Policy (Legal and risk issues included)

Policies are general guidelines that people can reference in order to make decisions and get guidance on how to act in certain situations.  Policies are often in regard to: confidentiality, safety, dress codes, orientation, training, definition of volunteer, rights and responsibilities, background checks, record keeping, conflict of interest, supervision, evaluations, corrective actions, etc.  Policies in regard to volunteers are very similar in nature to the policies for employees.  Policies help ensure that volunteers are supervised and that they act according to an ethical, legal, and organizationally-preferred manner in the workplace.  A volunteer policy will help to: clarify roles and responsibilities, define lines of communication and accountability, ensure continuity even with personnel changes, establish values and directions for the running of the organization, and formalize current practice.