About the BHP Corporate Volunteering Program
The team request form provides an indication of the appropriate team size depending on your preferred activity. Some activities can take a maximum of 10-15 volunteers and this is due to the capacity of the community organisation to accommodate your team. We are limited on organisations that can accommodate more than 20 volunteers, with only several organisations being able to host teams of 30-40 people.
If you have a very large team +40people we can work with you to provide a number of opportunities spread out over several days. This means your colleagues can sign up to their preferred activity.
Please note that when you submit your Team Request Form, we will discuss your team size with you. Although there may be a large number of people in your team, we will work with you to determine how many people are likely to volunteer on the day so we can scope an appropriate activity. You may have 40 people in your department with only 15 available at any one time to volunteer. It is important that we take this into account when scoping a team day for you, so that the community organisation is adequately supported.
Catering and transport can be arranged dependent on the duration and location of the team-based volunteering activity. The Volunteering WA or Volunteering Queensland representative will discuss this with you when they work through the requirements of your team day.
In the unfortunate instance your team needs to cancel your team day, please notify your Volunteering WA or Volunteering QLD coordinator no less than 2 weeks prior to your scheduled team day. Volunteering WA will only cancel a team day if no alternative arrangements can be made by your team.
Please keep in mind that once a volunteering activity has been confirmed, the community organisation is depending on your team to assist with the project and may have made expenses to assist with the delivery of the volunteering activity for your team. For example, if your team was due to support a property refurbishment project, the organisation may have already purchased paint, paint rollers, drop sheets, etc. They may also have hired gardening equipment, purchased plants and materials, or even arranged for their local hardware store to also support the activity. In the instance that the organisation is unable to re-claim these expenses, or you cancelled the volunteering day less than one week prior to the planned date you will be asked to cover the costs of these expenses to not leave the organisation out of pocket.
When booking your team day, it is therefore extremely important that you speak with your team to determine their availability before you provide us with your preferred date and especially before you lock in your team day. Consider peak periods of work for your department, end of financial year reporting requirements, school holidays, etc. Volunteering WA and Volunteering Queensland will also discuss this with you when arranging your team day as cancelling team day is the absolute last resort for us. Once a volunteering activity has been confirmed, the community organisation is depending on your team to uphold your end of the arrangement and attend on the day.
Volunteering WA and Volunteering Queensland ask that you allow 6-8 weeks’ notice for us to organise an activity for your team. It is important to keep in mind that your preferred activity or organisation may not be able to accommodate your team on your preferred date. This may be due to the size of your team, the dates you have chosen, or the organisation simply may not need support from a team of volunteers. In this case, Volunteering WA or Volunteering Queensland will work with their community organisation members to find an alternative activity for your team in line with your preferences.
Please note: during peak periods (particularly October- December) volunteering activities can book out 1+ month(s) in advance)
Volunteering WA
Yes. Volunteers are covered by the following insurances when volunteering:
- Workers compensation insurance where required by law of the Jurisdiction and which complies with the relevant law covering all claims and liabilities at law for an amount as required by relevant Jurisdiction legislation.
- BHP Public Liability insurance
- Volunteering WA Community Organisation Members Public Liability and Volunteer Personal Accident Insurance.
Volunteering QLD
BHP, at its sole cost, will effect and maintain workers’ compensation and general liability insurance cover for BHP employees during the course of their corporate volunteering activities.
- All community organisations have Volunteer Public Liability and Volunteer Personal Accident insurance. If you are involved in personal volunteering outside of work, do check that the organisation has the appropriate insurance in place.
Volunteering WA
Team-Based Volunteering: When submitting a Team Request Form there is a space provided where you can let us know the organisation or type of cause you would like to volunteer for. If appropriate, Volunteering WA will contact your preferred organisation to determine their volunteer support needs. Access to support of corporate volunteers is a benefit that Volunteering WA provide to our members. The community organisation in question may need to be a Volunteering WA member if they are not already, which we will help organise.
Volunteering Queensland
Team-Based Volunteering: When submitting a Team Request Form there is a space provided where you can let us know the organisation or type of cause you would like to volunteer for. If appropriate, Volunteering Queensland will contact your preferred organisation to determine their volunteer support needs. Volunteering Queensland has access to a range of members however this is not a mandatory requirement when working with a new community organisation.
Skills-Based Volunteering: If you would like to volunteer for a skills-based project and have a preferred organisation in mind, simply let Volunteering Queensland know. If appropriate, we will contact your preferred organisation to determine their volunteer support needs.
Yes. All positions listed, whether team-based or skills-based, will clearly state whether the community organisation is a BHP community partner organisation.
Unfortunately, your volunteer hours are not able to be matched by BHP through the Matched Giving program
VWA can arrange team-based and skills-based activities for all WA employees. If you are based regionally (Port Hedland, Newman, Onslow, Exmouth, Kalgoorlie, Leinster, Leonora) then for team-based activities VWA will liaise with the community organisation in the area to arrange a team day. Some differences may apply such as VWA not having a staff member attend on the day. In this instance you will need to nominate a Team Lead on the day. VWA will discuss this with you when arranging your team day.
Skills-based opportunities are also available to all WA based employees and if you are based regionally, we may be able to arrange for you to work on a project remotely. Similarly, if you are based in Perth Metro and would like to participate in a project advertised in Port Hedland¸ we may also be able to arrange for you to work on a project remotely. Contact the VWA team to find out more.
Currently QLD opportunities are only available in Brisbane Metro. Please email [email protected] if you would like to discuss potential regional activities. Future regional volunteering opportunities.
You can search for a volunteer position easily and quickly by clicking on the ‘Volunteering Opportunities’ tab and selecting ‘Personal Volunteering’ from the list of opportunities provided. Here you can customise your search by specifying what industry you would like to volunteer in, how much time you can commit to and what location you are willing to travel to. There is also an opportunity to search for one-off event volunteering.
Team-Based volunteering
Fill out the Team Request Form, obtain manager approval and submit your Team Request Form via the online portal. You can also print a hard copy, obtain line manager approval and email it to [email protected] in WA or [email protected] in Queensland. Volunteering WA’s or Volunteering Queensland’s Corporate Team will review your request and get in touch with you to determine your team’s interests, availability, and team size.
The team leader is the main point of contact that Volunteering WA or Volunteering Queensland will liaise with when arranging your team day. Their role is to share information about the team day with BHP staff and ensure that the team are accounted for when boarding the bus or taxi to and from the site. The team lead must also be aware of the key hazards associated with the activities and together with the Volunteering WA and Volunteering Queensland Corporate Events Coordinators, ensure the team volunteer safely and responsibly.
Once Volunteering WA or Volunteering Queensland confirms the date, send your team a calendar invitation to confirm the date and set a placeholder in their diaries. You will also receive a link to the portal that you must share with your team, to allow them to register online before the determined cut-off date to participate in the team day.
Volunteering WA or Volunteering Queensland will provide all details and a run sheet for your team day ahead of your scheduled date. If you are unsure of any details or need more information, please contact your Volunteering WA or Volunteering Queensland representative.
Volunteering WA will be in touch with you within 2 weeks after your team volunteering day to notify you that your team day success story and photos have been uploaded to the BHP Portal.
The photos will be uploaded onto a private Flicker account in which the link will be included in the Team Success Story that is uploaded to the BHP Portal.