Survey Reveals Income Gap Between Male and Female Fund Raisers

JOB MARKET

By Heather Joslyn

Female fund raisers at U.S. nonprofit organizations earn a median salary of $25,000 less per year than their male counterparts, according to the first comprehensive compensation and benefits survey of fund raisers in North America conducted by the Association of Fundraising Professionals, in Alexandria, Va.

American women who responded to the survey make a median income of $48,000, meaning that half of those who reported salaries made less than that figure and half made more. Male fund raisers who work for U.S. charitable groups reported median salaries of $73,000.

Among respondents from the United States, executive directors with fund-raising duties reported median salaries of $51,833. Chief development officers made a median of $54,000, while deputy development officers made a median of $53,000.

The Association of Fundraising Professionals surveyed its members in the United States, Canada, and Mexico about the compensation and benefits they receive, and based its conclusions on data from more than 1,200 respondents.

The organization has conducted six surveys of its members that included data on their incomes, working conditions, and career paths since 1981. The new study is the first by the professional association to focus primarily on salaries and benefits earned by fund raisers who work at different types of charitable organizations and in a variety of jobs, from executive directors who have fund-raising duties to development officers to grant-proposal writers to consultants.

Just over half of the respondents work in metropolitan areas with populations of one million or less. Half work for organizations with no more than three staff members, and nearly half said their charities had raised no more than $1.5-million in fiscal 1999, the most recent data available during the period in late 2000 when the survey was conducted.

Sixty-one percent of the association’s more than 25,000 members are women, according to the group, and 67 percent of respondents to the new survey are also female. The income gap between men and women was much narrower in Canada than in the United States, according to the survey. Among respondents from that country, women made median salaries of $37,471 (in American dollars), while men made $39,345. The median salary for all Canadian respondents was $37,471.

Among the other highlights:

• The median salary for Americans surveyed was $52,000, with respondents in the Northeast reporting the highest median income, $56,000, and fund raisers in the South Central part of the country reporting the lowest, $46,500.
• Program managers reported median incomes of $48,000. Other fund-raising staff members surveyed — such as development assistants and coordinators, researchers, and grant-proposal writers — reported median salaries of $35,000.
• Respondents from consulting agencies made the highest median incomes ($75,000), followed by fund raisers for public-broadcasting stations ($68,750) and religious charities ($61,500). Employees of arts or cultural organizations reported the lowest median salaries, $45,167, just behind respondents who work for international or emergency relief agencies ($45,750) and federated appeals ($46,750).
• As might be expected, respondents from organizations largest in budget, revenue, and staff size made the most money. The survey also showed a strong correlation between years of experience and income level. Fund raisers in the United States with up to three years experience in development reported median salaries of $43,000, while respondents who have logged 10 to 14 years reported making $55,000. Just under 48 percent of all survey respondents had nine years of experience or less.

The survey also asked fund raisers about the benefits their employers offer. Nine out of 10 respondents reported that their charity provided medical insurance, while nearly as many — 87 percent — reported that their organizations offered a retirement plan. About three-quarters of the retirement plans were reported to be defined-contribution plans, such as those referred to as 403(b)s and 401(k)s, after their designation in the tax code.

The Association of Fundraising Professionals’ “2000-2001 Compensation and Benefits Survey” can be purchased by association members for $75 and $150 for nonmembers. To order, contact the association’s Resource Center, 1101 King St., Suite 700, Alexandria, Va. 22314; (800) 666-3863, http://www.afpnet.org.