Evolved Employer is taking a few days off to celebrate Labor Day. In the meantime, check out some of our recent popular articles.

• Employee Wellbeing, Stress, and Engagement
• GE’s 2009 Corporate Citizenship Report: A Treatise on the Role of Corporations in Society
• CSR Community to Chrystia Freeland: You Do Not Understand True CSR

Finally, Evolved Employer is always looking for new writers. If you’ve got something to say, email melissa@theglasshammer.com with a writing sample and an idea.

By Melissa J. Anderson

Recently, UnitedHealthcare and VolunteerMatch, a national nonprofit that helps connect people with volunteering opportunities, announced the results of a survey on health, well-being, and volunteering behaviors of Americans. The study provided some firm numbers to support what many have suspected all along: corporate volunteering programs build employee engagement.

According to the survey, 69% of Americans have volunteered or given money to charity. And in the past year, and 41% participated in volunteer activities, with just over half volunteering on a regular basis. And a slightly higher percentage of Americans (44%) plans to volunteer this year.

The survey also revealed that 25% of American volunteers do so through their employer, and that the number would be higher if employers would helped with the means and motivation to participate in volunteering activities. In fact, the report shows, “Those who volunteer through their job report more positive attitudes towards their employer as well as colleagues.”

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By Melissa J. Anderson

Citi recently announced changes to its Financial Education program, a 10 year, $200 million commitment to fund and organize programs around financial literacy.

Stacey Sechrest Carder, Director, Office of Financial Capability at Citi explained that the changes are designed to focus on long-term consumer outcomes. The change in focus represents increased interest in how organizations and individuals manage their finances, and recognition that responsible financial practices are the the key to long-term sustainability especially in light of the global economic crisis.

Carder explained, “Financial education, as an issue, has gained more exposure over the last ten to eleven years, becoming the focus of many community-based nonprofits and financial institutions. In the past 6 or 7 years, it’s become an issue for NGOs abroad as well, as the as the economy becomes more globally integrated.”

She continued, “As a global financial services provider, Citi understands that the complexities of today’s marketplace can make it difficult for individuals and families to effectively manage their finances, and we are deeply committed to helping individuals gain the financial capability they need to acquire and preserve assets over the course of their lives.”

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Newseum

By Elisabeth Grant (Washington, D.C.)

On November 8, 2001, Amy Homan McGee, Verizon Wireless employee and mother of two, was shot and killed by her husband Vincent McGee in their home in Pennsylvania. Vincent McGee was convicted of the murder and is now serving a life sentence in prison. This was not an isolated moment of violence, but rather the last event after years of abuse. While McGee’s story is shocking and sad, what is more disturbing is that her life, and death, are like so many other victims of domestic abuse.

Domestic violence lives in darkness. In shame, in isolation, and in silence. To shine a light on what happened to McGee, and to illuminate the issues of domestic violence across the country, Penn State Public Broadcasting, with funding from the Verizon Foundation, put together Telling Amy’s Story. The film celebrates the times family, friends, and law enforcement stepped up and reached out to McGee. But it also highlights the many missed opportunities to stop the domestic violence in her life.

Telling Amy’s Story reached an audience of public officials, advocates in the fight against domestic violence, and the media on Tuesday, May 18, 2010 at the Newseum in Washington, D.C. Before the screening of the movie numerous speakers took part to educate and open the dialogue on domestic violence.

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