Conclusions

There were more congregations going without full-time staff in 2003 than in 2009, and the shortage is more acute for rural congregations than urban ones. Assuming that smaller congregations have smaller staffing complements, it would appear that, regardless of setting, that it is the smaller congregations that are having the most trouble finding full-time staff.

While there are more congregations going without full-time staff, there is also a trend toward reducing the number of full-time staff. Congregations with larger staffing complements in 2003 were more likely to have made full-time staffing reductions by 2009 than congregations that started out with smaller full-time staffing complements. Some congregations, however, made additions. In these cases larger urban churches were more likely to make additions, while staffing size did not appear to have any effect on the likelihood that rural congregations would make full-time additions. On the whole, however, the trend was toward fewer full-time staff.

It was the congregations who either reduced or maintained their full-time staffing complements that were more likely to increase their part-time staffing complements. Full-time positions were being converted to part-time ones at roughly twice the rate that part-time positions were being converted into full-time ones. The larger the urban full-time staffing complement in 2003, the more likely a congregation was to have made additions to its part-time staffing complements by 2009.

Other studies will be needed to definitively say why some of the trends we have observed here are happening. Still, I offer these thoughts on what might be happening with staffing in our congregations.

Over the last several decades, the variety of congregational ministries has grown as has the range of competencies that congregations expect of their staff. It is not just the range of competencies that has grown, however; it is the expectation that they will be carried out with the same level of excellence that they can find in ministries that congregants can find on television and other forms of media.

I suspect that many congregations are recognizing that it is rare for these giftings and qualities to be found in one candidate. So, on the whole, we are witnessing a move from full-time generalists to part-time specialists. Some examples of common part-time specialist positions within our congregations include worship leaders, youth pastors, family ministries pastors, seniors pastors, pastors of visitation, community outreach pastors, etc. Hiring part-time specialists allow ministries to grow incrementally without congregations having to commit to a full-time salary. It also allows them to target people with the giftings for that particular position. This allows the general quality of ministry delivery to go up because there are fewer people on staff ministering outside their strengths. While that there are potential advantages to employing part-time specialists there are also potential disadvantages. Staff may associate their value to the congregation with the priority placed on the particular program or ministry they were hired for. Congregations have more staff to invest in and develop. Part-time staff are less likely to understand the ministry of the congregation as a whole than their full-time counterparts. Creating an expectation that part-time specialists will be hired to support the sub-ministries of a congregation may discourage the development of volunteers within the congregation.

Another reason that part-time staffing levels could be growing is the need to pick up the slack from declining volunteerism in the church. If the volunteers are not there, there will be a tendency to professionalize the ministry.

In some cases, congregations may opt for part-time staff in order to save on compensation costs; however, other studies would have to confirm or refute this.

Rural congregations appear to be having trouble attracting and retaining staff. It could be that they do not have access to the same number or quality of candidates as congregations in urban centres. It may be that they are finding it difficult to pay competitive salaries, especially when many of the candidates they will be considering come to them with substantial school debts. In many cases, part-time candidates may not be able to accept a position with a congregation unless they can find at least one additional job in order to make ends meet. Rural settings are less likely to be able to provide these additional employment opportunities.

These staffing trends also have implications for Christian Higher Education institutions. Part-time positions often have a limited ministry scope such as worship or children’s ministry. Will congregations expect the same level of ministry preparation for part-time positions such as a worship pastor as they do for a senior pastor? For that matter, will part-time specialists, with more modest financial means, be reluctant to invest in educational programs designed for full-time generalists? It is likely that many of these part-time specialists are simply forgoing formal Christian Higher Education. There is a need for Christian Higher Education programs that will allow these part-time specialists to become credentialed just in their area of specialization on a schedule and budget that recognize the limitations of the positions they occupy in our congregations. If the transition to more multi-staff congregations continues (and it seems that it will), Christian Higher Education Institutions should give more attention to training ministry leaders to work in team environments, rather than as solo pastors.

Evangelical congregational full- and part-time staffing complements are, like everything else in our culture, changing rapidly. Congregations, staff, Christian higher education institutions and denominations need to be having discussions about these changes and how they are shaping our congregational lives. There are growing staffing shortages. How will staffing needs be met in the future, particularly for rural congregations? How will we train the part-time specialists for their ministry positions? When the line between volunteer ministry and parttime specialist ministry is blurry how will congregations find ways to sustain and encourage volunteers? I trust the data in this paper provide the basis on which to begin a conversation about how we can best staff our congregations going forward.

13 I say ”apparently” because the numbers of observations for the rural congregations with 4 and 5 or more full-time staff are small.