volunteers.  No one is required to volunteer and the employer does nothing else to solicit volunteers.  The time employees spend volunteering for the charity is not considered hours worked.

 Employees also cannot volunteer to perform their regular duties “off the clock” and without compensation.