--- title: "Daily Buzz: Who Earns More, Nonprofit or For-Profit Workers?" id: "46883" type: "post" slug: "daily-buzz-who-earns-more-nonprofit-or-for-profit-workers" published_at: "2019-06-03T21:30:11+00:00" modified_at: "2026-03-17T01:25:44+00:00" url: "https://associationsnow.com/2019/06/03/daily-buzz-who-earns-more-nonprofit-or-for-profit-workers/" markdown_url: "https://associationsnow.com/2019/06/03/daily-buzz-who-earns-more-nonprofit-or-for-profit-workers.md" excerpt: "Service-oriented jobs are gaining favor with college grads—and nonprofit paychecks are catching up. Also: Meeting planners, your time is money." taxonomy_category: - "Career Development" taxonomy_post_tag: - "AssociationsNow" - "Business" - "careers" - "New to Associations" - "NextGen" - "organizational purpose" - "salary survey" taxonomy_content_format: - "Article" taxonomy_role: - "Association CEO / Executive Director" - "C-Level" - "Executive Team" - "VP" taxonomy_persona: - "Early Career" --- [Home](https://associationsnow.com/) » [Articles](https://associationsnow.com/format/article/) » Daily Buzz: Who Earns More, Nonprofit or For-Profit Workers? About four-out-of-five recent college graduates say it’s very important to have a sense of purpose in their work, [according to a new Gallup poll (opens in a new tab)](https://www.gallup.com/education/248222/gallup-bates-purposeful-work-2019.aspx) . But with college debt looming overhead, can they find careers that are both purpose-driven and pay the bills? Where for-profit jobs once had the advantage in offering higher pay, research shows nonprofit salaries can be just as competitive. In fact, average compensation, including benefits, for employees at nonprofits is $7.86 per hour more than those at for-profits, according to [US Bureau of Labor Statistics data (opens in a new tab)](https://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2016/article/nonprofit-pay-and-benefits.htm) from 2014, the latest year for which figures are available. “The growing interest in nonprofit work is yet another signal that employers should be aligning themselves with their purpose-driven employee pools,” [writes Michelle Cheng on Quartz at Work (opens in a new tab)](https://qz.com/work/1592258/the-surprising-salary-comparisons-for-nonprofit-and-for-profit-jobs/) . “Plus, it pays off: [Studies (opens in a new tab)](https://www.forbes.com/sites/caterinabulgarella/2018/09/21/purpose-driven-companies-evolve-faster-than-others/#6ae702fa55bc) show that employees who derive meaning from work report higher satisfaction and are more likely to stay with the company longer. In short, companies should no longer be striving to either be purpose-driven or profit-driven—but finding a case for both.” ### What Are You Spending Time On? > Meeting and Event Planners: Your Time is Money [https://t.co/F10LIt7yFj (opens in a new tab)](https://t.co/F10LIt7yFj) > via [@smartmeetings (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/SmartMeetings?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) > > — Terry Bemis (He/Him) (@TerryBemis) [May 31, 2019 (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/TerryBemis/status/1134536069209362433?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) **As a meeting planner**, you know your time is valuable. So why are you giving away your time to tasks that are beneath you? “As an event planner, what you bring to the table is your years of events expertise, your charisma in selling a vision, and your business savvy in managing a budget,” [says Karen Gordon on Smart Meetings (opens in a new tab)](https://www.smartmeetings.com/meeting-planning/117212/meeting-event-planners-your-time-is-money) . “If you’re spending time doing things a computer or an assistant can do, you’re depriving clients of the moxie that got you into the business to begin with.” To ensure that you’re focusing on activities fit for your job level, Gordon suggests taking inventory of your time and noting assignments that don’t match your level of expertise. Then, delegate. “We must start recognizing that our time is of value,” she says. “The cost of hiring another human or investing in technology or a consulting service needs to be weighed against the high cost of repeated wasted time.” ### Other Links of Note **Struggling from decision fatigue?** The HubSpot blog offers tips on how to [train your brain for smart decision making (opens in a new tab)](https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/tips-to-avoid-decision-fatigue) . **Long live your passwords:** Microsoft is doing away with its password expiration feature. [TechCrunch explains the change (opens in a new tab)](https://techcrunch.com/2019/06/02/password-expiration-is-dead-long-live-your-passwords/) . **Members’ needs change** as they move along in their careers. The YourMembership blog outlines [strategies for providing value at every stage (opens in a new tab)](https://www.yourmembership.com/blog/support-members-career-journey/) . (SARINYAPINNGAM/iStock/Getty Images Plus) [Jeff Hsin](https://associationsnow.com/author/jeff-hsin/) [More articles by this author](https://associationsnow.com/author/jeff-hsin/) Tags: [#Business](https://associationsnow.com/tag/business/) [#careers](https://associationsnow.com/tag/careers/) [#New to Associations](https://associationsnow.com/tag/new-to-associations/) [#NextGen](https://associationsnow.com/tag/nextgen/) [#organizational purpose](https://associationsnow.com/tag/organizational-purpose/) [#salary survey](https://associationsnow.com/tag/salary-survey/) **Stay Informed** [Subscribe to our free newsletter](https://associationsnow.com/newsletter/) , *Associations Now Daily News*, to find out what’s happening in the association world every business day. ## You Might Like - [VideoASAE’s The ExchangeApril 24, 2025](https://associationsnow.com/2025/04/24/asaes-the-exchange/) - [ArticleHow Associations Can Assist Young ProfessionalsJune 12, 2026](https://associationsnow.com/2026/06/12/how-associations-can-assist-young-professionals/) - [VideoAllison Isch, PMP Shares Her Experience at the 2026 ASAE Annual Meeting & ExpositionAugust 18, 2026](https://associationsnow.com/2026/08/18/allison-isch-pmp-shares-her-experience-at-the-2026-asae-annual-meeting-exposition/) - [VideoIntroducing the ASAE Future Leaders Professional Development ScholarshipJune 14, 2024](https://associationsnow.com/2024/06/14/introducing-the-asae-future-leaders-professional-development-scholarship/) ## Comments **Comments are for ASAE members.** [Learn more about comments on this site.](https://associationsnow.com/comments/) [Log in](https://associationsnow.com/login?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fassociationsnow.com%2F2019%2F06%2F03%2Fdaily-buzz-who-earns-more-nonprofit-or-for-profit-workers%2F%23comments) to your member account or [join ASAE](https://my.asaecenter.org/select-a-membership-type/) !