What ‘Volunteers’ Can Receive Workers’ Compensation in Pennsylvania?

Compliance Corner

Generally, the words "volunteer" and "workers' compensation are mutually exclusive, but there are some instances where a "volunteer" can be considered an "employee" for state workers' compensation law.

As Simply Research subscribers know, there are statutorily created examples of volunteers who count as employees, and we highlight those examples here.

Volunteer Fire Departments

Members of volunteer fire departments or volunteer fire companies, including any paid fireman who is a member of a volunteer fire company and performs the services of a volunteer fireman during off-duty hours, who shall be entitled to receive compensation in case of injuries received while actively engaged as firemen or while going to or returning from a fire which the fire company or fire department attended including travel from and the direct return to a fireman's home, place of business or other place where he shall have been when he received the call or alarm or while participating in instruction fire drills in which the fire department or fire company shall have participated or while repairing or doing other work about or on the fire apparatus or buildings and grounds of the fire company or fire department upon the authorization of the chief of the fire company or fire department or other person in charge or while answering any emergency calls for any purpose or while riding upon the fire apparatus which is owned or used by the fire company or fire department or while performing any other duties of such fire company or fire department as authorized by the municipality or while performing duties imposed the Fire and Panic Act.

Volunteer Ambulance Corps

All members of volunteer ambulance corps of the various municipalities are entitled to receive compensation in the case of injuries received while actually engaged as ambulance corpsmen or while going to or returning from any fire, accident, or other emergency which such volunteer ambulance corps shall attend including travel from and the direct return to a corpsman's home, place of business or other place where he shall have been when he received the call or alarm; or while participating in ambulance corps of which they are members; or while repairing or doing other work about or on the ambulance apparatus or buildings and grounds of such ambulance corps upon the authorization of the corps president or other person in charge; or while answering any emergency call for any purpose or while riding in or upon the ambulance apparatus owned by the ambulance corps of which they are members at any time or while performing any other duties of such ambulance corps as are authorized by the municipality.

Volunteer Rescue & Lifesaving Squads

Members of volunteer rescue and lifesaving squads of the various municipalities shall be entitled to receive compensation in the case of injuries received while actually engaged as a rescue and lifesaving squad member attending to any emergency to which that squad has been called or responded including travel from and the direct return to a squad person's home, place of business or other place where he shall have been when he received the call or alarm or while participating in rescue and lifesaving drills in which the squad is participating; while repairing or doing other work about or on the apparatus, buildings and grounds of such rescue and lifesaving squad upon the authorization of the chief or other person in charge; or while riding in or upon the apparatus of the rescue and lifesaving squad and at any time while performing any other duties authorized by the municipality.

State Parks & Forest Program

Volunteer members of the State Parks and Forest Program, who shall be declared to be employees of the Commonwealth, shall be entitled to receive compensation in case of injuries received while actually engaged in performing any duties in connection with the volunteers in the State Parks and Forest Program.

Deputy Game Protectors

Pennsylvania Deputy Game Protectors are defined to be employees of the Commonwealth and shall be entitled to receive compensation in case of injuries received while actually engaged in the performance of duties as a Pennsylvania Deputy Game Protector whether employed by the Game Commission or otherwise.

Special Waterways Patrolmen

Special waterways patrolmen are declared to be employees of the Commonwealth shall be entitled to receive compensation in case of injuries received while actually engaged in the performance of their duties as special waterways patrolmen whether actually receiving compensation from the Pennsylvania Fish Commission or not.

Forest Firefighters

All forest firefighters are hereby declared to be employees of the Commonwealth f shall be entitled to receive compensation in case of injuries received while actually engaged in the performance of their duties as forest firefighters or forest fire protection employees which duties shall include participation in the extinguishing of forest fires or traveling to and from forest fires or while performing any other duties relating to forest fire protection as authorized by the Secretary of Environmental Resources or his designee.

Hazardous Materials Response Teams

All volunteer members of hazardous materials response teams are declared to be employees of the Commonwealth agency, county, municipality, regional hazardous materials organization, volunteer service organization, corporation, partnership or of any other entity which organized the hazardous materials response team for the primary purpose of responding to the release of a hazardous material.

