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Volunteering in the United States News Release

For release 10:00 a.m. (EST) Thursday, February 25, 2016                  USDL-16-0363

Technical information:  (202) 691-6378  *  cpsinfo@bls.gov  *  www.bls.gov/cps
Media contact:          (202) 691-5902  *  PressOffice@bls.gov


                    VOLUNTEERING IN THE UNITED STATES -- 2015


The volunteer rate declined by 0.4 percentage point to 24.9 percent for the year 
ending in September 2015, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. 
About 62.6 million people volunteered through or for an organization at least 
once between September 2014 and September 2015. 

These data on volunteering were collected through a supplement to the September 
2015 Current Population Survey (CPS). The supplement was sponsored by the 
Corporation for National and Community Service. The CPS is a monthly survey of 
about 60,000 households that obtains information on employment and unemployment 
for the nation's civilian noninstitutional population age 16 and over. 
Volunteers are defined as persons who did unpaid work (except for expenses) 
through or for an organization. For more information about the volunteer 
supplement, see the Technical Note in this news release.

Volunteering Among Demographic Groups

The volunteer rate for men was little changed at 21.8 percent for the year 
ending in September 2015. The rate for women was 27.8 percent, down from 28.3 
percent in the previous year. Across all age groups, educational levels, and 
other major demographic characteristics, women continued to volunteer at a 
higher rate than men. (See tables A and 1.)

By age, 35- to 44-year-olds and 45- to 54-year-olds were the most likely to 
volunteer (28.9 percent and 28.0 percent, respectively). Volunteer rates were 
lowest among 20- to 24-year-olds (18.4 percent). Teenagers (16- to 19-year-olds) 
continued to have a relatively high volunteer rate, at 26.4 percent. Over the 
year, the volunteer rates for 35- to 44-year-olds and 55- to 64-year-olds 
declined.

Among the major race and ethnicity groups, Whites continued to volunteer at 
a higher rate (26.4 percent) than Blacks (19.3 percent), Asians (17.9 percent), 
and Hispanics (15.5 percent). In 2015, the volunteer rate showed little or no 
change for all of the major race and ethnicity groups.

Married persons volunteered at a higher rate (29.9 percent) in 2015 than 
those who had never married (19.9 percent) and those with other marital 
statuses (20.2 percent). Over the year, the rate declined for those with other 
marital statuses by 0.9 percentage point. In 2015, parents with children under 
age 18 were again more likely to volunteer than persons without children, 31.3 
percent versus 22.6 percent. The volunteer rate of persons without children 
under age 18 declined over the year, while the rate for parents with children 
under age 18 was little different from a year earlier.

Individuals with higher levels of education were more likely to volunteer than 
were those with less education. Among persons age 25 and over, 38.8 percent of 
college graduates with a bachelor's degree and higher volunteered, compared 
with 26.5 percent of persons with some college or an associate's degree, 15.6 
percent of high school graduates, and 8.1 percent of those with less than a 
high school diploma. The rate of volunteering declined for persons across all 
levels of educational attainment in 2015.

Volunteering by Employment Status

Among the employed, 27.2 percent volunteered during the year ending in 
September 2015. By comparison, 23.3 percent of unemployed persons and 21.4 
percent of those not in the labor force volunteered. Persons employed part 
time were more likely than full-time workers to have participated in volunteer 
activities--31.1 percent versus 26.3 percent. The volunteer rate was little 
changed among employed and unemployed persons but declined for those not in 
the labor force. (See table 1.)

Total Annual Hours Spent Volunteering

Volunteers spent a median of 52 hours on volunteer activities during the 
period from September 2014 to September 2015. Time spent on volunteer 
activities was similar for men (52 hours) and women (50 hours). Among those 
who volunteered, median annual hours spent on volunteer activities ranged 
from a high of 94 hours for those age 65 and over to a low of 36 hours for 
those under 35 years old. (See table 2.)

Number and Type of Organizations

Most volunteers were involved with either one or two organizations--72.0 
percent and 18.3 percent, respectively. Individuals with higher educational 
attainment were more likely to volunteer for multiple organizations than were 
those with less education. (See table 3.)

In 2015, the main organization--the organization for which the volunteer worked 
the most hours during the year--was most frequently religious (33.1 percent of 
all volunteers), followed by educational or youth service related (25.2 percent).
Another 14.6 percent of volunteers performed activities mainly for social or 
community service organizations. (See table 4.)

Older volunteers were more likely to volunteer mainly for religious organizations 
than were younger volunteers. Of volunteers age 65 and over, 42.7 percent served mainly
through or for a religious organization, compared with 25.4 percent of volunteers
age 16 to 24.

Across all levels of educational attainment, volunteers were most likely to 
volunteer for religious organizations, followed by education or youth service 
organizations. Volunteering mainly for religious organizations decreased as 
education increased, from 52.7 percent of those with less than a high school 
diploma to 29.9 percent of those with a bachelor's degree and higher. 
Volunteering primarily for educational or youth service organizations increased 
with educational attainment; 19.9 percent of volunteers with less than a high 
school diploma volunteered for educational or youth service organizations, 
compared with 26.3 percent of volunteers with a bachelor's degree and higher. 

Among volunteers with children under age 18, 45.1 percent of mothers and 36.8 
percent of fathers volunteered mainly for an educational or youth service 
organization, such as a school or scouting group. Volunteers without children 
under age 18 were more likely than parents to volunteer for most other types 
of organizations.

Main Volunteer Activity for Main Organization

Collecting, preparing, distributing, or serving food was the activity volunteers 
performed most often for their main organization in 2015--11.3 percent of 
volunteers reported this as their main activity. Other activities performed 
frequently were tutoring or teaching (9.2 percent), fundraising (9.0 percent), 
and engaging in general labor (8.8 percent).  However, main activities differed 
among men and women. Men who volunteered were most likely to engage in general 
labor (12.3 percent); coach, referee, or supervise sports teams (9.3 percent); 
or collect, prepare, distribute, or serve food (9.2 percent). Female volunteers 
were most likely to collect, prepare, distribute, or serve food (12.9 percent); 
tutor or teach (10.6 percent); or fundraise (9.9 percent). (See table 5.)

The main types of activities volunteers performed also varied by educational 
attainment. Persons with a bachelor's degree and higher were more likely to 
provide professional or management assistance or to tutor or teach than volunteers 
with less education. Volunteers with less than a bachelor's degree were more 
likely to collect, prepare, distribute, or serve food or engage in general labor 
than those with at least a bachelor's degree.

Among volunteers in 2015, parents were more likely than those without children 
to primarily engage in activities often associated with children--including 
coaching, refereeing, or supervising sports teams; tutoring or teaching; and 
mentoring youth.

How Volunteers Became Involved with Main Organization

Between September 2014 and September 2015, the proportion of volunteers who became
involved with their main organization after being asked to volunteer (41.2 percent)
was about the same as the proportion who became involved on their own (41.6 percent)
--that is, those who approached the organization. Those who were asked to volunteer
were most often asked by someone in the organization. (See table 6.)


