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Does it Pay for Women to Volunteer?

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  • Robert M. Sauer

Abstract

This paper estimates the economic and non-economic returns to volunteering for prime-aged women. Estimates of a DCDP model indicate that an extra year of volunteer experience increases wage offers by 8.5% in future part-time work and by 2.6% in future full-time work. On average, working for free increases lifetime earnings by 16.7%. The economic returns to volunteering are more important than the non-economic returns in increasing lifetime utility. The model also reveals an adverse selection mechanism into volunteering that helps explain why reduced-form regressions of the returns to working for free will likely be downward biased.

Suggested Citation

  • Robert M. Sauer, 2015. "Does it Pay for Women to Volunteer?," CHILD Working Papers Series 31, Centre for Household, Income, Labour and Demographic Economics (CHILD) - CCA.
    • Handle: RePEc:cca:wchild:31
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    As found by EconAcademics.org, the blog aggregator for Economics research:
    1. Why women should volunteer
      by Economic Logician in Economic Logic on 2012-10-16 19:30:00

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    Cited by:

    1. Betul Akar & Pelin Akyol & Cagla Okten, 2022. "Education and Voluntary Work: Evidence from Turkish Time Use Survey," Journal of Labor Research, Springer, vol. 43(2), pages 275-320, June.
    2. Dolan, Paul & Krekel, Christian & Shreedhar, Ganga & Lee, Helen & Marshall, Claire & Smith, Allison, 2021. "Happy to Help: The Welfare Effects of a Nationwide Micro-Volunteering Programme," IZA Discussion Papers 14431, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    3. Alfonso-Costillo, Antonio & Morales-Sánchez, Rafael & López-Pintado, Dunia, 2021. "Does volunteering increase employment opportunities? An experimental approach," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 203(C).
    4. Jens Detollenaere & Sara Willems & Stijn Baert, 2017. "Volunteering, income and health," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 12(3), pages 1-11, March.
    5. Dan Anderberg & Noemi Mantovan & Robert M Sauer, 2023. "The Dynamics of Domestic Violence: Learning about the Match," The Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 133(656), pages 2863-2898.
    6. Andrew T. Ching & Tülin Erdem & Michael P. Keane, 2017. "Empirical Models of Learning Dynamics: A Survey of Recent Developments," International Series in Operations Research & Management Science, in: Berend Wierenga & Ralf van der Lans (ed.), Handbook of Marketing Decision Models, edition 2, chapter 0, pages 223-257, Springer.
    7. Guido Cozzi & Noemi Mantovan & Robert M. Sauer, 2017. "Does it Pay to Work for Free? Negative Selection and the Wage Returns to Volunteer Experience," Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Department of Economics, University of Oxford, vol. 79(6), pages 1018-1045, December.
    8. Cozzi, Guido & Mantovan, Noemi & Sauer, Robert M., 2013. "Does it Pay to Work for Free? Wage Returns and Gender Differences in the Market for Volunteers," Economics Working Paper Series 1330, University of St. Gallen, School of Economics and Political Science.
    9. Heinz, Matthias & Schumacher, Heiner, 2017. "Signaling cooperation," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 98(C), pages 199-216.
    10. Jane Parry & Katherine Brookfield & Vicki Bolton, 2021. "“The long arm of the household”: Gendered struggles in combining paid work with social and civil participation over the lifecourse," Gender, Work and Organization, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(1), pages 361-378, January.
    11. Femida Handy & Anthony Sealey, 2022. "Voluntary sector participation and individual health and welfare: Does it matter where?," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 103(3), pages 471-493, May.
    12. Eva Van Belle & Ralf Caers & Marijke De Couck & Valentina Di Stasio & Stijn Baert, 2019. "The Signal of Applying for a Job Under a Vacancy Referral Scheme," Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 58(2), pages 251-274, April.
    13. Hyeon Park, 2023. "Giving and volunteering over a lifecycle," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 21(1), pages 335-369, March.
    14. Akar, Betul & Akyol, Pelin & Okten, Cagla, 2019. "Education and Prosocial Behavior: Evidence from Time Use Survey," IZA Discussion Papers 12558, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    15. Michael Vlassopoulos, 2017. "‘Putting a Foot in the Door’: Volunteer Hiring and Organizational Form," Manchester School, University of Manchester, vol. 85(2), pages 133-162, March.
    16. Zhu, Rong, 2021. "Retirement and voluntary work provision: Evidence from the Australian Age Pension reform," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 190(C), pages 674-690.
    17. Thomas Zimmerfaust, 2018. "Are Workers Willing To Pay To Join A Better Team?," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 56(2), pages 1278-1295, April.
    18. Jack Britton & Ben Waltmann, 2021. "Revisiting the solution of dynamic discrete choice models: time to bring back Keane and Wolpin (1994)?," IFS Working Papers W21/13, Institute for Fiscal Studies.
    19. Christian Belzil & Jorgen Hansen & Xingfei Liu, 2017. "Dynamic skill accumulation, education policies, and the return to schooling," Quantitative Economics, Econometric Society, vol. 8(3), pages 895-927, November.
    20. Georganas, Sotiris & Laliotis, Ioannis & Velias, Alina, 2022. "The best is yet to come: The impact of retirement on prosocial behavior," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 196(C), pages 589-615.
    21. Baert, Stijn & Vujic, Suncica, 2016. "Does It Pay to Care? Prosocial Engagement and Employment Opportunities," IZA Discussion Papers 9649, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    22. Mao, Likun & Normand, Charles, 2022. "The effect of volunteering on employment: Evidence from The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (TILDA)," The Journal of the Economics of Ageing, Elsevier, vol. 21(C).
    23. Stijn Baert & Sunčica Vujić, 2018. "Does it pay to care? Volunteering and employment opportunities," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 31(3), pages 819-836, July.
    24. Cozzi, Guido & Mantovan, Noemi & Sauer, Robert M., 2024. "How Important Are Mental and Physical Health in Career and Family Choices?," IZA Discussion Papers 17143, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    25. Helene Jorgensen, 2013. "Does It Pay to Volunteer? The Relationship Between Volunteer Work and Paid Work," CEPR Reports and Issue Briefs 2013-10, Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Volunteering; Female Labor Supply; Marriage; Fertility; Negative Selection; Dynamic Programming; Simulated Maximum Likelihood;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C35 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Multiple or Simultaneous Equation Models; Multiple Variables - - - Discrete Regression and Qualitative Choice Models; Discrete Regressors; Proportions
    • C53 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric Modeling - - - Forecasting and Prediction Models; Simulation Methods
    • C61 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Mathematical Methods; Programming Models; Mathematical and Simulation Modeling - - - Optimization Techniques; Programming Models; Dynamic Analysis
    • D91 - Microeconomics - - Micro-Based Behavioral Economics - - - Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making
    • J12 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Marriage; Marital Dissolution; Family Structure
    • J13 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth
    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
    • J64 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Unemployment: Models, Duration, Incidence, and Job Search

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