All such volunteer members of hazardous materials response teams shall be entitled to receive compensation in the case of injuries received while actively engaged as hazardous materials response team members or while going to or returning from any emergency response incident or accident which the hazardous materials response team attended, including travel from and direct return to a team member's home, place of business or other place where the member shall have been when the member received the call or alarm to respond to the emergency incident or accident; or while participating in hazardous materials response drills or exercises in which the hazardous materials response team is participating; or while repairing or doing other work about or on the hazardous materials response team apparatus or buildings and grounds of the hazardous materials response team upon the authorization of the chief of the hazardous materials response team or other person in charge; or while answering any emergency calls for any purpose; or while riding upon the hazardous materials response team apparatus which is owned or used by the hazardous materials response team in responding to an emergency or drill or with the express permission of the chief of the team; or while performing any other duties of such hazardous materials response team as authorized by the Commonwealth agency, county, municipality, regional hazardous materials organization, volunteer service organization, corporation, partnership or any other entity which duly organized the hazardous materials response team.

Emergency Management Coordinators

All local coordinators of emergency management of the various municipalities are hereby declared to be employees of such municipalities entitled to receive compensation in the case of injuries received while actually engaged as local coordinator of emergency management at any emergency to which he has been called or responded, including travel from and the direct return to his home, place of business or other place where he shall have been when he received the call or alarm or while performing any other duties authorized by the municipality.

Good Samaritans

An employee who, while in the course and scope of his employment, goes to the aid of a person and suffers injury or death as a direct result of any of the following:

+ Preventing the commission of a crime, lawfully apprehending a person reasonably suspected of having committed a crime or aiding the victim of a crime. For purposes of this clause, the terms "crime" and "victim" shall have the same meanings as given to them in the "Crime Victims Act."

+ Rendering emergency care, first aid or rescue at the scene of an emergency.

Irrebuttable Presumptions

In all cases where an injury that is compensable for a volunteer defined as an employee for workers' compensation purposes, there is an irrebuttable presumption that her wages shall be at least equal to the statewide average weekly wage.

Who's the Employer?

Whenever any member of a volunteer fire company, volunteer fire department, volunteer ambulance corps, or rescue and lifesaving squad is injured in the performance of duties in State Parks and State Forest Land, they shall be deemed to be an employee of the Department of Environmental Resources. 

Whenever members of volunteer fire departments or volunteer fire companies, members of volunteer ambulance corps or rescue and lifesaving squad members are injured in the performance of duties on State game land, the members shall be deemed to be employees of the Pennsylvania Game Commission.

Glossary Check

The term "municipality" means all cities, boroughs, incorporated towns, or townships.

The term "members of volunteer fire departments or volunteer fire companies" when used in this article shall mean any of the following:

(1) An active volunteer firefighter who responds to emergency calls.

(2) An individual appointed as special fire police.

(3) An officer or director of a volunteer fire department or volunteer fire company.

(4) A participating member of a volunteer fire department or volunteer fire company who provides necessary operational support to the volunteer fire department or volunteer fire company but does not respond to emergency calls. Operational support includes maintaining the station and equipment, acting as trustee, organizing fundraisers, providing information technology support and assisting with recruitment and other administrative tasks, if the operational support activity is conducted on a regular basis for the benefit of a volunteer fire department or volunteer fire company as approved at the beginning of each policy year by the authority, organization or municipality purchasing workers' compensation insurance for the volunteer fire department or volunteer fire company. The term does not include a social member of a volunteer fire department or volunteer fire company.

The term "members of volunteer ambulance corps" shall mean any of the following:

(1) An active volunteer ambulance corpsman who responds to emergency calls.

(2) An officer or director of a volunteer ambulance corps.

(3) A participating member of a volunteer ambulance corps who provides necessary operational support to the volunteer ambulance corps but does not respond to emergency calls. Operational support includes maintaining the station and equipment, acting as trustee, organizing fundraisers, providing information technology support and assisting with recruitment and other administrative tasks, if the operational support activity is conducted on a regular basis for the benefit of a volunteer ambulance corps. The term does not include a social member of a volunteer ambulance corps.

The term "social member" of a volunteer fire department, volunteer fire company or volunteer ambulance corps shall mean a member of the organization whose class of membership is social in nature and is primarily intended to facilitate fraternization with other members of the organization or access to social amenities and social events offered by the organization, whether or not the member occasionally provides unpaid operational support to the organization.

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