On April 12, 2023, 6 organizations representing the breadth of the nonprofit and philanthropic sectors wrote to the leadership of key congressional subcommittees, urging them to give nonprofits the same wage and employment data that for-profit organizations already receive for free.
Specifically, Independent Sector and other partners urged legislators to provide $4 million in Fiscal Year 2024 funding to the BLS Office of Employment and Unemployment Statistics, for the purpose of incorporating nonprofit organizations in the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW). This funding would allow for the publication of a quarterly news release with detailed estimates of employment and wages disaggregated by industry sector at the national and state levels.
Most every sector of that economy – including goat farming and limousine services – can track its employment totals and wage information from BLS on a quarterly basis. Unfortunately, nonprofit organizations cannot do the same because nonprofit data are released only every five years, resources permitting. This system is unfair and counterproductive, and it deeply conflicts with the BLS mission statement that it “measures labor market activity in the U.S. economy to support public and private decision making.”
We will continue working with partners to advocate for this funding. Please let us know if you want to get involved!