Table A.  Volunteers by selected characteristics, September 2011 through September 2015
(Numbers in thousands)                                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                                      
                                             September 2011        September 2012        September 2013        September 2014        September 2015   
                                                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                                      
            Characteristics                Number   Percent of   Number   Percent of   Number   Percent of   Number   Percent of   Number   Percent of
                                                    population            population            population            population            population
                                                                                                                                                      
                  Sex                                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                                      
Total, both sexes.......................   64,252       26.8     64,513       26.5     62,615       25.4     62,757       25.3     62,623       24.9  
 Men....................................   27,354       23.5     27,238       23.2     26,404       22.2     26,375       22.0     26,498       21.8  
 Women .................................   36,898       29.9     37,274       29.5     36,211       28.4     36,381       28.3     36,126       27.8  
                                                                                                                                                      
                  Age                                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                                      
Total, 16 years and over................   64,252       26.8     64,513       26.5     62,615       25.4     62,757       25.3     62,623       24.9  
 16 to 24 years.........................    8,578       22.5      8,776       22.6      8,466       21.8      8,469       21.9      8,415       21.8  
 25 to 34 years.........................    9,691       23.3      9,513       23.2      9,118       21.9      9,291       22.0      9,548       22.3  
 35 to 44 years.........................   12,566       31.8     12,527       31.6     12,098       30.6     11,783       29.8     11,490       28.9  
 45 to 54 years.........................   13,420       30.6     12,777       29.3     12,184       28.2     12,204       28.5     11,933       28.0  
 55 to 64 years.........................   10,449       28.1     10,619       27.6     10,191       26.0     10,331       25.9     10,213       25.1  
 65 years and over......................    9,547       24.0     10,301       24.4     10,558       24.1     10,679       23.6     11,024       23.5  
                                                                                                                                                      
 Race and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                                      
White...................................   54,432       28.2     53,778       27.8     52,685       27.1     52,201       26.7     51,986       26.4  
Black or African American...............    5,934       20.3      6,316       21.1      5,637       18.5      6,094       19.7      6,086       19.3  
Asian...................................    2,304       20.0      2,524       19.6      2,525       19.0      2,513       18.2      2,596       17.9  
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity............    5,151       14.9      5,635       15.2      5,838       15.5      5,982       15.5      6,165       15.5  
                                                                                                                                                      
       Educational attainment (1)                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                                      
Less than a high school diploma.........    2,461        9.8      2,177        8.8      2,204        9.0      2,100        8.8      1,900        8.1  
High school graduates, no college (2)...   11,049       18.2     10,527       17.3     10,138       16.7     10,075       16.4      9,576       15.6  
Some college or associate degree........   15,946       29.5     15,832       28.7     15,562       27.7     15,494       27.3     15,102       26.5  
Bachelor's degree and higher (3)........   26,218       42.4     27,202       42.2     26,244       39.8     26,619       39.4     27,629       38.8  
                                                                                                                                                      
           Employment status                                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                                      
Civilian labor force....................   45,249       29.1     44,974       28.7     43,162       27.5     42,780       27.3     42,563       27.0
 Employed...............................   41,881       29.6     42,083       29.1     40,401       27.7     40,497       27.5     40,701       27.2  
  Full time (4).........................   32,517       28.7     32,568       28.1     31,524       26.8     31,557       26.5     32,085       26.3  
  Part time (5).........................    9,363       33.3      9,515       33.4      8,877       31.7      8,940       31.7      8,616       31.1
 Unemployed.............................    3,368       23.8      2,891       23.8      2,761       24.1      2,283       24.0      1,861       23.3  
Not in the labor force..................   19,003       22.5     19,539       22.4     19,452       21.9     19,977       21.8     20,060       21.4

  1 Data refer to persons 25 years and over.
  2 Includes persons with a high school diploma or equivalent.
  3 Includes persons with bachelor's, master's, professional, and doctoral degrees.
  4 Usually work 35 hours or more a week at all jobs.
  5 Usually work less than 35 hours a week at all jobs.
  NOTE: Estimates for the above race groups (White, Black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because data are not presented for all
races. Persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race. Updated population controls are introduced annually with the
release of January data. Data on volunteers relate to persons who performed unpaid volunteer activities for an organization at any point in the year
ending in September. See the Technical Note for further information.




Technical Note

The data in this release were collected through a supplement to the September 2015
Current Population Survey (CPS). The CPS--a monthly survey of about 60,000 eligible
households conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau for the Bureau of Labor Statistics--
focuses on obtaining information on employment and unemployment among the nation's
civilian noninstitutional population age 16 and over. The purpose of this supplement
to the CPS was to obtain information on the incidence of volunteering and the
characteristics of volunteers in the United States.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory-impaired individuals
upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Federal Relay Service: (800) 877-8339.

Reliability of the estimates

Statistics based on the CPS are subject to both sampling and nonsampling error. When
a sample, rather than the entire population, is surveyed, there is a chance that the
sample estimates may differ from the true population values they represent. The 
component of this difference that occurs because samples differ by chance is known
as sampling error, and this variability is measured by the standard error of the
estimate. There is about a 90-percent chance, or level of confidence, that an estimate
based on a sample will differ by no more than 1.6 standard errors from the true 
population value because of sampling error. BLS analyses are generally conducted at
the 90-percent level of confidence.

The CPS data also are affected by nonsampling error. Nonsampling error can occur for
many reasons, including the failure to sample a segment of the population, inability
to obtain information for all respondents in the sample, inability or unwillingness
of respondents to provide correct information, and errors made in the collection or
processing of the data.

Additional information on the reliability of data from the CPS and estimating standard
errors is available at www.bls.gov/cps/documentation.htm#reliability.

The Census Bureau introduces adjustments to the population controls for the CPS as
part of its annual update of population estimates. For this reason, data in this
release are not strictly comparable with data for earlier years. Additional
information is available on the internet at www.bls.gov/cps/documentation.htm#pop.

Volunteer questions and concepts

In the September supplement, questions on volunteer activities were asked of all
households. Efforts were made to have household members answer the volunteer
questions for themselves. (Generally, one member of the household answers all
the questions in the CPS on behalf of the entire household.) Self-response was
considered important for the volunteer supplement because research indicated that
self-respondents could more easily answer questions on the characteristics of the
volunteer activity. About two-thirds of responses were self-reports. The survey was
introduced as follows: "This month, we are interested in volunteer activities, that
is, activities for which people are not paid, except perhaps expenses. We only want
you to include volunteer activities that you did through or for an organization,
even if you only did them once in a while."

Following this introduction, respondents were asked the first supplement question:
"Since September 1st of last year, have you done any volunteer activities through
or for an organization?"

If respondents did not answer "yes" to the first question, they were asked the
following question: "Sometimes people don't think of activities they do infrequently
or activities they do for children's schools or youth organizations as volunteer
activities. Since September 1st of last year, have you done any of these types of
volunteer activities?"

