Employees have urged many charities to make public statements on trade union activity at other voluntary organisations, according to a survey of sector leaders.
The study by Censuswide, found that 82 of 100 leaders surveyed had experienced “employee activism”, when staff expect a charity to make public statements about matters outside of its mission, over the past 24 months.
When asked on which issues employees had expected a public statement, said trade union activity at other charities, 31 said trans inclusion and 31 said racial inequality.
Some 29 leaders said employees expected their charity to make statements on the war in Ukraine, 26 to criticise government policy unrelated to the charity’s mission and 24 on the war in Gaza.
A quarter of leaders said they were concerned that employee activism could affect their charity’s reputation while almost half were unconcerned.
Most leaders said their charity had a good or excellent relationship with trade unions.
Some 20 leaders said regulatory scrutiny posed the biggest threat to their charity’s reputation, while 19 said litigation and 18 said positioning on international conflicts such as Ukraine or Gaza.
Leaders also highlighted stakeholder complaints, employment and trade union disputes could present risks to their charities.
The survey, commissioned by crisis communications firm Alder, recently polled 100 leaders – including chief executives and chairs – at charities with at least 40 employees.
Alder managing director Tim Toulmin said: “Having engaged and passionate employees is obviously a great thing, but when it comes to charities there seems to be a widening gap between what employees expect and what leaders can legally do.
“Leaders and boards are under immense pressure to balance their legal duties, employee demands and the organisation’s reputation. The risk landscape is evolving fast, and it is concerning that so few charities have mitigation plans in place.”
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