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According to the 2004 Canadian Survey on Giving, Volunteering and Participating, 41 per cent of immigrants to Canada are volunteering, contributing approximately 357 million hours of volunteer work.

 

With newly arrived immigrants volunteering more than ever before, nonprofit/voluntary organizations can expect to see this pool of potential volunteers increase.

 

Armed with this knowledge, researchers Stacy Ashton, Nancy Baker and Ali Parandeh, conducted a series of interviews with immigrant volunteers.

 

 

The volunteer and volunteer coordinator participants were chosen from British Colombia. A total of 10 immigrant volunteers (three males and seven female) from Korea, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Thailand, Sri Lanka, India, Iran, Germany and Russia who had been in Canada from eight months to 30 years were included in the study as a representation of the diverse groups of immigrants in Canada. 

 

Before conducting the interviews and focus groups, researchers asked themselves a series of questions that looked at how immigrants become involved, what is considered successful and how can immigrant volunteering become mainstream for agencies.

 

Many volunteers indicated that volunteering wasn’t formalized, but something that was done on a local level with neighbours and family in their home countries. Others experienced volunteering as a negative activity, brought on by a government that enforced compulsory volunteering but their perception of volunteering in Canada was generally positive—many liked the formalized system and the opportunity to make a difference.

 

The immigrant volunteers reported a range of motivations for volunteering:

 

-To address issues or community needs

-To do something well/share skills

-To feel good about themselves

-To be part of a group of volunteers

 

The benefits they experienced from volunteering:

 

-Increased confidence

-Access to help with other parts of life

-Access to a larger social network

-Access to information about other community resources

-Able to improve language and understanding of Canadian culture

 

Each of the reasons to volunteer fell under three categories:

 

1. Personal/practical

-these motivations are grounded in the desire to gain skills and knowledge to enhance employability and adjust ment to Canadian culture

 

2. Personal/social

               -to help boost overall confidence and a desire to make social connections

 

3. Universal duty/values-driven volunteering

              - Volunteering as repayment:

Some volunteers expressed gratitude for the help they received from friends, family or organizations and wanted to repay the kindness they experienced.
 

-Volunteering as a universal duty:

One particular volunteer commented on the fact that volunteering is necessary for the community because everyone lives in a community together.

 

Volunteer coordinators identified helping others and meeting new people as some reasons why they volunteered, but improving English and developing job skills were chosen as the primary reasons.

 

The discrepancy between motivations for volunteering from volunteer coordinators’ perspectives versus the volunteers themselves might be due to the fact that volunteer coordinators asked what volunteers expect out of volunteering at the initial stages.

 

Immigrant volunteers may have given practical reasons at first, but these motivations may have changed over time.

 

In terms of  the benefits of having volunteers from various cultural backgrounds, volunteer coordinators reported that increased comfort with diversity, access to a range of skills and new perspectives were just a few of the many examples of how immigrant volunteers benefit the organization.

 

 

The immigrant volunteers in the focus group indicated finding volunteer opportunities was unexpectedly difficult. Common routes for finding a volunteer opportunity include print sources like newspapers, the internet and social sources like friends, teachers and neighbours.

 

For volunteer coordinators, possible barriers to recruiting volunteers included economic factors (the cost required for transportation or having to hire a babysitter) and simply not being asked. Many individuals often decide to volunteer because they have heard or been asked by family or friends. However, immigrants  have a less likely opportunity due to be asked directly due to the fact that they know fewer people in the community.

 

Most often the key factor in retaining volunteers is a supportive volunteer environment. Volunteers appreciated direct encouragement and having a sense of belonging to the organization. Volunteers also expressed appreciation for the practical support they received, like help with school or career development.

 

Aside from creating a supportive environment, volunteer coordinators who recognized the potential of inviting immigrants to become involved as volunteers created diverse positions based on their volunteer talents.

 

Despite the challenges in recruiting and retaining immigrant volunteers, the volunteer coordinators were not surprised by their success when it came to integrating immigrant volunteers into their agency. They were fully aware of the challenges and rather than viewing them as barriers, they viewed it as an opportunity to overcome the challenge.

 

Overall, volunteer coordinators suggested that more information about Canadian volunteering be made available through a number of immigration-related websites, packages and employment preparation programs so that immigrants have better access to finding volunteer opportunities.

 

-Develop training programs around cultural understanding for volunteer coordinators and managers to ensuring immigrant volunteers are successfully recruited and retained.

 

-Provide immigrant volunteers with the opportunity to tell their stories through volunteering training and presentations  will help build relationships and understanding between volunteers and organizations.

 

-Advertise the need to the immigrant community through different outreach methods. 

 

-And lastly, providing unique opportunities to allow volunteers to maximize their contribution and assess their English fluency to see if further mentorship is required.

 

To access the full report, click here.