INTRODUCTION

This section introduces the general structure of the law in Canada as a background to how the law affects the work of volunteers.

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Quicklook:

HOW THIS APPLIES TO VOLUNTEERS

Although there is no particular statute that covers volunteer activity, there are many statutes that are important to volunteers or voluntary organizations in Alberta. For example, the Child Welfare Act describes actions required of those who believe a child is in need of protective services. Volunteers are often asked to write reports about the clients they are serving. When they do so, they must be aware of the relevant sections of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.

Quicklook:

APPLICATION TO VOLUNTEERS

During the training stage, and again when volunteers are elected to the Board of Directors, they should be given copies of their organization’s internal rules. These should be read carefully so that volunteers have a clear idea of how the organization operates. For example, an organization’s internal rules will set out policies and procedures for such things as screening measures for new volunteers. Board members must always operate according to the organization’s internal rules.

Volunteering is one of the most fundamental acts of citizenship. It is an extension of being a good neighbour, transforming a collection of houses into a community as people work to improve their surroundings by choosing to help others.

The role that voluntary activity plays in Canadian society can hardly be overstated. According to the National Survey of Giving, Volunteering and Participation, 2004, 48% of Albertans volunteer (approx. 1.23 million people) an average of 175 hours per person. These figures are higher than their respective national counterparts of 45 percent and 168 hours. However, it’s not simply a matter of numbers.

Volunteers organize events, raise funds, direct organizations as Board members, care for and counsel those who need help. They work in the arts, social service organizations, religious, educational, and health organizations. They foster a sense of community by encouraging friends, colleagues, and neighbors to work together on common concerns. This cumulative action of millions of caring citizens has had a profound impact on every aspect of Canadian society.

While carrying out all this voluntary work, Canadians focus on their tasks, not on the law. However, the law forms a kind of background structure for the activities of volunteering. So to avoid problems in the first place, as well as to solve problems once they have arisen, we need to understand the legal structures behind our volunteer activities. With a clear understanding of what the law expects of volunteers, organizations should be able to prevent or minimize risks of legal liability. To assist in relating the law to day-to-day voluntary activities, we would like to introduce you to the XYZ Society. Examples using this imaginary organization will help demonstrate the various items in this guide.

I. MEET THE XYZ SOCIETY

The XYZ Society is a typical nonprofit organization. It has a Board of Directors, all of whom are volunteers — lawyers, business owners, housewives and househusbands, plumbers, accountants, retirees — a real cross-section of the community. It has a paid Executive Director, who also works as the volunteer coordinator, though in some organizations a volunteer coordinator might be a separate paid position. Alternatively, that person could be a volunteer. In any event, volunteers do a variety of tasks for the organization — from fund-raising to sitting on the Board to carrying out program work. They are the core human resources of the organization. And, of course, XYZ has members and clients. This guide looks at how the law affects volunteers and the various things they do for organizations like XYZ. Typically, volunteers operate in one or more of the stages of the operational cycle of their organization. While not every volunteer will go through every stage set out below, many will, and probably every stage will operate with some volunteers. These different stages, together with the kind of work done by the volunteer, provide the context in which the legal rules will apply.

A. The Life Cycle of a Volunteer

Recruiting: the organization may put out media releases or carry out other activities to recruit new volunteers. Sometimes, new volunteers hear of an organization from friends or clients, or approach the society directly.

Screening: the Volunteer Co-ordinator (or other staff or volunteers) interviews prospective volunteers and may do certain kind of background checks, depending on the organization and its work.

Training: the organization provides the new volunteers with the training they need to understand the organization and to do their new volunteer tasks properly.

Volunteering: The volunteers carry out their tasks, learning more as they work, and often becoming more involved, and carrying out more complicated and responsible tasks as they become more experienced.

Becoming a Board Member: Often, after some period of volunteer work for the organization, a volunteer will be asked (or will offer) to stand for election to the Board of Directors. As a member of the Board of Directors, the volunteer will be involved in the overall management and direction of the whole organization. At some point, the volunteer may be elected to be one of the officers such as President, Secretary, or Treasurer. As an officer, the volunteer will have an even greater involvement with the management of the organization and will likely work very closely with the paid Executive Director.

