Around 200,000 jobs could be lost in the charities sector due to the coronavirus crunch, new analysis shows.
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The Centre for Social Impact and Social Ventures Australia has modelled the impact of the crisis on the financial health of more than 16,000 charities in Australia.
One in ten Australian employees work for a charity - over 1.3 million people.
The sector has an annual turnover of $155 billion - more than 8 per cent of Australia's gross domestic product.
However the researchers found with a 20 per cent fall in revenue, 88 per cent of charities would be operating at a loss and 17 per cent would be at a high risk of shutting within six months.
A further 71 per cent were considered to be vulnerable while only 12 per cent could survive a 20 per cent drop in income.
They estimated more than 200,000 jobs could be lost as a result of cost-cutting and organisational closures.
Charities are already feeling the pinch of the coronavirus restrictions with a huge spike in demand for their services and falling numbers of volunteers.
A survey of 170 organisations in the social services sector in mid-April 2020 found that 78 per cent recorded a downturn in revenue as a result of COVID-19.
One in five (19 per cent) of those surveyed experienced falls of between 15 per cent and 30 per cent. Eighteen per cent of respondents witnessed falls of more than 30 per cent.
Shadow assistant minister for charities Andrew Leigh said even before coronavirus, 60 per cent of charities were in a vulnerable financial position, with one in four operating with a surplus of less than five per cent.
"Keeping Australia's charities afloat is essential," Dr Leigh said.
"Charities are often the safety net for people who fall through the cracks. We cannot afford not to help the helpers."
While charities were a last-minute inclusion to the government's JobKeeper package, nearly two in five (39 per cent) believed they had not received enough help from government, philanthropy and peak bodies, the survey showed.
Another third (33 per cent) believed COVID-19 posed a significant threat to the viability of their organisation.
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The sector faced "an October cliff" when JobKeeper ran out but also when the budget was handed down, the report said.
With the government planning to return to "budget repair" mode, charities faced potential cuts to their government revenue but also further demand for their services, if other supports are wound back.
The researchers urged the government to "create a ramp not a cliff for the end of JobKeeper".
This would include extending the scheme for sectors facing a slow recovery and providing ongoing support for charities.
It would also include keeping the JobSeeker unemployment payments at a higher level, and not reverting to the previous amount of Newstart.