History And Growth Of Non-Profit Action
A non-profit action or a not-for-profit entity in the simplest of terms is a group of certain individuals working towards a common objective other than revenue generation for personal gains. The widely popularized non-profit actions are generally ones that target social issue or voice the opinion of a certain section of the society on a particular issue. The surplus funds generated by such organization are utilized in furthering the designated causes and actions.
A Historical Account Of Non-Profits
The very first charitable organization in the world is believed to have been situated in London. The year 1741 is thought to be the time when the concept of non-profits first emerged in theworld. The Foundling Hospital in London is supposedly the first non-profit entity to ever exist in the era of mankind. Later on, YMCA was founded in the year 1884, and The Red Cross was established in the year 1881. After the Tax Reform Act in 1969, the number of non-profits in the US itself increased rapidly over the years. As stated by the Business Master File (4/2016), 1,571,056 tax-exempt organizations were monitored to be up and running. Prior to the emergence of modern laws, non-profits indulged in giving away large salaries to the employees working at the upper level of the organization’s hierarchy.
As new laws came into effect that stated the terms for a business to be formed non-profit, a cap on the salaries of the employees of not-for-profit organizations came into being. However, it is a common misconception that a non-profit entirely consists of volunteers and zero salaried employees.
Salaried employees do exist in the non-profit sector, but the salaries aren’t extravagant.
The Growth Of The Non-Profit Sector
In accordance with a report published by PNP Staffing Group in the year 2016, the past ten years as of then accommodated for a 20% growth in the non-profit sector. The same report stated that the number of employees being hired by non-profits is undertaking an upward spiral. More than 50% of the non-profits have been reported to have increased number of employees.
Diving into a more segregated section-based approach, the healthcare sector has emerged as the biggest one focusing on employment of non-profit workers. The second spot is taken by the education sector. All in all, healthcare and education are two major themes undertaken by non-profit organizations. A huge factor that contributes to the massive growth of the non-profit sector in the first decade of the 21st century and so on is because a massive number of social entrepreneurs have come into the picture. A single man’s vision targeted at the mutual benefit of the society doesn’t take long to take form as a full-fledged and properly funded organization.
The ground reality concerning the growth of not-for-profit organizations can be detailed by the fact that since 1970, organizations targeting non-profits causes have grown to be more than 200,000 in number, but only a small portion out of them (114 to be exact) have reached $50 million in yearly revenue.
Non-profits are growing at a much faster rate when compared to commercial organizations. One thing can be interpreted from the above fact; humanity is taking baby steps towards attaining its best. Theodore Roosevelt has said it best; “No one cares how much you know until they know how much you care.”