Voluntary sector boom could offset job losses

Employment prospects weakened at the start of this year, according to the latest quarterly report from the Manpower employment agency. But while leisure, retail and sections of manufacturing suffer, the voluntary sector has seen 85,000 new jobs created during the last five years.

The proportion of employers expecting to take staff on in the first three months of the year is balanced out by employers expecting to cut staff, the Manpower survey shows. This represents a "dramatic change" for the worse in comparison with recent quarters, although it is not yet clear whether this indicates a prolonged reduction in business optimism.

Figures published by the GMB general union support this gloomy picture, with one manufacturing job being lost every working minute.

But while sectors like manufacturing suffer, the voluntary sector has grown, and now accounts for 2% of the UK workforce (563,000 paid workers in 2000), according to the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO). The charities, social enterprises, community and not-for-profit groups that make up the sector have seen their role expand. They have seen a shift from donated to earned income, and they now contribute £5.4 billion to GDP.