Out of work? Volunteers Have Higher Odds of Getting Back to Work

Spera, Christopher; Ghertner, Robin; Nerino, Anthony; DiTommaso, Adrienne

doi:10.1177/0899764015605928

Cited by 30 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 32 publications

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“…In general, the literature expects positive effects of volunteering on wages, basing this expectation on three theoretical mechanisms (e.g. Spera et al, 2015). First, the human capital (Becker, 1964) mechanism assumes that volunteering leads to the accumulation of specific skills that are valued by employers.…”

Section: Wage Effects Of Volunteering: Literature Review and Hypothesesmentioning

confidence: 99%

When and how does volunteering influence wages? – Evidence from panel data

Eberl

Krug

2020

Acta Sociologica

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Volunteering is an activity in which individuals work for free to benefit others; however, research has also focused on the benefits volunteers themselves might experience. We add to the literature by focusing on how not only volunteering itself has an impact on wages but how the intensity, duration and timing of volunteering also have an effect on these. In addition, we distinguish between the effects on volunteers in the same job and when changing a job, and test the role of social capital. Using German data from the Socio-Economic Panel, we find that current volunteering has positive effects on wages in a fixed effects wage regression, especially if individuals volunteer with low to medium intensity. The duration of volunteering does not increase wages. However, based on the dummy impact function, we find that volunteering increases wages almost immediately and that this effect remains fairly constant over time. We find no indication that reverse causality drives this effect. Furthermore, we show that the wage benefits of volunteering are realized only through job changes, not on-the-job wage progression. With regard to job changers, we show that social capital accumulation through volunteering is one reason explaining the observed wage effects.

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Section: Wage Effects Of Volunteering: Literature Review and Hypothesesmentioning

confidence: 99%

When and how does volunteering influence wages? – Evidence from panel data

Eberl

Krug

2020

Acta Sociologica

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“…The relationship between volunteering and employment is strongest for individuals without a high school diploma and persons living in rural areas. 10 Studies of AmeriCorps, the largest federal national service program, confirm that corps members build both civic and 21st century job skills (such as problem solving, communication, and project management), and are highly likely to pursue careers in public service. 11,12 Recent research by Burning Glass, comparing the resumes of individuals who have completed a service year with a matched comparison group, revealed distinct patterns that differentiate service year alumni from their peers, both in the careers they forge and in the skills they develop.…”

Section: A De Facto Workforce Development System For Nonprofitsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Civic Apprenticeship: Build The Talent Pipeline For The Nonprofit Sector By Expanding National Service And Recognizing Its Role In Workforce Development

Sagawa

2020

Nonprofit Policy Forum

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National service operates as a workforce development system for nonprofits by offering individuals a paid opportunity to develop real-world skills through hands-on service. A service year before, during, or after college – or as a way to get back on track – gives Americans of all ages, but especially young adults, the chance to transform their lives, make an impact in their community, and become the active citizens and leaders our nation needs.

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“…The first conceptualizes civic activities as a consumption or investment good, and contends that unemployment stimulates civic engagement. The idea is that for the unemployed civic participation entails lower opportunity costs than for the employed (Freeman 1997) and provides opportunities to consolidate résumés, build connections, and develop work-related skills (Prouteau and Wolff 2006;Spera et al 2015).…”

Section: Review Of Previous Studiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The impact of increased labor market integration on people's career-related instrumental incentives for civic engagement is more complex. Such incentives can be particularly strong for people who begin a job search or consider entering the labor force, as participation in civic activities can boost their chances of finding a job (Spera et al 2015). On the other hand, instrumental incentives are less relevant when labor force entrants move directly into stable employment and may even weaken when moving from unemployment to a desirable job.…”

Section: Transitions Toward Stronger Labor Market Integrationmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Civic Footprints of Labor Market Participation: Longitudinal Evidence from the United States, 2002–2015

Wiertz

Lim

2019

Social Forces

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While there is a widespread belief that stable employment is important for social integration, stable employment careers have become less common in America's increasingly complex labor market. Job tenure has dropped, precarious work arrangements have gained prominence, longterm unemployment has spiked, and an increasing share of the jobless are not looking for work. Against this background, we investigate the linkages between labor market experiences and volunteer activities, as indicator of people's involvement in civic life. We outline a theory on how transitions between labor market states-within, into, and out of the labor force-bring about changes in civic engagement and test our predictions using panel data from the Current Population Survey 2002-2015. Contrary to what much previous research suggests, we find that people who become unemployed are more likely to start volunteering and no more likely to stop. We additionally show that people who leave the labor force altogether (i.e., not having a job nor looking for one) are more likely to stop volunteering. Conversely, entering the labor force, either by securing or searching for a job, is associated with an increase in volunteer activities. We explore the role of motivation and time resources in accounting for these patterns, finding among other things that moving into or out of the most detached labor market stateoutside the labor force without any intention to find work-is most consequential for civic engagement. We discuss the implications of our findings for civic democracy in light of ongoing labor market trends.

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Out of work? Volunteers Have Higher Odds of Getting Back to Work

Cited by 30 publications

References 32 publications

When and how does volunteering influence wages? – Evidence from panel data

When and how does volunteering influence wages? – Evidence from panel data

Civic Apprenticeship: Build The Talent Pipeline For The Nonprofit Sector By Expanding National Service And Recognizing Its Role In Workforce Development

The Civic Footprints of Labor Market Participation: Longitudinal Evidence from the United States, 2002–2015

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