By now many of us will have seen this article or watched the program aired on the BBC. Whilst the allegations aired in the program mainly veered away from Face to Face fundraising we saw charities were mentioned and we all know that Direct Sales companies play a huge part in face-to-face fundraising still today. The allegations in the program are nothing new as we have seen cases brought against these types of companies before for poor employment practices across the globe.
It's incredibly sad and distressing hearing about how many of the people working at these companies struggled financially with the debt and stress that resulted from being paid commission per sale without a real living wage, and without employment rights like sick pay, maternity pay and holiday pay. In a sector that does so much good, how can it be allowed to continue that the fundraisers on the front line can have so much harm done to them? It's unacceptable, shameful and against everything, the sector should stand for.
All too often we hear about the benefits of commission only, the fact that fundraisers work harder, and that they have the potential to earn so much money (We have seen unrealistic “On Target Earnings” advertised as high at £75k!)
What we do not talk about enough is the financial vulnerability of the people who do not earn enough to survive using toothpaste for hair gel because they cannot afford something so simple. At the alliance, we have all heard stories about commission-only staff experiencing times like this.
The F2F alliance was established to be collaborative, sustainable, inclusive & transparent and all members of the alliance benefit from the sharing of knowledge and guidance on best practice. Alliance members commit to our standards, and commit to a fair deal for all in F2F.
We see a fair deal for all in the F2F sector as:-
never paying commission only to fundraisers;
all fundraisers getting paid a fair living wage;
all fundraisers get basic employment rights like holiday, sick & maternity pay along with pensions and protection from unfair dismissal;
fundraising companies pay employers NI, PAYE, Pension and Tax contributions for the work they are doing.
Recruitment adverts for fundraising positions are honest and transparent.
we do not use advertise unrealistic OTE’s
make it clear that the job is F2F fundraising with a clear overview of the actual role
The tactics used to recruit, retain and also humiliate fundraisers as highlighted in this article are shameful and not something that the F2F Alliance members would ever use. It is time that these tactics are banished not only from F2F Fundraising but from all direct sales positions.
For the sustainability of the sector, we believe these tactics cannot continue to be used, which is why must commit to the standards of the f2f alliance.