[img_inline align=”right” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/Connelly_Catherine.jpg” caption=”Catherine Connelly Photo credit: Julia Thomson”]Canadians volunteer a total of 1.05 billion hours during the year, equivalent to 549,000 full-time jobs or the employed labour force of Manitoba. National Volunteer Week, April 23-29, pays special tribute to the country's volunteers.

Unfortunately, many organizations report that they are having significant difficulty retaining volunteers, and there is some evidence that organizations frequently accept low levels of performance from the volunteers upon whom they depend. Catherine Connelly, assistant professor of human resources & management at the DeGroote School of Business at McMaster University, believes this is because volunteers are a unique workforce that cannot be treated the same as paid employees. Connelly is beginning a research project to examine Canada's volunteer workforce and their experiences.

“The unspoken assumption appears to be that the experiences, attitudes and behaviours of unpaid volunteers are identical to those of paid employees. However, volunteers present a number of unique challenges: they cannot be motivated with promises of compensation or financial rewards, they have a multitude of primary reasons for volunteering, and they have tenuous links to their organizations,” Connelly explains.

Over her three year research project, Connelly will examine how organizations should manage volunteers so as to make the best use of their capabilities. Ultimately, Connelly's research will help organizations ensure high levels of retention, satisfaction, and performance among their volunteers. A survey in 2000 found that more than a quarter of all Canadians volunteer through charitable or non-profit organizations. Given the growing reliance on the services provided by volunteers, Connelly's research is urgently required.