The current political climate has encouraged me to reflect upon how employers treat employees. Certainly capitalism makes labor a commodity: the pressures of the market try to get the most labor for the cheapest cost. Still, I believe that there are ethical considerations for how laborers should be treated.
This is particularly true when the church is involved. We need to value the people who are serving as employees, not just the labor we want them to provide for our ministry. Jesus would expect nothing less, as demonstrated by his teaching and example, which celebrated the value of each person.
With such an outlook, the church should be one of the greatest places to work. Unfortunately, many people do not have that experience. There can be a number of complaints, including low pay, long hours, and sometimes unreasonable expectations (if the expectations are even explicitly stated).
While the most obvious paid employees of the church are ministers, congregations and ministries can have a variety of employees -- office workers, facilities people, teachers, technicians, musicians, worship assistants, and more. In most ministry settings, especially small and medium-size congregations, it can be challenging to provide adequate oversight and support for these employees.
Most congregations are not experts in human resources. If board officers, trustees, or directors have the personnel responsibilities, they may have little to no experience hiring, resourcing, evaluating, or dismissing employees. This likely is also true of pastors who may find themselves in the position of overseeing other employees. Instead, there often is an expectation that people are simply hired to do a specific job, which they are trusted to do. If they do it adequately, they keep the job.
However, personnel matters take time and attention, even when things are going well. If there are problems, they often take significantly more time and attention. Over time, people in the church can gain awareness and understanding of how to handle these matters faithfully and well. Of course, frequently, congregations and ministries have term-limits for many of these positions, which means there may often be new people in these leadership roles.
There are some basic things that the church can do to fairly deal with employees:
1. Rely on other resources in the church for advice. You don't have to do any of these things alone. And, happily, you are not the first congregation/ministry to deal with this personnel issue (even the tough ones). So lean on your ministry connections. Ask denominational leaders for advice and resources: many have local people you can contact with questions. Talk to leaders in other similar congregations. Find people in your congregation who have HR experience, or who know people with that experience, and talk to them. Many people with lots of HR experience are often willing to help a small non-profit ministry or congregation, especially when it seems that the ministry/congregation is making a good-faith attempt to handle the issue well.
2. Be clear on the job expectations and supervision. Ideally, this is something that should be done before a job search begins to hire someone, but it often needs to be revisited and updated. Employees are more likely to be successful, in any environment, if they understand what they are supposed to do and who their boss is. This can be difficult in a congregational setting where there are often many unspoken expectations and many people who try to provide guidance to employees. However, it is usually necessary, especially in a context where most job positions have more responsibilities than the hours given to meet them (which is often painfully true in the church). A clear and prioritized job description, coupled with supervision based on that job description, offers the greatest chance of success, both for the employee and for the congregation/ministry.
3. Provide fair compensation. Every organization wants to get lots of exceptional work for as little money as possible. In many places, the only thing that forces increases in pay and benefit is a shortage of people willing to work. This is more complicated in Christian ministry settings, for a couple of reasons. First, most people are willing to work in an organization for less pay if they personally support the goals of that organization. Second, every position that a congregation or ministry might hire is done in other similar contexts by volunteers. There are unpaid church secretaries and musicians; there are even people who do not take a cent to preach the gospel and visit the sick. These reasons tend to lead congregations and ministries to low-ball what they expect to pay a staff person. Even worse, it can create an unspoken expectation where the employee works extra without any additional pay. Don't let your congregation fall into this trap. And remember that fair compensation involves more than salary: it includes benefits such as vacation/leave time, health insurance, pension/retirement options, and more.
4. Offer flexibility to compensate for lower compensation. No one works in a ministry setting in order to get rich. As mentioned above, many people who serve do so because they value the goals of the organization. Most people who work in a church setting believe that what they do is part of their ministry, whether their job title is minister or not. Frequently, these staff people willingly go above and beyond. Don't simply take this for granted. Instead, offer flexibility to show your appreciation for the efforts of these people. This flexibility can take many forms -- allowing work from home, balancing schedules around family needs, and more. At times, the church can be even more generous, offering people paid leaves during times of illness (their own or someone else in the family) or bereavement longer than is typical in other workplaces. The church can be, and often is, a grace-filled environment.
5. Do not be afraid to take action when a staff member is not working out. Not every job is a good fit, even if it looks like it will be on paper or in the interview process. And not every employee is a conscientious worker who meets expectations. Often, a church-setting will try to extend grace to people who are struggling in positions, which is good up to a point. There needs to be efforts to try to improve the situation, either by giving the employee more explicit expectations to improve performance or by redesigning the job description to better match the gifts of an employee (if that is possible). However, it is best for everyone involved, including the employee, to admit when things are not working out, even after these attempts are made. It is never easy to encourage someone to look for another position, or in the extreme case to fire them, but if attempts to improve the situation fail, action needs to be taken. Those in the congregation or ministry who have responsibilities to oversee employees must be able to make this decision; if not, others need to take their places.
