The Ultimate List of Workplace Giving and Volunteering Statistics

November 19, 2021

The latest facts on employee giving and volunteering to plan your philanthropy program

As a busy business or HR leader, you may not have time to keep up with all the latest research on corporate social responsibility and philanthropy trends. Here we bring all the most relevant findings and workplace giving statistics together in one place to make it easy for to stay in the loop.

Workplace giving statistics on market trends

90% of Gen Z believe companies must act to help social and environmental issues and 75% will do research to see if a company is being honest when it takes a stand.ⁱ (CECP 2021)
One in three job seekers say it is extremely important that their organization has a positive impact on communities.ⁱⁱ (Gallup 2021)
90% of consumers want to know how companies are supporting charitable causes.ⁱⁱⁱ (SCORE 2019)
64% of Americans say it’s no longer acceptable for companies to stay silent on social justice issues.^iv (Porter Novelli 2020)
Certified B Corps were 63% more likely to survive COVID-19 disruption than companies of similar size.^v (Forbes 2020)
Over a period of 12 years, brands with high perceived positive impact had a brand value growth of 175% versus 70% for low positive impact.ⁱ (CECP 2021)
Companies with highly engaged employees outperform their competitors by 147%.^vi (Forbes 2021)

Workplace giving statistics on donation and impact trends

88% of executives now believe that companies must lead with purpose.^vii(Porter Novelli 2020)
86% of executives predict that, over the next five years, workers will increasingly value a meaningful mission and an opportunity to make an impact on that mission.^viii(Deloitte 2021)
97% of CEOs agree that societal and environmental changes have a critical impact on their companies.^ix(EY via HBR 2021)
62% of directors in the U.K. believe that businesses should not exist solely to make money and generate profit.^x (The Press and Journal 2021)
Over 80% of companies say they are taking specific action to advance the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) and nearly half (45%) are tracking progress on SDG actions.^xi (UN 2021)
47% of companies increased their community investment budget in 2020 due to COVID-19 response and 18% expect their 2021 budgets to increase.^xii (CECP 2021)
75% of small businesses donate an average of 6% of their profits to charitable organizations every year.ⁱⁱⁱ (SCORE 2019)
Small businesses donate 250% more than larger businesses to local nonprofits and community causes.ⁱⁱⁱ (SCORE 2019)
The top three cause areas that large companies give to are health and social services, community and economic development and higher education.^xii (CECP 2020)
The top three cause areas that small businesses give to are local charities, youth organizations and support for local first responders.ⁱⁱⁱ (SCORE 2019)

Workplace giving statistics on employee engagement

Employee Attitudes

93% of employees believe that companies must lead with purpose.^vii(Porter Novelli 2020)
More than 70% of employees are now demanding social responsibility from companies.^xiii(Forbes 2021)
Only 42% of employees believe their organization’s purpose statements drive impact.^xiv(McKinsey 2020)
85% of executives say they are living their purpose at work, but only 15% of frontline managers and employees agree.^xv(McKinsey 2021)
Among employees who report that they are proud of their company’s social responsibility programs, 60% are considered highly engaged in their jobs.^xviii(Double the Donation)
The number of employees who were considered highly engaged increased from 40% to 60% when their organization acted on today’s social issues.^xix(Gartner via HBR 2021)
Employees who strongly agree their organization makes a positive impact on people and the planet, compared with other workers, are:ⁱⁱ (Gallup 2021)

2x more likely to be engaged at work
5.6x more likely to strongly agree they trust their company’s leadership
3.6x more likely to recommend their organization as a place to work
57% more likely to intend to not be looking for another job
3.1x more likely to be extremely satisfied with their organization as a place to work
Half as likely to be burned out often or always

Increased employee engagement results in:^xx (Gallup via People element 2021)

41% less absenteeism
59% less turnover
20% more sales
10% improvement in customer ratings
21% higher profitability

Donation matching

Nearly 6 in 10 employees say that it is very important or imperative that their employer offer matching donations.^xvi(America’s Charities)
84% of employees said they’d be more likely to donate if a match is offered and one in three say they would give a larger gift if matching is applied.^xvi(America’s Charities)
89% of companies offer matching donations.^xvii(CECP 2020)
The most common matching ratio was 1:1 (90%), followed by a 2:1 match (5%).^xvii (CECP 2020)
The most common matching caps for large companies were $5,000 - $9,999 (26%) and $1,000 - $1,900 (23%).^xvii (CECP 2020)

Volunteering incentives

89% of companies offer paid time off (PTO) or flexible scheduling for employees to volunteer.^xvii(CECP 2020)
The three most commonly offered PTO hours were 8 hours (36%), 16 hours (23%) and 40 hours (11%).^xvii (CECP 2020)
61% of companies offer Dollars for Doers matching for volunteer service hours. The most common ratio offered was $10 per hour (35%) followed by $25 per hour (21%).^xvii (CECP 2020)
The most common Dollars for Doers matching cap was less than $1,000 (49%).^xvii (CECP 2020)
The average volunteer participation rate is 29%. Companies with fewer than 10,000 employees had a higher average participation rate (39%), while companies with more than 50,000 employees had an average participation rate of 24%.^xvii (CECP 2020)
Company-sponsored employee volunteering results in:ⁱⁱⁱ (SCORE 2019)