When was the first time you thought about decent work? For me, it was not during the first few jobs I had as a student. I was ready, willing, and eager to work as a young person, and because of my privileges, did not have to actively think about decent work conditions. Honestly, I was happy to just be hired! I made minimum wage and that seemed good enough.
After a few years of working full-time, I started encountering confusing situations that finally made me think twice. For example, I once learned that a co-worker had successfully negotiated for health benefits I was told we were both ineligible for. Equally confusing was when I realized that my peers, unlike me, had access to paid professional development while working at organizations with a smaller budget than where I was employed. Even now, those experiences remain in my memory as confusing because I never asked anyone why things were the way they were. As a young worker, I did not know who to turn to with my curiosities, or to express my frustrations and desires for clarity and change.
Eventually, I realized, decent work is the change I want to see for other workers like myself and for those who will enter the not-for-profit sector in the future. Decent work would mean standards and investments in the workforce that are transparent, consistent, and which put people first. Workers would not be left wondering or having to negotiate because employers would already have their employees’ best interests in mind.
The young professional’s perspective is a great way to examine decent work. As a diverse and women-dominant sector, the perspectives of women, people from marginalized communities, and people from multi-oppressed communities are also lenses through which we can push our ambitions around decent work. Our colleagues at the Ontario Nonprofit Network have been considering decent work for some time and have created a growing collection of valuable resources to advance decent work commitments. This month, they also launched the Decent Work for Women microsite.
There is so much sector-strengthening work remaining ahead of us and it is a growing list of priorities. At the forefront of this energy and at the top of many organization’s lists right now is the commitment to advance justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI). With this strong sense of urgency behind JEDI initiatives, how much time and energy should we put into “decent work”?
A closer examination of decent work beyond salaries and compensation reveals that committing to decent work is actually part and parcel of advancing JEDI in our sector. Decent work means advancing economic justice for workers, providing equitable workplace supports and accommodations, diversifying the decision-makers who review human resource policies, and creating truly inclusive workplace cultures where all can come to work as their full selves. It can mean all of this, and more.
This is why decent work matters, and now is the time for us to put it under the sector spotlight at BOSS. Decent work provides a workers-centered focal point in the immensity of JEDI work and the long journey we are now on to “build back better”. But simply emphasizing decent work matters through this blog post is not enough. We need to take action by first critically examining our current processes and policies around decent work, committing to remove the ones that create harm, and also creating new ones that challenge the status quo.
We invite you to join us in taking action for decent work at this year’s BOSS, and stay tuned for more on our Decent Work Peer Network (coming soon)!
View on the BOSS website.
Joyce Lin
Joyce is the Sector Development Coordinator for Vantage Point - she facilitates the foundational work involved in Vantage Point’s goals to contribute to a healthy and thriving not-for-profit sector in BC. On any day, she is monitoring and sharing information that will support sector success and...
Vantage Point was featured in the Vancouver Guardian.
The Vancouver Guardian asked us about how we’re supporting non-profits across BC and our mission to strengthen BC’s non-profit sector through leadership, development, governance, organizational capacity building and more.
Join Vantage Point on September 17 in Terrace for the BC Non-Profit Network: Northwest BC Leaders Gathering. Deepen relationships, learn about what is happening in BC’s non-profit sector, participate in practical learning, and contribute to the next stages of growth for the BC Non-Profit Network (BCNN).
On September 29, 2020 we sent the letter below to outline our concerns around the Lobbyist Transparency Act and the administrative burden it places on not-for-profit organiations. If you would like to join our advocacy efforts on this issue please email us. To get updates on all of our advocacy work for not-for-profits, we invite you to join as a not-for-profit member.
Mr. Richard Fyfe, Deputy Attorney General
PO Box 9290, Stn. Prov. Govt.
