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Home | Index |Volunteering [Vlt] | Vlt in Qld | Vlt via Org | Vlt Census 2006 | Future Vlt Qld | References | Methodology
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THE ECONOMIC VALUE OF VOLUNTEERING IN QUEENSLAND
Prepared by Dr Duncan IRONMONGER
Households Research Unit
Department of Economics
The University of Melbourne
Updated report — May 2008
A report commissioned by the Department of Communities
Queensland Government
AUSTRALIA
B VOLUNTEERING IN QUEENSLAND
a Total hours of volunteering in Queensland
b Total value of volunteering in Queensland
a Total hours of volunteering in Queensland
The starting-point for the estimates prepared for this report were the surveys of Time Use
and Voluntary Work conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics in 1992 and 1997 (Time
Use) and 1995 and 2000 (Voluntary Work) and the Queensland Household Survey conducted by
the Queensland Office of Economic and Statistical Research (May 2004).
Later data from the ABS Voluntary Work and Time Use surveys conducted in 2006 and the 2006
Census of Population and Housing have been incorporated in updated estimates for this report.
The ABS Time Use Surveys collect detailed diaries covering all uses of time over two
consecutive days.
These surveys give daily participation rates and times spent in all types of activities.
Hence the participation and times spent on both types of volunteering, organised and
unorganised, are obtained in the Time Use Surveys.
On the other hand, the ABS Voluntary Work Surveys and the May 2004 Queensland Household
Survey cover only volunteering through organisations.
These are not obtained through detailed diaries but from asking respondents to recall
their participation in this type of volunteering over the last 12 months.
They also ask the amount of time spent on organised volunteering over the last week,
month or year.
The Queensland Household Survey asked a more probing question about volunteer participation
than the ABS Voluntary Work Surveys.
This seems to be the reason for the observed large rise between 2000 and 2004 in organised
volunteer hours in Queensland and the subsequent fall between 2004 and 2006.
The 2004 estimate of 1.6 hours per adult per week for organised volunteering from the
Queensland Household Survey is a rise of 75 per cent over the estimates for the previous
years from the ABS surveys.
The main reason for this increase seems to be the difference in the question asked about
volunteering in the later survey.
In 2004 the question was “In the last 12 months, did you do any unpaid voluntary work for
one of these types of organisations?”
A list of 13 types of organisations, from “Arts/culture” down to “Sport and recreation”
or “Other (please specify)”, was read out to respondents with more than one type allowed,
with a final category of “no voluntary work done in the last 12 months”.
The way this question was asked in 2004 would have prompted recall of a greater level
volunteering than the ABS volunteer surveys which simply asked whether the respondent had
undertaken voluntary work for an organisation or group in the previous 12 months.
Only those respondents who answered “yes” to this question were subsequently asked about
which types of organisations they had provided volunteer time.
Despite the different methodologies of the surveys, together they provide the basis for
making estimates of the average time spent in volunteer activities by the adult population
of Queensland.
The estimates of unorganised volunteering for 1995, 2000 and 2004 published in the 2006
report were simple interpolations and projections of the trends shown from the Time Use
Surveys.
New estimates have been made of unorganised volunteering in 2006 using the newly available
data from the 2006 ABS Time Use Survey.
These indicate that the projections of time spent in unorganised volunteering for 2000 and
2004 were too high.
Consequently, the earlier interpolated and projected estimates of unorganised volunteer hours
have been omitted from this updated report.
Table 2: Hours of volunteer work, Queensland
Annual hours per adult
(Averaged over all adult population aged 18+)
Volunteering 1992 1995 1997 2000 2004 2006 Per Annual
cent Per cent
Change Change
1992- 1992-
2006 2006
Organised 47 47 47 46 81 54 13% 0.8%
Unorganised 75 87 84 12% 0.8%
Adult
Support 53 65 55 4% 0.3%
Child
Support 22 22 29 30% 1.9%
Travel 27 30 26 - 2% - 0.1%
TOTAL 148 164 163 10% 0.7%
Source: Estimates of the Households Research Unit based on Australian Bureau of Statistics
Time Use surveys 1992, 1997 and 2006, Voluntary Work surveys 1995, 2000 and 2006 and
the Queensland Household Survey, 2004.