Respondents were considered volunteers if they answered "yes" to either of these
questions. This method has been used since the supplement was first administered
in 2002.

Respondents classified as volunteers were asked further questions about the number
and type of organizations for which they volunteered, total hours spent volunteering,
how they became involved with the main organization for which they volunteered, the
type of activities they performed for the main organization, and what their main
activity was. The reference period for the questions on volunteering was about
1 year, from September 1, 2014, through the survey reference week in September 2015.
The reference period for other characteristics--such as labor force status, educational
attainment, and marital status--refer to the survey reference week in September 2015.
It is possible that these characteristics were different at the time volunteer
activities were performed.

One new question was added to the 2008 survey to determine whether or not respondents
had donated money, assets, or property with a combined value of more than $25 to
charitable or religious organizations in the past 12 months. Two questions asked in
the 2007 supplement were removed in 2008. These questions asked how often respondents
who had attended public meetings or who had worked with others in their neighborhood
to fix a problem did so.

Definitions

Volunteers are persons who performed unpaid volunteer activities at any point during
the survey reference year. The count of volunteers only includes persons who
volunteered through or for an organization; the figures do not include persons who
volunteered in a more informal manner. For example, a woman who taught acting to
children through a local theater would be considered a volunteer. However, a woman
who, on her own, organized softball games for the children in her neighborhood would
not be counted as a volunteer for the purpose of this survey.

Organizations are associations, societies, or groups of people who share a common
interest. Examples include churches, youth groups, and civic organizations. For
the purpose of this study, organizations are grouped into eight major categories,
including religious, youth, and social or community service organizations.

In the 2005 survey, one organization category, immigrant/refugee assistance, was
added to the questionnaire as a possible response. Responses that were collected in
this category may have been distributed over at least six of the major organization
categories in previous years. For this reason, the addition of the new response
category created a break in the comparability of organizations between 2005 and prior
years. Because few people reported volunteering for immigrant/refugee assistance
organizations and because the group was not a definite subset of any of the major
organization categories, those persons who did report that they volunteered for
immigrant/refugee assistance organizations were placed in the "other" group.

The main organization is the organization for which the volunteer worked the most
hours during the year. If a respondent volunteered for only one organization, it
was considered the main organization, even if exact hours were not obtained.

In order to identify the type of main organization, respondents provided information
about the organization and, for those who volunteered for more than one organization,
annual hours worked for each. Some respondents did not provide the information
necessary to determine the main organization. For these respondents, the follow-up
questions on activities and how they became involved with the main organization
asked them to report on the organization for which they think they spent the most
time volunteering.

Activities are the specific tasks the volunteer did for an organization. Examples
include tutoring, fundraising, and serving food. The activity categories were
modified in 2005, thus creating a break in the comparability of activities between
2005 and prior years.

In 2006, a new question was added that asked respondents on which of the activities
they mentioned they spent the most time. Previously, respondents reported all of the
activities they did for their main organization. The new question identified which of
them was the main activity for the main organization.




Table 1. Volunteers by selected characteristics, September 2015

(Numbers in thousands)
                                                                                                                             
                                              Total, both sexes                  Men                        Women            
                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                             
                                                       Volunteers                  Volunteers                  Volunteers    
   Characteristics in September 2015       Civilian                    Civilian                    Civilian                  
                                           noninsti-                   noninsti-                   noninsti-                 
                                           tutional           Percent  tutional           Percent  tutional           Percent
                                            popula-   Number    of      popula-   Number    of      popula-   Number    of   
                                             tion             popula-    tion             popula-    tion             popula-
                                                               tion                        tion                         tion 
                                                                                                                             
                  Age                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                             
Total, 16 years and over................   251,325   62,623    24.9    121,365   26,498    21.8    129,960   36,126    27.8  
  16 to 24 years........................    38,525    8,415    21.8     19,409    3,702    19.1     19,115    4,714    24.7  
     16 to 19 years.....................    16,612    4,382    26.4      8,425    2,089    24.8      8,187    2,293    28.0  
     20 to 24 years.....................    21,913    4,033    18.4     10,984    1,613    14.7     10,928    2,421    22.2  
  25 years and over.....................   212,801   54,208    25.5    101,956   22,796    22.4    110,844   31,412    28.3  
     25 to 34 years.....................    42,901    9,548    22.3     21,211    3,836    18.1     21,690    5,712    26.3  
     35 to 44 years.....................    39,719   11,490    28.9     19,454    4,768    24.5     20,265    6,723    33.2  
     45 to 54 years.....................    42,588   11,933    28.0     20,816    5,127    24.6     21,772    6,806    31.3  
     55 to 64 years.....................    40,763   10,213    25.1     19,602    4,384    22.4     21,161    5,829    27.5  
     65 years and over..................    46,830   11,024    23.5     20,872    4,681    22.4     25,957    6,343    24.4  
                                                                                                                             
 Race and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity                                                                                       
                                                                                                                             
White...................................   197,152   51,986    26.4     96,294   22,222    23.1    100,858   29,764    29.5  
Black or African American...............    31,479    6,086    19.3     14,315    2,378    16.6     17,164    3,708    21.6  
Asian...................................    14,466    2,596    17.9      6,734    1,037    15.4      7,732    1,558    20.2  
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity............    39,828    6,165    15.5     19,849    2,583    13.0     19,979    3,582    17.9  
                                                                                                                             
       Educational attainment (1)                                                                                            
                                                                                                                             
Less than a high school diploma.........    23,528    1,900     8.1     11,802      781     6.6     11,726    1,120     9.5  
High school graduates, no college (2)...    61,199    9,576    15.6     30,074    4,097    13.6     31,125    5,479    17.6  
Some college or associate degree .......    56,948   15,102    26.5     26,155    6,043    23.1     30,793    9,059    29.4  
Bachelor's degree and higher (3)........    71,126   27,629    38.8     33,925   11,875    35.0     37,201   15,755    42.4  
                                                                                                                             
             Marital status                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                             
Single, never married...................    76,268   15,143    19.9     40,226    6,672    16.6     36,042    8,471    23.5  
Married, spouse present.................   124,783   37,348    29.9     62,869   16,825    26.8     61,914   20,523    33.1  
Other marital status (4)................    50,274   10,132    20.2     18,270    3,000    16.4     32,005    7,132    22.3  
                                                                                                                             
        Presence of own children                                                                                             
           under 18 years (5)                                                                                                
                                                                                                                             
Without own children under 18...........   184,577   41,738    22.6     91,802   18,263    19.9     92,775   23,475    25.3  
With own children under 18..............    66,748   20,885    31.3     29,563    8,235    27.9     37,185   12,651    34.0  
                                                                                                                             
