Volunteers do wonderful work for so many of our organizations, donating their time and efforts to improve the places they work and live. In Washington state, municipal entities are one of a small group of organizations who can elect coverage for volunteers providing service to their organization. When you elect coverage for volunteers, those covered will only be eligible for medical aid benefits; time-loss and other benefits are not available under this volunteer coverage.
Considerations and reminders as you decide on volunteer coverage:
How will you report volunteers’ hours?
You can choose to report actual hours, or for administrative ease report 100 hours per volunteer per calendar year. More information on reporting hours and options here.
Volunteer firefighters are not covered by L&I
They are not covered by L&I, but rather by the Board of Volunteer Firefighters and Reserve Officers. Coverage and claim issues should be directed to that organization.
Volunteer law enforcement officers
Your entity will need to decide whether it will provide full coverage, or only medical aid. Remember: all volunteer LEOs must be covered with the same coverage type.
Injuries
If a covered volunteer is injured, your AWC Retro Claims Coordinator will help you manage the claim and help the volunteer seek needed and appropriate medical treatment.
Questions on volunteers?
Reach out to the Retro team.