The surveys indicate a 10 per cent rise in the average total hours per adult of volunteering in
Queensland over the 14 years from 1992 to 2006.
Volunteering through organisations shows a rise of 13 per cent over the 14-year period and
unorganised volunteering a slightly lower rise of 12 per cent.
Within the unorganised there appears to have been a large rise in the average amount of informal
volunteering in support of children and only a small rise in informal support for adults.
Total travel time in support of volunteering, both organised and unorganised, appears to have
declined over the 14 years.
In macro-economic terms the total volume of volunteering time in Queensland increased
by 54 per cent in the 14 year period from 1992 to 2006.
These estimates are shown in Table 3.
Table 3: Volume of volunteer work, Queensland
Million hours per year
Volunteering 1992 1995 1997 2000 2004 2006 Per Annual
cent Per cent
Change Change
1992- 1992-
2006 2006
Organised 104 112 117 122 238 165 59% 3.3%
Unorganised 165 219 258 56% 3.2%
Adult
Support 116 164 168 46% 2.7%
Child
Support 50 55 90 81% 4.3%
Travel 58 76 80 38% 2.3%
TOTAL 327 411 503 54% 3.1%
Source: Estimates of the Households Research Unit based on Australian Bureau of Statistics
Time Use surveys 1992, 1997 and 2006, Voluntary Work surveys 1995, 2000 and 2006
and the Queensland Household Survey, 2004.
Table 4 presents estimates of the number of equivalent jobs that volunteers do in Queensland
using 1680 hours per year (equivalent to an average job requiring 35 hours per week for 48 weeks).
Table 4: Volume of volunteer work, Queensland
Equivalent jobs (000)
Volunteering 1992 1995 1997 2000 2004 2006 Per Annual
cent Per cent
Change Change
1992- 1992-
2006 2006
Organised 61.9 66.7 69.6 72.6 141.7 98.2 59% 3.3%
Unorganised 98.2 130.4 153.6 56% 3.2%
Travel 34.5 45.2 47.6 38% 2.3%
TOTAL 194.6 245.2 299.4 54% 3.1%
Additional per cent
of total employed
persons (15+) 14.6% 15.8% 14.7%
Source: Estimates of the Households Research Unit based on Australian Bureau of Statistics
Time Use surveys 1992, 1997 and 2006, Voluntary Work surveys 1995, 2000 and 2006 and
the Queensland Household Survey, 2004.
Volunteers provided a volume of work equivalent to 195 000 jobs in 1992 rising to 299 000
in 2006.
This is equivalent to an additional 14.6 per cent of the paid number employed in Queensland
in 1992 and 14.7 per cent in 2006.
b Total value of volunteering in Queensland
The estimates prepared for this report are based on a gross opportunity cost wage rates of
$14.34 per hour in 1992 and $17.47 per hour used by the Australian Bureau of Statistics in
their 1997 report on unpaid work.
Although the gross opportunity cost wage is the highest of the three wage rates used by the
ABS, the gross wage has been used in this report (and in the reports by the Households
Research Unit on volunteering in Victoria and South Australia) because, if the services
provided by volunteers were provided instead by paid employees, the costs incurred by
organisations and households would need to cover gross wages including income taxes and
other charges such as contributions to superannuation schemes.
Based on the increases in the ABS national accounts estimate for “average compensation per
employee” the wage rates for 1995, 2000, 2004 and 2006 are estimated at $16.00, $19.26,
$22.08 and $24.09 per hour respectively.
