Whether a worker is a volunteer, thus exempting a public agency from pay requirements in the Fair Labor Standards Act, is a question of law that a judge must decide, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit held Wednesday.
Affirming the denial of back pay and other benefits to a man who volunteered in the New York City public school system for more than three years, the Second Circuit said it’s up to the court to decide volunteer status when awarding summary judgment to a public agency under the act.
