It's no secret that companies are cutting jobs to weather the current economical strain. If you are among the roughly 270 million people who have been let go from your job, your employment status has obviously changed to "in between jobs." There is no shame in getting laid off, but it does create a gap in employment on your resume. During this time you probably dedicate most of your time searching for another job opportunity; however, you can do more than just broadcast your resume to online job sites and sit by the phone. Now is a good time to bolster your skills and marketability. One of the best ways to do this is get out and volunteer.

Non-profit organizations are feeling a much tighter squeeze in this economy because of most of their income comes from private donors and the federal government. In order to continue serving their constituency, these organizations need to continue functioning on less money. They rely heavily on volunteers to keep their programs running.

Volunteer work merits its own section on your resume and gives a favorable impression of your work ethic. Not only that, it gives you an opportunity to develop new skills and meet new people. Volunteer service gives you some valuable information to plug into those employment gaps on your resume and it's worthwhile.

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