Personnel and Security

Personnel

In 2017, FCA’s staff, particularly the number of locally hired personnel, continued to grow. At the end of 2017, FCA employed a total of 355 people, of which 115 worked in Helsinki, were distance working or on secondment, and 240 worked in regional and country offices either as expats (31) or locally hired personnel (209).

The total number of person-years in the organisation was 325.4, of which temporary F2F and telephone fundraisers counted for 4.6 person-years. The median age of staff was 42.6 years. Although Finn Church Aid has nearly the same number of male (51%) and female (49%) employees, there is a clear majority of women in Helsinki, while many of the field offices have a majority of men. FCA expats and personnel stationed in Helsinki had an average of 5.4 years of employment with Finn Church Aid. The majority of locally hired personnel are employed in short-term project assignments.

Approximately 78 per cent of FCA’s employees working in Helsinki or stationed abroad have a degree in higher education and 10 per cent have graduated from basic or secondary education. Thirty-one per cent of employees have obtained their degree outside of Finland. A clear majority of those who have completed their degree abroad are employed in FCA’s regional offices. The level of education of locally hired personnel varies greatly, depending on position or assignment.

Security

Security and risk management form an integral part of FCA’s operations. All staff members are responsible for security. In 2017, we assessed the security training of staff and worked to improve it even more. The training of staff responsible for security in regions is also being developed. The security manager based in Helsinki supports the development of personnel security in difficult conditions and is responsible for safety operations as a whole.

The key security guidelines and country-specific emergency plans were updated in 2017. In addition, country-specific risk assessments for offices were assessed. The standing regulations and country-specific guidelines that support the abovementioned documents were assessed to complement the general security plans. They are used to improve the security consciousness of the staff and prepare them for timely and appropriate action in emergency situations.

The most comprehensive training packages were the five-day security courses (HEIST, Hostile Environment Individual Safety Training) in Nairobi. The topics were first aid, fire safety, personal safety, risk assessment and driving safety. Now one-third of our entire staff have taken part in HEIST training. Training continues; based on the results, the training will be further developed.

In 2017, there were a few incidents requiring more severe security measures. Thanks to previous experiences, crisis management in these situations was timely and direct.