Many employers consider being socially responsible as not only the right thing to do, but also as a way to help attract applicants and foster greater engagement and satisfaction among employees. To help promote social responsibility, a growing number of employers are adopting policies offering paid time off for employees so they can volunteer. Since April is National Volunteer Month in the United States, you may be considering joining them. Here are some guidelines for crafting such a policy.
Include an opening statement.
Begin your policy by describing how this Volunteer Paid Leave (VPL) policy fits into your social-responsibility efforts and how it reflects your organization’s values, culture and mission. You can also encourage employees to work on volunteer projects together.
Cover any eligibility rules.
Employers typically allow both full-time and part-time employees to take VPL, but offer part-time employees a prorated amount of it. Many employers require newly hired employees to work for them for a certain length of time (e.g., 90 days or six months) before they become eligible to use VPL.
State the maximum amount of leave available.
Employers generally have broad discretion to decide how much VPL to offer. For full-time employees, allotments of VPL are typically 8 hours or more per year. In addition to stating the maximum amount of VPL allowed per year, the policy should indicate in what increments employees can use it (e.g., one-hour increments, four-hour increments, etc.).
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Note: Employees may be entitled to leave under state law if they are a volunteer emergency responder. For example, some states require employers to provide leave to employees who are volunteer fire fighters. Check your state law for details. |
Require prior approval.
To help prevent abuse, the policy should require employees to obtain approval from their supervisor prior to taking the leave, whenever possible. Employers should also clearly state any rules on when the employee must obtain the approval. For example, an employer’s policy may state that, absent extenuating circumstances, employees are required to obtain approval at least a week in advance.
The policy should also indicate that the employer reserves the right to deny requests for VPL based on business needs, such as during peak periods.
Limit use to work hours.
Clearly state that employees must use the leave during their normally scheduled work hours and that the policy isn’t intended to cover volunteer work performed on personal time.
Provide guidelines for acceptable organizations.
Give examples of the types of organizations and volunteer service that are and aren’t covered by the policy. For instance, many employers limit use of VPL to bona fide 501(c)3 organizations. The policy may also state that the employer reserves the right to reject participation in any organization that they feel would be in conflict with its values and policies. However, this provision must be enforced consistently and in compliance with nondiscrimination laws.
Address pay, carryover and payout.
The policy should state the rate at which employees will be paid during VPL, whether unused VPL will be carried over to the following year, and whether unused VPL will be paid out at the time of separation from employment. Employers typically pay employees their normal rate of pay during such leave. Employers typically don’t carry over unused VPL at the end of the year and don’t payout unused VPL when employment ends.
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Note: Some states prohibit employers from making employees forfeit unused vacation at the end of the year or when employment ends. In these states, if the employer were to bundle VPL with vacation and other leave into a single Paid Time Off (PTO) policy, the employer would be required to carryover/payout any unused leave. |
Detail verification requirements (if applicable).
Employers may require reasonable documentation that the time off taken is covered by the policy. For this purpose, employers typically require employees to get a representative of the organization at which they volunteered to sign a form indicating the date, time and description of the volunteer work.
Conclusion
A VPL policy can help strengthen your ties to the community and your employees. If you are contemplating adopting one, take the above guidelines into consideration.
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