Women have traditionally carried out the bulk of volunteer work. Volunteering includes work done in the home such as caring for children and housework, as well as work done in the community and informal sectors. This work has often been seen as an extension of the traditional role of women: undervalued and unrecognised – not considered ‘real work’.

IWDA’s volunteer program expresses the agency’s commitment to non-exploitation of paid and unpaid workers by challenging the traditional privileging of paid work and making visible and valuable women’s labour through:

• Providing support in the form of clear policy guidelines and position descriptions;
• Recognising that the relationship between volunteers and IWDA is reciprocal;
• Ensuring that volunteers extend rather than replace paid staff positions.

Women and girl volunteers around the world contribute significantly to household and community welfare and economic advancement. This work is rarely quantified, however it has been estimated that the economic value of women volunteers to the household alone would add an estimated one-third, or 4 Trillion dollars ($4,000,000,000,000) to the world’s annual economic product.

IWDA seeks to carefully record and recognise the hours of work contributed by volunteers to the organisation; in 2005-2006, volunteers contributed over 2500 hours of work to IWDA! Volunteering and in-kind contributions are as valuable to IWDA as cash donations: details of volunteer contributions are recorded to be acknowledged each year in our Annual Report. Volunteers are invited to attend various events with staff and supporters, and their activities are celebrated through International Volunteer Week and Volunteer’s Day. IWDA aims to make volunteering a positive experience.

If you are in the Melbourne area, there is a range of jobs that people can do in our office in the areas of fundraising and publicity. Involvement may be in the form of regular on-going tasks such as reception and volunteer program assistance work, special short term projects, and occasional activities like mailouts and other fundraising activities.

If you live outside Melbourne or are unable to come in to the office, you can help generate local media in your state or distribute information for us.

“To register your interest in volunteering at IWDA please download the Application Form PDF and return it to the Volunteer Coordinator PO Box 64, Flinders Lane VIC 8009 or via email iwda@iwda.org.au“