GuideStone Financial Resources, LifeWay Research and Baptist state conventions have teamed up again in 2018 for the biennial Southern Baptist Convention Church Compensation Survey.
Pastors and church employees are invited to participate in the survey, a resource used by churches of all sizes to determine fair wages and benefits. The survey takes about 10 minutes to complete; it is available at GuideStone.org/CompensationSurvey. Survey respondents can enter to win an iPad.
The survey’s results will be made available in the early fall, in time for many churches considering their 2019 budgets. The survey is the largest free church compensation study available in the United States.
These surveys are a valuable tool for churches to benchmark their own salary and benefits against churches of similar size within Southern Baptist life. Through GuideStone’s compensation planning materials, GuideStone offers materials to help churches structure their compensation to make proper use of tax laws.
Respondents should have available the church’s average weekly attendance, church membership and 2018 annual budget, along with their annual salary, annual contributions to a retirement plan and annual church-paid insurance premiums. They should also have their annual housing allowance, Social Security offset and rental value and utilities for church-provided housing.
Individual survey results can be contributed anonymously; survey results are not reported individually. Once the survey closes May 31, LifeWay Research will work on compiling the results. Respondents will receive advance notice of the survey’s availability. The winner of the iPad will be notified via email.
(EDITOR’S NOTE – Roy Hayhurst is director of denominational and public relations services for GuideStone Financial Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention.)