Report

Advice on volunteers

General Hostel Operations

Sanjuan started this discussion 13 years 8 months ago

Hey gang. I co-own a hostel in San Juan, Puerto Rico and we have been open for a little under a year. I think this site is a great source of knowledge and info and am looking forward to meeting you all. I have never used forums before, so forgive me if I am not doing this right.

Anyway, recently we have started to take on some volunteers in exchange for accommodation. We have a separate volunteer area where they sleep, but they share bathrooms, kitchen, and common areas with the other guests.

My question is this; when you all take on a volunteer, do you have them sign any kind of contract before they start working? We want to keep the volunteer process flexible and fun, but also want things to get done. We are considering drafting some sort of contract detailing exactly what we expect from them, when they should work, etc. In addition we want to make it clear that while the volunteer has the right to leave any time and stop working, we also have the right to decide that things are not working out so that we can ask them to leave.

So far all of our volunteers have been great, but you never know. We basically just want something in writing, maybe contract is the wrong word. Perhaps, "agreement", so that both sides know what is expected of each other, etc..

My concern is when putting something like this in writing, sometimes you cross boundaries of "employment", which we don't want as then it get a bit hairy.

Do any of you have experience with this sort of thing? Also, is this website where you find most of your volunteers? If not, where do you look?

Thanks a lot guys for any help on this. I really appreciate it.

-Dan

Comments

Report

Rucksack Brian

13 years

I don’t know if having an agreement in writing would constitute “employment” if it clearly outlines the terms of a volunteer position. That said, putting signatures on paper may very well be considered a work contract regardless of whether it’s paid or not. Perhaps it would be best to simply give a printout of the working conditions to each of your crew members and post a copy in the staff room. That way you could be sure that everyone would read it, but no one would need to sign anything.

In any case, I think clearly defining what you expect from your team and what they should expect from you is always a good policy. A thorough job description helps to keep everyone happy.

Report

Sanjuan

13 years

Thanks for the response and suggestions, Brian! Much appreciated.

Report

coqui

13 years

Hi,

My day job is in Human Resources and we deal with a lot of volunteer situations on a daily basis. My advice is to get familiar with your local (Puerto Rico) laws about employment versus volunteer work. A written agreement is not uncommon even for volunteers, especially when considering that there are laws in some places that would not allow you to easily get rid of a volunteer/employee if you are housing him/her. (The company I work for also houses several employees.)

If you do decide on putting something in writing the basic thing would be to make sure you include a description of the job with the qualifications, the accountabilities (i.e., what they are expected to do on a basis shift), and state that you are providing housing for a specified period of time. The last thing you want is a squatter on your property.

Hope this adds to your pool of information.

Coqui

Report

coqui

13 years

P.S. I have family in Puerto Rico that I would love to visit...Where is your hostel located? It's name?

Report

Sanjuan

13 years

Coqui,

Thanks for your reply. Like you said, things can get a bit tricky when you are housing your volunteers. Anyway, I'm going to see what I can learn about the laws/regulations on the island.

The name of our hostel is 'San Juan International Hostel'. We are pretty new, and located in Santurce, an area of San Juan. If you're ever in town, come on by!

-Dan

Report

europegrad

13 years

Volunteers (live-ins) can be tricky. Because they are not paid other than getting free lodging (and maybe meals), you can't demand them to work like employees. They can be motivated people, however, for a limited period of time.

You might consider the following issues and address beforehand:

- Laws/legal implications (already mentioned). Check your lawyer if you have one or some good legal advice websites.

- Conflicts between volunteer staff and paid staff (if you have paid staff other than you/your family). This is usually an overlooked source of conflicts and can bring morale (= atmosphere) down quickly. Volunteers tend to feel entitled that they don't have the same obligations as paid staff, which is a truth, but sometimes this can translate in lack of collaboration ("I don't want to work the 7am-noon shift on the room keeping schedule"). Paid staff, particularly if they are from the same age cohort of your volunteers, can feel they are being undervalued or explored because volunteers, after all, get a big handout in the form of the "market value" of the rooms they sleep in. You don't want to have paid staff and volunteers living in the same quarters.

- Private time. Respect your volunteers' off hours, expect they are responsible with their work hours. Don't treat them as if they "owed" you to be available on call all the time. Don't start asking things like "where were you last night, [xyz] came late and I tried to call you to come back to cover her shift?". A potential source of problems are big events in your city: as they are attraction themselves, it is likely the days in which you will be most busy and your volunteer eager to go out and enjoy the festival/party/even most.

- Private space. Most volunteers are on the 20-25 age range. They are usually single and sociable. They will get flirts and company. They will go out to drink once in a while. They will socialize with guests. Even if this happen with paid staff also, the social side is taken as one of the perk of volunteering at a hostel. Don't overcontrol your staff as long as general sensible rules are followed. Also, don't patronize too much the intra-staff relations of live-ins: if they are around the same age, changes are they can work most of issues of co-living by themselves better than you could imposing rules like "no alcohol in the room" and so.

Report

gordo

13 years

I cant speak on behalf of puerto rican authorities obviously, but the whole 'work for accomm (WFA)' system is hugely popular in Australia - a country where hostels and backpackers are BIG business. I know for a fact that at least 2 major hostel chains in australia both use WFA systems... both illegally. paid or unpaid, employees are supposed to have certain rights and hostel volunteers tend, well... not to have those rights. there are also important tax considerations (housing is considered a 'fringe benefit' in australia and is therefore taxable) that the hostel chains ignore - and thats a couple of big chains, not just independent operators who engage in the same practices.

not to encourage you to break the law - but the law and its enforcement are very often two completely different things. most importantly, know YOUR rights as a business owner/operator when it comes to staff paid or otherwise - but equally, keep your ear to the ground. if ive learnt anything from the developing world (ok, so puerto rico isnt exactly laos... but its not sweden either) its that what is technically illegal can have very little impact on the way things actually operate.

Report

nconstantino

9 years

Do you have any "contract" that you sign with volunteers ?
Thanks in advance if you can share with me - [email protected]

Search form

Report 'Advice on volunteers'?

Report 'Re: Advice on volunteers'?

Report 'Re: Advice on volunteers'?

Report 'Re: Advice on volunteers'?

Report 'Re: Advice on volunteers'?

Report 'Re: Advice on volunteers'?

Report 'Re: Advice on volunteers'?

Report 'Re: Advice on volunteers'?

Report 'Re: Advice on volunteers'?

Join the world's largest community of hostel professionals.

Check Your Email