Non-profit organizations are different from profit organizations in many ways. One important aspect is that their operation is mainly built up by volunteers giving their timeand contributing to the operations within the organization. This is also one of the biggest issues non-profit organizations have to face daily, the fact that the management constantly be on the search for new volunteers. We decided that we wanted to know how some of these non-profit organizations work towards motivating and retaining their volunteers and if and how this work could be improved. We have done our research on the organizations the Red Cross, Save the Children and YMCA. We chose to do aqualitative research in order to get to know the organization and the people behind it enough to be able to answer our research question. We conducted the interviews with at least one person from each of the organizations that were in a managerial position and we also carried out interviews with a number of volunteers from each of the organizations from different operations.To be able to make conclusions from the empirical findings that we got we used a number of theories on the different subjects such as motivation and organizational theories. The empirical findings that we gathered from the interviews provided us with an insight in the organizations that we had hoped for as well as answers to our questions in a sufficient way. We found out what the major issues these organizations were struggling with according to the managers and from the volunteers we got information on how they want to be motivated and how that could help improve the work carried out by the volunteers.We have come up with suggestions on how this work could be improved for the best of both the organizations and the volunteers within them. The conclusions that we make from this is that there are simple but effective ways that these organizations can improve their work towards motivating and retaining their volunteers such as; creating a feeling of belonging with the organization by arranging meetings and gatherings; improving the communication between higher management and the volunteers in order to convey the mission and reason to why this work is carried out; and by giving the volunteers an opportunity to contribute in the way that fit them at different times in their life.

The significance of volunteerism is marked by the declaration of the year 2001 as an International Year of the Volunteers. The purpose of the declaration is to facilitate, network, promote, and recognize volunteers and their efforts. The recognition of volunteers in social welfare services is also proposed in the White Paper for Social Welfare (1997:5) as a new approach. The White Paper highlights that volunteers are a significant human resource, which is being utilized by welfare organizations and development programmes. This study was an exploration of the motivational factors for the retainment of volunteers for CANS A in African communities. The focus of the study was on current volunteers for CANS A in the African communities of Mamelodi, Atteridgeville and Soshanguve. In 1995, the Pretoria branch of the Cancer Association appointed three social workers to extend its services to the referenced African communities. The social workers recruited volunteers to assist in service rendering, however, whilst it was easy to recruit the volunteers, it was not easy to retain them. The assumption for the study therefore was that CANS A would be able to retain volunteers, if the reasons and motivational factors for the retainment of volunteers can be realized. From the research findings, it became clear that in order to retain volunteers, there are processes and factors that need to be taken into account before and after the recruitment. Conclusions drawn from the study is that a solid foundation is necessary in order to retain the volunteers recruited. It is the researcher's view that a successful volunteer programme will emerge within the organization if the volunteers are recruited properly and for a specific purpose. In this way it will be easier to render an effective and efficient services to the volunteers recruited, thus enhancing their stay within the organization. / Dissertation (MA)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / Social Work and Criminology / unrestricted

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In South Africa, government cannot take sole responsibility for meeting people’s basic physical, economic and psycho-social needs as well as addressing social issues. Collective responsibility and co-operation with organisations in civil society is strongly promoted by the South African government. In a media release from the Department of Social Development, it was said that Minister Skweyiya had been meeting with the religious sector since the year 2000, to discuss government's efforts at fighting poverty and exploring the partnership between government and the religious sector (Minister and Catholic Development and Welfare Agency work together to assist orphans and other vulnerable children, 2003). Government has committed itself to partnerships with various religious organisations of which the Catholic Development and Welfare Agency and the Dutch Reformed Church are examples. This study was an exploration of the management of volunteers within Lewende Woord Ministries Trust , a faith-based organisation (FBO) situated in Pretoria. The focus of the study was on current volunteers involved in Lewende Woord Ministries Trust. The organisation was established in February 1986. At first it functioned as a church organisation, looking only after the church members’ spiritual and physical needs, but later changed its operational structures to function as an FBO. Today the organisation greatly relies on volunteers for a variety of services, both in the congregation and the surrounding communities. The objectives of the study were to determine the dynamics of volunteerism in FBOs within a broader theoretical framework of volunteerism; to investigate volunteerism within the context of Lewende Woord Ministries Trust, with specific reference to the structure, functioning, activities, motivation, and the management of volunteers; and to provide guidelines for the management of volunteers in an FBO in order to achieve the goal of the study, namely to provide guidelines for the management of volunteers in an FBO. From the research findings, it became clear that to effectively manage volunteers in FBOs, there are key aspects that need to be taken into consideration, namely motivational factors, needs, recruitment, effective training and retainment of volunteers. The main recommendation of the study is that FBOs implement the proposed guidelines for the effective management of volunteers, in order to make the utilisation of volunteers more efficient. / Dissertation (MA (Social Work))--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Social Work and Criminology / Unrestricted

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