Participation in sport, as a player, volunteer, or even a fan, can involve significant investment of time, money, and energy, potentially impacting how and who engages in sport.

Two of the most frequently identified barriers to volunteering are: ^{15, 16, 18, 24, 31, 32, 33, 47}

• Costs (out-of-pocket expenses, travel, meals, training, specialist software/equipment).
• Time (work, family, other commitments or activities, the fear that volunteering will take up too much time).

People are motivated to volunteer when they believe that expected rewards (e.g., learning new skills, social engagement, contributing to the community, etc.) are greater than the expected costs (e.g., time, energy, resources invested, opportunity costs of other activities, either paid or recreational). ^{27, 52, 53}

Rewards and what time and resources individuals can and will invest will vary between individuals and across the life course. For example, research on multicultural volunteers in NSW found that for those who were fluent in English, ‘no time’ and ‘cost’ were the two most common barriers to volunteering. For those who were not fluent ‘no time’ remained the primary barrier, but cost was less of a concern. ³⁸

For these reasons, a lack of flexibility, personal or out of pocket expenses, and administrative demands may discourage people from beginning or continuing to volunteer in a specific organisation, or at all.

Costs, such as out-of-pocket expenses, travel, meals, training, specialist software/equipment and financial constraints including having a lower income or being unemployed are often identified as key barriers to volunteering in sport. ^{4, 18, 20, 24, 31, 33, 34}

An analysis of data from AusPlay identifies the rates of volunteering by annual household income. ³⁹

These trends are also found in other Australian and international research:

• The ‘Longitudinal Study of Australian Children 2018 Annual Report’ highlighted that adolescents from high-income families (top third) were more likely to volunteer for sporting and recreation groups than adolescents from low-income families (bottom third). The report suggests that this may be because of the cost of participating in sport and recreation activities. ²⁵
• Data from the 2021/22 United Kingdom [UK] Active Lives survey showed around 10% of weekly sport volunteers were from lower socio-economic backgrounds, although they make up 30% of the total UK population. These figures have been relatively stable across recent years. ^{48, 54}
• In 2015, research by Gemba in New Zealand also found that individuals from higher income households volunteered more frequently and were more likely to continue volunteering. Those from lower household income groups were more likely to volunteer for one-off events. ¹⁵

Although it is not an issue for all volunteers, real or potential out of pocket expenses that aren’t reimbursed can impact the decision to start or continue volunteering. ^{47, 55}

In the 2016 ‘State of Volunteering in Australia’ report, 27% of those surveyed who said they would not volunteer in the future indicated that out of pocket expenses were a key factor in their decision. ⁴⁷

These expenses can include transport or travel (e.g., fuel, parking, vehicle maintenance), technology or telecommunications (e.g., phone, computer, or internet), uniform and/or clothing, and more. ^{18, 47}

The 2016 ‘State of Volunteering in Australia’ report showed that 60% of volunteer respondents incurred out of pocket expenses through their volunteering role. Of the 18% who requested reimbursement, 49% were reimbursed in full, 44% reimbursed in part, and 7% did not receive any reimbursement. ⁴⁷

Other research has found similar figures:

• The 2021 'NSW State of Volunteering Report' found that volunteers in the State on average paid over $1,900 a year to volunteer. Only around 20% of volunteers were reimbursed approximately 39% of their out of pocket expenses. Suggests that volunteers are donating approximately $5.56 per hour to volunteer on top of their time and skills. ⁵⁷
• The 2021 'State of Volunteering in Queensland Report' identified that Queensland volunteers on average over $1,600 a year to volunteer. On average, volunteer-involving organisations are reimbursing only 11.4%, or $182, to volunteers. This means on top of their valuable time and skills, volunteers themselves are donating nearly $4.76 per hour to volunteer. It is noted that this ‘hidden’ cost has the potential to exclude many who cannot afford the act of volunteering. ⁵⁸
• The 2020 ‘State of Volunteering in Victoria’ report estimated that on average volunteering cost Victorian volunteers $1,700 a year, suggesting that volunteer-involving organisations (VIOs) were, on average, reimbursing only one dollar for every eight dollars a volunteer spends on volunteering. This suggests that on top of their valuable time, volunteers were donating nearly $6.70 per hour to volunteer (after reimbursements). ¹³ 
• The 2019 'State of Volunteering Report Tasmania' found that individual volunteers spent on average $990 per hour per year of their own money on volunteering, effectively $4.03 per hour to volunteer. On average, volunteers were reimbursed $70.37 per year, 7% of their out-of-pocket expenses. Less than 8% of volunteers were reimbursed at all. ⁵⁹
• National research by ANU reported by Volunteering Australia in 2022 found that, for those surveyed, 31% of volunteers who incurred expenses in their volunteer role did not apply for reimbursement (even though it was offered), 14% were reimbursed in full, 13% reimbursed in part, and 41% indicated that reimbursement was not available or offered. The average amount that volunteers spent personally on volunteering in the previous 12 months (after reimbursement) was $582.83. 17% of non-volunteers indicated that they do not volunteer due to financial reasons ⁴⁷

