New to third sector with concerns.

[BridgetJonesPanties]

I work in the third sector. Its my first time in the sector. I've been here 5 months after previously working in the public sector.

The pros are that I am now permanently home based, my manager is much nicer than my old one and the workplace is more inclusive, than my old place (I left due to discrimination. My disability means WFH works well for me).

Its less money per year but the home working and no commuting helps with that so its okay for now. Will come back to that.

However, I am feeling a bit uneasy about some things about the company and I'm not sure if this is 'normal' for the sector?

Its a large national charity and it has a huge funding gap. They need to fix that but are being rather vague as to how they will do that. The CEO posts a newsletter weekly with updates that aren't really updates. Just basically saying xyz director (always an interim director) is looking at it but not really telling us how the money will be recovered.

Lots of people I have only just met are leaving. Not all are being replaced.

Projects are ending. L&D I was offered is now no longer being offered.

No union representation, which I knew, but anyone who asks or mentions they are a member, gets sharp words and told "we do not allow any association with unions" - we are allowed to join even if the organisation doesn't recognise one. So that's a concern.

Colleagues say there's only been a 3% pay increase in 10 years and regarding the cost of living, it means a pay decrease.

We have a staff association but they don't seem to do much. I have become a rep but my fellow reps are mostly just making sympathy noises when the directors say "difficult decisions will have to be taken". They aren't really asking what that MEANS or challenging it!

I like my job and my manager but I worry he will leave as he sounds fed up. He's the best manager I've ever had after hell in the public sector. I am also worried about job security.

Anyone in the third sector with information and tips?

I don't want to go back to office working or public sector but I'm a bit confused by the third sector!

I think a funding gap is fairly normal in the third sector - it has been a tough couple of years.

Many charities have got through the last two years with emergency covid funding, and everyone knows that next FY is when it is all going to hit hard. At this point most will be going into the new FY with a funding gap, and you work throughout the year to close it. A funding gap this FY is more worrying but it depends on the size. Many have a gap this FY which will be met by reserves.

Recruitment freezes are normal in charities when things are difficult.

That said large national charities tend to weather these storms well because they have larger reserves. Have you looked at the accounts on the charity commission - that may tell you if it is a bit of a rough couple of years or something more worrying.

I didn't think of doing that. Is it free to view? Could they hide anything?

It should be easy to find on the Charity Commission website - feel free to PM me and I can take a look at their accounts for you and let you know if it looks normal (am not an accountant but do advice on finances for charities).

I agree with reading the annual report and accounts. They should also be on the charity's own website. Read the risks section and their reserves position. I also agree that many charities are going through difficult times and effectively salaries are going backwards.

Of course if you have a financial crisis then you have few options, cutting costs, raising more money or spending down reserves as you do both of the above. When you look at growing income there are some limitations - individual giving is a long term build but can go into any general purposes of the charity, corporate giving takes a lot of effort, usually has to be spent in specific projects and companies are quite stagnant or struggling right now, trusts and foundations funding has to be in specific projects. If the charity relied upon lots of events fundraising that has been very badly hit over the past two years by people not being able to go out. So re-building income will take sometime and investment.

It also depends on what kind of field the charity is in and what services it provides. Children and cancer charities with a well known brand will find it easier to fundraisers. And some services like information and advice are difficult to get specific funding for. In the end it depends on the quality of the trustee board and the executive staff and the luck of the funding environment. Quite a lot of charities don't have a union but allow staff to bring in a union rep to support them individually. I'm not sure what a union could add to a funding crisis?

I've worked in a number of different public sector/third sector organisations over the past few years and finances/funding has always been a big concern. It's talked about more openly in the charity sector, because funding and income aren't guaranteed, but similar conversations are going on in the public sector, it's just less obvious. In my line of work, I am party to these conversations way before they are talked about in the open with staff, so I know they happen.

It sounds like they are taking the right actions to weather the storm, by winding down projects and not filling vacancies. This can save money and reduce the need for compulsory redundancies.

I know it's easier said than done, but try not to worry about what may not may not happen. All you can do is just work hard to prove that you are an employee they would want to keep.

I’ve been involved in the third sector in various capacities for about 15 years. This doesn’t sound out of the ordinary particularly if the organisation is reliant on lots of grant and/or project funding - often that funding is for a fixed period and funders (even government and local government) don’t tell you what’s happening until the last minute. The squeeze on government spending over the last 10 years has made it increasingly difficult to secure project funding and of course now we have Covid.

I would only be concerned if I thought the governance mechanisms were lacking/the board was genuinely ineffective at planning and securing funding (bearing in mind that funding is not easy to get). But they shouldn’t really be stopping you from joining a union.