Victoria BC, V8W 9J7
and
The Honourable Carole James, Minister of Finance and Deputy Premier
Room 153 Parliament Buildings
Victoria, BC, V8V 1X4
Tuesday, September 29, 2020
RE: Meeting request to discuss negative impacts of Lobby Transparency Act on the BC not-for-profit sector
Dear Mr. Fyfe and Hon. James:
I am writing to you today on behalf of Vantage Point, the undersigned, and approximately 41 organizations that wish to remain anonymous to avoid potential penalties for perceived lack of compliance with the New Lobby Transparency Act (LTA). We are writing to request a meeting to discuss the very difficult and chilling impact the LTA is having on our sector.
Collectively, we wish to express concerns regarding the negative and, likely unintended, impacts of the LTA on the charitable and not-for-profit sector. The LTA creates substantial barriers to the fulfillment of our mandates to maximize community wellbeing and contribute to democratic debate. This letter builds on comprehensive dialogue our organizations have had among ourselves, with the Office of the Registrar of Lobbyists (ORL), the Office of the Attorney General, and the Premier’s Office. While we support your efforts to increase lobbying transparency in relation to activities that are aimed at advancing private benefits to corporations and their shareholders, we urge you to acknowledge that our organizations are created for the purpose of advocating and caring for our communities, not to advance private interest. If there is a need to be transparent about meetings and engagement with our sector, we urge you to take the administrative burden upon yourselves by requiring MLA’s to track and reporting such engagements rather than the not-for-profit.
About BC’s not-for-profit sector
Not-for-profits are critical to the lives of people in British Columbia. There are over 29,000 not-for-profit societies registered in BC. Our sector provides more than 86,000 jobs and mobilizes volunteers who contribute the equivalent support of over 146,000 positions. Our workers and volunteers also make a direct economic contribution of more than $6.4B to our province’s GDP.
We provide a critical level of support to the Government of British Columbia, businesses, and the public. We provide everything from the provision of health and other essential frontline services, to supporting victims of domestic violence, deploying volunteers safely, and creating arts and cultural services. The not-for-profit sector is vital to ensuring the safety and wellbeing of our province. We are an essential safety net for the most vulnerable individuals in our communities. Our work has never been more urgently needed as we navigate unprecedented circumstances brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, an exacerbating opioid crisis, and worsening inequities for communities suffering historic patterns of oppression and discrimination. Our employees and volunteers are stretched to the limit of their capacity responding to these extremely difficult circumstances. Our research has documented extremely high levels of stress and burnout among our peers. Our research also indicated that one in five not-for-profit organizations are unlikely to survive the current environment. This will put immense undue pressure on remaining organizations.
LTA’s burden on the not-for-profit sector
Among our organizations there is a substantial level of concern, anxiety, and frustration with the additional burden and overreaching implications of the new LTA. The Act creates barriers in our ability to respond effectively to growing challenges affecting our communities. Our concerns and challenges are significantly heightened as there was inadequate consultation with the not-for-profit sector during the development of this new legislation. Our sector not only provides essential services to British Columbians, but it is a major source of economic prosperity for our province.
Yet we see a continual pattern of consulting with a very narrow representation of the not-for-profit sector and a lack of comprehensive consultation on legislation which significantly impacts our operations and the ability to fulfill our missions.
Blending of lobbying and advocacy under the LTA regulation
At the heart of our concerns, many of our organizations have received LTA’s interpretations which do not seem to make a distinction between the advocacy and lobbying. Advocacy are efforts to strengthen public wellbeing and speak up for marginalized voices. Lobbying is done to advance private, corporate, and/or shareholders’ interests. In fact, the LTA’s design actually allows the lobbying of private interests to go unreported by including small private firms in the few exclusions to compliance (for example, organizations with less than 6 employees do not need to report their lobbying activities).
For-profit companies have the capacity to change how they function very quickly. There is nothing stopping a private lobbying company of twelve employees from dividing itself into two smaller firms very quickly. No twelve-person not-for-profit organization in BC could do that, nor would it be responsible of a volunteer Board to make such a decision. Instead of acknowledging the multiple layers of accountability charities and not-for-profits have to donors, members, and the communities that we serve, the LTA’s requirements undermine our capacity to meet those accountability requirements. In fact, the expectations of the LTA to reporting donations and funding to support our organizations threatens the trust that individual donors, foundations, and the public has granted us to support our vital work.
