Recently Asked Questions (RAQs)

Can employees volunteer at the library where they work, specifically in New York State?

We have had this come up quite often and the word has always been, employees cannot under any circumstances volunteer at the place they work. Since libraries have programming like holiday events outside of regular working hours, employees like to lend a hand but have been told they cannot.

The Fair Labor Standards Act from the US Department of Labor says that for nonprofits, employees may volunteer at their workplace, if it is work outside their regular duties. Our example, under FLSA, would be if a library page wants to help with our gardening. The gardening is outside their regular duties and can volunteer. If it was volunteering to shelve books, that wouldn’t be permitted.

We cannot find anything in state law or anywhere else that clarifies whether employees are permitted to volunteer outside their regular hours. This is especially critical for large events or for people that work at a circulation desk. They cannot leave their post to do anything else.