Richmond, VA – In its annual study commissioned by Virginia Goodwill agencies, the Elliot D. Pollack organization found that the six Goodwill agencies that make up the Virginia Goodwill Network have seen a significant increase in economic impact in the Commonwealth.
Together, the six Goodwill agencies had a $785.2 million impact on communities and governments in 2015. This represents an impressive 72 percent increase in only two years. While the study does not include real estate and personal property taxes, the organizations were still responsible for nearly $24.9 million in revenue to the state and its localities through taxes for more than 13,289 jobs.
The economic impact from those jobs essentially creates $785.2 million in economic output (analogous to GDP) because of Goodwill’s efforts. Sales and income taxes paid as a result of these jobs totaled $25 million in fiscal impact to the state and its localities.
Goodwill and its programs are a good investment for government dollars. The investment in Goodwill from all levels of government totaled $32.7 million in 2015. That means that for every government dollar invested in Goodwill, it returned $24 to the communities it serves. These figures do not include government dollars that are saved when people move off of public assistance by utilizing Goodwill training programs to obtain employment.
The average individual placed by Goodwill earned $12.78 per hour and worked 36 hours per week. There were placements in 45 different industries led by miscellaneous manufacturing, administrative support, food services, retail trade, and health care.
The Pollack Company uses the IMPLAN© system which was created over 20 years ago for economic impact modeling at local and regional levels and is widely used by private business and governments at all levels to estimate economic impact.
The Virginia Goodwill Network operations are headquartered in Richmond, Roanoke, Washington, D.C., Fredericksburg, Danville, and Hagerstown, MD, which provides services to the Winchester and northwest Virginia area. Services west of Wytheville are provided by Goodwill in Kingsport, TN and are not a part of the Pollack study.
For information about the Virginia Goodwill Network contact:
Eldon James
24 East Cary Street, Suite 100 | Richmond, VA 23219
Phone: 540.907.2008
For information about the Pollack Study and research contact:
Donald K. Tolson | President and CEO
Rappahannock Goodwill Industries
Fredericksburg, VA 22408
Phone: 540.371.3070