           Employment status                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                             
Civilian labor force....................   157,627   42,563    27.0     83,920   19,700    23.5     73,708   22,862    31.0  
  Employed..............................   149,639   40,701    27.2     79,812   18,934    23.7     69,826   21,767    31.2  
    Full time (6).......................   121,914   32,085    26.3     69,954   16,535    23.6     51,959   15,549    29.9  
    Part time (7).......................    27,725    8,616    31.1      9,858    2,399    24.3     17,867    6,218    34.8  
  Unemployed............................     7,989    1,861    23.3      4,107      766    18.7      3,882    1,095    28.2  
Not in the labor force..................    93,698   20,060    21.4     37,446    6,797    18.2     56,252   13,263    23.6  

   1 Data refer to persons 25 years and over.
   2 Includes persons with a high school diploma or equivalent.
   3 Includes persons with bachelor's, professional, and doctoral degrees.
   4 Includes divorced, separated, and widowed persons.
   5 Own children include sons, daughters, stepchildren, and adopted children. Not included are nieces, nephews,
grandchildren, and other related and unrelated children.
   6 Usually work 35 hours or more a week at all jobs.
   7 Usually work less than 35 hours a week at all jobs.
   NOTE: Data on volunteers relate to persons who performed unpaid volunteer activities for an organization at any point
from September 1, 2014, through the survey period in September 2015. Estimates for the above race groups (White, Black or
African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because data are not presented for all races. Persons whose ethnicity is
identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race.




Table 2. Volunteers by annual hours of volunteer activities and selected characteristics, September 2015
                                                                                                                            
                                                       Percent distribution of total annual hours spent volunteering        
                                                                          at all organizations                              
                                                                                                                            
 Characteristics in September 2015          Total                                                           Not     Median  
                                         volunteers  Total  1 to 14 15 to 49  50 to 99   100 to    500   reporting  annual  
                                        (thousands)         hour(s)   hours     hours     499    hours    annual   hours (1)
                                                                                         hours  and over   hours            
                                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                            
                  Sex                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                            
Total, both sexes.......................   62,623    100.0    21.1     24.7     15.1     27.4      5.9       5.9       52   
   Men..................................   26,498    100.0    20.4     24.1     15.2     28.2      6.4       5.8       52   
   Women................................   36,126    100.0    21.7     25.1     15.0     26.9      5.5       5.9       50   
                                                                                                                            
                  Age                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                            
Total, 16 years and over................   62,623    100.0    21.1     24.7     15.1     27.4      5.9       5.9       52   
  16 to 24 years........................    8,415    100.0    24.9     29.0     14.6     20.3      3.7       7.6       36   
     16 to 19 years.....................    4,382    100.0    23.9     30.1     16.2     20.3      2.5       7.1       36   
     20 to 24 years.....................    4,033    100.0    26.0     27.7     12.9     20.2      5.0       8.2       36   
  25 years and over.....................   54,208    100.0    20.5     24.0     15.1     28.5      6.2       5.6       52   
     25 to 34 years.....................    9,548    100.0    27.7     25.8     14.2     21.2      4.6       6.4       36   
     35 to 44 years.....................   11,490    100.0    23.0     26.3     15.8     25.9      4.5       4.4       48   
     45 to 54 years.....................   11,933    100.0    20.5     24.5     15.7     28.4      5.6       5.4       52   
     55 to 64 years.....................   10,213    100.0    18.7     24.3     14.8     29.9      6.8       5.4       56   
     65 years and over..................   11,024    100.0    13.5     19.2     14.9     36.5      9.4       6.5       94   
                                                                                                                            
 Race and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity                                                                                      
                                                                                                                            
White...................................   51,986     100.0     20.8     24.9     15.4     27.5      5.8      5.5      52   
Black or African American...............    6,086     100.0     20.7     22.0     14.1     28.6      6.4      8.4      52   
Asian...................................    2,596     100.0     25.8     26.5     11.7     24.6      4.5      6.9      40   
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity............    6,165     100.0     22.4     24.6     12.8     27.6      5.8      6.8      48   
                                                                                                                            
       Educational attainment (2)                                                                                           
                                                                                                                            
Less than a high school diploma.........    1,900     100.0     22.4     22.0     13.3     28.4      5.5      8.4      52   
High school graduates, no college (3)...    9,576     100.0     21.5     23.2     13.9     27.2      7.1      7.1      52   
Some college or associate degree .......   15,102     100.0     21.8     23.4     14.0     29.1      6.4      5.4      52   
Bachelor's degree and higher (4)........   27,629     100.0     19.4     24.8     16.3     28.7      5.8      5.0      52   
                                                                                                                            
             Marital status                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                            
Single, never married...................   15,143     100.0     25.5     27.0     14.3     20.9      4.5      7.7      36   
Married, spouse present.................   37,348     100.0     19.5     24.2     15.4     29.8      6.1      5.0      52   
Other marital status (5)................   10,132     100.0     20.8     22.7     14.8     28.4      6.8      6.5      52   
                                                                                                                            
        Presence of own children                                                                                            
           under 18 years (6)                                                                                               
                                                                                                                            
Men:                                                                                                                        
  No own children under 18 years old....   18,263     100.0     19.4     23.9     15.2     27.5      7.1      6.8      52   
  With own children under 18 years old..    8,235     100.0     22.6     24.5     15.1     29.7      4.6      3.5      50   
Women:                                                                                                                      
  No own children under 18 years old....   23,475     100.0     20.0     24.0     14.9     28.0      6.3      6.8      52   
  With own children under 18 years old..   12,651     100.0     24.8     27.2     15.1     24.7      3.9      4.4      40   
                                                                                                                            
           Employment status                                                                                                
                                                                                                                            
Civilian labor force....................   42,563     100.0     22.9     26.0     15.2     25.9      4.5      5.5      48   
  Employed..............................   40,701     100.0     22.9     26.2     15.2     25.8      4.3      5.5      48   
    Full time (7).......................   32,085     100.0     23.3     26.4     15.4     25.4      4.1      5.4      48   
    Part time (8).......................    8,616     100.0     21.4     25.7     14.5     27.5      5.0      5.8      49   
  Unemployed............................    1,861     100.0     23.4     21.7     14.2     26.6      8.1      6.0      52   
Not in the labor force..................   20,060     100.0     17.3     21.8     14.8     30.7      8.8      6.6      66   

   1 For those reporting annual hours.
   2 Data refer to persons 25 years and over.
   3 Includes persons with a high school diploma or equivalent.
   4 Includes persons with bachelor's, professional, and doctoral degrees.
   5 Includes divorced, separated, and widowed persons.
   6 Own children include sons, daughters, stepchildren, and adopted children. Not included are nieces, nephews,
grandchildren, and other related and unrelated children.
   7 Usually work 35 hours or more a week at all jobs.
   8 Usually work less than 35 hours a week at all jobs.
   NOTE: Data on volunteers relate to persons who performed unpaid volunteer activities for an organization at any point
from September 1, 2014, through the survey period in September 2015. Estimates for the above race groups (White, Black or
African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because data are not presented for all races. Persons whose ethnicity
is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race 




Table 3. Volunteers by number of organizations for which volunteer activities were performed and     
selected characteristics, September 2015                                                             
                                                                                                     
