The Voluntary Sector
Voluntary Sector Is Important To The Economy and Society
The voluntary sector makes a total amount of $90 Billion dollars a year. This sector has approximately 1.1 million employees and is a very important of the well being in our country. Voluntary organizations deliver services and serve many groups of people.
The voluntary sector connects people to each other in society. People learn and practice the skills of citizenship. The voluntary sector is like any other company that needs resources, and support from society. They also have members, people donating money to them, and people raising money for them.
The voluntary sector is flexible so it can meet many needs in the community and world. Organizations are run by volunteers or paid staff and can be small or large.
Charity versus Non-Profit Organization
Charitable organizations and non-profit organizations are different.
There are over 75,000 charity organizations, from small to large, institutions that provide services to specific populations and are to be considered part of the government. Almost 10,000 organizations are supervised and largely funded by the government. Charities are usually registered with the Income Tax Act and meet a set of rules which will allow them not to pay taxes and allows them to give receipts for donations they can use for tax credits.
The non-profit sector includes almost every type of voluntary association, charity, church, trade and professional association. This sector, in Canada, is estimated to include over 175,000 organizations.
Voluntary Sector Organizations
Have you ever been to a museum? A museum is a charitable organization. By visiting the museum and people continuing to visit and enjoy it, you are helping the museum receive money from the government to keep it open.
Have you ever been to the hospital to visit someone or been seen by a doctor there yourself? The hospital is another charitable organization. Without the government and people donating money to the hospital, they would not be able to keep doctors working or provide care for people in need.
Do you go to school every day? Schools are a charitable organization also and need help from the government and community to keep schools open. Your parents help by paying taxes and you help by going to school and learning.
You are a very important person to the voluntary sector. Without you, and others, there would be no services available to you. You would not be able to go to school, visit museums or libraries. So not only do you contribute to the voluntary sector, non-profit organizations also help the community and society to keep people employed and services available to people who require them.
The voluntary sector provides an excellent contribution to our society and Canada.
