Consideration and volunteers — some more examples from case law

Several cases have explored the issue of consideration in the context of volunteers. In Melhuish v Redbridge CAB [2005] IRLR 419, the EAT decided that the opportunity for a CAB volunteer to attend training courses was not consideration. Similarly, in Uttley v St Johns Ambulance [1998] UKEAT/635/98/0109, a volunteer whose actual expenses were reimbursed but who received no wage had no employment contract, because reimbursing his actual expenses was not consideration.

By contrast, in Migrant Advisory Service v Chaudri [1998] UKEAT 1400/97/2807, the EAT decided a charity worker given what the employer described as a “flat rate” of expenses (£40 per week), paid to all “volunteers” regardless of their actual expenses, was really an employee, and that the arrangement was a smokescreen to disguise actual wages. These issues are topical in the context of interns (see Chapter 3) and others who increasingly find themselves forced to gain experience by working for nothing, or for “expenses” only.