Volunteers saved Gold Coast Commonwealth Games $20m in labour and generated millions more for city in social capital

VOLUNTEERS saved Commonwealth Games organisers a staggering $20 million — and will help generate millions more for the Gold Coast for decades to come.

VOLUNTEERS saved Commonwealth Games organisers a staggering $20 million — and will help generate millions more for the Gold Coast for decades to come.

Finder.com.au, the online platform that compares virtually everything, has crunched the numbers to reveal the army of volunteers known as ‘Games Shapers’ made a remarkable $20 million contribution to the Gold Coast event in the way of free labour.

As valuable as their efforts proved to the success of the Games, demographer Bernard Salt said the social capital they created was potentially worth much, much more.

FIVE MEMBERS OF FAMILY VOLUNTEER AT GAMES

He said the Gold Coast Games’ volunteer army had and would continue to deliver immeasurable benefits to the fabric of our city — as well as its bottom line.

“I think that the measure of volunteering is an indication of civic contribution and social cohesion,” he said.

More than 47,000 people applied for the 15,000 volunteer positions available at the Gold Coast Games, with another 3000 volunteer performers involved in the opening and closing ceremonies.

Gold Coast Bulletin editor Ben English with Commonwealth Games volunteer prize winners at Sea World. Picture: Jerad Williams

While the event afforded Games Shapers an unforgettable opportunity to share the dream, Mr Salt said the “exceptional” contribution they had made would galvanise the Gold Coast community as a whole.

“What you’re actually doing is sharing the experience,” he said.

“You have 15,000 people who all have their own stories. They all saw someone famous, they all talked to their friends about how they helped people, they all felt validated by people being nice to them and thanking them for their efforts.

FORGOTTEN DIARY REVEALS MAYOR’S HIDDEN GAMES LINK

“What that does is build social capital. Yes, building Carrara Stadium and the new swimming centre is terrific — we’ve got it for 20 years — but what you’ve done is invest in social capital through the 15,000 people who will speak warmly about their experience as ambassadors for the Gold Coast.

“It will separate the Gold Coast from its peer cities — because of that strength, that resilience, that pride in place.”

Finder.com.au found the 15,000 volunteers donated almost one million working hours to the Games in return for some sandwiches and free transport to and from Games venues.

2018 Commonwealth Games volunteers at Sea World. Picture: Jerad Williams

The volunteers had to commit to eight shifts of eight hours in length — 64 hours each — when they signed up to help out at the Games.

The citizen volunteers were joined by medical volunteers (including more than 150 Gold Coast Health staff) who offered 84,000 hours of free labour during the Games — medical labour worth $2.6m based on a nurse’s median wage ($31.33 according to payscale.com).

Mr Salt said Australia has a strong culture of volunteering, particularly around sport.

“Interestingly, volunteering is a question now asked in the Census of everyone over the age of 18,” he said.

Volunteer Jane Buckley worked on the team looking after the fleet of cars required during the Games. Picture: Mike Batterham

“The last couple of Census have found 20 per cent of the adult population say they volunteered in the past 12 month. That’s about five million people in a nation of 25 million.”

Mr Salt said volunteers put roots into communities and helped develop connections and build relationships.

“You get a richer community experience — a more resilient community as a result,” he said.

“Resilient means that if there was a shock to occur in some way, there’s a deep pool of people who will come to your aid and provide support.

“In a world where you can’t always and shouldn’t always rely on the government to do everything, sometimes you just need a kindly neighbour to bring your bin in or collect your mail. That is the cultural contribution of volunteers.”

Thousands of volunteers pose with Borobi during the Thank The Volunteers night for Games Shapers in Southport.

Mr Salt said our TAFE Queensland-trained Games Shapers were now goodwill ambassadors for the city whose experience would make our community stronger.

“They’re working for the good of the city,” he said.

In fact, Mr Salt believes the Games and its Shapers have put the Gold Coast on the international map.

“There’s the social capital the volunteers have developed but there’s also the reputational capital,” he said.

“They can build the profile of the Gold Coast.

“I would be watching visitor numbers from Commonwealth countries. It’s not an unreasonable expectation to see quite a bump in the next 12 months.”

Our Shapers of things to come.