regarding working in the charity sector

[JenniferAlisonPhilipaSue]

I have worked in the charity sector / third sector for 8 months now. I previously worked in the private and public sectors (office based).

I would be keen to hear from others about their TS experiences?

I am home based, which I am grateful for as I'm disabled so it means less travel, saving money on commuting, more time with family, and less office politics.

My colleagues and manager are also really nice and I like the job I do.

I don't like the pay and pensions. I knew it would be bad and at the moment it's 'worth it' for the ability to be home based and have a better workplace than before but I think I might have been naive as to how shit the pay is. Apparently people have only had a 2% pay rise in 15 years in my workplace. People are leaving in droves so it makes me a bit anxious. My pay is okay at the moment, but in a few years, I may find I need something better, especially with energy rises etc. I'd hate to have to leave a job I like cause of the pay.

And the charity is massively in debt due to pandemic and issues pre pandemic. So there are rumours flying about and a 'big announcement' coming, according to our HoD who won't tell us anymore. So the whole job uncertainty is not something I am used to.

No union (I'm still in one though). Our staff association are quite toothless, if that's the correct expression. They feed our ideas up but SFA seems to happen.

I dont want to have my job changed, contract changed, job lost, management changed or anything like that, but is this standard in the third sector? I guess I don't really have an AIBU, just wondering if I'm alone really and trying to understand the sector more.

I've worked in the charity sector for about 12 years now and genuinely, I don't think many people do it for the money!! Union wise, I'm in unison which costs around £18 a month and pay 5% into my pension - not great but again, that's not what we do it for.
We are a well know local charity and job security is good for us luckily and we also got a larger than average pay rise which was unexpected
I don't really know what else to say but if you're really not happy with conditions maybe it's not for you

You certainly don't do it for the money!

Depends on the charity, but some definitely do live year to year and jobs are dependent on funding - some people have their jobs put at risk every year. And yes, funding is very competitive at the moment. Other charities have enough funds and it seems more secure.

I'm sorry but I think all these things are fairly standard. In part because the general public (i.e. donors) resent charities spending money on overheads.

I know several people that have left NHS for charity in the last 12 months. One moved for a 25% pay rise (and is getting 3% this year whilst the NHS gets 1%). Specialist role though and a huge charity that has come out of the pandemic stronger (financially) than it was before.

I think that many of the issues you mention are typical of third sector. There are some charities that are more vulnerable as a result of covid, others who were more resilient before have been able to weather the storm.

Depending on the funding structure for the charity you work for, I'd be concerned about the debt. At my employers, quite a bit of our funding is contracted from the local authority and those contracts stipulate that providers have a surplus in their accounts. They might be a bit more flexible right now, but I don't think they'll be awarding contracts to charities in debt for very long.

I'm not in a union. I am paid lower than I would if I worked in the public or private sector. Sick pay is poor. Pension is poor. AL is stat minimum.

But the job satisfaction is huge. The team morale is excellent. There's no bitchiness or back stabbing. We pulled together through covid for the sake of the vulnerable people we support and are stronger because of it. Progression, flexible working, sideways moves into other roles are all common-place.

I've worked for large and small charities. Each have their pros and cons. I am fortunately at the stage in my life where I can afford not to have to work for the highest salary I can get.

I think it probably depends a lot on the charity you work for. I used to work for a small charity who valued their employees. We were all really committed to what we did and worked there for that reason. We worked hard but pay was very reasonable as they wanted to hold onto people and thought it was important to act ethically. After all, what's the point in a charity that works to address some of the inequalities treating the people who work there like crap?

Being a small charity none of us were in a union, but we were able to be involved in things (e.g. when a less generous mat leave policy was proposed we spoke up against it and won), and pay rises were always given (not big ones, but designed to cancel out inflation at least), that was just built into our budgeting from the start.

There will be organisations that value their employees and those that don't in any sector unfortunately, including in the TS. Some jobs in the TS are very underpaid and unstable (usually front line roles, actually providing the service which is ridiculous). I'd have a look around at similar jobs within the sector to see if there's a mismatch in pay vs similar roles. If so, consider having a look elsewhere and dig around a bit about the charity to see what kind of employer they are.

I moved from private to charity sector 2 years ago, I think it depends on the charity tbh. Although mat pay isn't good, I find other benefits like pension pay, holiday and flexibility are really good plus my colleagues are lovely. Every so often I think of pay which is the limiting factor but everything else outweighs that for me. I also really believe in charity and the need for it so I think my passion for the sector was my main motivation to move anyway plus I work in a department which isn't interest specific in terms of charity and my skills are transferable to any charity.

I should add that though pay was reasonable, it was less than vaguely comparable roles in the private sector. But for me that trade off was worth it.

I've compared with elsewhere and my job is permanent (I hope!) whilst others are more fixed term so I'm lucky in that sense. Salary is quite similar to other employers too. There are definitely more pros than cons, with the pay and pension being the main cons.

Are mergers more common due to Covid? There's rumours that we may merge.

As a new graduate 15 years ago going into a Project Worker role in the third sector I was paid £24000 pa. Similar roles now are advertised with salaries between £19000 and £26000. Funding is a huge issue and means that many jobs are offered only for the term of funding, sometimes 3 years but mostly 1.

Me and my graduate pals all started on roughly the same salary, 15 years later I am by far the lowest earner between one in banking and one in the NHS. I do love the job though.

Yep sounds about right. Currently
Job hunting. The only way to get a pay rise is to move I think. Really
Worried with the cost of living
Increasing so much.

I worked in the third sector for 8 years. Location and hours were the draw for me. Pay wasn’t brilliant, but didn’t have much of a commute, so saved on that. Trouble is, pay rises were minimal and so was the chance to progress. In the end I started to resent the low pay and lack of training, lack of progression and left.

My place does offer apprenticeship training but I don't qualify for them or any funding as I already have a masters. I am not fussed, at least at this stage, about getting any more qualifications and I don't desire to enter a management role, but obviously it would be good to progress in terms of salary.

DP left local authority role for the charity sector a few years ago. Only lasted 18months, he hated the culture, terms and conditions changed whilst he was in post and he had to sign up to a new contract on Worse terms. Awful work culture of bullying, target driven, and lots of colleagues posts were funded year on year so no security. He was in Unison.

He moved to civil service for a promotion. I am also civil service. I've been same grade since 2010 and probably had around 5% pay rise in that time. But great flexible working and maternity and sickness package.

I've paid into the standard CS pension scheme for 16 years. DP local authority and his private pension from the charity role are forecast to pay a much better annual income than mine.

I think stability and ability to move around internally in public sector is better. I wouldn't fancy charity sector now we have kids and need the stability.