EDIT: 'Sarah Good' hit this on the head.... IF this employee is exempt they can not have such a deduction taken from their wages..... see: http://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/compliance/f... the nonprofit could set up a bonus program and then penalize the bonus for missing budget items or for failing to meet any number of preset goals.....
While your question lacks details which could make a difference in the end, the general answer is no. Both state and federal wage and hour laws prohibit such deductions, and the employer can be fined for doing so.
I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.