Volunteering in Australia post Sydney Olympics
By Rosemary Sage
The joy and excitement of the 2000 Sydney Olympics seems so long ago. We can all recall Juan Antonio Samaranch saying “the Sydney Olympics were the best Olympics ever.” It is reported that he qualified the statement when asked why — “because of the volunteers”.
What are the legacies and what has happened in the volunteering movement since those heady days in 2000? I am not sure that there have been any enduring benefits across Australia from the Olympics as most of the volunteers came from New South Wales (NSW). I do believe it set new benchmarks and introduced many changes in the movement. There seems to have been a tradition post-2000 for more people to volunteer to work on major events. The fact the volunteers enjoyed their work at the Olympics seems to be a drawcard for other similar events. It was evident with the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne; the volunteers were reported to have had such a great time in Sydney they volunteered for the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne. The largest change is how the government has embraced volunteering and put it firmly on the agenda.
Changes
The major changes in volunteering since 2000 are:
- Participation rates
- Growth in recruitment techniques
- Systems and structures
- Professionalism and recognition
- Training
- Expectations of volunteers
- Government recognition
Volunteer statistics
Volunteer participation has increased across Australia since 2000. In 1995 Sydney had the lowest participation rates in Australia with 15%. In 2000, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Voluntary work survey indicated the Sydney participation rate had risen to 29% which was almost double the previous rate. The 2000 Voluntary work survey conducted by the ABS put a rider in the results that Olympic volunteer participation was excluded from the results. There were, however, vast increases in volunteer participation in every state. While the next volunteer survey results have not been released it is believed the rates have increased since 2000. There was and is speculation the marketing campaign around that time made people more aware of what volunteering was and could be, and therefore created the impetus to volunteer or recognise that the unpaid work you were currently doing was called volunteering.
The 46,967 volunteers include those staff from major corporations (banks, for example) that were given paid time off to “volunteer” for the Olympics. There were many discussions as to whether they were volunteers as their corporations were still paying them.
Growth in volunteer recruitment techniques.
The Sydney Olympics recruitment campaign commenced in Sept 1997 with a big bang in South Australia. The Sydney Organising Committee for the Olympic Games (SOCOG) Volunteer Co-ordinator, David Brettell, spoke at our state conference and provided information about the huge recruitment campaign he was about to launch. SOCOG developed and used a vast database to cope with the 75,000 applications. Since that time there has been a surge in online recruitment technology with each state developing their own. Ultimately the Federal Government funded volunteer recruitment via Go Volunteer and Volunteer Search. Government policy has linked volunteering with the receipt of income support and mutual obligation and the ability to do community service for exemption from fines. This has led the government down the path of investing in recruitment technology.
Recruitment techniques have become more refined in larger charitable organisations that have paid volunteer program managers. Yet recruitment techniques are still lacking in many smaller organisations, generally in organisations without a volunteer co-ordinator. Recruitment has become more specialised as the generic volunteer roles have evolved into a variety of specialisation areas. No longer is a volunteer accepted with the belief “we will find him a job”. Now volunteers are recruited because they meet specific criteria required to do the job. Across all sectors, organisations claim they cannot meet the demand for volunteers. Corporate volunteering is growing with many large corporations using volunteering as team building for their staff.
There is unmet need for volunteers in the sporting sector. In 2004, ABS reported there were 1.5 million volunteers involved in the sport sector. Sport recruitment tends to centre around the families of the players, rather than seeking people from outside the sport to participate in administration or support roles. The 202 Social General Survey (ABS) found that volunteers in sport tend to have three or more non-playing roles such as timekeeper, administrator and coach or umpire due to the shortage of volunteers.
Systems and Structures
The success of the Olympics was largely due to the high level of systems, structure and organisation that went into the volunteer workforce. Never before, in the history of Australia have so many volunteers turned out on a daily basis for one event. Volunteers were utilised in areas where previously volunteers were a “no go area”. Thousands of volunteers were utilised in the lead up to the Olympics to recruit, interview and develop the masses of policies and procedures that went into the volunteer support program. Volunteers developed job descriptions and newsletters. They documented the thousands of roles and responsibilities. SOCOG also developed and delivered training for every volunteer involved in the Olympics.