Legislation’s overreach
We are concerned that the LTA design did not take in consideration the unique circumstances, objectives, and strategies in which not-for-profit organizations deliver their vital services. The depth of our relationships with communities throughout BC provides critical sources of evidence on the evolving impact of social, economic, environmental conditions facing British Columbians. Being in the front-lines of some of the most complex challenges facing our communities, our organizations regularly communicate with government representatives to inform them of these circumstances, the impact of public policy, and to advance solutions that our organizations regularly develop to address these challenges. Through these essential advocacy efforts, we help strengthen public benefits for our communities, the economy, and the natural environments in which we all live.
The over-reach of the LTA’s requirements to report all communication directed at public office holders – including social media posts on Twitter and Facebook – may actually contribute to distorted public perceptions that not-for-profit organizations do substantially more lobbying compared to activities to advance private interests. Some not-for-profit organizations have been informed even endorsing the advocacy activities of a third party may constitute lobbying. This lobbying would be assigned to an individual/organization which should have registered as a designated filer with the Lobby Registry. This approach will limit the capacity of Not-for-profit organizations to do their own research to inform public policy submissions, endorsing, and signing on to letters or petitions put together by sector leaders as is a common practice to help inform and influence government and public opinion. This means not-for-profits may opt to silence themselves rather than risk compliance issues. And this has a detrimental impact on the ability for not-for-profits to advocate to advance their missions and provide essential services to British Columbians.
Fifty percent of not-for-profits are already highly regulated as charities, a legal system that has extensive processes for ensuring charitable activities are unquestionably of public benefit and NOT to advance private interests. Most Not-for-Profits have volunteer Boards of Directors whose sole interest is to ensure community benefit is at the forefront. Donors and funders (including the government) demand that we keep our administrative costs to an absolute minimum. In fact, prevalent funding structures in the sector limit investment in contingency funds, technology, employee benefits, and stable governance and have generated an insidious precariousness of our vital work. By demanding we spend donor, government, and foundation dollars on tracking all advocacy and dialogue discussions for compliance with the LTA, this government is in effect silencing not-for-profits and charities in BC. According to the responses we have collected from the Office of the Lobby Registrar, that is exactly what you are asking of us: ‘Be quiet or be fined,’ and put our organizations at even more risk.
All this has resulted in a very troubling, chilling effect that the LTA’s application is having on the not-for-profit sector, the communities, and people we serve. These circumstances ultimately have the potential to undermine democratic dialogue. The fact that 41 organizations were not willing to publicly put their names on this letter is evidence of this reality. The detrimental and unforeseen consequences would be a dark legacy of your government which will harm the future of our province.
We must believe it is not your government’s intention to create a burden on not-for-profits or reduce democratic debate. To this end, we urge you to acknowledge the LTA’s unintended negative impacts on not-for-profit and charitable organizations and acknowledge the following:
Recommendations
We request a meeting at your earliest convenience with a delegation of not-for-profit leaders who have endorsed this letter. Together we seek to engage in constructive dialogue to identify ways to enhance lobbying transparency without harming the vital work our sector does in service of all British Columbians. We look forward to your timely response.
Sincerely,
Alison Brewin
Executive Director
Vantage Point
T: (604) 637-8207
E: abrewin@thevantagepoint.ca
www.thevantagepoint.ca
cc:
Hon. David Eby, MLA for Vancouver-Point Grey
Hon. John Horgan, MLA for Langford-Juan de Fuca
Mr. Michael McEvoy, Registrar of Lobbyists for BC
Hon. Mike Farnworth, MLA for Port Coquitlam
In 2019, Vantage Point supported 9,799 not-for-profit leaders through leadership development, board training, strategic planning, and more. We have over 550 not-for-profit members from 48 communities across the province.
Alison Brewin
As Executive Director, Alison Brewin is responsible for executing the Vantage Point’s mission and vision. Alison graduated with a Law Degree from the University of Victoria in 1991 and was called to the Bar in 1992. Throughout the 1990s, she worked in non-profit management, as political assistant...
