When a Volunteer Agreement is more than a Volunteer Agreement
30 November 2004
"We have been developing formal agreements for our volunteers. A lawyer told me this might make them employees. How do I avoid this?"
A difficult issue. There are two volunteers who have been worrying third sector bodies all over the country. Mrs Chaudhry and Mrs Armitage took their respective organisations to court in the 1990s and argued that in law they were employees. Their cases were successful.
There are a number of other cases but these are only a small number of cases out of the 22 million people who volunteer each year. And the two decisions were very unusual in the context of particular volunteer arrangements. To be entitled to employment rights, volunteers have to establish they have a 'contract', of employment. In legal terms, this involves a 'consideration' - in other words, the organisation is giving volunteers something of value, for example, paying them more than just their expenses or by offering them a range of perks. A number of tests apply, generally about the level of control the organisation has over the 'employee'. The volunteer in the organisation must also intend that any 'contract' or agreement is legally binding. Most arrangements with volunteers lack such an intention.
It is good practice for organisations to have written arrangements that set out the duties of the volunteer and what they can expect in terms of support. A recent appeal tribunal decision found that setting out 'reasonable expectations' (as opposed to obligations) in writing was sensible practice and did not in itself imply a contract. Many organisations have moved towards agreeing a volunteer role description and person specification. These are excellent moves and to be encouraged. But again, be careful of the words used and don't just mimic a job description for a paid post. Good management and treating volunteers fairly is always going to be the way to avoid problems. Indeed, if you have got procedures for dealing with complaints and grievances from volunteers, then you cut the risk of people feeling they are being discriminated against.
You can get advice from Richard Usher or Jenny Ward at RVA, 0118 957 4123,
e-mail
Richard@volaction.demon.co.uk or
jenny@volaction.demon.co.uk
Useful information on volunteering good practice is also available from Volunteering England,
www.volunteering.org.uk
news from Reading Voluntary Action (RVA)