                                                           Percent distribution of the number of     
                                                       organizations for which volunteer activities  
                                                                     were performed                  
                                            Total                                                    
  Characteristics in September 2015      volunteers                                             Not  
                                        (thousands)                                         reporting
                                                                                     Five   number of
                                                    Total   One   Two  Three  Four    or    organiza-
                                                                                     more     tions  
                                                                                                     
                  Sex                                                                                
                                                                                                     
Total, both sexes.......................   62,623   100.0  72.0  18.3   6.4    2.0   1.2       0.2   
   Men..................................   26,498   100.0  73.2  17.8   6.0    1.7   1.1        .2   
   Women................................   36,126   100.0  71.1  18.6   6.7    2.1   1.2        .2   
                                                                                                     
                  Age                                                                                
                                                                                                     
Total, 16 years and over................   62,623   100.0  72.0  18.3   6.4    2.0   1.2        .2   
  16 to 24 years........................    8,415   100.0  77.7  14.7   5.3    1.2    .7        .3   
     16 to 19 years.....................    4,382   100.0  75.3  16.1   6.0    1.6    .6        .4   
     20 to 24 years.....................    4,033   100.0  80.4  13.1   4.5     .8    .9        .2   
  25 years and over.....................   54,208   100.0  71.1  18.8   6.5    2.1   1.2        .2   
     25 to 34 years.....................    9,548   100.0  76.5  17.5   4.3    1.1    .5        .1   
     35 to 44 years.....................   11,490   100.0  70.0  19.9   6.5    2.2   1.1        .2   
     45 to 54 years.....................   11,933   100.0  68.0  20.3   7.7    2.1   1.5        .4   
     55 to 64 years.....................   10,213   100.0  70.4  18.7   7.4    2.1   1.1        .2   
     65 years and over..................   11,024   100.0  71.6  17.3   6.4    2.7   1.8        .1   
                                                                                                     
 Race and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity                                                               
                                                                                                     
White...................................   51,986   100.0  70.5  19.1   6.8    2.1   1.2        .3   
Black or African American...............    6,086   100.0  81.2  13.4   3.6    1.1    .6        .1   
Asian...................................    2,596   100.0  79.5  14.2   3.3    1.9    .8        .2   
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity............    6,165   100.0  82.4  13.0   3.2     .5    .6        .2   
                                                                                                     
       Educational attainment (1)                                                                    
                                                                                                     
Less than a high school diploma.........    1,900   100.0  90.4   7.6   1.7     .2   -         -     
High school graduates, no college (2)...    9,576   100.0  81.1  14.1   3.1    1.0    .5        .2   
Some college or associate degree .......   15,102   100.0  75.9  16.8   5.1    1.3    .7        .2   
Bachelor's degree and higher (3)........   27,629   100.0  63.7  22.4   8.9    3.0   1.9        .2   
                                                                                                     
             Marital status                                                                          
                                                                                                     
Single, never married...................   15,143   100.0  76.6  15.7   5.3    1.3    .8        .3   
Married, spouse present.................   37,348   100.0  70.0  19.6   6.9    2.1   1.2        .2   
Other marital status (4)................   10,132   100.0  72.6  17.0   6.1    2.4   1.6        .2   
                                                                                                     
Presence of own children under 18 years                                                              
                  (5)                                                                                
                                                                                                     
Men:                                                                                                 
  No own children under 18 years old....   18,263   100.0  74.8  16.7   5.8    1.5   1.0        .2   
  With own children under 18 years old..    8,235   100.0  69.8  20.2   6.3    2.3   1.2        .2   
Women:                                                                                               
  No own children under 18 years old....   23,475   100.0  72.7  17.3   6.4    2.1   1.3        .3   
  With own children under 18 years old..   12,651   100.0  68.1  21.1   7.2    2.2   1.2        .2   
                                                                                                     
           Employment status                                                                         
                                                                                                     
Civilian labor force....................   42,563   100.0  71.2  19.1   6.4    1.9   1.1        .3   
  Employed..............................   40,701   100.0  70.9  19.3   6.5    1.9   1.1        .3   
    Full time (6).......................   32,085   100.0  71.3  19.0   6.3    2.0   1.1        .3   
    Part time (7).......................    8,616   100.0  69.7  20.2   7.3    1.6   1.2        .1   
  Unemployed............................    1,861   100.0  77.0  16.5   4.9     .8    .8       -     
Not in the labor force..................   20,060   100.0  73.7  16.4   6.2    2.2   1.3        .2   

   1 Data refer to persons 25 years and over.
   2 Includes persons with a high school diploma or equivalent.
   3 Includes persons with bachelor's, professional, and doctoral degrees.
   4 Includes divorced, separated, and widowed persons.
   5 Own children include sons, daughters, stepchildren, and adopted children. Not included are
nieces, nephews, grandchildren, and other related and unrelated children.
   6 Usually work 35 hours or more a week at all jobs.
   7 Usually work less than 35 hours a week at all jobs.
   NOTE: Data on volunteers relate to persons who performed unpaid volunteer activities for an
organization at any point from September 1, 2014, through the survey period in September 2015. 
Estimates for the above race groups (White, Black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to
totals because data are not presented for all races. Persons whose ethnicity is identified as
Hispanic or Latino may be of any race. Dash represents or rounds to zero.




Table 4. Volunteers by type of main organization for which volunteer activities were performed and selected characteristics,
September 2015
                                                                                                                                    
                                            Percent distribution of volunteers by type of main organization (1)                     
                                                                                                                                    
                                            Total            Civic,                                                                 
       Characteristics in                   volun-           polit-  Educa-   Envi-  Hos-               Social   Sport,             
         September 2015                     teers            ical,  tional    ron-  pital  Pub-          or     hobby,          Not 
                                            (thou-  Total   profes-   or    mental   or    lic   Reli-  commu-   cul-   Other deter-
                                            sands)          sional,  youth    or    other safety gious   nity    tural,        mined
                                                           or inter-  ser-  animal health              service  or arts             
                                                           national   vice   care                                                   
                                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                    
                  Sex                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                    
Total, both sexes.......................    62,623  100.0     4.8     25.2    2.9   6.6    1.1   33.1    14.6     3.7     5.2    2.8
   Men..................................    26,498  100.0     5.9     23.9    2.7   5.3    1.7   32.6    15.6     4.0     5.6    2.8
   Women................................    36,126  100.0     4.0     26.2    3.0   7.6     .6   33.5    14.0     3.4     4.8    2.8
                                                                                                                                    
