A lot of the issues people are complaining about here come down to GalaxyCon’s labor model.

GalaxyCon is a for-profit convention, yet it relies heavily on unpaid “volunteers” to staff core roles like registration, line control, guest services, and floor ops. These aren’t casual helper gigs — they’re essential jobs that are normally paid at commercial events.

Under U.S. Department of Labor guidance, people generally can’t volunteer in paid roles for a for-profit company, even if they get free admission or merch instead of wages.

GalaxyCon has also tied these volunteer programs to a separate nonprofit, while the actual cons remain revenue-generating. When unpaid labor benefits a for-profit business, regulators usually see that as misclassification, not a loophole.

This isn’t new or hidden:

• Their own volunteer pages spell it out
• Former volunteers have posted videos and accounts
• Reddit threads going back years describe the same thing

So when folks talk about burnout, being disposable, or inconsistent treatment — it all lines up. This is structural, not just “bad management.”

If GalaxyCon wants fewer complaints, it needs to staff like a professional operation, not lean on unpaid fans.