People in San Diego County are seeking help from nonprofit organizations more often due to struggles associated with the cost of living, a University of San Diego report found.
However, nonprofit employees can’t afford to stay on the job, putting further strain on the organizations, according to the report, the 2024 State of Nonprofits and Philanthropy.
The study compiled information from regional surveys and datasets related to the more than 13,000 nonprofit organizations in San Diego to track the vitality of the nonprofit sector.
The report found that 80% of surveyed organizations reported an increase in demand, and 81% of San Diego residents surveyed said they had benefited from a nonprofit in the past year.
“Nonprofits play a pivotal role in the well-being of communities, as we see right now in the response and aftermath of the recent wildfires in LA,” said Laura Deitrick, executive director of USD’s Nonprofit Institute.
San Diego nonprofits have mobilized to assist those affected by the Los Angeles wildfires, from Feeding San Diego delivering 33,000 pounds of donated food to the city last week to the San Diego Humane Society taking in dozens of animals from affected shelters.
The report found that people surveyed were more likely to express confidence in nonprofit organizations than in corporations or government agencies.
In 2024, people who engaged more often with nonprofits cited housing scarcity, reduced government funding for education, mental health needs, senior support services, homelessness and climate change impacts as top reasons for seeking aid.
Half of nonprofits surveyed reported having a waitlist for their services, with only 9% saying they were able to completely meet the increased demand from communities.
The report also found that, for the second year in a row, nearly two-thirds of San Diegans reported they are considering moving out of the county due to affordability.
That sentiment was most common among 33-to-45-year-olds, who are the backbone of the nonprofit workforce, according to the report.
Inadequate compensation and limited growth opportunities were listed as the top two reasons to leave, although 81% of nonprofit employees said they envisioned a long-term career in the sector.
The median salaries for the top three full-time nonprofit job postings were all at least $20,000 short of meeting the San Diego self-sufficiency wage for a single adult with one school-age child.
Nonprofit executives, however, are optimistic about future job growth, with 71% of executive leaders reporting job creation in the past 12 months and half of executives planning to hire in 2025.
The number of nonprofit jobs, which took a major hit during the pandemic, has rebounded to pre-pandemic levels, but job growth has slowed since 2023, aligning with broader employment trends.
Executives reported concern over employee burnout and revenue fluctuations due to grant programs being increasingly competitive, short-term and limited.
The nonprofit sector represents 8% of San Diego employment and supports 106,178 paid employees, a majority of whom are female or people of color.
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