                  Age                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                    
Total, 16 years and over................    62,623  100.0     4.8     25.2    2.9   6.6    1.1   33.1    14.6     3.7     5.2    2.8
  16 to 24 years........................     8,415  100.0     3.8     30.6    3.9   8.5    1.2   25.4    14.4     3.3     4.9    4.0
     16 to 19 years.....................     4,382  100.0     3.8     33.6    4.1   7.2     .8   28.6    11.9     2.8     4.1    3.1
     20 to 24 years.....................     4,033  100.0     3.7     27.3    3.6   9.9    1.7   22.0    17.1     3.7     5.9    5.0
  25 years and over.....................    54,208  100.0     5.0     24.4    2.7   6.3    1.0   34.3    14.7     3.7     5.2    2.6
     25 to 34 years.....................     9,548  100.0     4.0     28.6    3.6   8.0    1.7   28.2    14.7     2.5     5.8    2.9
     35 to 44 years.....................    11,490  100.0     4.4     37.6    1.8   5.1    1.0   27.7    11.7     4.0     4.4    2.5
     45 to 54 years.....................    11,933  100.0     4.6     29.4    2.6   5.4     .9   33.4    13.7     3.4     3.6    2.9
     55 to 64 years.....................    10,213  100.0     5.3     16.2    3.4   6.3     .9   39.5    16.2     4.0     5.7    2.5
     65 years and over..................    11,024  100.0     6.6      9.3    2.4   7.3     .9   42.7    17.3     4.5     6.8    2.3
                                                                                                                                    
 Race and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                    
White...................................    51,986  100.0     5.0     24.8    3.1   6.7    1.2   32.6    14.7     3.8     5.4    2.7
Black or African American...............     6,086  100.0     3.4     25.6    1.0   5.9     .6   41.2    12.7     1.8     3.8    4.0
Asian...................................     2,596  100.0     3.9     32.1    1.2   8.3     .6   29.1    13.4     3.1     4.7    3.5
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity............     6,165  100.0     4.2     31.3    1.6   5.6     .7   37.3    10.5     2.3     3.4    3.2
                                                                                                                                    
       Educational attainment (2)                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                    
Less than a high school diploma.........     1,900  100.0     2.3     19.9    1.0   2.7    1.1   52.7    12.1     1.6     3.7    2.9
High school graduates, no college (3)...     9,576  100.0     4.5     21.7    2.1   5.1    2.2   40.3    13.8     3.4     4.8    2.2
Some college or associate degree .......    15,102  100.0     5.1     23.3    2.4   5.9    1.2   36.3    15.3     3.1     4.9    2.4
Bachelor's degree and higher (4)........    27,629  100.0     5.3     26.3    3.2   7.2     .6   29.9    14.8     4.3     5.6    2.9
                                                                                                                                    
             Marital status                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                    
Single, never married...................    15,143  100.0     4.7     27.0    4.6   8.2    1.2   23.5    16.4     4.3     5.9    4.2
Married, spouse present.................    37,348  100.0     4.7     26.2    2.2   5.7    1.1   37.6    12.6     3.4     4.2    2.3
Other marital status (5)................    10,132  100.0     5.4     18.9    2.8   7.8     .8   31.2    19.5     3.5     7.4    2.8
                                                                                                                                    
        Presence of own children                                                                                                    
           under 18 years (6)                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                    
Men:                                                                                                                                
  No own children under 18 years old....    18,263  100.0     6.3     18.1    3.4   6.0    1.5   33.7    17.4     4.2     6.4    3.1
  With own children under 18 years old..     8,235  100.0     5.0     36.8    1.1   3.7    2.2   30.3    11.4     3.5     3.8    2.2
Women:                                                                                                                              
  No own children under 18 years old....    23,475  100.0     4.7     16.1    3.9   9.0     .7   36.1    16.7     4.1     5.6    3.3
  With own children under 18 years old..    12,651  100.0     2.9     45.1    1.4   5.1     .4   28.8     9.0     2.2     3.4    1.9
                                                                                                                                    
           Employment status                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                    
Civilian labor force....................    42,563  100.0     5.0     27.3    2.9   6.5    1.2   30.8    14.8     3.7     5.1    2.8
  Employed..............................    40,701  100.0     5.0     27.0    2.9   6.6    1.3   30.8    14.8     3.8     5.1    2.8
    Full time (7).......................    32,085  100.0     5.2     27.0    2.9   6.6    1.4   30.2    15.3     3.7     5.0    2.9
    Part time (8).......................     8,616  100.0     4.6     27.1    2.9   6.3     .9   33.1    12.8     4.1     5.6    2.4
  Unemployed............................     1,861  100.0     3.2     32.2    4.2   4.1     .2   29.3    15.1     2.8     5.7    3.4
Not in the labor force..................    20,060  100.0     4.6     21.0    2.7   7.0     .7   38.1    14.3     3.5     5.2    2.9

   1 Main organization is defined as the organization for which the volunteer worked the most hours during the year. See the
Technical Note for more details.
   2 Data refer to persons 25 years and over.
   3 Includes persons with a high school diploma or equivalent.
   4 Includes persons with bachelor's, professional, and doctoral degrees.
   5 Includes divorced, separated, and widowed persons.
   6 Own children include sons, daughters, stepchildren, and adopted children. Not included are nieces, nephews, grandchildren,
and other related and unrelated children.
   7 Usually work 35 hours or more a week at all jobs.
   8 Usually work less than 35 hours a week at all jobs.
   NOTE: Data on volunteers relate to persons who performed unpaid volunteer activities for an organization at any point from
September 1, 2014, through the survey period in September 2015. Estimates for the above race groups (White, Black or African
American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because data are not presented for all races. Persons whose ethnicity is identified as
Hispanic or Latino may be of any race.




Table 5. Main volunteer activity for main organization for which activities were performed and selected characteristics, September 2015
                                                                                                                                                     
                                       Percent distribution of main volunteer activity for main organization (1)                                     
                                                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                               Pro-                                  
                                                                                                               vide                                  
                                                                           Collect,          Pro-             profes-            Engage              
                                                                           make or           vide             sional   Engage      in                
                                    Coach                           Col-   distri-          coun-               or       in       gen-               
                            Total    ref-                          lect,    bute    Fund-  seling,            manage-  music,     eral          Equal
                            volun-  eree,                 Be an    pre-    cloth-   raise   medi-  Provide     ment    perfor-   labor,         time 
    Characteristics in      teers    or,   Tutor          usher,   pare,    ing,     or      cal   general    assis-   mance,    supply         among
      September 2015        (thou-  super-   or   Mentor  greet-   dis-    crafts   sell    care,  office     tance,     or,     trans- Other(9) all 
                            sands)  vise   teach  youth   er, or   tri-  or goods  items    fire/,   ser-    includ-   other     port-               
                                    sports                 mini-   bute,   other     to      EMS,   vices     ing     artis-     ation               
                                    teams                  ster     or     than    raise     or,            serving    tic        to                 
                                                                  serve    food    money    pro-             on a     activ-    people               
                                                                   food                     tec-             board    ities                          
                                                                                            tive               or                                    
                                                                                            ser-             commit-                                 
                                                                                           vices               tee                                   
                                                                                                                                                     
                  Sex                                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                                     
Total, both sexes.......... 62,623    5.5   9.2    6.7     4.2    11.3     3.5      9.0     3.0      4.4       7.2     4.0        8.8     15.3    8.0
   Men..................... 26,498    9.3   7.2    6.5     5.3     9.2     2.4      7.6     3.3      2.5       8.5     3.9       12.3     14.8    7.0
   Women................... 36,126    2.7  10.6    6.8     3.5    12.9     4.4      9.9     2.8      5.7       6.2     4.1        6.1     15.6    8.7
                                                                                                                                                     