Vantage Point was featured in the Vancouver Guardian.
The Vancouver Guardian asked us about how we’re supporting non-profits across BC and our mission to strengthen BC’s non-profit sector through leadership, development, governance, organizational capacity building and more.
Join Vantage Point on September 17 in Terrace for the BC Non-Profit Network: Northwest BC Leaders Gathering. Deepen relationships, learn about what is happening in BC’s non-profit sector, participate in practical learning, and contribute to the next stages of growth for the BC Non-Profit Network (BCNN).
Since 2015, Vantage Point has been organizing BOSS as an innovative conference to share tangible and practical strategies that not-for-profit leaders can use to strengthen their organizations. BOSS stands for Building Organizational and Sector Sustainability. Sector leaders have come to participate in BOSS to connect with their peers and discuss a diverse range of challenges affecting the sector. As our sector continues to respond to the ongoing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, BOSS is evolving to find common solutions to address the challenges facing not-for-profits across BC.
In the urgency of the COVID-19 pandemic, multiple systems that sustain our communities have been deeply eroded. Our daunting challenges in the last few months demand we do things differently to rebalance our economic and social systems. Now more than ever, there is growing recognition that all sectors of society and the economy must work together.
At Vantage Point, we know that community wellbeing is built with the not-for-profit sector’s active involvement. For us, healthy and sustained not-for-profits are the cornerstone to community resilience and wellbeing. We work to leverage our sector’s expertise as a pathway to an economic and public policy environment which will build a strong future for British Columbia. We want to rebalance our economy by pulling together as a sector to uncover and amplify the full potential of not-for-profit leadership. There is important work ahead of us. Collaboration is the way in which we will build our sector and further our missions. Inclusive, equitable spaces will ensure positive transformations to break cycles of discrimination. Now is the time to be bold and transform our systems for community good.
Our BOSS conference will address how we can – and do – work together to make these goals a reality. This event is a space for dialogue and game-changing tactics on how not-for-profits can lead positive and lasting community and systemic change. Our themes for 2021 are: Collaboration, Equity, and Transformation.
Two weeks of November will be dedicated to convening thoughtful public dialogue and collaboration between not-for-profit leaders and stakeholders. Through online engagement, we will catalyze the potential for sector-wide participation in our BOSS 2021 Conference (Saturday, February 27 – Friday, March 5, 2021).
Together we will identify solutions, develop capacity, share resources, and reimagine the conditions which will lead to transformational change in our sector and the communities we serve. Leaders, funders, government representatives, businesses, and more will share dialogue to achieve our planned outcomes of:
Through broad public engagement and dialogue, BOSS will seek to leverage the sector’s expertise, innovation, and resilience. We would be honoured if you joined us in the conversation.
We will be releasing exciting information soon with the launch of the new BOSS website, through social media, and in our e-newsletters. Stay tuned for details on who will be presenting and how to register!
Omar Dominguez
Omar is our Director of Government Relations and Sector Development. What does this mean? He provides leadership in Vantage Point’s mission to build the capacity of BC’s not-for-profit sector through membership engagement, sector development, and government relations. Basically, Omar does a lot....
Vantage Point was featured in the Vancouver Guardian.
The Vancouver Guardian asked us about how we’re supporting non-profits across BC and our mission to strengthen BC’s non-profit sector through leadership, development, governance, organizational capacity building and more.
Join Vantage Point on September 17 in Terrace for the BC Non-Profit Network: Northwest BC Leaders Gathering. Deepen relationships, learn about what is happening in BC’s non-profit sector, participate in practical learning, and contribute to the next stages of growth for the BC Non-Profit Network (BCNN).
Last year, the Vantage Point board and staff annual retreat culminated in a new 5-year strategic plan. It felt big, it felt like a stretch, it felt pretty amazing. The first of 5 Strategic Goals (or BHAGs - Big Hairy Audacious Goals, as I see them) stated that by 2025 Vantage Point will be a leading contributor to equitable, inclusive, and sustainable practices in the not-for-profit sector, especially in lifting and strengthening Indigenous, underrepresented, and emerging not-for-profit leaders in BC.