As part of the 2016 ‘State of Volunteering in Australia’ report, volunteer involving organisations (VIOs) were also surveyed. Many indicated that they had limited financial resources to commit to volunteering programs or expenses. When asked whether they reimbursed volunteers for out of pocket expenses, 22% said always, 51% said only if pre-approved, 16% occasionally, and 11% never did. ⁴⁷

Suggestions for how to reduce financial, out of pocket expenses for both formal and informal volunteers include providing tax-back measures, vouchers (e.g., parking or fuel vouchers), or providing things like free transport. ^{34, 47} However, these options may require either government or administrative changes for organisations.

Volunteering Australia’s ‘National Standards for Volunteer Involvement’ already recommend that organisations have a policy and procedure for reimbursement of volunteer out of pocket expenses (preferably in full) as part of Standard 2: Commitment to Volunteer Involvement’. ⁵⁶

This requirement sought to ensure that organisations allocated sufficient resources (including financial) to volunteer involvement and that volunteers were not out of pocket for expenses incurred while volunteering for them. ^{44, 47}

Considering that in 2016, 82% of volunteers were not requesting reimbursement from their organisation, and a 2019 report by Volunteering Australia and the Settlement Council of Australia found that only 47% of organisations surveyed were providing any reimbursement to volunteers many organisations do not appear to be meeting this Standard and may not have fully considered the impact this can have on recruitment and retention. ^{44, 47}

Competing commitments over each person’s life course (e.g., increased/decreased work or study periods, having children, retirement, etc.) vary the amount of time they have available to volunteer.

Time pressures, including personal and work commitments, the ‘opportunity cost’ (e.g., taking time away from other valued activities such as other leisure activities, time with family and friends, paid work, etc.) and the inflexibility of volunteering activities are some of the most significant factors impacting people’s willingness to start or continue volunteering. ^{12, 15, 18, 31, 32, 34, 38, 47, 53, 55}

The most recent Australian Bureau of Statistics ‘General Social Survey’ found that: ⁸

• Australians had volunteered for 489.5 million hours in 2020 and 596.2 million hours in 2019.
• The main reason given by people who did not volunteer through an organisation in thesurvey period was 'No time (family / work commitments)' (52%).
• One third (33%) of Australians reported 'Always' or 'Often' feeling rushed for time [which may impact their willingness or ability to volunteer].

Research for the Australian Sports Commission’s ‘Market Segmentation for Volunteers’ found that: ^{6, 12}

• 55% of club sport volunteers volunteered over a season, 24% year-round, and 20% on an irregular or as needed basis. Both seasonal and year-round volunteers generally volunteered at least weekly.
• Regardless of whether volunteering was year-round or seasonal, approximately two-thirds of club sport volunteers (64-67%) volunteered at least weekly, and 52% of weekly club sport volunteers gave more than 10 hours a week.
• Especially in sport, respondents tended to believe that most volunteer roles would be time consuming, highly scheduled, and with little flexibility, e.g., would take up several hours every Saturday morning. People rarely considered that volunteer activities could be more short term, occasional, or ad hoc.
• The overwhelming perception that volunteering required significant time commitment led many to dismiss the idea of volunteering without finding out what might actually be required:
  • 25% of non-volunteers agreed or strongly agreed “there is too much commitment involved in volunteering’ vs 16% of volunteers.
  • 26% of non-volunteers agreed or strongly agreed ‘volunteering does/would take up too much of my time’ vs 16% of volunteers.
• Some volunteers also felt that volunteer roles would require more time than was ‘advertised’ and that they would feel pressured to do more. This was often based on an individuals’ previous experience.

Research suggests that the decision to volunteer involves two distinct time related decisions, the decision to take part in that activity, and deciding how much time to commit. ²²

To reduce time as a barrier, groups for which time is a high cost need volunteering opportunities that require less time (e.g., episodic volunteering, volunteering that can be done from home and/or in a flexible timeframe, or activities requiring only a small amount of time on a regular basis). ³⁴