What affects employment by NGOs? Counteraction to precarious employment in the Polish non-profit sector in the perspective of COVID-19 pandemic crises

Abstract

Research background: The precarious employment in non-governmental organizations has not been the subject of thorough scientific considerations so far. Meanwhile, the dominance of flexible forms of employment in an organization evokes a sense of instability, insecurity and uncertainty among employees. It weakens the relationship between staff and the organization, which, by not providing employees with prospects for permanent employment, creates a threat to its own development. The COVID-19 pandemic is reinforcing these fears as the situation in the labour market continues to deteriorate.

Purpose of the article: The purpose of this study is to identify the factors affecting NGOs employment of contract employees, as a key condition for crowding out precarious employment.

Methods: Logistic regression analysis was conducted based on a national representative survey of 1500 Polish NGOs.

Findings & value added: Its results indicate that NGOs are increasing the employment of contract staff in order to cope with the excessive bureaucracy of public administration. A stimulating impact on employment is also provided by difficulties in maintaining good staff and volunteers, as well as when there is no sense of security in running an organization. In turn, the lack of people ready to selflessly get involved in an organization's activities, as well as difficulties in accessing premises appropriate to NGOs both reduce the desire among staff to be employed full-time. The monitoring of precarious employment (PE) in NGOs is of key importance in the shaping and effectiveness of national policies aimed at improving the living standards of society as a whole. NGOs are an important element, as they fill the gaps remaining in the implementation of such policies. In the long term, improving the quality of full-time employment in such entities by reducing the barriers to their activity will increase their potential for fulfilling their social mission. To date, such barriers and their relation to employment have not been considered in research literature. However, a considerable proportion of employees in the Polish NGO sector may join the ranks of those excluded from employment and deprived of income due to the crisis on the job market caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. This article contributes to the existing literature and practice by identifying the influence of wide spectrum of barriers of NGOs activity on permanent employment.