Spilman v. The Salvation Army, 2026 WL 35953 (Cal. Ct. App. 2026)

Justin Spilman, Teresa Chase, and Jacob Tyler worked full-time for the Salvation Army at its retail thrift stores. They worked without wages as part of a six-month, residential, substance abuse rehabilitation program. The trial court determined that the wage and hour laws do not apply because these three individuals were volunteers for a nonprofit and not employees based principally upon the absence of an agreement for compensation. The Court of Appeal reversed, holding that the existence of an agreement for compensation is not a “dispositive test” as to whether the individual is a volunteer or an employee. The Court remanded the case and instructed the trial court to determine whether there are triable issues of fact as to (1) whether these individuals were volunteers who freely agreed to work without pay; and (2) whether overall, the Salvation Army’s use of volunteer labor does not serve as a subterfuge to evade the wage laws.