Each of these issues can be explored in much more detail. Still, this offers a brief overview of the type of supervision needed in a congregation or ministry that has paid employees.
This is particularly true when the church is involved. We need to value the people who are serving as employees, not just the labor we want them to provide for our ministry. Jesus would expect nothing less, as demonstrated by his teaching and example, which celebrated the value of each person.
With such an outlook, the church should be one of the greatest places to work. Unfortunately, many people do not have that experience. There can be a number of complaints, including low pay, long hours, and sometimes unreasonable expectations (if the expectations are even explicitly stated).
While the most obvious paid employees of the church are ministers, congregations and ministries can have a variety of employees -- office workers, facilities people, teachers, technicians, musicians, worship assistants, and more. In most ministry settings, especially small and medium-size congregations, it can be challenging to provide adequate oversight and support for these employees.
Most congregations are not experts in human resources. If board officers, trustees, or directors have the personnel responsibilities, they may have little to no experience hiring, resourcing, evaluating, or dismissing employees. This likely is also true of pastors who may find themselves in the position of overseeing other employees. Instead, there often is an expectation that people are simply hired to do a specific job, which they are trusted to do. If they do it adequately, they keep the job.
However, personnel matters take time and attention, even when things are going well. If there are problems, they often take significantly more time and attention. Over time, people in the church can gain awareness and understanding of how to handle these matters faithfully and well. Of course, frequently, congregations and ministries have term-limits for many of these positions, which means there may often be new people in these leadership roles.
There are some basic things that the church can do to fairly deal with employees:
1. Rely on other resources in the church for advice. You don't have to do any of these things alone. And, happily, you are not the first congregation/ministry to deal with this personnel issue (even the tough ones). So lean on your ministry connections. Ask denominational leaders for advice and resources: many have local people you can contact with questions. Talk to leaders in other similar congregations. Find people in your congregation who have HR experience, or who know people with that experience, and talk to them. Many people with lots of HR experience are often willing to help a small non-profit ministry or congregation, especially when it seems that the ministry/congregation is making a good-faith attempt to handle the issue well.
2. Be clear on the job expectations and supervision. Ideally, this is something that should be done before a job search begins to hire someone, but it often needs to be revisited and updated. Employees are more likely to be successful, in any environment, if they understand what they are supposed to do and who their boss is. This can be difficult in a congregational setting where there are often many unspoken expectations and many people who try to provide guidance to employees. However, it is usually necessary, especially in a context where most job positions have more responsibilities than the hours given to meet them (which is often painfully true in the church). A clear and prioritized job description, coupled with supervision based on that job description, offers the greatest chance of success, both for the employee and for the congregation/ministry.
3. Provide fair compensation. Every organization wants to get lots of exceptional work for as little money as possible. In many places, the only thing that forces increases in pay and benefit is a shortage of people willing to work. This is more complicated in Christian ministry settings, for a couple of reasons. First, most people are willing to work in an organization for less pay if they personally support the goals of that organization. Second, every position that a congregation or ministry might hire is done in other similar contexts by volunteers. There are unpaid church secretaries and musicians; there are even people who do not take a cent to preach the gospel and visit the sick. These reasons tend to lead congregations and ministries to low-ball what they expect to pay a staff person. Even worse, it can create an unspoken expectation where the employee works extra without any additional pay. Don't let your congregation fall into this trap. And remember that fair compensation involves more than salary: it includes benefits such as vacation/leave time, health insurance, pension/retirement options, and more.
4. Offer flexibility to compensate for lower compensation. No one works in a ministry setting in order to get rich. As mentioned above, many people who serve do so because they value the goals of the organization. Most people who work in a church setting believe that what they do is part of their ministry, whether their job title is minister or not. Frequently, these staff people willingly go above and beyond. Don't simply take this for granted. Instead, offer flexibility to show your appreciation for the efforts of these people. This flexibility can take many forms -- allowing work from home, balancing schedules around family needs, and more. At times, the church can be even more generous, offering people paid leaves during times of illness (their own or someone else in the family) or bereavement longer than is typical in other workplaces. The church can be, and often is, a grace-filled environment.
5. Do not be afraid to take action when a staff member is not working out. Not every job is a good fit, even if it looks like it will be on paper or in the interview process. And not every employee is a conscientious worker who meets expectations. Often, a church-setting will try to extend grace to people who are struggling in positions, which is good up to a point. There needs to be efforts to try to improve the situation, either by giving the employee more explicit expectations to improve performance or by redesigning the job description to better match the gifts of an employee (if that is possible). However, it is best for everyone involved, including the employee, to admit when things are not working out, even after these attempts are made. It is never easy to encourage someone to look for another position, or in the extreme case to fire them, but if attempts to improve the situation fail, action needs to be taken. Those in the congregation or ministry who have responsibilities to oversee employees must be able to make this decision; if not, others need to take their places.
Each of these issues can be explored in much more detail. Still, this offers a brief overview of the type of supervision needed in a congregation or ministry that has paid employees.
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