Nonprofits, schools, charities, NGOs: you have every legal and moral right to require onsite volunteers to properly wear masks or face shields during service, and to ask a volunteer to leave that refuses to comply.

Just make sure that you have communicated with volunteers in multiple ways about the requirement at your volunteer sites for face masks and social distancing and any other safety measures related to COVID-19 or any other issue of concern. You should:

• Email all volunteers directly.
• Include the notice in your regular newsletter.
• Add the notice to your web pages regarding volunteering with your program.
• Post it to your online discussion group for volunteers.
• Send a reminder to all volunteers the day before they are going to show up onsite for volunteering service.

If you can text volunteers with a reminder, do that too! You may want to do a YouTube video of your Executive Director stating this policy, for a more personal touch – as well as to show that this is a policy that is supported from the very top.

These are the requirements I believe programs should adhere to during this pandemic.

And here’s a sample of communication via email, in your newsletter or via a video:

As we have all probably heard by now, wearing a mask helps to drastically reduce the spread of COVID-19. By your wearing a mask or face shield, you help to prevent others from catching the Novel Coronavirus – remember, you may have it but not be showing any symptoms, and even if you are not showing symptoms, you can spread this virus. The safety of our volunteers, clients and staff is of paramount importance to our program, and it is only if we all wear masks or face shields and socially distance that we can continue to operate at least some of our onsite programs. This link goes to our state’s public health agency and has guidance on the proper way to wear a mask. (add in the link).

If you cannot or will not wear a face mask or face shield, you will not be able to volunteer onsite with our program at this time, but you are welcomed to help us as an online volunteer by… (add in your virtual volunteering roles here).

If you don’t feel comfortable volunteering onsite now, we completely understand, and we hope you will consider volunteering with us online by… (add in your virtual volunteering roles here).

If you have any questions, please contact… (add that person’s name and contact info).

Thank you so much for all of your volunteer support. We will get through this together, and we’re committed to all of us getting through this.

Also:

• Your paid staff need to adhere to the same rules regarding face masks and social distancing.
• If you think some volunteers may not be able to access a proper facemask, provide links on where to find free or affordable facemasks.
• Tell the person who will see volunteers first at a site what they should say to someone who approaches and is not wearing a mask, or is not wearing it properly, and to whom they should report anyone who becomes upset or refuses.
• Thank volunteers repeatedly for wearing a face mask or face shield correctly.

You may lose volunteers over this policy, but losing volunteers because of how they feel about a public health issue is far preferable to spreading COVID-19 to volunteers, clients or staff.

On the flip side, volunteers have every right to refuse to volunteer onsite at a program that does not require staff and clients to properly wear masks or face shields. Before you volunteer onsite, ask the program what measures are in place to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. Again, these are the requirements I believe programs should adhere to during this pandemic. If you decide you cannot safely volunteer, write an email saying so (and you may want to write the board of directors as well).

Also see:

• Dealing with customers with diminished mental capacities: No matter what business you are in, you encounter people with diminished mental capacities. They may be job applicants, they may be applicants to volunteer, they may be attendees to a public event, they may have paid to be a part of a service you have offered, such as a class or a hackathon. In thinking about customers and clients and public spaces, including online spaces, nonprofits, NGOs, charities, libraries and others need to consider how to balance the priorities of the program and the needs of other clients and customers with the rights of a person with diminished mental capacities who, just like any member of the public, has a right to attend any public events, speak with you in public, come into your lobby to make inquiries, apply to volunteer, apply for a job, comment on your blog, blog about your organization, etc. But what do you do when the behavior becomes disruptive?
• For volunteers: how to complain: Sometimes, your attempt at donating your time and skills doesn’t work out so well. How do you complain so that your volunteering experience could be improved?
• Safety in Service Delivery/Client Support by Online Volunteers. Includes guidance regarding online meetings.
• My wakeup call regarding risks in volunteering programs – a blog that may change your mind about how to think about risks in volunteer engagement programs
• Letting Fear Prevent Volunteer Involvement is Too Risky” (a guest blog by me for Energize, Inc. and Susan Ellis)
• Have you enabled a Larry Nassar?: Before you think that all is safe and well at your organization, consider how you react to complaints from clients, volunteers and others, especially people expressing concern over someone you admire.
• Keeping volunteers safe – & keeping everyone safe with volunteers (includes a list of my favorite resources regarding safety in programs that involve volunteers and/or children; I consider many of these resources mandatory reading for managers of volunteers
• Safety in virtual volunteering
• Safety of volunteers contributes to a shelter closing

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