Latest news: 70,000 jobs go in charity sector

Graduates looking to work in charities face a tough future after a survey revealed the sector shed 70,000 jobs in 2011. 09/01/2012 

The voluntary sector employed 723,000 people by the end of the third quarter of 2011, according to the figures from the Labour Force Survey, which were analysed by Skills - Third Sector , the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) and the Third Sector Research Centre (TSRC)  This equates to a 70,000 drop in roles over the last 12 months - an 8.7% fall in the workforce.

The figures also show that the voluntary sector has been hit harder during the recession than either the public sector (a 4.3% drop) or the private sector (a 1.5% growth).

Salaries have also been affected, with median hourly pay falling by 3% despite increases in both public and private salaries.

‘These figures reveal the scale of the reduction in the voluntary sector paid workforce and confirm what most of those working in the sector will have been anticipating. The reduction in average pay in the sector, when set against modest increases in both the private and public sectors, is a serious cause for concern,’ said Keith Mogford, chief executive of Skills - Third Sector.

His concerns were echoed by Sir Stuart Etherington, chief executive of the NCVO, who called the drop ‘troubling’ and argued that the voluntary sector was being attacked disproportionately.

‘With diminishing resources and fewer staff, voluntary organisations are facing a perfect storm and will struggle to meet the increased demand for their services that began with the recession of 2008,’ he said.

‘The sector is playing its part by looking for efficiencies or more innovative ways to deliver services, but government must play its part too,’ he added.