JOB MARKET

Sources of Salary Data

By Marilyn Dickey

Several organizations can provide charities with free or low-cost salary-comparison data:

The Center for Nonprofit Management, in Los Angeles, does two annual compensation surveys, one of

ALSO SEE: How Charities Evaluate Whether Their Employees' Salaries Are Equitable

nonprofit groups in Northern California and the other of organizations in the southern part of the state. Both surveys include information on base salaries as well as on bonus compensation. The price ranges from $75 to $700 depending on the purchasing organization's budget. The center also sells survey information by individual job title, for $10 to $30.

State associations of nonprofit organizations often do wage and benefit surveys. A list can be found on the National Council of Nonprofit Associations Web site. The prices vary: The Colorado Association of Nonprofits, for example, charges $60 for members and $90 for nonmembers. The Maine Association of Nonprofits charges $150 for members and $300 for organizations not associated with the organization, but it has also donated nine copies to public libraries in the state so groups that cannot afford the price can view the survey results free.

United Ways in some cities and regions also do surveys. For example, the United Way of the Texas Gulf Coast, in Houston, conducts a survey every two years. Its most recent one, completed in 2004, gleaned information from 167 local nonprofit groups. The survey is free to the groups that participated and costs $50 for others.

The Association of Fundraising Professionals surveys salaries among its members. The report is free to the trade association's members and $75 to nonmembers. The group also produces customized reports for individual fund-raising positions, which cost $40 for members and $60 for nonmembers. Each one-page report gives information specific to the type of organization, its location, its budget, and its staff size. The report takes into account the job description and the employee's years of experience.