Sixty one per cent of employers are against a government proposal to allow staff three days of paid volunteering leave, according to a survey by a consultancy firm.

Jelf Employee Benefits undertook the survey at two seminar events held by the firm in London and Machester, asking a total of 226 delegates whether they would support  proposals that all employees in companies with more than 250 staff could receive three days' compulsory volunteering leave.

The proposals first appeared in the Conservative party’s manifesto prior to May’s election. The minister for civil society, Rob Wilson, confirmed in June that the proposals would be going ahead.

The survey found that 27 per cent of respondents agreed that employers should be required to offer paid leave for employers to undertake placement duties for charities and other voluntary organisations. However, a majority of 61 per cent opposed the idea, with a further 12 per cent of employers left undecided.

Steve Herbert, head of benefits strategy at Jelf Employee Benefits, said that the intention of the three days volunteering leave may be “worthy”, but “overlooks the significant impact on employers”.

He said: “Workplace absence is generally accepted to be one of the largest employment costs for UK organisations, and this commitment would add further to this. The proposed change would also pose major challenges for employers in recording this new absence type, ensuring adequate cover by colleagues, and also the administration necessary to ensure that the voluntary work qualified to be rewarded.

“There is also some concern that the entitlement, which is only intended to apply to employers with more than 250 staff, would be extended to all organisations over time.”

However, the employee benefits consultancy firm said that the manifesto commitments may lead to volunteering becoming a much more discussed issue, which “in turn could increase the number of employers who actively support this benefit option of their own volition”.

Lisa Nandy, in her role as shadow minister for civil society in the last government, criticised the three days volunteering leave when it was first proposed prior to the election. She said that by giving every public sector servant three extra days off it could cost millions of pounds and there is “no sense of how it will be paid for”.