Volunteering in New Zealand

Volunteering is work people do in their own time for free. People in New Zealand volunteer to help non-profit community groups provide much needed services.

Most volunteers in New Zealand say it is very rewarding and a great way to learn new skills, make friends and get work experience. 

For newcomers, volunteering also provides opportunities to learn about New Zealand culture and practise speaking English.

Why choose to volunteer?

People volunteer for all sorts of reasons – they may be out of work, retired, or just have skills and some spare time they want to use to help others. By becoming a volunteer, you not only help other people, you can also help yourself. 

 

Many migrants choose to volunteer as a way to get local work experiences that will help them get jobs more easily. Having volunteering listed on your CV shows employers you are willing to get involved in the community. Employers like to see this and it may help you get a job, even if the volunteer work is not related to the job you want. Some volunteer organisations will also give you a reference to help you secure paid work.

Research done in the United States has shown that volunteers in general – not just migrants – have a 27 per cent higher chance of ending up in paid employment.

Finding work through volunteering | Live and Work New Zealand

Who can volunteer?

If you hold a student, visitor or work visa, you may be able to volunteer your time and skills to help provide important services to the public. You must not receive any payment or reward that can be valued in terms of money, like accommodation or food, for the work you do as volunteer.
If your work visa specifies an employer, occupation or region, any volunteer work must be in addition to the paid work you undertake.

Can I volunteer while working in New Zealand? | Immigration NZ

What types of activities can volunteers do?

There are all sorts of activities you can get involved in. Some roles may need specialist skills and an ongoing, regular time commitment, but many do not.

The types of activities you could do range from administration, accounting and research to gardening, retail, teaching and sport.

When thinking about volunteering it is important to consider what sort of person you are and what sort of experience you want. Here are some questions to ask yourself:

• Do I prefer working by myself or with others?
• Do I want the chance to practise my English?
• Do I want to use the skills I already have or to learn new ones?
• What do I really enjoy doing and how can I best contribute?
• Do I prefer to work with certain types of people, eg other migrants, children, elderly, or with certain types of animals, eg cats, dogs or birds?
• Do I prefer practical work, like making things or gardening, or thinking work, like writing or accounting?
• How much time can I spare?

How to find a job: Top tips

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Hi, I'm Shambhavi Mandreker. I am from India and a city called Mumbai.

I came here to New Zealand in December 2010, that's because I got married to Emit Kudo.

I was homesick initially because I was just telling Ahmet, "I want to go back home" and he's like,

“No  - you know, give it some time you've just arrived to this country, it's a beautiful country. Just give it some time…”

Ahmet told me that you should start volunteering, and that's how you would get to know people - you would make contacts, the more you enter out of the house to socialise, you'll make new friends.

And I was at home and I was like let me just go through all the websites and see what's the best for  me, and he gave me a couple of names like Citizens Advice Bureaux, Volunteer Wellington, Volunteering New Zealand  ...

So I happen to contact Volunteer Wellington, and they're like, "Why don't you come to our office?" - and it was really sweet of them they were very warm and welcoming.

When I started volunteering with Volunteer Wellington, that's how I exactly know how New Zealand market functions, how it works, what the work culture is, what do people expect of you, what are your expectations from the employer, what are your rights as an employee, what are your rights as an employer.

That's how I made contacts - and then I was offered a job, and that's how my part-time employment became - and then we moved to Auckland.

And  - also Ahmet got a job here he got promoted.  That was a main reason to move to Auckland.

When we moved to Auckland I moved to Auckland with a two month old baby, and that was a big challenge because we didn't have friends, we didn't know anybody in Auckland.

So that was difficult,  you know - it was another challenge to find a job, find a paid employment, because you don't have that much of time to go on the internet, apply for jobs, go for interviews, and especially when you don't have help - you know and your husband is working.

So ... I gave it some time and it took me six months to find a new job, and I started working in to HR for a construction company. I worked there for nine months, and then the opportunity with the Salvation Army claimed and I started working at the Salvation Army after nine months.

Oh when I first started working here in New Zealand what surprised me most was the morning teas and the tea breaks.  We don't have that culture back home. We don't have standard hours of work like the way we have you're like, if you start work at eight you finish work at either four or five … if Ahmet and I were working back home we would hardly get time to spend with each other.

That's what my friends are facing back home. They are - they're frustrated because they don't have enough time to spend with their partners or their families.  I personally like the work culture here in New Zealand.

I think because that just helps you balance your family life as well, and I think work-life balance is important.

The worst day that I recall I had ever since I've come to New Zealand is the one when I had my baby with me. He's crying and I had no help, and that's 

when I missed my family the most. I was homesick ... Ahmet was at work - he couldn't take a day off, so, and I was a young mother, and I'm like I don't know what to do for being a first-time mother - I have no help.

So I literally cried, and I would think, "Have I made the wrong choice? Have I made the wrong decision of, you know,  settling here in New Zealand?

But now when I sit back and think and when I see my two and a half year old going happily to the daycare and looking forward to go to his, daycare - I've made the right decision.

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Finding work through volunteering

3:42

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Hi, I'm Shambhavi Manjrekar. I am from India and a city called Mumbai.

I came here to New Zealand in December 2010 that's because I got married to Amit Kudo.

I was homesick initially because I was just telling Amit I want to go back home and he was like no, you know - give it some time. You just arrived to this country.

