13 million Canadians did volunteer work in 2010: Statscan

Statistics Canada says more than 13 million Canadians did volunteer work in 2010.

The agency says that number accounted for 47 per cent of Canadians over the age of 15.

Volunteers devoted almost 2.1 billion hours of their time, which Statistics Canada says is the equivalent of almost 1.1 million full-time jobs.

Ten per cent of these volunteers accounted for 53 per cent of all hours given to non-profit and charitable groups.

The agency says those people dedicated a minimum of 390 hours to their volunteer work over the course of a year, or the equivalent of almost 10 weeks in a full-time job.

Another 15 per cent of volunteers devoted between 161 and 390 hours of their time, or between four and almost 10 full-time weeks of unpaid work.

This week is National Volunteer Week in Canada.