           Age                                                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                                     
Total, 16 years and over... 62,623    5.5   9.2    6.7     4.2    11.3     3.5      9.0     3.0      4.4       7.2     4.0        8.8     15.3    8.0
  16 to 24 years...........  8,415    5.8   9.0    8.5     3.1     9.7     2.8      8.7     2.7      3.6       1.5     5.5       13.5     16.6    9.0
     16 to 19 years........  4,382    4.8   8.5    8.9     3.4     9.6     3.4      7.6     2.3      3.4        .9     6.9       15.8     15.6    9.0
     20 to 24 years........  4,033    6.8   9.7    8.1     2.8     9.8     2.2      9.9     3.1      3.9       2.1     4.0       11.1     17.6    8.9
  25 years and over........ 54,208    5.5   9.2    6.4     4.4    11.6     3.6      9.0     3.1      4.5       8.1     3.8        8.0     15.1    7.8
     25 to 34 years........  9,548    5.9  11.0    8.8     2.8     8.6     3.0      8.5     4.4      3.9       5.3     3.6        8.9     18.6    6.8
     35 to 44 years........ 11,490   10.3  11.5    9.0     3.1     9.8     3.1     10.0     2.5      3.8       6.8     2.9        7.5     12.2    7.4
     45 to 54 years........ 11,933    6.7   8.3    7.5     4.0    11.7     2.8     10.4     2.5      3.6       8.3     3.6        9.2     13.6    7.8
     55 to 64 years........ 10,213    3.0   8.7    3.9     5.8    13.1     4.2      9.2     3.1      5.1      10.5     4.4        6.4     13.7    8.9
     65 years and over..... 11,024    1.0   6.6    2.8     6.2    14.7     5.0      6.7     3.1      6.1       9.4     4.4        7.9     17.8    8.3
                                                                                                                                                     
  Race and Hispanic or                                                                                                                               
    Latino ethnicity                                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                                     
White...................... 51,986    5.6   9.2    6.3     3.9    11.0     3.4      9.5     3.1      4.4       7.6     3.8        8.9     15.3    7.9
Black or African                                                                                                                                     
 American..................  6,086    5.2   9.1    9.7     7.3    14.9     4.0      5.9     1.6      4.2       3.8     4.7        6.4     14.1    9.1
Asian......................  2,596    3.0  11.1    6.7     3.4    11.9     3.6      6.7     5.0      5.8       6.6     4.9        6.9     18.0    6.3
Hispanic or Latino                                                                                                                                   
 ethnicity.................  6,165    6.2   9.5    7.6     5.0    10.2     3.9      7.2     3.0      4.7       2.9     2.5        9.8     18.4    8.8
Educational attainment (2)                                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                                     
Less than a high school                                                                                                                              
 diploma.................    1,900    3.1   8.6    3.2     5.9    20.6     4.9      5.3     3.7      2.8        .8     1.3       10.9     19.4    9.5
High school graduates, no                                                                                                                            
 college (3)...............  9,576    5.9   6.3    4.8     4.9    16.6     4.4      8.9     2.5      5.2       3.7     3.7       10.2     15.4    7.5
Some college or associate                                                                                                                            
 degree ................... 15,102    5.6   8.2    6.3     5.0    12.8     4.2      8.7     3.1      5.0       5.0     4.1        8.8     15.2    8.1
Bachelor's degree and                                                                                                                                
 higher (4)................ 27,629    5.4  10.8    7.3     3.8     8.6     3.0      9.5     3.3      4.1      11.8     3.7        6.6     14.6    7.7
                                                                                                                                                     
     Marital status                                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                                     
Single, never married...... 15,143    5.5   8.5    8.1     3.0    10.4     3.3      8.1     3.2      4.3       4.1     4.4       11.2     18.3    7.5
Married, spouse present.... 37,348    6.0  10.1    6.7     4.8    10.7     3.2      9.4     2.9      4.2       8.5     3.9        7.8     13.6    8.3
Other marital status (5)... 10,132    3.8   6.8    4.7     3.9    15.2     4.8      8.7     3.2      5.2       6.9     3.8        8.5     17.1    7.5
                                                                                                                                                     
Presence of own children                                                                                                                             
    under 18 years (6)                                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                                     
Men:                                                                                                                                                 
  No own children under                                                                                                                              
   18 years old............ 18,263    5.5   6.9    5.9     5.6    10.2     2.5      7.5     3.2      2.9       8.9     4.3       13.2     16.1    7.2
  With own children under                                                                                                                            
   18 years old............  8,235   18.0   8.1    7.7     4.4     7.0     2.1      8.0     3.4      1.7       7.7     2.8       10.4     11.9    6.8
Women:                                                                                                                                               
  No own children under                                                                                                                              
   18 years old............ 23,475    1.6   8.9    5.2     4.0    14.1     4.8      8.8     3.3      6.2       6.7     4.8        6.4     16.7    8.6
  With own children under   								                                                             
   18 years old............ 12,651    4.7  13.7    9.8     2.5    10.6     3.5     12.2     2.1      4.8       5.2     2.8        5.6     13.6    8.9
                                                                                                                                                     
    Employment status                                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                                     
Civilian labor force....... 42,563    7.0   9.1    7.4     3.9    10.4     3.0      9.6     3.3      3.5       8.0     3.7        8.8     14.4    7.8
  Employed................. 40,701    7.1   9.2    7.4     3.9    10.4     2.9      9.8     3.3      3.4       8.2     3.7        8.8     14.2    7.7
    Full time (7).........  32,085    8.1   8.5    7.6     4.0    10.0     2.9     10.2     3.4      3.3       8.7     3.3        8.6     13.9    7.4
    Part time (8)..........  8,616    3.2  11.9    6.8     3.3    11.7     2.9      8.2     3.2      3.9       6.2     5.1        9.3     15.5    8.9
  Unemployed...............  1,861    5.6   6.8    7.5     3.9    12.1     4.4      5.6     2.8      5.4       5.2     3.3        9.6     19.4    8.3
Not in the labor force..... 20,060    2.3   9.2    5.2     5.0    13.2     4.6      7.7     2.4      6.1       5.4     4.6        8.6     17.0    8.5

   1 Main organization is defined as the organization for which the volunteer worked the most hours during the year.  See the Technical
Note for more details.
   2 Data refer to persons 25 years and over.
   3 Includes persons with a high school diploma or equivalent.
   4 Includes persons with bachelor's, professional, and doctoral degrees.
   5 Includes divorced, separated, and widowed persons.
   6 Own children include sons, daughters, stepchildren, and adopted children. Not included are nieces, nephews, grandchildren, and other
related and unrelated children.
   7 Usually work 35 hours or more a week at all jobs.
   8 Usually work less than 35 hours a week at all jobs.
   9 Includes persons who reported "Other" as their main activity as well as those who did not report their main activity.
   NOTE: Data on volunteers relate to persons who performed unpaid volunteer activities for an organization at any point from September 1, 2014,
through the survey period in September 2015. Estimates for the above race groups (White, Black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals
because data are not presented for all races. Persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race.




