Woods

BACKGROUND

1. Woods’ Allegations Woods’s operative First Amended Complaint (Complaint) alleges that AFI has solicited thousands of volunteers to work at its Festival “under the false pretense that volunteers will get to enjoy the event in exchange for their services.” In reality, the volunteers are required to work and do not have an opportunity to attend the event. Thus, the volunteers “do not receive any compensation for their ‘employment’ and in many cases incur expenses for which they have not been reimbursed by [AFI].” The Complaint alleges that the volunteers’ hours are controlled by a volunteer manager, and that the volunteers are typically asked to arrive earlier and stay later than their assigned shift. AFI imposes requirements such as a mandatory orientation and a minimum number of shifts that volunteers must work. The Complaint alleges that “[b]ecause volunteers were expected to, and in fact did, spend the vast majority of their time performing job duties under [AFI’s] direction, supervision and control, the promise of free admission was illusory.” Woods claims that she worked as a volunteer at the Festival for four days in November 2017. She alleges that she…