Florida volunteer golf lawsuit

[596]

As a former business owner, when filing taxes, there is a line item to list the number of barters that the business has with other companies or people.  These barters were exempt from taxes.

 

I can see this suit opening a can of worms and allowing lawyers to argue either side.  Right or wrong, it'll depend on which lawyer makes the best argument.  I think its a stupid waste of time and money.  This "volunteer" and free golf arrangement is decades old. 

 

Also, how do you know that the courses are not keeping track of the rounds played by volunteers and paying the taxes due on those rounds?  It would be a lot less then paying employee wages, taxes and benefits.  

[ChipNRun]

Volunteers are people who agree to work without compensation to forward the goals of a social organization. At the same time, people who manage organizations are governed by the Fair Labor Standards Act. FLSA notes three broad categories of employers regarding volunteers:

• Private, For-Profit Employers. Sorry, but you can't have employees working "off the clock" in tasks which are the same as their work duties.
• Public Employers. You can allow them to work on worthy outside activities, if you pay them on government time.
• Non-Profit Employers. May not classify their employees as volunteers for off-the-clock tasks.

 

A separate but related issue is involving students or "trainees" in unpaid internships. Broadcast organizations get students to work for free with basically full-time job responsibilities. University of Missouri School of Journalism has a policy against allowing unpaid internships. Also, U.S. government unpaid internships tend to go to rich kids who can afford to rent a DC apartment and support themselves on parents' dime.

 

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Legal filings give the details of the class action suit:

 

Quote

“As a result of this ‘volunteer program,’ Defendant’s golf facilities obtain free labor as Defendant hires volunteers to perform the same labor for which private golf facilities must pay employees proper wages,” the complaint states. “If not for the Defendant’s ‘volunteer program,’ all of its golf facilities would have to hire employees to perform the job duties of the volunteers.”

Golf Suit / Class Action

 

Florida case: The wide range of tasks the volunteers were required to work goes beyond being a starter or a slow-play marshall. Basically, the Florida operation was covering most of their tasks with volunteers. The U.S. government has an interest in this because the Florida operation gets by without having to pay payroll taxes, and the volunteers pay no income taxes. Volunteers get to play golf, which is "in kind" compensation for tasks performed.

 

Further, the for-profit operation has an unfair business advantage over other golf courses who have to pay wages to their employees.

 

A golf course can get by with having a dozen starters and course marshals who get golf for their part-time tasks. But the Florida operation is way out of line for the number of employee hours which are volunteer.

 

Would be interesting to know if the managers of the Florida golf operation work at modest wages to keep greens' fees low for their golfers, or if they have wonderfully generous salaries because their labor costs are low. A similar situation would be the executive directors of the NCAA bowl games who got six-figure incomes for basically a month's work each year, and relied on volunteer-heavy organizations for getting things done. This is one reason college football insiders opposed the Div. I national championship model: bowl games might lose their gravy-train status.

 

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For selected specifics, see the following: Fair Labor Standards Act and Volunteers

Edited June 22, 2021 by ChipNRun

[BIG STU]

On 6/6/2021 at 11:39 AM, dokex said:

Didn't this come up years ago in Myrtle Beach? The issue then was not collecting payroll and other taxes, IIRC.

Yep it did but I live in the area and never have heard the outcome.

[BIG STU]

On 6/6/2021 at 1:38 PM, rwbloom93 said:

If labor laws apply to those who volunteer, our legal system is truly broken.

 

This lawsuit is dumb beyond belief...what a waste of time.

 

Regards

Yep but as far as ANY government is concerned it all boils down to $$$$$

[markheardjr]

Hopefully if the old geezers win any money considered "labor" they have to pay back taxes for income earned over their social security tax bracket limits. 

[GolfnGatorNC]

JUST GOT THE RULING!

 

I stumbled into this subject and thought it would be great to caulk up a win for common sense!  The federal court ruled on the Florida lawsuit concerning VOLUNTEERS thinking they were employees.  See the link:

 

https://www.foley.com/insights/publications/2024/03/eleventh-circuit-volunteer-golf-attendants-compensation-flsa/

 

I've worked volunteer positions at golf courses (it was great after I got out of the Air Force while applying and waiting for job openings, so not just old retired guys doing this) and volunteered for tour events. The 10% rule applies in every organization, whether paid or volunteer.  10% of the organization are just disgruntled.  Unfortunately others pay for their BS.