17.1.85 Official Journal of the European Communities NoC 16/11 
Council recommendation on social security for volunteer development workers 
COM(84) 710 final 
(Submitted by the Commission to the Council on 12 December 1984) 
(85/C 16/09) 
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN 
COMMUNITIES, 
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the 
European Economic Community, 
Having regard to the draft recommendation 
presented by the Commission, 
Having regard to the opinion of the European 
Parliament, 
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and 
Social Committee, 
Whereas the European Council which met on 25 and 
26 June 1984 expressed the wish that Member States 
take steps to encourage young persons to participate 
in projects conducted by the Community outside its 
frontiers, and in particular that they support the 
creation of national Committees of European 
volunteer development workers engaged in 
development to unite young Europeans wishing to 
work on projects in developing countries; 
Whereas measures to encourage volunteer 
development workers to work on such projects will 
contribute to the implementation of Community 
policies, and those of the Member States, towards 
developing countries; 
Whereas such work provides valuable occupational 
experience, in particular for young persons Seeking 
employment but also for other unemployed persons; 
Whereas the promotion of opportunities for 
vocational training is one of the Community's 
objectives in the social field; 
Whereas steps should therefore be taken to remove 
obstacles to taking up employment as a volunteer 
development worker; 
Whereas a major disincentive to this form of 
employment is constituted by the absence of any, or 
any adequate, cover for such persons and for 
members of their families under the social security 
systems of certain Member States, either during or in 
respect of either the period spent as a volunteer 
development worker or the period spent in 
preparation for such work or both; Whereas there are disparities in the treatment of such 
persons for the purposes of social security between 
the Member States, 
RECOMMENDS THE MEMBER STATES: 
A. 
— to recognize as one of the objectives of their 
social policy the achievement of social security 
cover for volunteer development workers; 
— to regard as 'volunteer development workers 
engaged in development' those persons who are 
sent to developing countries through the 
intermediary of approved non-governmental 
organizations, whether State aided or not, under 
conditions of remuneration similar to local 
conditions, in those countries, for the purpose of 
making a positive contribution to the physical, 
economic and social development of such 
countries; 
— to take to this end the appropriate steps for the 
progressive development of social security cover 
for volunteer development workers, and for 
members of their families, when the latter have no 
independent claim to social security cover, under 
statutory or occupational social security schemes, 
on the basis of the following principles: 
1. Volunteer development workers engaged in 
development and the members of their families 
referred to above should be covered by the 
social security legislation of the sending 
country during and by virtue of the periods of 
preparation for and service in a developing 
country, under similar conditions to those laid 
down for workers or residents in the sending 
country. 
2. That insurance cover should relate to the 
following: 
(a) health care; 
(b) sickness benefits; 
(c) maternity benefits; 
(d) invalidity benefits; 
(e) old-age benefits; 
(f) survivors' benefits; 
No C 16/12 Official Journal of the European Communities 17.1.85 
(g) benefits for accidents at work and 
occupational diseases; 
(h) benefits for unemployment after their 
return; 
(i) family benefits. 
3. Member States should take the necessary steps 
to organize full insurance cover, for volunteer 
development workers and for the members of 
their families referred to above, within the 
framework of their national system. Full cover 
implies that the wage taken into account for 
the calculation of benefits should not be lower 
than the minimum amount used for 
determining eligibility for social security 
insurance coverage. 
4. Member States should endeavour to bear a 
large part of the cost of such cover either by 
providing non-governmental organizations 
with the necessary means or by contributing to 
the financing themselves. 
5. Member States should guarantee equal 
treatment between volunteer development 
workers and the members of their families 
referred to above who are nationals of other 
Member States and national volunteer 
development workers and the members of their 
families referred to above, including refugees 
or stateless persons residing within the territory 
of a Member State. sending State and the developing countries 
concerned or, failing such agreements, by the 
legislation of the sending State; 
(d) use of voluntary insurance for expatriates 
provided for under the legislation of the 
sending State or, in the absence of such a 
scheme, the setting up of a special voluntary 
insurance scheme for volunteer development 
workers engaged in development, and the 
members of their families referred to above; 
(e) continuation of payment of remuneration in 
periods of temporary incapacity due to 
sickness; maternity or accident for the 
duration of the stay of volunteer development 
workers, and the members of their families 
referred to above, in a developing country. 
2. Short-term benefits paid after return to the 
sending country, long-term benefits, and contri­
butions assessed according to income should not 
be calculated on the basis of an amount lower than 
the minimum used for determining eligibility for 
insurance cover under the legislation of the 
sending State or affiliation to voluntary insurance 
under that legislation. 
Member States should where appropriate base their 
measures on the following procedures: 
1. Insurance cover should be organized on the basis 
of one or a combination of the following methods, 
where appropriate: 
(a) treatment of periods of service in a developing 
country as periods of insurance, occupational 
activity or residence under the legislation of 
the sending State, for the purpose of 
determining entitlement to benefits (and, if 
necessary, for calculating the amount of such 
benefits) relating to events which might occur 
after repatriation; 
(b) retention of entitlement for a period prescribed 
by the legislation of the sending State for 
persons who would otherwise no longer be 
subject to that legislation in respect of short-
term occurrences which might take place 
during the period of preparatory training or 
the period of service; 
(c) use of secondment, as laid down by social 
security agreements concluded between the 3. The sending State should contribute to the 
financing either of social security cover for 
volunteer development workers on secondment or 
insured under a voluntary scheme, and the 
members of their families referred to above, or of 
the cost incurred by its social security schemes in 
treating periods of service completed by volunteer 
development workers in developing countries as 
periods completed under the legislation of the 
sending State, in respect of the workers themselves 
and the members of their families referred to 
above. 
4. (a) The medical costs incurred by volunteer 
development workers or the members of their 
families referred to above in a developing 
country should be refunded within the time 
limits prescribed by the legislation of the 
sending State for the refund of medical costs 
incurred within the territory of that State; 
(b) Entitlement to health care enjoyed by 
volunteer development workers on secondment 
or covered by voluntary insurance and by the 
17.1.85 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 16/13 
members of their families referred to above 
should be maintained so as to cover a 
prescribed period following return to the 
sending State, unless those concerned are in 
any event covered during that period as 
residents or unemployed persons. 
5. Volunteer development workers attending a 
preparatory course in the sending country should 
be treated as employees for the purposes of the 
legislation of the sending country, in particular for 
the purposes of determining entitlement to health 
care, unless they are in any event covered as 
residents. Members of their families referred to 
above should at least be covered during and in 
respect of such periods. 
6. In order to be allowed to receive unemployment 
benefits during a prescribed period following their 
return to the sending State, volunteer development 
workers, and the members of their families 
referred to above, should be exempted from 
conditions governing insurance or employment (to 
the extent that the periods of service in a developing country are not treated as periods of 
employment or insurance or that such workers are 
not subject during these periods or service to the 
legislation of the sending country, in their capacity 
as workers on secondment or voluntarily insured) 
so that they may be protected against 
unemployment after they return home. 
7. The tropical diseases to which volunteer 
development workers are exposed should be 
recognized under the prescribed conditions as 
occupational diseases, or should be compensated 
for under the same conditions as those applicable 
to occupational diseases. 
Member States will, within a period of two years 
following the adoption of this recommendation, 
provide the Commission with the necessary infor­
mation to enable it to draw up a report for the 
Council on progress achieved and obstacles 
encountered in the provision of social security cover 
for volunteer develompent workers engaged in 
development and, if appropriate, to propose any other 
measures required to achieve common objectives.