Leaving an Organization: Some people volunteer with one organization for their whole lives. But others will volunteer for months or years, and then, for a variety of reasons, will leave the organization. Sometimes, it’s a matter of changes in the volunteer’s family situation, aging, moving to another place, or changing interests. Sometimes, unfortunately, it’s a matter of burnout or unsolved disagreements within the organization. And occasionally, an organization has to terminate the work of a volunteer if that volunteer is causing significant problems.

II. HOW THE LAW CAN APPLY TO VOLUNTEERS

There is no area of the law devoted specifically to volunteer activity, nor is there a particular Canadian or Alberta statute that sets out the roles and responsibilities of volunteers. Instead, we can say that volunteers must follow all federal and provincial laws in their volunteer activity, just as in any other activity they do. However, because volunteers are working for civic organizations and because their work deals with some of the most important tasks in our society, it is important that volunteers have a sense of how the law affects their volunteer activities. This chapter will briefly describe some of the legal terms and topics that volunteers may run across in their work.

A. Statute and Common Law

The two main sources of law in Canada are common law and statutes. Common law is the body of law that has evolved over centuries from the decisions of judges in particular cases. For instance, we know that XYZ Society has to look after its offices so that people who enter aren’t injured, for example, by slipping on ice at the front door. How do we know this? Centuries of decisions in court cases about the standard of care people must take to keep their property safe tell us. This is part of the common law of negligence.

Statutes, on the other hand, are specific laws, written down and passed by Parliament or provincial legislatures. Sometimes, statutes simply codify principles of the common law. Examples of this include the Alberta statute on occupier’s liability that codifies some of those common law principles of negligence mentioned above. Statutes may also be created to deal with new topics or to reflect changing societal values. Examples of this category include laws dealing with intellectual property, human rights, and privacy.

B. Public and Private Law

Occasionally you may hear people speaking of public and private law. This simply means that some laws such as the Criminal Code and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms govern the relationships between members of the public and the government. So, for example, if XYZ Society happened to be an environmental nonprofit that wanted to get an injunction to prevent its municipality from spraying pesticides, it would be using public law. Private law, more often called civil law, includes those laws that govern relationships between private individuals and corporations. Areas of private law include contract law and tort law (also known as the law of negligence) and in some instances, administrative law. So, for example, every time XYZ Society signs a contract, it is actually using the private or civil law of contracts.

C. Federal and Provincial Laws

The final categorization of laws that all Canadians recognize is the division between federal and provincial laws. Voluntary organizations, and their volunteers, must always comply with both, and with the bylaws of the municipality in which they operate as well.

Some statutes are particularly important. For example, an organization such as the XYZ Society could be incorporated federally under the Canada Corporations Act, Part II to operate in several provinces. Provincially, the Society could be incorporated under either of the Alberta Societies Act or the Companies Act to operate in Alberta. What XYZ and its volunteers are allowed to do depends in part on which statute they are set up under.

D. Internal Rules

When XYZ is starting up, it will also create its own internal rules - its constitution and bylaws - according to the requirements of the statute under which it is incorporating. An organization cannot make internal rules that are inconsistent with federal or provincial legislation or common law. Most organizations also develop policies, procedures and regulations. Members, including volunteers, must operate according to its internal rules as they, along with the laws of the country, provide the organization with the legal authority to establish the rights, privileges, and obligations of membership.

RELATIONSHIP OF STATUTES, COMMON LAW, AND INTERNAL RULES

EXTERNAL - Constitution Act 1982

LAW - including Charter of Rights and Freedoms

federal powers

Parliament passes statutes such as Criminal Code, Income Tax Act (sometimes codifying common law decisions)

provincial powers

Legislature passes statutes such as Child Welfare Act, Societies Act (sometimes codifying common law decisions)

judicial powers

Courts apply statutes and previous common law decisions to the facts of specific cases

INTERNAL RULES - XYZ Society incorporates under federal or provincial statute creating its own Constitution and Bylaws

Volunteer Board operates according to External Law plus its Constitution and Bylaws. It passes policies and procedures that govern the activities of the Board, staff, and volunteers

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