Volunteer work isn’t the easy networking opportunity it is often presented to be. When you study options for effective networking, you often find headlines like this one: “Volunteer Work opens networking opportunities.” The belief is that volunteering can help you gain experience in your industry and meet people who have the inside track on local job openings in your field. It seems logical that in some segments, volunteering can work to expand contacts. Companies often commit to community projects and ask their employees to consider volunteering, which is an excellent opportunity to show company spirit and make new connections. Sometimes, in the medical professions, help for special projects is sought by asking the community to volunteer, and they can be networking opportunities.

Even with these examples, I have always been skeptical of the real opportunities to get meaningful job experience and exposure through volunteer work, so I asked Cheryl Doerfler Lake, a Human Resource Consultant at Doerfler Lake Consulting in Utah, what she thought. Her answer was very helpful. Cheryl, answering my question, said: “This is a delicate area but has been made a bit easier since the Trump administration has “relaxed”, some of the work rules. The difficulty for the company is making sure that you aren’t using unpaid volunteers to do the same work as paid employees (similar rules apply for “unpaid interns”), as that has the appearance of the company exploiting people. For example, docents at zoos, museums, parks, etc. have a different role than the employees, plus the rules for “non- profits” are much looser than “for profit” companies. It is highly unlikely a “for profit” can legally let you “volunteer” as anything. However, they might let you “job shadow” for a day or so, or even a week to get a sense of what a person doing that job does regularly. This is what “take your daughter to work” day has been about.”

These next few items Cheryl was able to add from other sources and experiences, and with her strong background in Human Resources, I knew the information would help, and it also seemed perfect for my concerns and questions. “She said that she felt the “legalese” about volunteers was useful from “The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). It broadly defines employment, i.e., “to suffer or permit to work.” However, the Supreme Court has clarified that the FLSA was not intended “to stamp all persons as employees who without any express or implied compensation agreement might work for their advantage on the premises of another.” In administering the FLSA, the Department of Labor follows this judicial guidance regarding individuals serving as unpaid volunteers in various community services. Individuals who volunteer or donate their services, usually part-time, for public service, religious or humanitarian objectives, not as employees and without contemplation of pay, are not considered employees of the religious, charitable or similar non-profit organizations that receive their service.” For example, members of civic organizations may help out in a sheltered workshop; men’s or women’s organizations may send members or students into hospitals or nursing homes to provide certain personal services for the sick or elderly; parents may assist in a school library or cafeteria as a public duty to maintain effective services for their children, or they may volunteer to drive a school bus to carry a football team or school band on a trip. Similarly, an individual may volunteer to perform such tasks as driving vehicles or folding bandages for the Red Cross, working with disabled children or disadvantaged youth, helping in youth programs as camp counselors, scoutmasters, den mothers, providing child care assistance for needy working mothers, soliciting contributions or participating in benefit programs for such organizations and volunteering other services needed to carry out their charitable, educational, or religious programs.” “Under the FLSA, employees may not volunteer services to for-profit private sector employers. On the other hand, in most circumstances, individuals can volunteer services to public sector employers. When Congress amended the FLSA in 1985, it made clear that people are allowed to volunteer their services to public agencies and their community with but one exception - public sector employers may not allow their employees to volunteer, without compensation, additional time to do the same work for which they are employed. There is no prohibition on anyone employed in the private sector from volunteering in any capacity or line of work in the public sector.” More can be learned about independent contractors and trainees (including School-to-Work programs) from the various internet sites on the FLSA.”

My initial conclusion has stayed the same. I think it is a little misleading to find volunteering listed as a key networking direction to pursue when looking for a job. It does have some value, but it also brings some challenges.