More than a quarter of charity workers believe it is “quite or highly likely they would lose their job over the next 12 months”, a survey has found.

This is twice the rate of concern over redundancy reported by the wider workforce, according to the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO), which has carried out the survey.

One in four charity workers employed on fixed term or temporary contracts is a key factor highlighted, especially among frontline workers where the proportion rises to one in three.

SCVO points out that this is “far higher than the wider workforce where only one in 10 workers is on a non-permanent contract”.

Concerns over work-life balance are also raised. The proportion who believe they have a good balance between their home life and their work has dropped from three in five to only half over the last decade.

“Many respondents spoke of workloads increasing due to problems recruiting and retaining staff, often a knock-on effect of funding cuts and funding insecurity,” said the SCVO.

To help charity workers in Scotland the SCVO is calling on the Scottish government to improve funding for the sector through long term contracts and grants of three years or more, flexible funding, and including core operating costs in grants.

SCVO found that job satisfaction is down, caused by “higher workloads and stress, and most importantly funding”.

Despite the concerns raised, the survey found that more than four in five charity workers believe they make “a real difference to people and communities” and almost nine in ten see their work as “useful”. These proportions are far higher than the wider Scottish workforce.

“Scotland’s voluntary sector is powered by people who care deeply about making a difference,” said SCVO chief executive Anna Fowlie.

“Our workforce survey shows a strong sense of purpose among voluntary sector workers, and commitment to the work they do day in, day out.

“But it also highlights the significant strain being put on voluntary sector workers as a result of the financial pressures that have become all too familiar to the voluntary sector.”

She added: “Voluntary sector leaders will, of course, be up for the challenge of delivering rewarding, fair work. Too often this is being undermined by public sector funders.

“Budget cuts, short-term funding cycles, late payments, incoherent decision-making and poor communication have become all-too familiar.

The SCVO’s call for fairer funding for the sector is backed by Shauna Wright, lead officer for fair work at Unite the Union.

“Unite the Union stands with care and not for profit workers who have faced underfunding in their sector, resulting in higher stress levels and concerns about their future employment opportunities in an industry where they have not felt valued for the work they provide,” she said.

“Urgent action is needed to secure fair pay terms and conditions.”

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