Volunteering is a great way for organisations to allow their employees to give back to their local communities, supporting projects or causes that may be close to their hearts.
Not only is it a chance to offer a helping hand, volunteering can also be great for team building, allowing team members to get to know one another in an external environment, working as a team for a good cause. What’s more, volunteering is often a key component of an organisation’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) programme. However, before an employer introduces volunteering as an option for their employees, it is important that they consider a few things.
Legal considerations
What happens if an employee misbehaves when volunteering?
If an employee’s behaviour is not what it should be in the workplace, the employer will typically have policies and procedures in place to deal with these issues. However, what happens if an employee behaves poorly when volunteering externally? If an employee is volunteering as part of an employer-supported scheme it is likely that they will be acting in the course of employment during their volunteering activity, so not only might the employer be vicariously liable for the employee’s acts during the time spent volunteering, but at the same time the employee’s behaviour should be judged against the employer’s usual workplace rules.
What happens if an employee is mistreated while they are volunteering?
When volunteering externally, employees are likely to be working alongside people employed by the host organisation or by other volunteers. Although volunteering will typically only be for a few days, issues may still arise where volunteers are mistreated by other volunteers or those employed at the host organisation.
Where the mistreatment is conduct that amounts to harassment as defined in the Equality Act 2010 the employer may be able to pursue a claim of direct or indirect discrimination or constructive unfair dismissal.
If the mistreatment amounts to ‘sexual harassment’ then the employer could potentially also face liability for that third party harassment. This would be in the form of enforcement action or an uplift in compensation for other successful discrimination claims, even though the statutory duty to prevent sexual harassment (which came into force in October 2024) does not extend to individuals being able to pursue claims of harassment under the Equality Act 2010 where the harassment is by a third party.
The employer should, as a minimum:
- satisfy itself that the host organisation has robust policies in place dealing with behaviour while on site, straightforward complaints mechanisms and other safeguards to monitor the conduct of volunteers, including the right to remove anyone whose behaviour has been called into question;
- satisfy itself that the host organisation also has staff who are trained to spot and tackle inappropriate conduct; and
- provide training for all employees about the organisation’s own policies and those of the host organisation about conduct in the workplace and raising complaints.
Note also that the Employment Rights Bill currently going through Parliament seeks to re-introduce employer’s liability for harassment (in relation to all protected characteristics and for all types of harassment) by third parties. If/ when this change is introduced, employers would need to take even more care to ensure that employees are not exposed to unacceptable treatment while they are taking part in any volunteering activity.
Health and safety considerations
Prior to agreeing to provide volunteers to work at an organisation/ charity site, employers should also carry out a risk assessment to ensure that the location the volunteering will be performed at is a safe workplace. For example, what training will be provided about hazards on site as well as what training and relevant safety equipment will be provided suitable to any volunteering tasks they’re likely to be doing.
Should employers have a volunteering policy?
While not a legal requirement, having a volunteering policy within your organisation is a great way to address the risks outlined above. A good volunteering policy will typically include:
- the number of days/ hours employees are allowed to take for volunteering
- how to seek approval for volunteering days
- types of volunteering opportunities supported by the employer
- length of service required before an employee can undertake volunteering
- how to report any issues that employees encounter while volunteering.
Volunteering can be a rewarding experience for everyone involved, giving employees a sense of pride in supporting a cause, as well as allowing employers to fulfil a key part of their CSR goals. However, while it is easy to want to dive straight in to supporting volunteering initiatives, employers should take time to understand what is required before doing so.