The Sport and Recreation sector has always had one of the largest percentages of volunteer involvement (21%) and still 6 years later continues to hold that place. Research indicates 25% of organisations involving volunteers have less than 19 volunteers. So there are many small organisations that do not have the resources to enable them to develop the same levels of support as the larger organisations. In the sporting sector many volunteers report they do not have a job description or receive adequate information, training and support to perform their role within the organisation.
Reimbursement of volunteer expenses has become a growing concern as petrol (gas) prices soar. With increasing numbers of volunteers on income support or a fixed income it precludes their involvement in areas where they might enjoy being involved. In the sport sector provision is made for some volunteers to receive honorarium for umpiring or coaching, but there is not a general policy of reimbursement for out of pocket expenses for all volunteers.
A recent impost on the volunteer sector in Australia is the Child Protection Act whereby all organisations involved in activities where children participate have to police check all their volunteers and then train their volunteers in mandatory reporting. While this legislation is new it is having a tremendous effect on small organisations who are trying to cope with more and more red tape. The government of the day is reviewing the regulations as there has been a great deal of concern expressed about the requirements and the associated fines for non-compliance.
Professionalism and recognition
The community sector, by employing volunteer program managers/co coordinators, has developed very professional systems and structures designed to assist their organisations to manage their volunteer programs efficiently and effectively. This development has brought about corresponding changes in the way volunteers feel about their work. They seek feedback on performance and request targets and promotion or leadership roles.
The recognition of the Olympic volunteers was the most public recognition possible. SOCOG provided all their volunteers with fashionable designer uniforms, hats, coats etc that were rigorously sought and hugely valued by the volunteers. Volunteers wore these uniforms to enable the public to readily identify who was a volunteer, and also as a thank you gift. SOCOG also organised a march of all the volunteers through Sydney the day after the closing ceremony. Thousands of spectators packed the streets to cheer and thank the volunteers for their contribution. Most states held similar ceremonies in their capital cities.
Training
While we recognise the need for the volunteer movement to be organised and professional, it seems the sport and recreation sector is less structured than the community sector. There are few coordinator roles - paid or unpaid. The training offered in the sport and recreation sector centres very much around accreditation as a coach or umpire. It is also about meeting legislative requirements such as the Occupational Health, Safety & Welfare Act 1986 and responsible officer training.
Pre-2000, volunteer program management training was attended by community sector and government volunteer coordinators with very few individuals from sport and recreation. Recently the 6 month training calendar for the Office for Recreation and Sport outlined over 30 courses for sport and recreation volunteers. There was not one course about volunteer program management. There is a wider variety of volunteer training offered by the Volunteering peak body but it is my understanding that few sport and recreation volunteers participate.
One significant change which has come from the government is the recognition of volunteer involvement in education. Australian schools now have built into the curriculum Community Learning - or Civil and Civics as it is called in some schools. Students are expected to participate and document their volunteer activities in years 11 and 12. Some students then become more involved by undertaking community leadership training.
Expectations
The 2000 Voluntary work survey shows people in paid employment were more likely to volunteer than those who were unemployed. Of all volunteers, 46% are professional, closely followed by advanced clerical at 45% and managers at 42%. The implications of these statistics are that people in the workforce have higher expectations of the organisation they volunteer with than those not in the workforce.
Volunteer Program Management is very different in the various sectors involving volunteers. In large charitable organisations volunteers seem to have higher expectations of the organisation than they do of smaller clubs. Volunteers expect to be involved in all levels of decision making, and they expect to have the same rights and benefits as paid staff. For those staff members that were lucky enough to be part of the Olympics, there is the constant comparison between now and then. Sadly for many, the organisations are unable to live up to that challenge.
Rosemary Sage is currently Executive Officer for Recreation Southern Australia in Adelaide. At the time of the Olympics, she was the Executive Director of Volunteering Southern Australia.
