Employee volunteering encompasses unpaid activities undertaken voluntarily by employees willing to help people in need (e.g. NGOs, various institutions and informal groups), commitment to which is supported by their employers (e.g. with financial or material support; a given company can also help its employees by means of giving them a day off, so that they can realize any undertaken voluntary activities).
Employee volunteering can be organized by the employer (he/she prepares a program in which employees can take part) or by employees themselves, who can create their own volunteer projects and receive help from the company.
Other definitions of employee volunteering:
Employee volunteering is defined by actions undertaken by the company which aim at helping employees in their commitment to NGOs and institutions regulated by the law. Volunteering employees aid people in need and by doing so they utilize their skills and abilities; the company, on the other hand, enables them to undertake such actions while supporting them financially and providing organizational assistance.
Forum Odpowiedzialnego Biznesu, http://odpowiedzialnybiznes.pl/public/files/BroszuraZaangazowanie.pdf.
Employees volunteering is done by volunteers who take action for a given community/NGO, and are supported by the company they work for by means of:
- advertising grant contests, encouraging employees’ commitment, and providing funds for the realization of social projects (…),
- determining the time spent being involved in volunteer activities — employees can sacrifice, e.g. an hour or two a month for volunteer involvement, which is laid out in the company’s documents,
- assuming some of the responsibilities, which are imposed on NGOs by the Public Benefit Organization Act (…).
Poradnik.ngo.pl, http://www.ngo.pl/x/468296
The main thing that distinguishes this form of volunteering is the fact that it is stimulated and organized by the employer — at least to some extent. Most often employee volunteering projects are set up and implemented within the social responsibility strategy of a given enterprise. Firms, usually in co-operation with NGOs, realize projects in which involvement of the “business” side goes far beyond financial help — firms make their know-how available, as well as the time of their employees, who are involved in the realization of projects.
Ministerstwo Pracy i Polityki Społecznej, http://pozytek.gov.pl/Wolontariat,pracowniczy,391.html
Employee volunteering, where staff at all levels donate time and skills during work hours to tackle local social issues.
Bussiness In the community, http://www.bitc.org.uk/issues/community/employee-volunteering
[Translation provided by an e-volunteer – THANK YOU!!!]