After one too many nudges, hints and barefaced requests from my colleagues to donate to our cause, I’ve had enough.
Staff in the charity sector are very aware of the tough climate facing our organisations. We’re battling regulation and trying to find new and diverse sources of money, all while demand for our services reaches ever higher levels.
We are generous with our time and we make sacrifices for the organisation, working irregular hours, unpaid overtime, giving up weekends to work at events. We do this because we care and because we want to do what we can to help our organisations reach their goals and help more people.
It’s true that staff are often some of the best advocates for the charities they work for, engaging friends and family in campaigns, spreading their messages online, and yes, fundraising, because we want to support the cause. But it shouldn’t be assumed that because I fully support the charity and promote our work, devoting my time and energies to it, that I am also able to support the organisation financially.
We know that the sector does not necessarily pay as well as equivalent jobs in the private sector, and no one goes into charity work to make top corporate dollar. Our personal finances are just as stretched as the rest of the country, and we all have financial struggles.
Like many, after I’ve paid my rent and travel costs my disposable income pretty much evaporates almost as soon as payday is past, and I resent the expectation that I can financially contribute to our cause on a regular basis.
At the children’s charity I work for, internal email newsletters come peppered with suggestions to set up a direct debit, sign up for a charity bike ride, payroll giving, do this challenge, hold this fundraising event with your friends, give, give, give!
Our office often holds small staff fundraising events such as bake sales or dress up days, which are usually good harmless fun. But late last year we held a dress up day where all staff were asked to donate, whether they’d chosen to participate in the dress up theme or not. In this situation, with a bucket thrust into my face by an enthusiastic fundraiser, myself and several other colleagues didn’t feel like we had a choice in whether to donate or not – and as a result felt aggrieved for being made to feel like we had to pay back a few quid from our salary to our employer.
I absolutely respect the work that my colleagues in our fundraising department do, and the tough challenges they face in meeting high targets in cash-strapped times. I fully understand that every donation, no matter how small, soon adds up and enables us to do the important work we do supporting children to be the best they can be and reach their full potential. I have seen the impact our work has, and it is truly valuable.
But, I am paid a salary to do my job. I believe I earn that salary, working hard and doing the best I can for our cause. Feeling like I should pay some of that money back to the charity undervalues the work I do.
I resent being made to feel miserly, unsupportive or mean if I don’t contribute financially. I resent feeling that it is an obligation rather than a personal choice. And that negative feeling is likely to undo all of the goodwill I have towards my organisation and make it far less likely that I will continue to work those extra hours for free, encourage my friends to sign that important petition, or give up my weekends to support our beneficiaries. Losing that goodwill is a much more costly mistake.
Confessions of a charity professional is the Guardian Voluntary Sector Network’s anonymous series where charity workers tell it how it is. If you would like to pitch us an idea, click here.
