Does Generation Y volunteer? While those born in the 1980s and 1990s are commonly characterized by their affinity for technology and an associated lack of involvement with their real-life communities, the latter, at least, is patently false. According to the Canada Survey of Giving, Volunteering and Participation, which recently released its 2007 findings, young Canadians aged 15 to 24 at the time of the survey were more likely to volunteer than Canadians in any other age group (58 per cent volunteered). Those respondents were born between 1983 and 1992, right in the middle of the generation that supposedly doesn’t volunteer.
Source: Canada Survey of Giving, Volunteering and Participating
At the St. Albert Community Information and Volunteer Centre, Glennis Kennedy helps people of all ages and backgrounds find volunteer opportunities, including many people in their early 20s and 30s. Kennedy is a co-ordinator at the Volunteer Centre, which is a matchmaker that connects those who want to volunteer with local organizations. Last year the Volunteer Centre, which is supported by United Way, helped 1,200 people find volunteer positions.
“We have some incredible volunteers in that Generation Y age bracket who sit on our board,” Kennedy says. “They started volunteering as youth and having continued on. It’s amazing in terms of what they contribute and give to our organization.”
Many people in Generation Y were required to volunteer during their school years and, once they tried it, says Kennedy, they became hooked. “It becomes a part of them,” Kennedy says, “and they continue on.” The Canada Survey of Giving, Volunteering and Participation also found the following:
Source: Canada Survey of Giving, Volunteering and Participating
- Fifty-eight per cent of Canadians aged 15 to 24 years at the time of the survey volunteered, for an average of 138 hours annually.
- Young Canadians generally reported the same types of barriers to volunteering as older Canadians, including not having the time, being unable to make a long-term commitment and feeling that no one asked them to volunteer.
- Young Canadians are more likely to perform mandatory community service than any other age group. The 15- to 19-year-olds who performed mandatory community service were most likely to be required to volunteer by their school (66 per cent), the voluntary organization itself (20 per cent), or some other body (14 per cent). The 20- to 24-year-olds were most likely required to volunteer by their school (36 per cent), the voluntary organization itself (24 per cent), their employer (17 per cent) or some other body (23 per cent).
- The study found that, generally speaking, the likelihood of volunteering decreases with age while the number of hours volunteered increases. While 58 per cent of 15- to 24-year-olds volunteered, compared to 36 per cent of people aged 65 and over, those 65 and over volunteered a lot more. People aged 65 and over volunteered an average of 218 hours, compared to an average of 138 hours for 15- to 24-year-olds.
- Almost 12.5 million Canadians volunteered for charitable and nonprofit organizations in the one-year period preceding the survey. That’s 46 per cent of the population aged 15 and over. Those Canadians volunteered almost 2.1 billion volunteer hours in 2007, which is equivalent to almost 1.1 million full-time jobs.
