From 19 to 25 May we celebrate National Volunteer Week, which is Australia's largest annual celebration of volunteering.
This year, the theme for National Volunteer Week is 'Connecting Communities', and I am reflecting on my own experience of volunteering.
I grew up in a small town in rural NSW, and some of my earliest memories of volunteering include my mother's regular shifts at the school canteen and her contribution to the P&C association over many years. Volunteers ran our sporting clubs; volunteers ran our Scout and Guide troops; volunteers ran our fire brigade and rescue association; volunteers ran our shows, rodeos and festivals.
It is not surprising that I would follow in these footsteps, getting involved from my early teens and going on to engage in volunteer opportunities in Australia and overseas. As my career progressed, my involvement extended to roles on volunteer Boards including the HMRI Foundation, the NSW Council of Social Service, the Committee for the Hunter, and Embrace People and Place.
What I regard as some of my more fulfilling achievements have come from these volunteer roles, and this includes the lifelong friendships I have made along the way.
I am not alone in this experience. More than six million people in Australia volunteer formally through organisations across the country and informally, there are millions more who contribute to their local communities, especially in times of crisis. In 2023, the Centre for Volunteering reported that volunteering contributed $566 billion to the Australian economy, making up 2.4% of Gross Domestic Product and representing the largest industry by employment in Australia. But volunteering not only fulfils an important economic and social function - it can also play a vital role in supporting pathways to employment.
When it comes to people with disability and employment, the case for volunteering is strong. In a 2022 submission on the new Disability Employment Support Model, Volunteering Australia shared research showing that volunteering helps people with disability build personal skills, expand their networks and find paid work.
The same submission also highlighted that people who volunteer are 27% more likely to get a job than those who don't. And 92% of employers said that relevant volunteer experience gives candidates an advantage in job interviews.
Other research by Volunteering Australia found that in 2022, 26.0% of people with disability volunteered for an organisation, compared to 24.3% of people without disability. People with disability made up more than one quarter (29.1%) of all people volunteering for an organisation.
During May, we'll be highlighting a series of stories that bring these findings to life, showing how volunteering has helped people build confidence, make connections and take steps towards employment.
It's a good time to reflect on the power of these individual actions. As Australians head to the polls in May to vote for a new Federal Government and help shape the country's future, we're reminded that the choices we make every day also help shape our communities. There's a quote that captures this idea perfectly:
“Volunteering is the ultimate exercise in democracy. You vote in elections once a year, but when you volunteer, you vote every day about the kind of community you want to live in."
- Author unknown
With this in mind, is it time for you to give volunteering a go?