One million. That is how many jobs were lost nationally in the nonprofit sector in the past year, equating to eight percent of the entire nonprofit workforce. It came at a time when nonprofits were already at capacity to meet community demands. As we know, the pandemic has only increased demands on nonprofits. This issue will be a major concern going forward for organizations. 

The nonprofit workforce both in Oklahoma and nationally is highly educated and highly specialized. Not only do jobs require advanced degrees, but also advanced training and certifications to do the work necessary to meet community needs. On top of this, nonprofits tend to pay less than the corporate sector, even for administrative positions in finance, marketing and compliance. 

Our nonprofits cannot afford to lose its most precious asset – the employees. Losing a highly specialized educator or clinician could mean a loss of services for hundreds of clientele. Additionally, nonprofits would struggle to rehire once funds became available. This could lead to a challenging situation for our sector.  

The good news is that Oklahoma has fared much better than the rest of the country. According to a survey sent to nearly 200 organizations in Oklahoma, only eight percent reported layoffs or reductions in force. That, however, is coupled with the fact that nearly half surveyed believed they would not make revenue goals. Nonprofits are being forced to cut budgets in other ways to preserve staffing. 

Fortunately, nonprofits had access to PPP loans in two rounds. We estimate nonprofits received more than $150 million in PPP last year and expect similar results for this new round in 2021. 

My hope is that Oklahomans will continue to show their incredible generosity again this year. Prioritizing services is important, but we must remember that those services are provided by skilled professionals. If we are to be a top-ten state, we will need nonprofits to continue meeting the myriad of community needs in Oklahoma with excellent professionals delivering those services.