Attracting a Workforce When There's No Salary on Offer

MEDIA RELEASE - Wednesday 18 November

Attracting a Workforce When There's No Salary on Offer: What Not-for-Profits Need to Know

• 3,000 volunteers needed for NZ not-for-profits
• Skilled volunteers in short supply across NZ
• Only 20 per cent of Kiwi workforce volunteering

The not-for-profit sector contributes around NZ$7 billion to the nation’s economy. It’s big business, and is largely supported by volunteers who contribute an additional NZ$3.3 billion in unpaid work to the economy every year [1].

Research conducted by SEEK Volunteer revealed that only 20 per cent of working Kiwis currently volunteer [2]. This leaves a large portion of our working population who have not volunteered.

These are concerning statistics given the working population across New Zealand has many of the skills and experience which not-for-profit organisations now require to remain competitive, explains Head of SEEK Volunteer, Amanda Robinson.

“With more than 27,000 not-for-profits operating in New Zealand alone, it is a highly competitive industry when it comes to attracting people into their organisation. Unless the working population really gets behind volunteering our not-for-profits are going to find it harder and harder to deliver their services to the community,” said Ms Robinson.

There are hundreds of volunteer roles currently available on www.seekvolunteer.co.nz, many of which require highly skilled volunteers with experience across; Governance, Accounting, IT, Mediation, Policy Development and Marketing.

“One of the biggest challenges not-for-profits face is attracting volunteers with the specific skills they require to support their day-to-day operations and growth. Without having the biggest attraction tool, financial remuneration at their disposal, they need to be clear on the value and opportunities they can give back to volunteers. This all starts at the first point of contact a not-for-profit has with a potentialvolunteer – the role advertisement,” Ms Robinson says.

Since the launch of SEEK Volunteer New Zealand in January 2015, there have been more than 3,000volunteer opportunities listed – so finding great volunteers is highly competitive.

“To help volunteer organisations find the right people, they first need to get them to feel compelled to apply for the position,” explains Ms Robinson. “The best volunteer job ads are those that paint a clear picture about why someone would volunteer their time to support your cause. They speak to the impact the person will make in this role, the networks they’ll get exposed to and the on-the-job skills and experience they can gain, while contributing to a cause they’re passionate about. With a few simple tweaks, we usually see a vast improvement in the suitability of volunteer applications.”

Here are the top tips that will change how you approach advertising for volunteers.

1 Statistics New Zealand (2007), Non-profit Institutions Satellite Account: 2004, Statistics New Zealand
2 Independent research managed by Survey Sampling International (SSI). A total of n=1075 collected, data is nationally representative of the workforce (weighted to NZ Stats)

© Scoop Media