We have focused our first year towards this goal in learning, in being humble about what we don’t know, and courageous about taking steps, individually and as an organization, to activate the learning. As a team we’ve committed to learning from the experts through the Strategem Conference virtual workshops, hosted by Cicely Blain Consulting, including introductory learning in anti-oppression, inclusive language, racial justice, and LGBTQ2S & inclusion. We will work through the Decolonizing First Workbook together as staff and board, through facilitated workshops with Michelle Nahanee.
As part of the learning journey, we are honoured to introduce our new Organizational Consultant, Dorla Tune. I am immensely excited to learn alongside Dorla in our work to strengthen not-for-profit organizations in BC through our training, planning, and consulting supports. Dorla connects her leadership experience to her commitment to strengthening equity and social justice through organizational capacity building:
Over the past 20 years, I have worked in a variety of different not-for-profit organizations. From transition houses to child welfare, from settlement agencies to philanthropy, and grassroots community development organizations. In each of these workplaces, people are the most important component; the people doing the work and the people receiving the services. Often, not-for-profit organizations are full of individuals bringing their lived experience and passion to the work in hopes of improving the lives of others. Lived experience and passion are critical to providing meaningful experiences to communities, yet they need to be nurtured and channelled through systems of organizational capacity to have the desired impact.
For me, joining Vantage Point as an Organizational Consultant means I get to work with other not-for-profits to improve their capacity systems all in service to people. Leadership, governance, training, mentoring, and strategy are only relevant if people remain at the center of the work. Not-for-profit organizations hold critical spaces in the community. We are in a time when the deconstruction of colonial and racist systems is non-negotiable. How effectively not-for-profit organizations do their work in service to improving lives, requires their organizational capacity to be rooted in equity and social justice.
I am excited to join Vantage Point, a place where I can continue to deepen my knowledge while sharing my skills and experiences in the not-for-profit and charitable sectors. Looking forward to seeing you soon!
Maria Turnbull
Maria Turnbull brings over 20 years of leadership experience in staff and director roles within the not-for-profit sector, both here in Canada and in the UK. With a BA in International Relations and MBA, Maria is a skilled facilitator and consultant in board governance, organizational development,...
Vantage Point was featured in the Vancouver Guardian.
The Vancouver Guardian asked us about how we’re supporting non-profits across BC and our mission to strengthen BC’s non-profit sector through leadership, development, governance, organizational capacity building and more.
Join Vantage Point on September 17 in Terrace for the BC Non-Profit Network: Northwest BC Leaders Gathering. Deepen relationships, learn about what is happening in BC’s non-profit sector, participate in practical learning, and contribute to the next stages of growth for the BC Non-Profit Network (BCNN).
Earlier this summer, we shared with you our second written submission to the Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services (the Committee) for the provincial budget 2021 consultation, which took place this year between June 1st to 26th. The consultation process started with the Minister of Finance’s consultation paper, which outlined the provincial government’s COVID-19 action plan and three guiding priorities: 1) health and safety, 2) immediate supports for individuals, and 3) business and economic recovery.
The Committee released the Report on the Budget 2021 Consultation on August 21st with 124 recommendations (full list found on page 106 to 119).
Before diving into the details, keep in mind that $1.5 billion of the $5 billion COVID-19 action plan has been earmarked for economic recovery but remains unallocated. While the COVID-19 pandemic’s impacts are unquestioned and underscored throughout the report, the Minister informed the Committee that many of the government’s priorities remain the same (see page 7 “Minister of Finance Briefing”):
Therefore, it is no surprise that these themes are represented throughout the report. Further, it is worth taking a moment to celebrate that this year’s consultation process had the highest participation level in nearly 10 years! The Committee heard and received 281 presentations, 1362 submissions, and 3624 survey responses.
The recommendations span over 12 themes, each making up a section in the report. Each theme/section has its own sub-sections that include impact of COVID-19, survey highlights (if any), detailed discussions, and the Committee’s recommendations for each theme.
