What do you have to pay the volunteers?
Roskilde Festival is known to take great care of its 30,000 volunteers, e.g. by building the volunteer village for them. Photo by Carl Johan Dahl
Check out the national legislation as well the national ethical guidelines on volunteerism. It may not be the law, but it is still ethical to reward and care for the work of the volunteers.
For example, in Spain, an organization must provide necessities like food and drink to its volunteers; sometimes they also have to cover their travel costs. However, other countries don’t have this rule. Make sure what applies to you, and have an agreement with your volunteers, so there are no surprises.
In Germany, the law makes it almost impossible for commercial companies to work with volunteers (they have to pay all workers at least minimum wage). Volunteer work is reserved for non-profit organizations. A good argument for creating a partnership between festival organizers and NGOs, isn’t it?
For example, in Spain, an organization must provide necessities like food and drink to its volunteers; sometimes they also have to cover their travel costs. However, other countries don’t have this rule. Make sure what applies to you, and have an agreement with your volunteers, so there are no surprises.
In Germany, the law makes it almost impossible for commercial companies to work with volunteers (they have to pay all workers at least minimum wage). Volunteer work is reserved for non-profit organizations. A good argument for creating a partnership between festival organizers and NGOs, isn’t it?
This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. The author is solely responsible for this publication (communication) and the Commission accepts no responsibility for any use may be made of the information contained therein. In compliance of the new GDPR framework, please note that the Partnership will only process your personal data in the sole interest and purpose of the project and without any prejudice to your rights.