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About a year and a half ago, my boss asked me to take over an Administrator role at a non-profit where he had recently assumed the role of Chairman. The previous Administrator worked part-time and was paid quite well (hourly) for whatever time she expended in any given month, at a minimum around 25 hours per month and sometimes more. I already had a very demanding stressful job (small firm so we all wore a lot of hats) but did not feel I could say no. I wasn't really asked; it was just expected of me. I was a little bothered that I was not offered any pay for the role (when the other person had been paid) but since my boss was volunteering his time as Chairman, that was how I made my peace with the situation. That was how I rationalized not getting paid for an "extra" part-time job.
Fast forward about a year and he negotiated (without asking me or involving me in any way in these discussions) that the non-profit would start paying his firm just shy of 20K per year for MY services. This "job" (with the non profit) was completely separate from my job with my firm...I was reporting to another co-chairman and doing plenty -- there was actually quite a lot of responsibility associated with this little part-time job. Some days it felt like I was working for the non profit full time, not my employer.
I need to clarify that some of the non profit work was done on my employers' time and some on my own time. It all sort of ran together The net effect was that my already 9 or 10 hour days became 12 and 13 hour days (I was trying to keep up on all fronts).
At the very least, I think this arrangement was pretty sketchy (farming me out and collecting pay for work that I was doing with no discussion with me about the arrangement) but I am here to find out if anyone things what my employer did was not legal (from a labor law point of view).
If you're doing the work during company time, they have essentially made it part of your regular job duties and can pretty much make you do whatever they want. Assuming you're a salaried employee, this could be an issue that might make you want to start looking for a new job. Before it got that far, I would go to your boss and let him know that this is now a paid position and request a pay increase. If he says no, I would say that you no longer view this as philanthropy since the firm is getting paid, and therefore you no longer wish to be involved in the work. Offer to train a new person for a few hours, but be very clear on a limitation of how many hours. If they tell you that you don't have a choice and it's now part of your regular job, I'd update my resume. Maybe go to the charity and offer to freelance the same work for $15k.
If you're doing the work during company time, they have essentially made it part of your regular job duties and can pretty much make you do whatever they want. Assuming you're a salaried employee, this could be an issue that might make you want to start looking for a new job. Before it got that far, I would go to your boss and let him know that this is now a paid position and request a pay increase. If he says no, I would say that you no longer view this as philanthropy since the firm is getting paid, and therefore you no longer wish to be involved in the work. Offer to train a new person for a few hours, but be very clear on a limitation of how many hours. If they tell you that you don't have a choice and it's now part of your regular job, I'd update my resume. Maybe go to the charity and offer to freelance the same work for $15k.
Thank you -- struggling with this and it's helpful to get an impartial take on it. Yes, i am salaried. His role at the non-profit is winding down (it's a rotating chairmanship) so, logically, my role would also end around the same time too. As a matter of fact, I have already given him an end date and said that if they want me to continue that it needs to become a paying position. I doubt that is going to happen (for a number of reasons, one of which is that the new chairman may want to use his own assistant, etc.). So it's nearing an end but it rankles, and, worse, has changed how I feel about my employer and my job. I have carried that extra burden (which was substantial) for close to two years and I got nothing out of it other than 12 and 13 hour days! I do think it's time to update my resume.
As you are a salaried employee, there is no labor law violation.
Your boss has structured it so that the non-profit is paying your employer for your time. Ethically, if they haven't reduced your workload to accommodate for these additional admin duties they should kick some of the money your way. Legally they have no responsibility to do so.
Is your boss the business owner? Does the owner of your company know about this arrangement? They might be annoyed that your boss has dopiverted company resources to support the nonprofit. That would be a performance/ethics thing with ownership and your boss, not a legal thing.
Sorry, your situation sucks and it is terrible that they took advantage of you this way.
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I'm sorry, this is not legal. I don't think a 501(c)3 organization can pay an individual a salary for the work being done by another individual. Without the first entitled individual's consent.
So, OP. Your boss is the chairman of this 501(c)3. And he's twisted your arm to do this one position in the organization, which is a paid position and requires many hours work outside of the hours you spend in your paid position with this boss's business.
Meanwhile, your boss, the chairman of this 501(c)3 is pocketing your salary.
I'm sorry, this is not legal. I don't think a 501(c)3 organization can pay an individual a salary for the work being done by another individual. Without the first entitled individual's consent.
So, OP. Your boss is the chairman of this 501(c)3. And he's twisted your arm to do this one position in the organization, which is a paid position and requires many hours work outside of the hours you spend in your paid position with this boss's business.
Meanwhile, your boss, the chairman of this 501(c)3 is pocketing your salary.
There is not the first chance this is legal.
I don't think that they are structuring it that way. It is more likely that the 501(c)3 is paying the for-profit for contracted admin services. This is no different than paying a temp agency, law firm, accounting agency or marketing company. A firm is hired to provide a service, pay to individuals is the decision of the company receiving the contracted payments.
The 501(c)3 is paying for a service, not employing a person.
Status:
"I don't understand. But I don't care, so it works out."
(set 6 days ago)
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Reputation: 50650
Quote:
Originally Posted by fishbrains
I don't think that they are structuring it that way. It is more likely that the 501(c)3 is paying the for-profit for contracted admin services. This is no different than paying a temp agency, law firm, accounting agency or marketing company. A firm is hired to provide a service, pay to individuals is the decision of the company receiving the contracted payments.
The 501(c)3 is paying for a service, not employing a person.
No. The chairman of a 501(c)3 nonprofit can not force his private employee (even by subtle insistence) to work extra hours beyond what is expected and traditional for his employment at the for profit company, and then personally pocket the pay the 501(c)3 offers that position. No. Personally profiting from your administrative position in a 501(c)3 position (which are actually called non-profit) is strictly regulated (beyond the salary that the administrator is publicly offered). He can not make his private employee work and then pocket the amount that employee would have made, for himself.
If I was the OP, I'd be concerned about having enough work to continue full time in the primary position, once the secondary gig ends.
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