Reward Your Employees With Time Off for Volunteer Work Sure, giving back will help your team feel good, but it can also help your bottom line.

By Coppy Holzman Edited by Dan Bova

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

I'm not just being a Scrooge. With recent hot IPOs such as Alibaba and the inevitable discussion of the Silicon Valley "perks arms race" that always seems to accompany this kind of news, it got me thinking about the perks that really matter.

At Charitybuzz, we have periodic volunteer days where we get out of the office to paint an elementary school or pack groceries for New York's homeless. Our staff loves having the time off to give back, but it's also become an incredible source of bonding that brings us closer as a team. Given our mission, volunteering makes sense. We raise money for non-profits, so we attract employees who are passionate about giving back.

Related: Getting Employees to Volunteer and Give

But I think a volunteerism perk can be just as important, if not more important, for a company whose day-to-day business is less philanthropic. Companies such as SAP, Patagonia, Microsoft and PWC are already doing this. Timberland employees get up to 40 paid hours per year (an entire work week!) to devote to volunteer work. If your company isn't offering paid time off for volunteering, here are some reasons why you should consider it.

1. Passionate people are passionate people

In other words, employees who are passionate about something outside of work (their favorite cause or volunteer side gig) are more likely to be passionate at work. A volunteerism perk will help you attract passionate people who will bring that same passion to your company's mission.

2. Happy employees = happy bottom line

Countless studies over the past decade have shown that people derive more happiness from experiences than from material things. When this experience involves giving back or helping others, the happiness quotient is upped even further, hence the well-documented "Helper's High."

Related: 6 Ways to Do Well by Doing Good

Between this happiness effect and the general refreshment that comes from a few days out of the office, the infusion of positive energy you get from a volunteerism perk far outweighs a few days of absenteeism from work.

3. It's the ultimate millennial perk

Maybe you've heard of them. One day, we're espousing their virtues and the next, we're griping about their quirks. The fact is, they're here to stay and as the rate of baby boomer retirements increases, we need them more than ever.

What we're learning about millennials says a lot about the best ways to attract and retain them. Study after study shows that they want to buy from and work for companies whose missions and values they believe in. Other research shows that, compared with previous generations, millennials value experiences over material possessions.

Combine the happiness derived from an inspiring volunteer experience and the appeal of working for a company that gives back, and paid volunteer days look like the ultimate millennial perk -- not to mention a social-media recruiting tool that runs itself. Imagine the social currency of an Instagram post about a cool volunteer gig with paid time off generously provided by #yourcompany.

So while I'm not advocating you ditch the traditional holiday bonus (in all my years in business, no one's ever given one back), this piece of advice is my gift to you: reward your employees with time off for volunteer work, and they'll reward you with better work all around.

Related: Richard Branson on the Value of Volunteering

Coppy Holzman

Founder and CEO, Charitybuzz

Coppy Holzman is the founder and CEO of Charitybuzz, which has harnessed the power of cause marketing to help brands and nonprofits raise more than $100 million through online charity auctions. Prior to starting Charitybuzz, Holzman was one of the founder members of Webvan.com, one of the first online groccery-delivery services. Before that, Holzman spent many years as a senior executive in retail at Federated Department Stores. He holds a B.S. in economics from University of Pennsylvania.  

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Business News

'Nobody Ever Gave Me Anything': More Boomers Say They're Not Transferring Wealth to Family Until They're Dead

A new survey from Charles Schwab found boomers are more hesitant to distribute their wealth than other generations.

Business News

'When You Lock Up Products You Lock Out Customers': CVS Is Testing an App That Lets Shoppers Unlock Store Cases Themselves.

CVS is testing new functionality on their CVS Health app that allows users to unlock those annoying plexiglass cabinets.

Business News

Over 1,300 Google Employees Have Signed a New Petition Asking For Job Security

Google laid off thousands of employees in the past two years, which has left some employees feeling insecure about keeping their jobs.

Leadership

How to Move Fast and Not Break Things — 5 Lessons in Innovation From an Industry With Zero Room for Error

Every company wants to innovate. The trick is to do it in a way that actually helps customers and doesn't put the business at risk

Employee Experience & Recruiting

If You Want to Hire Good Entry-Level Talent, Offer These 3 Game-Changing Opportunities

Finding and hiring good entry-level talent can be a daunting enterprise for small businesses. What can they do to stand out in a time of talent scarcity?

Business Ideas

70 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2025

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2025.