Fatigue and cost of living wearing down our emergency volunteers

Cost of living pressures are making it harder for volunteers to dedicate time on unpaid work, and our community heroes are also fatigued and exhausted from the recent catastrophic floods and fires.

Cost of living pressures are making it harder for volunteers to dedicate time on unpaid work, and our community heroes are also fatigued and exhausted from the recent catastrophic floods and fires.

Despite an increasing reliance on volunteers in emergencies, numbers are not keeping up with the growing population and have declined in regional areas, a Minns ­government report has found.

Two years after the catastrophic floods and an inquiry recommending a review of the state of volunteering, the government has released its findings while also outlining its plan to fix the crisis.

It can be revealed the government will develop an “action plan” to help recruit and retain emergency volunteers, while tackling barriers that prevent people from joining.

The Review of Emergency Volunteering Report said ­volunteers will also receive greater recognition for what they do with a new emergency volunteering award.

Emergency service volunteers are not keeping up with the growing population.

Emergency services organisations will also be tasked with coming up with options for the government to consider to ensure volunteers are not left out of pocket. The federal government will be asked to play a greater role in supporting volunteering efforts “and to do so in a way that supports rather than duplicates existing state-based efforts”, the report said.

A strategy for working with employers to encourage corporate volunteering and support for employees who are emergency volunteers will also be developed.

Expanding and developing cadet programs to encourage more young people to become involved in emergency volunteering will also be explored.

The NSW State Emergency Management Plan will also be updated to recognise and ­enable the use of “informal ­volunteers” – people who come out to help – as part of an emergency response.

The report said in the past decade the number of incidents tasked to volunteer emergency service organisations in NSW has increased by more than 122 per cent, but volunteer numbers had grown by less than one per cent despite the growth in population.

Volunteers consulted as part of the review report said the ongoing disasters had led to “fatigue and exhaustion.”

“At the same time, the ­volunteering environment is changing. Volunteers are seeking more flexibility in how they volunteer and are increasingly trying to balance volunteering with cost-of-living pressures,” the report said.

Emergency Services Minister Jihad Dib said the new road map would enable the government to offer greater support as “emergency service volunteers unwavering commitment in the face of unprecedented challenges has been demonstrated time and time again.”

Got a news tip? Email [e-mail]

Originally published as Fatigue and cost of living wearing down our emergency volunteers