 Amit told me that you should start volunteering and that's how you would get to know people. You would make contacts. The more you venture out of the house, you'll socialize, you'll make new friends, and, I was at home and I was like let me just go through all the websites and see what's the best for me and he gave me a couple of names like Citizens Advice Bureau, Volunteer Wellington, Volunteering New Zealand. So I happened to contact Volunteer Wellington, and they were like, why don't you come to our office? And it was really sweet of them, they were very warm and welcoming

When I started volunteering with Volunteer Wellington that's how I exactly know how New Zealand market functions, how it works, what the work culture is, what do people expect of you, what are your expectations from the employer, what are your rights as an employee, what are you rights as an employer … that's how I made contacts and then I was offered job and that's how my part time employment began and then we moved to Auckland.

… and also Amit got a job here, he got promoted. That was the main reason to move to Auckland. 

When we moved to Auckland, I moved to Auckland with a two-month-old baby, and that was a big challenge because we didn't have friends. We didn't know anybody in Auckland, so that was difficult – you know,  it was another challenge to find a job, find a paid employment, because you don't have that much of time to go on the internet, to apply for jobs, go for interviews, and especially when you don't have help, you know, and your husband is working – so … I gave it sometime and it took me six months to find a new job, and that's when I got my first break in Auckland, and I started working into HR again for a construction. I worked there for nine months, and then the opportunity with the Salvation Army clicked, and I started working at the Salvation Army after nine months.

Oh when I first started working here in New Zealand, what surprised me most was the morning tea and the tea breaks. We don't have that culture back home. We don't have standard hours of work like the way we have here you start work at eight, you finish work either at four or five.

 If Amit and I were working back home we would hardly get any time to spend with each other - that's what my friends are facing back home. They're frustrated because they don't have enough time to spend with their partners or their families. I personally like the work culture here in New Zealand. I think it, that it just helps you balance your family life as well and I think work life balance is important.

The worst day that I recall I had it was since I've come to New Zealand is the one, when I had my baby with me, he's crying and I had no help and that's when I missed my mom the most. And that's when I missed my family the most, I was homesick. Amit was at work, he couldn't take a day off, so - and I was a young mother and I'm like I don't know what to do, being a first time mother I had no help, so I literally cried, and I was like, have I made the wrong choice, have I made the wrong decision – of you know, settling here in New Zealand?

Now when I sit back and think and when I see my two and a half-year-old going happily to the day care and looking forward to go to his day care, I have made the right decision.  

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Finding volunteer opportunities

Regional volunteer centres

Your local volunteer centre can help you find volunteering opportunities. They will help you find a suitable organisation and match you with a role. Check your local volunteer center on the Volunteering New Zealand website.

Finding volunteer roles | Volunteering NZ

You can also contact organisations directly to ask about volunteering opportunities, look on community noticeboards like those at your local community centre, library or supermarket, or search online sites like SEEK.

There are hundreds of groups around the country that rely on volunteers and provide volunteering opportunities. Here are just a few examples:

• Animal welfare charities, eg SPCA, HUHA
• Counselling and support services, eg OUTLineNZ, Women’s refuge
• Public safety services, eg Fire and Emergency New Zealand, Community Safety Patrols Surf lifesaving
• Health organisations, eg Cancer society
• Religious organisations, eg Salvation Army
• Youth organisations, eg GirlGuiding New Zealand, Scouts
• Conservation organisations, eg Nature Space, Department of Conservation (DOC)
• Sports and music clubs

Securing a suitable role

It can take time to secure some volunteer roles. You may need to fill out an application form and/or provide some personal information. The organisation may want to interview you to find out what skills you have and what you want from the volunteering experience.

You may be asked to supply the names of people who know you well and can vouch for your good character, reliability and trustworthiness – this is called a reference check. A police or security check may also be needed, especially if you are going to be working with young children or vulnerable people.

It is a good idea for you to find out as much as you can about the role and organisation you are interested in. When you contact them or go for an interview, ask questions to help you decide if the role and organisation is right for you. For example:

• Is there a job description?
• Is there a volunteer agreement?
• How does the organisation manage holidays?
• Do they provide job references?
• What exactly does the role involve / what would you be doing?
• When does the work start and end?
• Will you have a supervisor / who would you report to?
• Will you be working with other people?
• Do they provide training or other support?
• Do they expect you to cover any expenses?

Think about practical matters too, like how much time you can spare, how you would get to and from work, what it would cost and how long it would take.

Most importantly, find out what the organisation expects from you and tell them what you expect from them. Both you and the organisation need to be comfortable with the arrangement. A clear understanding from day one makes the volunteering experience better for everyone.

"I found it so helpful to have somewhere to go, something to do where you could contribute, people you could look forward to seeing."

Your rights as a volunteer

If you are successful in getting a volunteer role, remember that you are giving your time, energy and skills to an organisation for free. So, the organisation should treat you well in return. As a volunteer in New Zealand, you have certain rights:

• You should not be used to fill a position that previously belonged to a paid worker
• You must be reimbursed (paid back) for any out-of-pocket expenses you have incurred on behalf of the organisation you are working for
• You must be given enough training to do your job
• Your work environment must be healthy and safe
• Your confidential private information must be protected in line with the organisation’s privacy policy
• You must not be subjected to unlawful discrimination or sexual and racial harassment.

You can find out more about your rights as a volunteer on the Volunteering New Zealand and Employment New Zealand websites, including information on what to do if you think that your rights are not being met.

Volunteer rights | Volunteering NZ
Volunteers | Employment NZ