Factors in Volunteer Turnover at Nonprofit Organizations: A Study of Lifeline in Taiwan

Volunteers are a group of people willing to provide services and work without pay. The lack of financial incentives and benefits may cause the volunteers to leave at anytime. Most non-profit organizations invest large amounts of time and money to train the volunteers before they come on board; therefore the turnover of volunteers will cause a significant loss for the organization. This paper is a study on Lifeline in Taiwan; it explores the major reasons for turnover by using a survey on volunteers at 10 Lifeline branches. The results show that although the volunteers have different characteristics, there is no significant difference in the turnover factors or intentions. Through regression, the three factors, leadership style, volunteer assistance programs, incentive programs, have no significant effect on the turnover intention. Finally, this paper makes some practical management suggestions.