Volunteers

An hour of volunteering was worth $21.79 in 2011, up 43 cents from 2010, a new estimate says.

The estimate by Independent Sector is based on the average hourly earnings of all production and non-supervisory works on private non-farm payrolls, as determined by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Independent Sector increases that number by 12 percent to estimate for fringe benefits.

Done right, recruiting and using volunteers can be a huge blessing. Done poorly, they're headaches. So how do you manage volunteers right? Here are seven tips to make sure that both your volunteers and you have a mutually beneficial experience.

The number of college students who volunteer actually decreased from 2009 to 2010, but the total number of volunteer hours increased, a 2010 study conducted by Volunteering in America showed.

"This data show that the students who are volunteering are doing so more regularly or on a longer-term basis," says Heather Peeler, chief strategy officer for the Corporation for National and Community Service.

Some experts say a key reason that recent graduates are turning to longer volunteer opportunities could be the competitive job market and economic climate.

Nov. 3, nonprofit, corporate and government leaders gather to mark a milestone for A Billion + Change — a national campaign by the Corporation for National and Community Service to mobilize billions of dollars in skills-based and pro bono volunteer services to nonprofit organizations — to celebrate the more than 50 companies that have pledged over $1 billion in service to nonprofits and encourage companies to join the campaign.

Volunteer experience has long been a secondary consideration in people’s career portfolios. It was seen as good for the soul, maybe, beneficial to a cause, but not something that led to a better job. Volunteer work got a line at the bottom of a résumé, near hobbies.

That has started to change, with more nonprofit organizations trying to take better advantage of skilled volunteers, and more employers saying they look at volunteer work in evaluating job candidates.

Starting Sept. 7, LinkedIn will let users list their public-spirited deeds and philanthropic efforts alongside job experience under a new section called "Volunteer Experience and Causes." According to a survey by the social network, more then ever volunteer experience is valuable information that could give job hunters the boost they need to get promoted or hired.

Nicole Williams, connections director at LinkedIn, says that hiring managers are looking at volunteer experience as real work experience, if job candidates are able to talk about their achievements while volunteering in a quantifiable way.

In support of the upcoming 9/11 Day of Service and Remembrance, American Express announced the launch of the I WILL VOLUNTEER Facebook application, powered by HandsOn Network, the volunteer activation division of Points of Light Institute. This new app is designed to connect volunteers across the country to service projects in their communities.

The 9/11 Day of Service and Remembrance is a federally recognized initiative being led by MyGoodDeed and HandsOn Network.

The number of Americans who volunteer dropped slightly in 2010, according to a new federal report.

Nearly 63 million Americans, slightly more than a quarter of the population, volunteered for charities last year, providing services valued at nearly $173-billion. That’s down from 2009, when 63.4 million adults, or nearly 27 percent of the population, donated their time.

The volunteer rate has not changed significantly since 2006, hovering around 26 percent. Volunteerism reached nearly 29 percent from 2003 to 2005 and has been as low as 20.4 percent in 1989, says the report.

The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation has announced a grant of $1.5 million to Do Something for its campaign to sign up 3.8 million members by 2014 by engaging teens via mobile technology. Coupled with a similar grant from Omidyar Network, Do Something seeks to substantially broaden its reach and impact, the New York Times reports.

About 80 percent of Jews age 18 to 35 have engaged in volunteer work during the past year, but by and large their volunteerism has been infrequent and not related to their faith, according to a new study.

The study, commissioned by Repair the World, which works to promote volunteerism among Jews, surveyed roughly 1,000 young Jews last fall and is believed to be the first in-depth look at volunteerism within a faith group, according to Jon Rosenberg, Repair the World’s CEO. Many of the findings apply to any religious group, he says.