These rates are used to make estimates of the annual value per adult of volunteering time
in Queensland (see Table 4).
The wage rate estimates are Australia-wide averages to maintain comparability with the
previous estimates by the Households Research Unit of the value of volunteering in Victoria
and South Australia.
Table 5: Total value of volunteering, Queensland
$ million
Volunteering 1992 1995 1997 2000 2004 2006 Per Annual
cent Per cent
Change Change
1992- 1992-
2006 2006
A. Volunteer Time
Inputs
Organised 1,490 1,795 2,038 2,355 5,256 3,965 166% 7.2%
Unorganised 2,369 3,823 6,221 163% 7.1%
Adult
Support 1,658 2,867 4,057 145% 6.6%
Child
Support 710 956 2,164 205% 8.3%
Travel 831 1,327 1,727 108% 5.4%
TOTAL VALUE OF
TIME 4,690 7,188 11,913 154% 6.9%
B. Other Volunteer
Inputs
Organised 189 228 259 299 667 504 166% 7.2%
Unorganised 301 485 790 163% 7.1%
Travel 106 169 219 108% 5.4%
Total 596 913 1,513 154% 6.9%
C. Total Volunteer
Inputs
Organised 1,679 2,023 2,297 2,654 5,923 4,469 166% 7.2%
Unorganised 2,670 4,308 7,011 163% 7.1%
Travel 937 1,496 1,946 108% 5.4%
TOTAL VALUE OF
VOLUNTEERING 5,286 8,101 13,426 154% 6.9%
Source: Estimates of the Households Research Unit based on Australian Bureau of Statistics
Time Use surveys 1992, 1997 and 2006, Voluntary Work surveys 1995, 2000 and 2006
and the Queensland Household Survey, 2004.
By adding the value of organised, unorganised and travel together, volunteering was worth
about $5.3 billion to the Queensland economy in 1992, growing to $13.4 billion in 2006.
These estimates show that in dollar terms in the 14 years from 1992 to 2006 Queensland
adults, on average, increased their donation of volunteering time and associated costs
by more than 80 per cent from $2396 to $4430 per annum.
And as the Queensland adult population grew by 33 per cent in this period, the total
value of organised and unorganised volunteering time, including travel time, increased
by more than 150 per cent from $4.7 billion in 1992 to nearly $12 billion in 2006.
Volunteers often also contribute the use of their capital equipment, particularly the
use of their own vehicles, to volunteering activities.
Recent estimates of these inputs prepared for all sectors of the household economy show
these inputs involve a 12.7 per cent additional cost to the value of labour time in
volunteering.
An additional 4.05 per cent for capital equipment, mainly vehicles, and 8.65 per cent
for other inputs, mainly vehicle running costs (Ironmonger and Soupourmas 1999).
Including the use of capital equipment and the donation of the running costs, fuel
and other materials, the gross value of volunteering activity in Queensland is estimated
to be $5.3 billion in 1992 and $13.5 billion in 2006.
Table 5 shows full details of these values for all years 1992, 1997 and 2006 and the
value of organised volunteering for the intervening years 1995, 2000 and 2004.
In 2006, organised voluntary work in Queensland was worth $4.5 billion.
However, the Time Use surveys show that organised volunteering is less than 40 per cent
of the total value of volunteering.
Excluding the cost of volunteer travel, unorganised volunteering was estimated at
$2.7 billion in 1992 and $7.0 billion in 2006.
This represents 52 per cent of the total value of volunteering in Queensland in the
later year.
The remaining 18 to 15 per cent contribution by volunteers was through their travel
— $0.9 billion in 1992 and $2.0 billion in 2006.
