SCARS Policy on Volunteers

We are extraordinarily proud of our volunteers for the contribution they make to our organization and services.

However, as a nonprofit corporation, it is important to understand the nature of Volunteers that donate their time to SCARS:

  • SCARS has no employees. All persons participating or assisting the organization are Volunteers. This includes SCARS Officers, Board Members, and Advisors
  • Volunteers in all capacities are not employees nor contractors of SCARS
  • Offers of Volunteering are not offers of employment either as direct employees or as subcontractors
  • SCARS does not compensate volunteers for their time or any efforts that they make on behalf of SCARS, though we are very grateful
  • Volunteers contribute their time without compensation and have no regular schedule
  • While SCARS has different designations for its Volunteers based upon the knowledge of the work we do, we do not consider them to be subject matter experts or to serve in any capacity except in support of the SCARS Leadership
  • Likewise, all SCARS Officers and Board Members are also volunteers and are uncompensated for the time and effort they donate to SCARS
  • SCARS does not establish a value on the donation that volunteers make of the time except to view it as priceless!
  • All SCARS Volunteers are at-will volunteers and their status may be terminated at any time with or without cause. Likewise, Volunteers may end their Volunteer status at any time subject to the Volunteer Service Agreement they executed with SCARS
  • SCARS Volunteers may be given access to confidential, private, trade secret, and copyrighted information and are expected, as with any private corporation, to maintain the security and confidentiality of that information

Nonprofit Volunteer

Under the FLSA, an individual who donates time serving a nonprofit organization for civic or humanitarian reasons is a volunteer and not an employee, as long as (a) the individual is not an employee of the nonprofit organization for which he or she volunteers, (b) does not receive or is promised compensation for the services provided, and (c) the volunteer’s work is less than full-time and does not displace an employee of the organization.

As with public agency employees, the FLSA restricts employees of a nonprofit organization from donating services that are the same as, similar, or related to their regular job duties in their employer organization. Also, nonprofit organizations cannot request or direct employees to perform volunteer work during the employee’s normal working hours, even if the requested duties are not the same as or similar to the employee’s regular job duties.

This policy is effective November 21, 2020