Volunteers & Liability

Volunteers are the fuel that power many, if not all of the organizations and ad hoc groups that come together in the wake of disaster to aid a community in their recovery. Neighbor helping neighbor and strangers from around the state and country travel to disaster affected communities putting themselves in potentially dangerous situations to expedite a communities recovery. That speed is largely reliant on the productive use of the Volunteer interest while it's available, because once the disaster falls out of the news cycle (if it made it into the cycle) the Volunteer interest will drop and a community will be left to do it themselves.

The surge of Volunteer interest following disasters is nothing new, and Emergency Operation Plans reflect this in the annexes that have been created to help transform Volunteer interest into coordinated action. Even with plans in place and MOU's signed, the biggest challenge in capitalizing on Volunteer interest after a disaster has to do with Liability.

Sweet graphic huh?

I understand that Liability isn't sexy but it can be the single biggest hurdle a municipality faces when translating Volunteer interest into action, mainly because in our overly litigious society, the prospect of being sued when a city is facing the reality of paying for a disaster is the last thing they want to deal with.

One of the many reasons municipalities want as many people to pre-affiliate with an organization as possible is because it clears up the ambiguity around who is responsible for that individual when they're in the field. One of the challenges that spontaneous groups represent to the pre-affiliation model are the questions they bring: who's liable should one of their Volunteers slip and fall in a basement? Are things like workman's compensation something a Volunteer is eligible for? Who’s going to pay for it? What's the homeowners role in this equation? And in the eyes of the law, how do you define a Volunteer?

While the questions around Liability and Volunteers are fairly consistent from event to event, the way in which states interpret and set laws governing liability and Volunteer coverage varies widely.

Thankfully, the good people at nonprofitrisk.org have undertaken the herculean effort of amassing a comprehensive guide covering State Liability Laws for Charitable Organizations and Volunteers. This resource document provides a detailed look at how each state view the important role of Volunteers and Liability as it relates to Charitable organizations—if you utilize Volunteers in conjunction with non-profit activities, I recommend looking through this document.

If more local non-profits can gain a better understanding of what their exposure is by providing a platform for Volunteers to work in a community affected by disaster, then the necessary steps can be taken to ensure that more organizations can provide a structured opportunity for them that protects both Volunteer and Organization.

In addition to the benefits this guide can offer local non-profit organizations is the potential to incorporate this information into disaster preparedness literature; the goal would be to help set and manage expectations around Volunteer liability for those who would start spontaneous response efforts via facebook/etc. This one-sheet could be coupled with the necessary paperwork: homeowner and volunteer liability waivers, to ensure that all those who are active in the field have some level of protection—it would also be a way to standardize the language and coverage organizations provide.

The role Volunteers play in the recovery of a community following a disaster is undeniable; oftentimes their involvement can mean the difference between weeks and months of response efforts. As a community of practice who rely so heavily on these well intentioned individuals and groups to fuel our work, ensuring that we arm our Volunteers with as much information as possible will ensure that they are making informed decisions about how best they can contribute to response and recovery activities.

A Brave New World of Digital Volunteers

I just posted on the subject of Liability and Volunteers in disaster in an effort to provide a comprehensive resource that would hopefully add clarity to this complex and multi-faceted issue. In my continued exploration of the subject I came across the Commons Lab at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. In a nutshell, the Commons Lab "seeks to advance research and independent policy analysis of emerging technologies, with an emphasis on their social, legal, and ethical implications." They have articles on:

The Power of Hackathons

Successful Government Crowdsourcing Efforts for Earthquake Monitoring

Privacy and Missing Persons after Natural Disasters

Basically, they have lots of interesting things to read that focus on the nexus of emerging technological platforms and their role in creating social change...but the article that caught my attention is this: Responding to Liability: Evaluating and Reducing Tort Liability for Digital Volunteers, apropos given Friday’s posting. 

Responding to Liability: Evaluating and Reducing Tort Liability for Digital Volunteers

Full Disclosure, I didn't know what a Tort was...so for those of you who aren't up on your legal terminology a Tort is:

A civil wrong which unfairly causes someone else to suffer loss or harm resulting in legal liability for the person who commits the tortious act, called a tortfeasor. (Thanks Wikipedia)

The article focuses on Digital Volunteers and the liability issues that come with engaging in this brave new digital world in a post-disaster context. Because of the application of Volunteers in this way is so new, courts are still evaluating the potential exposure individuals and groups face by engaging in these types of activities. In the absence of definitive guidance, the article outlines challenges and opportunities related to Liability and the innovative work being done along the digital frontier.

An aspect of the article that surprised me though is that it focuses on the group rather than the individual and encourages as a mitigation strategy the instituting and formalization of processes and procedures through incorporation. For some reason I see this strategy as running counter to what makes this form of Volunteering so attractive to so many: anonymity and autonomy. While it’s easier to plug in and help an already established structure that has definition than acting on your own, I feel that one of the aspects of virtual engagement that appeals to so many is the freedom to do and act how they see fit given the context. It’s with this belief that I find the focus on the group over the individual surprising.

As more discussion and opportunities to see firsthand how Virtual Volunteers engage in response, as both individuals and groups become available, the ability to forecast how best to indemnify these good Samaritans will become clearer.

Until then, if you are interested in lending a digital hand the hashtag #SMEM (Social Media Emergency Management) or groups like crisis mappers, Ushahidi, or VOSTs (Virtual Operation Support Teams) are good ways to learn more about the opportunities that exist.

One thing is for certain, the way in which Volunteers engage in response and recovery efforts are changing, and while it may be difficult to accurately foresee all the speed bumps along the way towards their seamless integration, the energy and desire to help those in need is always welcomed.