Table 6: Supplementary data, Queensland
Supplementary Data 1992 1995 1997 2000 2004 2006 Per Annual
cent Per cent
Change Change
1992- 1992-
2006 2006
Wage Rate ($/hour) 14.34 16.00 17.47 19.26 22.08 24.09 68% 3.8%
Adult Population 18+
(million) 2.206 2.399 2.505 2.644 2.933 3.085 39% 2.4%
Employed Persons 15+
(million) (June) 1.333 1.511 1.550 1.679 1.874 2.039 53% 3.1%
Gross State Product
($ billion) 64.7 80.1 88.9 105.0 145.2 178.6 176% 7.5%
Compensation of
Employees ($ billion) 30.5 37.4 44.1 50.6 67.5 83.2 173% 7.4%
Source: Estimates of the Households Research Unit based on Australian Bureau of
Statistics Population, National Accounts and Employment estimates.
The 1992 estimate of $5.3 billion can be compared with Queensland’s Gross State
Product (GSP) in 1992 of $64.7 billion.
Similarly, the $13.4 billion value of volunteering to the 2006 economy can be compared
with the 2006 GSP figure for Queensland of $178.6 billion.
Queensland volunteers donated to other households, both directly or through volunteer
organisations and groups, an additional 8.3 per cent of GSP in 1992 and 7.5 per cent
of GSP in 2006.
These donations of time and services are additional to actual donations of money made
directly to other households or through charitable organisations.
Total value of volunteer time was equivalent to an additional 15.4 per cent of the
compensation(1) paid to Queensland employees in 1992 and 14.3 per cent in 2006.
Table 7 shows these estimates in comparison with earlier estimates for South
Australia and Victoria.
Table 7: Volunteering in Queensland, South Australia and Victoria
State 1992 1997 2006
Value of Volunteering ($ billion)
Queensland (a) 5.3 8.1 13.5
South Australia (b) 2.4 3.9
Victoria (c) 7.1 10.0
Gross State Product ($ billion)
Queensland (a) 64.7 88.9 178.6
South Australia (b) 30.3 37.9
Victoria (c) 106.2 131.4
Compensation of Employees ($ billion)
Queensland (a) 30.5 44.1 83.2
South Australia (b) 14.8 18.4
Victoria (c) 50. 63.2
` Value of Volunteering as Per Cent of Gross State
Product
Queensland (a) 8.3 9.2 7.5
South Australia (b) 7.8 10.2
Victoria (c) 6.7 7.6
Value of Volunteering Time as Per Cent of
Compensation of Employees
Queensland (a) 15.4 16.3 14.3
South Australia (b) 14.1 18.7
Victoria (c) 12.4 13.9
Sources: (a) This report (Ironmonger 2008).
(b) Ironmonger (2002).
(c) Soupourmas and Ironmonger (2002).
Although the latest Queensland estimates for 2006 are higher in current dollars
than in earlier years, as proportions of either Gross State Product or of
Compensation of Employees, they have declined and are approximately equal to
the estimates for Victoria for 1997.
(1) See Glossary for definition of “compensation of employees”.
Home | Index |Volunteering [Vlt] | Vlt in Qld | Vlt via Org | Vlt Census 2006 | Future Vlt Qld | References | Methodology
Acknowledgements | Glossary | Charts - 4 | Figures - 2 | Tables - 13 | Disclaimer | Copyright
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THD H 2012/09/20 14:30 17:00 150 mins 50
A2 Bold/Underlines/Italics
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THD T 2012/09/25 09:45 - 12:30 165 mins 55
A3 Initial Web page
THD T 2012/09/25 12:30 - 12:55 55 mins 19
A4 Linkage Header and Footer Lines
THD W 2012/09/26 10:00 - 11:17 77 mins 26
B WEB-PAGES
B1 Acknowledgments
THD W 2012/09/26 11:17 - 11:38 21 mins 07
B2 Index
THD W 2012/09/26 11:38 - 12:30 52 mins 18
B3 Volunteering
THD W 2012/09/26 12:30 - 13:05 35 mins 12
B4 Volunteering in Queensland
THD W 2012/09/26 13:05 - 13:40 35 mins 12
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