Non profit jobs grow faster than business in the US

Good news for third sector employees in the US. A study carried on by Johns Hopkins University reveals that the nonprofit sector has been adding jobs faster than the for-profit sector.

According to the research from 2000 through 2010, American nonprofits increased their employment by 2.1 percent, as opposed to the employment decrease of for-profit  companies which has reduced employment by an average of 6 percent per year.

Nonprofit organizations in the U.S. employ 10.7 million people, which represent the third largest workforce among the U.S. industries.  The study concludes that the reason why the nonprofit sector registered a higher employment rate is that nonprofit organizations are active in a variety of fields that can be shielded from the usual pressures of the business cycle.

According to the study in fact 57 percent of the nonprofit jobs are in the health care field.

The study ascribes the nonprofit resilience to the fact that despite the crisis, nonprofit organizations are supported by government funding for services. Besides the research concluded that the aging of the population and female participation in the labor force have boosted the demand.

“Nonprofits are demonstrating their importance during the current recession as never before,” the study noted, “staying the course in the face of significant pressures, and expanding their operations to meet increased demands.”