Before being service providers, community organizations are providers of expertise. And when this expertise is lost in the closures of organizations and the departures of employees, it is all of us who are weakened.
In the community environment, the current context brings its share of challenges. Organizations too often make do with what they have at hand, which leaves them faced with a heartbreaking choice: “If I do it (whether it’s an expense, a hire or another initiative), I’m stuck and if I don’t do it no, I’m also stuck. »
Last week, for the second time this year, I signed a letter that I didn’t want to sign: a letter of thanks to the leaders of a community organization that was closing its doors.
I did it with a heart full of contradictory emotions: gratitude, sadness and worry. Gratitude, for these more than 20 years of helping people in vulnerable situations. Sadness, wondering who was going to take the place of this essential organism. And worry, because I see this same fragility within many other community organizations.
We get a lot of calls from executives who are at their wit’s end. I always ask my colleagues what causes it. The answer is consistently a variation on the same theme: inadequate and limited funding due to several constraints, leading to pressures on the workforce.
We recently launched the fourth measure of the Financial Anxiety Index1 and, unsurprisingly, the data shows that vulnerable populations (people with functional limitations, racialized people, low-income people or people without a post-secondary diploma) are more affected. The survey also reflects what we observe in the field: maintaining concerns related to daily expenses (housing and food) can have an impact on mental health. These findings once again underline the importance of sustainably supporting community organizations in order to help those in difficult situations.
The organizations we support come from autonomous community action, that is to say they attempt to solve problems or promote changes that are not the priority of institutions such as government, public health or cities. These organizations which form the social fabric of Greater Montreal work to strengthen the community’s capacity to meet its own needs. This is a fundamental aspect for understanding the work of community organizations (and this column, at the same time).
Loss of expertise
Community organizations are not service providers. I prefer to say that they are providers of expertise.
These are groups of dedicated people who rely on the work carried out for a long time by those who have recognized the presence of social issues in their territory. They know the users of their services and the local and regional issues, and they have a front-row seat to the growing vulnerability and anxiety. They are the privileged witnesses of what is happening in the neighborhoods of Greater Montreal.
When I meet them, I always ask them: “What are you dreaming about?” » Two years ago, organization leaders were still looking to the future, seeing themselves growing and offering more services to more people. In 2024, dreams have become pragmatic, down to earth. One constant: “I would like to be able to keep my employees and pay them better. » Simple like that.
For these organizations, every penny counts. No waste here. I visit organizations that have 18 employees and a budget of 1.2 million. Do the math: you will quickly understand that the average salary is low and that there is often no group insurance plan, and even fewer RRSPs offered by the employer. In such a context, the loss of a grant can be very painful. Add to this the effects of the labor shortage of the last two years and you will understand how we find ourselves facing one of the biggest issues in the community sector: the loss of expertise.
This phenomenon of “revolving doors” and closure of organizations is dangerously counterproductive. Even more so in the context of the growing complexity of cases experienced by certain organizations.
A few weeks ago, I met the director of an organization that offers services to people who are going through difficult times or a period of transition, ranging from arrival in the country to mental health issues or loss of life. ‘a job. These people need us to take the time to listen to them, but above all to understand them. With them, we must develop a form of mutual listening which benefits both parties and which allows us to better understand the issues, and therefore to intervene better.
This approach works, all community organizations will tell you that. But it relies entirely on the expertise of the participants and their financing. Two organizations closing, one worker leaving: this is how we arrive at gaps in services for vulnerable people, which puts even more pressure on other organizations. This fragility directly threatens the social fabric that we have collectively woven.
In less than four months, this year, the two letters I signed represent two fewer meshes in the net. We should not think that its capacity for regeneration is eternal.
Visit the United Way Financial Anxiety Index page
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reference: www.lapresse.ca