Events
Fun runs, charity concerts, community festivals and company outreach days often run on volunteers. In the Philippines, volunteering has its own law: Republic Act No. 9418, the Volunteer Act of 2007. It covers less than many organisers assume, and the line it draws decides whether the people helping at your event are volunteers or unpaid staff.
What does the Volunteer Act cover?
Volunteering for a cause. The Act defines a volunteer as someone who contributes “time, service and resources whether on full- time or part-time basis to a just and essential social development cause, mission or endeavor in the belief that their activity is mutually meaningful and beneficial to public interest as well as to themselves”. Volunteerism, in turn, is activity “where monetary and other incentives or reward are not the primary motivating factors”.
A charity run, a relief drive, a community clean-up or a fundraising concert for a foundation fits that description. A product launch or a mall activation for a brand doesn’t: it serves the brand’s sales, not “a just and essential social development cause”.
Does it cover company volunteering?
Yes, as corporate social responsibility. The Act describes volunteerism in the corporate sector as “activities recognized by the company, where employees give their time, skills and resources in the service of the company’s internal and/or external communities”. Its examples include “one-time outreach activities; environmental campaign; medical and health related advocacies”, and “employee-led fund-raising”.
That is the company’s own staff, giving time to a cause the company backs. An outreach day organised for a client’s employees fits. Asking outside people to staff the client’s commercial event for free does not.
What if the “volunteers” are doing a paid job for free?
Then the Labor Code may treat them as employees. It defines “Employ” as including “to suffer or permit to work”. Paying them something doesn’t fix it: a wage is “the remuneration or earnings, however designated, capable of being expressed in terms of money”, so a daily “allowance” for ushering at a commercial event can be a wage by another name.
If the role is one the event would otherwise pay for, such as registration, crowd marshals, product sampling or ushering, staff it as paid work. Our guide to event staff through an agency covers how to do that through a registered contractor.
Can volunteers receive allowances or insurance?
At cause-driven events, yes. The Act encourages government agencies and NGOs running volunteer programs to provide “volunteers recognition and incentive package which may include, but not limited to allowance, insurance, training”. The test from the definition still applies: the incentive can’t become the reason people come. Meals, transport and an accident policy for the day support the work; a fee per shift starts to look like pay.
What about government-run events?
The Act asks national agencies and local governments to “establish volunteer programs in their respective offices to promote and encourage volunteering in government programs and projects”. A city festival or a barangay event may already have a volunteer program to work with, so ask the LGU before recruiting separately.
Can foreign volunteers help at an event?
Only through the right channel. The Act’s visa privileges apply to “Foreign volunteers approved for assignment by the PNVSCA”, the Philippine National Volunteer Service Coordinating Agency. A foreign national working at a commercial event is a different matter, covered in our guide to foreign performers and work permits.
Volunteers or staff: a quick check
| The role | Likely treatment |
| Company employees at their employer’s outreach day | Corporate volunteering under RA 9418 |
| Members of the public helping at a charity run or relief drive | Volunteers, for a social development cause |
| Ushers, marshals or sampling crew at a brand’s commercial event | Paid work: hire them, or go through a registered contractor |
| Anyone paid a daily rate “allowance” for a commercial role | Likely a wage under the Labor Code, however it is labelled |
What to settle before the first volunteer signs up
| Item | Why |
| A written brief naming the cause | It shows the event fits the Act’s definition of volunteerism |
| A list of volunteer roles, separate from paid roles | Work the event would pay for should be paid |
| What volunteers receive, and why | Meals, transport and insurance support the work; they shouldn’t be the reason to join |
| A safety briefing and an accident policy | Volunteers face the same crowds, power cables and weather as paid crew |
Name the cause first
If the event can’t say which social development cause the volunteers are serving, it doesn’t have volunteers. It has unpaid staff, and the budget should change before the sign-up form goes out.
General information from Republic Act No. 9418 and the Labor Code. It is not legal advice; check paid and unpaid roles with your HR or legal team before recruiting.
Who should plan it?
The organiser, with the cause partner and HR in the same room. When you brief an events company on a charity run or an outreach day, say which roles are volunteer roles and which are paid, so the crew plan and the budget start from the same list. PUNX is an events agency in Makati: 50-plus people, founded 2023, running activations and events for GCash, Sun Life and PRU Life UK.
FAQ
Is there a law on volunteers in the Philippines?
Yes. Republic Act No. 9418, the Volunteer Act of 2007, defines volunteers as people who contribute time, service and resources to a just and essential social development cause, where monetary and other incentives are not the primary motivation.
Can a brand use volunteers at a commercial event?
Not as a substitute for paid crew. The Volunteer Act covers social development causes, and the Labor Code says to employ includes to suffer or permit to work. Roles the event would otherwise pay for should be staffed as paid work.
Can event volunteers receive an allowance?
At cause-driven events, the Act encourages recognition and incentive packages that may include an allowance, insurance and training. The incentive should not be the main reason people volunteer, and a daily rate for a commercial role can be treated as a wage.
Does the Volunteer Act cover company outreach activities?
Yes. It describes corporate volunteerism as activities recognised by the company, where employees give their time, skills and resources to the company’s internal or external communities, including one-time outreach activities and fund-raising.
Related
Events company in the Philippines — what PUNX runs, and how
Event staff through an agency — registration, capital and the Service Agreement
Company outings and working time — when the day counts as paid time
Planning a charity run or an outreach day?
Send us the cause, the date and the roles you need filled. We will split the volunteer and paid roles before the crew plan is built.
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