In Vantage Point’s submission, our three recommendations emphasized the opportunity for budget 2021 to be an investment in public wellbeing through funding and partnership with the not-for-profit sector.
Reconciliation, equity, diversity, and inclusion
The Committee made the explicit call to action for the upcoming budget to “address inequities and make significant progress on reconciliation, diversity and inclusion, and accessibility” in all areas. Further, the Committee recommends “ensuring ministries adopt a diversity and inclusion lens and recognize systemic barriers to address the disproportionate impacts of the pandemic, and providing programs and supports for equity-seeking groups who face systemic barriers” (see the executive summary on page 2).
Similar points about the importance of gender equity, truth, reconciliation, and decolonization were incorporated throughout Vantage Point’s submission. The not-for-profit and charitable sector is comprised of organizations working to advance similar goals every day and the Committee’s recommendations validate the importance of the work made possible by our sector.
Digital connectivity
The necessity of internet access, reflected in Vantage Point’s recommendations, is another clear theme in this report. The report recognizes inequities related to digital infrastructure and “recommends accelerating investments…including addressing challenges related to affordability” and references this is an area requiring collaboration with the federal government and telecommunication companies.
Multi-year stabilization funds
While the report does not make an explicit recommendation for a not-for-profit sector stabilization fund (Vantage Point recommended a $500 million stabilization fund for the sector), it does suggest a need for urgent recovery funding and multi-year stabilization supports to several sectors.
To note, “non-profit” or “not-for-profit” is mentioned 19 times in total throughout the report. It has its own sub-section under the “Health” theme, and an entire recommendation based on it:
It is not only a pivotal moment that not-for-profits are mentioned, moreover, “non-profit” is recognized as a whole sector. This is welcomed language for those in the sector who have and continue to define the sector and raise its profile.
However, the report falls short to include not-for-profits in the Economic Development section. As mentioned in our submission for the Provincial Budget Consultation, BC’s not-for-profit sector contributes $6.4 billion to the provincial GDP. Jobs and service provisions, as well as losses in this sector need to be seriously considered in the context of a resilient provincial economy.
Other recommendations with implications on the sector
While the not-for-profit sector as a whole is only directly referenced in two themes – first in Health, and secondly, in Social Services, Community Social Services and Social Policy - there are several recommendations for other sectors that could impact BC’s not-for-profits whose work is related to those sectors. These include:
Budget 2021 will be presented on the third Tuesday in February (Feb 16, 2021). While the release of the report ensures the public can access the Committee’s recommendations, it is important to recall this report is written and has been submitted to members of BC’s legislative assembly. If you want to engage with your MLA about this report and budget 2021, make sure you are familiar with the Lobbyists Transparency Act.
Overall, the report recognizes many of the key points raised in our recommendations for the sector, namely that there is an immense financial impact due to COVID-19 and strong need for stabilization supports. The report also echoes the reality that the pandemic has revealed the need for resources to address gaps in supports and services for British Columbians. These are all encouraging signs that budget 2021 may reflect the needs and supports we have collectively identified for our sector.
If you want to get further involved in these discussions and the advocacy work that Vantage Point is doing, we encourage you to become a member. During the COVID-19 crisis we have made membership free. You can learn more and sign-up here.
Joyce Lin
Joyce is the Sector Development Coordinator for Vantage Point - she facilitates the foundational work involved in Vantage Point’s goals to contribute to a healthy and thriving not-for-profit sector in BC. On any day, she is monitoring and sharing information that will support sector success and...
Vantage Point was featured in the Vancouver Guardian.
The Vancouver Guardian asked us about how we’re supporting non-profits across BC and our mission to strengthen BC’s non-profit sector through leadership, development, governance, organizational capacity building and more.
Join Vantage Point on September 17 in Terrace for the BC Non-Profit Network: Northwest BC Leaders Gathering. Deepen relationships, learn about what is happening in BC’s non-profit sector, participate in practical learning, and contribute to the next stages of growth for the BC Non-Profit Network (BCNN).