Table 6. Volunteers by how they became involved with main organization for which volunteer activities were performed
and selected characteristics, September 2015                                                                        
                                                                                                                    
                                    Percent distribution of how volunteers became involved with main                
                                                            organization (1)                                        
                                                                                                                    
                           Total                              Was asked by:                                         
   Characteristics in      volun-                                                                              Not  
     September 2015        teers          Approach-                                                          report-
                           (thou-          ed the                        Rela-    Someone                    ing how
                           sands)  Total   organi-  Total    Boss or      tive     in the            Other   became 
                                           zation    (2)    employer    friend,   organi-    Some-             in-  
                                                                          or      zation/     one            volved 
                                                                          co-     school     else                   
                                                                        worker                                      
                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                    
             Sex                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                    
Total, both sexes.......   62,623  100.0    41.6    41.2      1.5        14.5     23.7       1.4      13.4      3.8 
   Men..................   26,498  100.0    40.9    42.1      1.4        15.4     23.6       1.6      13.1      3.9 
   Women................   36,126  100.0    42.0    40.5      1.5        13.8     23.8       1.3      13.6      3.8 
                                                                                                                    
             Age                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                    
Total, 16 years and over.  62,623  100.0    41.6    41.2      1.5        14.5     23.7       1.4      13.4      3.8 
  16 to 24 years.........   8,415  100.0    40.6    38.6       .8        15.8     19.4       2.4      15.7      5.0 
     16 to 19 years......   4,382  100.0    41.1    40.5       .3        16.0     21.3       2.7      14.0      4.4 
     20 to 24 years......   4,033  100.0    40.1    36.6      1.4        15.7     17.3       2.1      17.7      5.6 
  25 years and over......  54,208  100.0    41.7    41.6      1.6        14.2     24.4       1.2      13.1      3.6 
     25 to 34 years......   9,548  100.0    44.1    39.3      2.7        16.0     19.2       1.3      12.7      3.9 
     35 to 44 years......  11,490  100.0    41.2    43.6      1.7        12.6     28.1       1.2      12.1      3.1 
     45 to 54 years......  11,933  100.0    39.6    42.7      1.7        13.4     26.4        .9      13.9      3.8 
     55 to 64 years......  10,213  100.0    41.2    41.7      1.3        15.2     23.4       1.5      13.6      3.4 
     65 years and over...  11,024  100.0    42.9    40.1       .5        14.4     23.7       1.2      13.0      4.0 
                                                                                                                    
  Race and Hispanic or                                                                                              
   Latino ethnicity                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                    
White....................  51,986  100.0    41.3    41.8      1.4        14.8     24.0       1.5      13.2      3.7 
Black or African                                                                                                    
 American................   6,086  100.0    42.7    37.5      1.7        12.3     22.3       1.0      14.8      5.1 
Asian....................   2,596  100.0    42.8    40.1      1.8        14.0     22.8       1.2      12.5      4.5 
Hispanic or Latino                                                                                                  
 ethnicity...............   6,165  100.0    46.1    38.2      1.6        13.1     21.3       2.1      11.9      3.9 
                                                                                                                    
Educational attainment (3)                                                                                          
                                                                                                                    
Less than a high school                                                                                             
 diploma.................   1,900  100.0    41.1    40.9       .8        13.0     25.3       1.8      13.2      4.8 
High school graduates                                                                                               
 no college (4)..........   9,576  100.0    40.9    41.9      1.1        15.2     24.2       1.3      13.6      3.6 
Some college or                                                                                                     
 associate degree .......  15,102  100.0    41.5    41.8      1.7        14.5     24.4       1.1      13.4      3.3 
Bachelor's degree and                                                                                               
 higher (5)..............  27,629  100.0    42.1    41.4      1.7        13.8     24.4       1.3      12.7      3.8 
                                                                                                                    
       Marital status                                                                                               
                                                                                                                    
Single, never married....  15,143  100.0    41.0    38.8      1.8        16.1     18.9       1.9      15.1      5.1 
Married, spouse present..  37,348  100.0    41.9    42.7      1.3        13.8     26.1       1.3      12.2      3.3 
Other marital status (6).  10,132  100.0    41.4    39.2      1.4        14.3     22.1       1.1      15.4      4.0 
                                                                                                                    
Presence of own children                                                                                            
 under 18 years (7)                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                    
Men:                                                                                                                
  No own children under                                                                                             
   18 years old..........  18,263  100.0    40.9    41.0      1.2        16.1      21.7      1.8      13.8      4.2 
  With own children                                                                                                 
   under 18 years old....   8,235  100.0    40.8    44.5      1.8        13.7      27.8      1.1      11.7      3.0 
Women:                                                                                                              
  No own children under                                                                                             
   18 years old..........  23,475  100.0    42.4    38.7      1.5        15.1     20.6       1.3      14.4      4.5 
  With own children                                                                                                 
   under 18 years old....  12,651  100.0    41.3    43.9      1.5        11.3     29.7       1.3      12.3      2.5 
                                                                                                                    
    Employment status                                                                                               
                                                                                                                    
Civilian labor force.....  42,563  100.0    40.8    41.8      1.9        14.6     23.7       1.3      13.7      3.8 
  Employed...............  40,701  100.0    40.6    42.2      2.0        14.6     24.1       1.3      13.4      3.8 
    Full time (8)........  32,085  100.0    39.9    42.8      2.3        15.0     24.0       1.3      13.4      3.9 
    Part time (9)........   8,616  100.0    43.1    39.9       .7        13.2     24.2       1.5      13.5      3.5 
  Unemployed.............   1,861  100.0    44.7    33.3      1.2        14.1     16.2       1.8      18.1      3.9 
Not in the labor force...  20,060  100.0    43.2    40.0       .4        14.1     23.7       1.5      12.9      3.9 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
   1 Main organization is defined as the organization for which the volunteer worked the most hours during the year.
 See the Technical Note for more details.
   2 Includes persons who did not specify who asked them to volunteer, not shown separately.
   3 Data refer to persons 25 years and over.
   4 Includes persons with a high school diploma or equivalent.
   5 Includes persons with bachelor's, professional, and doctoral degrees.
   6 Includes divorced, separated, and widowed persons.
   7 Own children include sons, daughters, stepchildren, and adopted children. Not included are nieces, nephews,
grandchildren, and other related and unrelated children.
   8 Usually work 35 hours or more a week at all jobs.
   9 Usually work less than 35 hours a week at all jobs.
   NOTE: Data on volunteers relate to persons who performed unpaid volunteer activities for an organization at any
point from September 1, 2014, through the survey period in September 2015. Estimates for the above race groups
(White, Black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because data are not presented for all races.
Persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race.




Last Modified Date: February 25, 2016