A popular way for employers to get involved with charitable donation is to allow their employees time off to offer volunteering skills and effort to charitable bodiesRecent research, commissioned by the Charities Aid Foundation, shows that 25% of job candidates will choose, by preference, to work for employers that have a strong ethic of donating to charity.
This, therefore, becomes a time of awareness and reflection for employers. Naturally, the keenest employers are looking to find the best potential candidates and are keen to know of any aspects that may give them the edge.
In a poll of over just over 1000 respondents conducted just before Christmas, it was found that 26% preferentially applied to companies with strong reputations for charitable giving. Out of that number, 30% of women, and 47% of people early in their career, aged 16 – 24, chose donor companies above non-donors. About 2 in 5 (39%) felt that supporters of good causes were more likely to be good employers, whilst almost half (45%) believed an employer who supported charities was likely to have better morale among their staff.
A popular way for employers to get involved with charitable donation is to allow their employees time off to offer volunteering skills and effort to charitable bodies. About half of those surveyed thought that employers should be encouraged to offer this facility. Indeed, the Conservative Party promised, in their manifesto for the 2015 General Election, that they would legislate to introduce three paid volunteering days leave. Apparently this has not yet happened.
The Charities Aid Foundation provides help and assistance for employers wishing to become involved in charitable donation, and sets up schemes for ‘Give As You Earn’ payroll donation. They currently help about 2,500 employers, including most of the FTSE 100, with charity donation schemes of various types. Their Head of Research, Susan Pinkney, pointed out that not only does such donation help the recipients, but can also give the employers an edge in finding, and retaining, valued employees.
She said that although most of the public are unaware of employers’ charitable activities, the employers who do go along that route will find real benefit in publicising their schemes. She encourages more employers to consider charitable involvement, and to regularly report such activity as part of their social responsibility commitment, and also as a way of attracting valuable potential employees.
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