THE FINANCIAL GAP

Mission-driven moms are unfairly financially burdened

What the ALICE Data Reveals About the Nonprofit Workforce

At Rise & Lead Moms, many of the women in our community work in nonprofits, education, advocacy, community organizing, and human services.

They are leading movements.
They are holding families together.
They are serving others.

According to a groundbreaking report released in 2024, while nonprofit workers are essential to American Society providing vital services & resources to those in need, many of them cannot afford basic household survival.

We are grateful to Independent Sector & United for ALICE for publishing research that makes this reality visible.


Data referenced below is from: “ALICE in the Nonprofit Workforce: A Study of Financial Hardship,” United for ALICE, September 2024.

1 in 5 Nonprofit Workers Are Financially Struggling

The ALICE report found that:

  • Of the 13.9 million nonprofit workers in the U.S.,
    3 million — 22% — live below the ALICE Threshold of Financial Survival.

  • The nonprofit workforce is 65% female.

That means a significant portion of women working in mission-driven roles are financially vulnerable — even while employed full time.

Full-Time Work Still Falls Short

The ALICE Household Survival Budget for one adult and one school-age child in 2022 was $46,932 annually.

Yet many common nonprofit occupations earn far less.

For example:

  • A full-time personal care aide earned $30,180 annually

  • That’s nearly $17,000 short of basic household survival.

In fact:

  • 14 of the 20 most common nonprofit jobs do not pay enough to meet basic survival for one adult and one child.

These include roles in child care, human services, teaching support & direct community care

The very roles that sustain our social fabric.

Even “Stable” Wages Don’t Guarantee Stability

The report also shows:

  • 29% of nonprofit workers earn wages that cannot support survival — and rely on other household income to stay afloat.

  • 19% earn wages below survival and live in households below the threshold.


This means many mission-driven moms:

  • Depend on a partner’s income

  • Have little margin for crisis

  • Are financially exposed in the event of divorce, illness, or job loss

This is not instability caused by irresponsibility. It is structural undercompensation.

The Equity Gap

Financial hardship is not distributed evenly.

Among nonprofit workers:

  • 17% of White workers fall below the ALICE threshold

  • 34% of Hispanic workers

  • 35% of Black workers

Women of color working in nonprofit and care roles face disproportionate financial vulnerability.

Any conversation about leadership equity must account for this.

WHY THIS MATTERS

Rise & Lead Moms serves mothers and caregivers who are:

  • Leading nonprofits

  • Organizing in their communities

  • Working in social impact roles

  • Building movements

Many are also:

  • Paying for child care

  • Supporting aging parents

  • Carrying emotional labor at home

  • Living closer to financial fragility than their titles suggest

Burnout is not just emotional. It is financial. It is structural. It is systemic.

When the women sustaining civil society are themselves financially unstable, the entire ecosystem is at risk.

Rise & Lead Moms exists to strengthen those who strengthen communities

We believe that Social-Impact Moms* deserve:

  • Economic stability

  • Leadership development

  • Emotional resilience

  • Community support

  • Infrastructure that allows them to lead without burning out or breaking financially

Supporting & empowering our moms* through our programs is not charity ; It is an investment in the stability of our communities.