Workforce development for volunteers in the service industries PDF Print E-mail

The volunteers forum

The workforce development for volunteers in the service industries forum was held in Sydney on the 12 October 2009 to discuss the issue of supporting the capability and capacity of volunteers in our industries and to explore:

  • The training needs of volunteers and volunteer organisations
  • What barriers are there to developing the skills of volunteers
  • What are the workforce development needs and priorities of volunteers
  • How can we promote best practice in using the national education and training system for volunteer skill recognition and development?

The outcomes of this discussion and the feedback from the discussion will be used to inform a broad range of work including:

  • The national workforce development strategy for the sport and recreation industries
  • The Industry Skills Council's policy on training and workforce development for volunteers
  • Strategic advice to government on where the training system should put resources and effort

Service Skills Australia would like to thank the following non for profit organisations who participated in the forum. They were able to share their knowledge, experiences and expertise for which we are truly grateful:

  • Bowls NSWparticipants-ssa-volunteers-forum-12oct09-for-web
  • Girl Guides NSW/ ACT
  • Historic Houses Trust - NSW
  • Ku-ring-gai Council - NSW
  • Maitland Gaol - NSW
  • Meals on Wheels NSW
  • Surf Life Saving NSW
  • The Brotherhood of St Laurence - VIC
  • The Duke of Edinburgh's Award NSW
  • The Hut Community Centre - SA
  • Volunteering Australia - VIC

 

 

Volunteers issues papers

Many sectors of Service Skills Australia service industries depend heavily on volunteer/ unpaid labour in management, development and support roles.

The extent and numbers of volunteers in the service industries have not been properly quantified. This has highlighted the need for comprehensive research, with the following issues consistently raised by the industry sectors with Service Skills Australia:

  • Attracting, recruiting and retaining volunteers.
  • The governance and regulatory requirements are increasing and prove to be a barrier to retaining quality volunteers.
  • Delivering support to volunteers is of concern for the service industries organisations. Volunteers need support resources and training to stay engaged and to perceive they are valued. This is particularly difficult for volunteers and their associations/organisations in rural, remote and regional parts of Australia.
  • Currently, the vocational education and training system does not fully support the education and training needs of volunteers/ unpaid labour in the service industries. In particular, greater use of skills recognition would benefit many volunteers.

Feedback on the issues paper has now closed. However, you can still read the issues via the download link below.