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The Productivity of Volunteer Labour: DEA-Based Evidence from Italy

In: Paid and Unpaid Labour in the Social Economy

Author

Listed:
  • Sergio Destefanis

    (University of Salerno)

  • Ornella Wanda Maietta

    (University of Napoli Federico II and Centro per la Formazione in Economia e Politica dello Sviluppo Rurale)

Abstract

This paper analyzes the relatively novel concept of a downward-sloping demand for volunteer labour, using data from the Italian social services sector. Both descriptive and econometric evidence shows that the price of volunteer labour (proxied by its shadow price obtained through DEA) is negatively related to the number of volunteer hours. Furthermore, the demand for volunteer labour is higher in areas relatively well endowed with social capital, where there is also evidence that organizations refrain from substituting volunteers for paid workers when the latter become more expensive. According to our results, the productivity of voluntary labour is higher in social capital-rich regions, where more motivated and skilful volunteers are drawn from a relatively larger pool.

Suggested Citation

  • Sergio Destefanis & Ornella Wanda Maietta, 2009. "The Productivity of Volunteer Labour: DEA-Based Evidence from Italy," AIEL Series in Labour Economics, in: Marco Musella & Sergio Destefanis (ed.), Paid and Unpaid Labour in the Social Economy, chapter 0, pages 143-164, Springer.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:aiechp:978-3-7908-2137-6_9
    DOI: 10.1007/978-3-7908-2137-6_9
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    Cited by:

    1. Biagia De Devitiis & Ornella Wanda Maietta, 2015. "Shadow Prices of Human Capital in Agriculture. Evidence from European FADN Regions," CSEF Working Papers 415, Centre for Studies in Economics and Finance (CSEF), University of Naples, Italy.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Human Capital; Nonprofit Organization; Marginal Productivity; Demand Curve; Shadow Price;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D23 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - Organizational Behavior; Transaction Costs; Property Rights
    • D64 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Altruism; Philanthropy; Intergenerational Transfers
    • L31 - Industrial Organization - - Nonprofit Organizations and Public Enterprise - - - Nonprofit Institutions; NGOs; Social Entrepreneurship

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