ABSTRACT

Introduction When an event is staffed primarily by volunteers, motivation is a significant concern for the organizing committee who are sometimes themselves volunteers. In the business world, staff turnover is measured by the human resource department as the number of staff leaving as a percentage of the workforce. In the event business the terms most often used are retention and attrition – attrition more commonly because many volunteers quit before they have started. For example, prior to the 2006 Commonwealth Games, there were reports that more than 1200 Commonwealth Games volunteers had resigned their posts in the ten weeks prior to the event (Phillips, 2006). These volunteers did not take up positions offered to them to participate in the 15 000 strong volunteer programme.