Social sector leaders call for urgent focus on sector’s wellbeing

The call came during the opening session of Benefolk’s inaugural 2025 Workplace Wellbeing Summit, which ran throughout September. Panelists included Sarah Davies, chair of the ACNC Advisory Group and CEO of Alannah & Madeline Foundation; Denise Cheng from the Pay What It Takes movement; Ryan Ginard from Minderoo Foundation; Ben Vasiliou from The Man Cave; Adele Stowe-Lindner from the Institute of Community Directors Australia; and Andrew Leigh, the Minister for Charities.

The urgency of the issue was reflected in data collected from those who participated in the month-long summit, as part of the Benefolk Wellbeing Index. When asked how they felt at work, more than half of participants reported they often felt stressed, anxious, overwhelmed, frustrated or exhausted. Only a small minority said they rarely felt these pressures. For around two thirds of respondents, motivation was rarely a challenge, nor was feeling ineffective. However, 72 per cent said they felt their workload was unachievable (always or often), 73 per cent felt overwhelmed (always or often), and 73 per cent said they felt they were not looking after themselves (always or often).

The data confirms what many in the sector already know: doing more with less is unsustainable. Without systemic change in how the sector is resourced and led, workforce wellbeing will remain under strain. The discussion was therefore focused on what can be done.

Sarah Davies started the conversation by noting that no one works in the sector for the money or the glamour, and that while resources are scarce and the work is never done, it is inspiring and a great privilege to work in the sector. She challenged leaders to reflect on whether enough is being done to ensure staff and volunteers are supported in the face of trauma, uncertainty, and funding pressures, and to identify how the sector can attract talent and share information where progress is being made.

Adele Stowe-Lindner reinforced the stressors, sharing preliminary findings from Community Directors’ groundbreaking governance and wellbeing survey, which revealed strong mission alignment – a really great protective factor when things get tough – but rising stress on boards, with 83 per cent of respondents welcoming more wellbeing support.

Denise Cheng (Pay What It Takes and Equity Trustees) emphasised the role of trust-based philanthropy and the need to educate funders about direct and indirect costs.

“Speak to a potential funder or existing donors and actually unpack what goes on behind the scenes in order to deliver the incredible outcomes on the ground,” she said. “People are willing to pay overheads and key wellbeing costs if they know that’s needed. We need to communicate honestly with funders about what it takes to deliver outcomes.”

Minderoo Foundation’s Ryan Ginard cited alarming US data showing that seven in ten American sector workers want to leave the sector in the next year, and he urged action and especially awareness of the structural issues in the social sector.

“When not-for-profits are successful, they don’t scale up like business. They have these additional elements loaded up to their day to day – trying to find more funds, more staff, and it just keeps on compounding,” Ginard said.

For Ben Vasiliou, CEO of The Man Cave, the answer lies in a mindset shift. “We should not be practising client-first. We should be practising people-first, because when we put people first, they deliver higher quality, better impact to the most vulnerable Australians.”

Vasiliou highlighted the funding imbalance facing not-for-profits, and the need for benchmarking staff pay, sharing the stark example of a youth worker role advertised by government at a salary level of $117,000 compared to the NFP sector’s $80,000. “When we think about recruiting, retaining and developing talent, if there’s a $37,000 gap there, I wonder which one you’d choose?” he said.

Charities Minister Andrew Leigh welcomed the chance to engage on what the government recognises as a very important topic, noting that the government hosted regular wellbeing consultations around the country, and that recent roundtables had touched on wellbeing. He also outlined steps the government has already taken to support the sector.

“We hear about issues such as the duration of funding contracts, the importance of allowing organisations to invest in their staff and recognising the importance of ensuring that people can make an impact without burning out,” he said. “In response, we’ve aimed to make life easier for charities through streamlining the path to deductible gift recipient status for a number of categories of charities, not-for-profits, and through creating the Community Foundations category.”

At the end of the session, panelists responded to Sarah Davies’ earlier call for some innovative thinking.

Cheng suggested continued advocacy to embed “Pay What It Takes” approaches in funding relationships. Ginard floated the idea of a Wellbeing Commissioner for NFPs and Vasiliou imagined a sector-wide benefits system – “the black Amex of the employment world” – to give all NFP staff access to top-tier wellbeing programs, health insurance, and psychological support.

Contributors to Benefolk’s Wellbeing Index poll also offered their thoughts on “radical action”, with one theme standing out: funding reform. This was consistent with the sentiment in the room in 2023 when Benefolk launched The Community Well. Many called for funders to embrace “Pay What It Takes”, so organisations can pay fair wages, cover operational costs and reduce chronic overwork. Others highlighted workplace reforms such as introducing a four-day week, mandating wellbeing considerations in grants, and ensuring boards and senior leaders are held accountable for modelling positive behaviour.

Andrew Leigh closed on a note of optimism about changing attitudes, saying people are now more inclined to talk about their vulnerabilities, and the work of Benefolk has contributed so much to the sector’s wellbeing through initiatives such as The Community Well and the Expert Bar.

“You’re the sector SWAT team that comes in to look after charities and not-for-profits at their time of need. You’re the changemaker’s best friend.”