In a previous thread I asked for recommended charities for donations. Thanks to those who replied. As of yet I haven't donated but the names I was given I still remember.

What has brought the issue back to the forefront of my mind is a recent review (SMP 8 March 09) of a book I read; 'The life you can save' by Peter Singer. In the review it states that many people "focus on the injustice of giving aid when others do not, rather than the injustice of not giving aid at all". I wondered if this was me. The book also has an hypothesis - if you saw a child drowning, would you save it? If so, would you also save a child in the third world who is dying of starvation, measles or malaria? Basically, in today's interconnected world we are equally able to save both. This seems a good point to me.

The final point I remember in the review / book is about the bankrupt bank Bear Stearns which had a provision in contracts for all directors that 4% of their annual salary should be given to charity. This creates a culture of 'group charity' and also eliminates to some extent the feeling that my small contribution is worthless.

So, my question - do you work for a company where there are enforced donations to charities by employees? If so, are you happy about it? If not, do you think it is a good idea? Should it be for all grades of staff, or only senior managers / directors? Should it be a sliding scale (junior employees donate 1%, while the CEO donates 10%)?