What should I do about this volunteer situation?

As a volunteer, yes, I would expect free parking. Not getting reimbursed for my time would put a big damper on my disposable income.
Who does this volunteer work for? Just you or several others? If she helps several of you, can you all pitch in for her parking? If she only works for you, it would seem unfair to expect you to pay the entire fee. If it is just you, perhaps you can offer to pay half.

If you have volunteer (AKA slave) labor you should pay for the parking. Or pay for bus/train/whatever public transportation.

I wouldn’t expect you personally to pay for it, but it would certainly be nice if your organization paid for it or gave vouchers or something. Any wiggle room in the budget? Petty cash or anything like that?

I volunteered for a non-profit in a downtown area for a while, and had to pay for my own parking. Free parking would have encouraged me to do it more often, but the non-profit simply couldn’t afford to pay for volunteers’ parking. I don’t think I could have accepted money straight from someone’s pocket for it, though. It wouldn’t feel right.

If I were a volunteer, yes, I’d expect comped parking. Like @chyna, I’d ask the others benefiting from the volunteer to pitch in and cover her parking expense then see if you can get your dept. head to reimburse.

Ask if her parking can be paid for. I would not do it personally.

The organization should pay for the parking of a volunteer. Anything less than that, is literally asking the volunteer to pay for the privilege of working there. You, as her supervisor, should also not have to pay for it. It is the obligation of the organization.

Do employees get a per diem for parking? I’m just trying to think of a way you could pay for her parking and get reimbursed yourself. I don’t mean that you’d cheat the system. I’m trying to think of a suggestion you could bring up to someone with authority to give the okay to you paying for her parking and then you getting reimbursed with your per diem.

How about car pooling?

It depends. Normally, the organization should pay for the parking. Not you, personally. However, if a person is gaining experience and education by volunteering, it is not uncommon to pay for the “volunteer” experience. Sometimes people pay a lot of money for a volunteer experience.

On the other hand, if the volunteer is valuable to you, personally, but not to the organization, then I think you should consider paying for parking. It just depends on how valuable your volunteer is. The money paid for parking could be a tax deduction. But you may just have to pay it out of pocket if she won’t come without parking vouchers. Then you’d have to decide if it is worth it for you.

How much is the parking? That detail would be helpful.

I’ve never had anyone pay for parking for me, it’d be nice, but it’s really the pain of parking somewhere I’m unfamiliar with that sucks more. I don’t know the good spots. So maybe pass along the tips you do know as part of any solution.

As far as the costs, I’m not sure how it works on your campus but two things that have worked for me

> Most parking lots and garages offer monthly rates that usually work out to 10–15 days parking there. That might save some cash depending on how often she comes in.
> I used to park in a huge lot at a stadium near the college and then just take the bus the 10 blocks or so to the school. It was free (students were free around campus) and usually took 15 minutes or less since there were a number of buses headed the right way. Not as convenient, but if she’s there all day it might work out.

The monthly parking might also be a way that the lab can add one parking spot to their budget in a controlled way and then use that for volunteers, visitors, VIPs, etc.. (I’m assuming there are others as well?). Sometimes it’s not the cash that makes it hard on the organization but the ability to budget it correctly. Saying they’ll pay for volunteer parking sounds like a blank check, saying $85/mo will let you keep volunteers and visitors happy is something they can weigh more easily.

Is volunteering for you helping her as well? Similar to an unpaid internship. I ask because she has been paying for it this long so she seems to _ want_ and/ or need to be there. If so, I think she should consider it the price she has to pay for this experience. If not, she should not have to pay.

Is the parking service another department in you same organization or ana business of its own? If it is not part of your co pany, they shouldn’t have to lose the revenue.

Thanks for the suggestions, everyone.

Technically, there is a way for the department to pay, but for god knows what reason, those options are much more restricted and more expensive—about $60 per month for an individual to pay, or $200 for the department to pay. As an individual, she can also pay per hour ($2).

I also think if I ask my adviser to have the department pay, I am in for a good long lecture about how lucky this volunteer is to work for us. Although sometimes he surprises me. I can always ask.

@nikipedia: How many hours does she work at a time? In other words, is it something she does by the day, or is it a few hours here, a few hours there?

When he lectures you about how lucky she is to work there, you can counter with “Yes, and we’re also lucky to have her here.”

Can’t she pay it and then the company reimburse her as a way to keep the cost down? Or am I unethically working the system here? She should still be considered a volunteer since that isn’t pay for work.

I turned your question into a discussion with some friends. Everyone was surprised that the university doesn’t offer free parking for volunteers and visitors.

@jca, usually a few hours here and there. My adviser is not a reasonable person, to put it lightly.

@Supacase, no. It is actually really bizarre how it’s managed, so like I said above, the department is only allowed to pay for parking under specific circumstances in specific ways.

@bkcunningham, the parking here is a perfect example of price gouging. They have a monopoly and there isn’t anything anyone can do about it.

@nikipedia: So if she works a few hours here and there, it’s maybe $6 or $8 at a time. Can’t she do an invoice for reimbursement and put the invoice in to petty cash? Instead of the full $60 at a time? Maybe that would be easier for the powers that be to deal with.

@bkcunningham: I know of many hospitals that charge for parking in their lots and garages, in fact, most in my area do.

@jca, no, we don’t have petty cash, or any system whereby she could be reimbursed.

I can’t think of any solution except to ask your adviser. I think your concern for the volunteer speaks volume about your character, @nikipedia. The volunteer having to put out some money for part of her education, which is really what it comes down to in my eyes, speaks volumes about her character as well.

@nikipedia: Is she an intern or a volunteer?

@bkcunningham, thanks. I’ll let you all know what my advisr says.

@jca, volunteer.

@nikipedia: OK, so she gets nothing as far as toward her education, in other words, she does not do this in exchange for a grade or an evaluation?

@jca, she will not get a grade or an evaluation, but I wouldn’t say she will gain nothing. The primary reason most people volunteer in research labs is to get a letter of recommendation and to get research experience—it is basically impossible to get into grad programs (including med) without both of those.

I hope the research experience is valuable to her even outside of being important to grad school—this should help her decide if this is the direction she wants to go in with her life. I have taken a great deal of time and effort to make sure she’s learning as much as possible so she can make an informed decision for herself.

I could also include her as an author on a publication if she makes a substantial contribution to the project. This is a huge bonus for grad applications and will give her a boost in terms of the quality of school she can apply to.

So the benefits are pretty intangible, but I would like to think they’re there!

Correct me of I’m wrong but I think it’s worth pointing out that there aren’t a lot of people making a lot of money is college research labs. Essentially no one gets paid what they’re “worth” or anywhere near what they would make in a private lab.

Everyone is either paying their dues, still in school, or just loves academic research and is willing to make less to stay in the environment they find rewarding.

So I don’t know if the volunteer will get as much sympathy from others about the parking situation as there might be in a company where most people are there for the money and profits can make expenses like this more palatable. In public sector you get a budget for the year and that’s it, nothing moves but the calendar.

Maybe @nikipedia could frame it as “the right thing to do” rather than something to save this particular person a few dollars?

Ok. Hearing that she is a volunteer to build her resume and that you are teaching her a lot, essentially free, I think she should pay for her parking, now. You are giving her huge value and really, she should be paying you for the training. But she is volunteering and getting a PhD level education for near free. There is no question in my mind but that she should be happy to pay for parking. If she doesn’t want to, she can take public transit.