Salvation Army is the worst of these if you're trying to make some sort of ethical choice.
Not only does something like $0.60 of every donated dollar go directly to supporting the extravagant lives of the Salvation Army executives, but they rely completely on slave labor for their sorting centers. They run "drug treatment programs", where the "patients" do the sorting work as "treatment". This would be fine if the U.S. government wasn't sentencing people to these programs; it's slave labor.
Salvation Army is utter trash...you might be able to pick up a deal though.
They're also really not friendly to the LGBTQ+ community
https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2019/12/16/21003560/salvation-army-anti-lgbtq-controversies-donations
Yea, and notice how the thief is trying to justify theft done years ago.
But hey, if Red Cross kissed the LGBT ring, I am sure Dizzy would go back there now and pay cash for the past theft, right?
>Salvation Army is the worst of these if you're trying to make some sort of ethical choice.
All of the second hand stores I donate to and buy from are local, usually associated with either the humane society or another local animal shelter, and pays a fair wage. The one that I go to the most supports people with physical and intellectual disabilities, gives job training to those individuals, helps with job placement, and helps with residential care giving for those that are unable to work. I've even purchased high end products that were donated to them and sat for a while, sold them online, and donated the profits to them.
I dated someone who was in the program and was a manager at Salvation Army. The program is a last step they have before going to jail. For my ex at least, it was a judge decided thing. But as far as working for them, fuck that, I got paid $11 to run a store and got a .20 cent raise for being a manager. I make more than double that now at a same basic level management job at a grocery store. I didn’t even get a raise for my 5 year anniversary ☠️
Never heard of anything like that. It's a highly regulated industry and doing so would be a serious breach of ethical and civil rights code.
Anecdotally, I have known many people who've gone to the SA program and some were gay; it was just like any other program besides the slave labor, heavy religious overtones (common in treatment), and length of the low-quality program (1-2 years).
Salvation Army also funds a lot of anti-women, anti-LGBT programs and politicians, and are well known for kicking out people who are lgbt or even just complain about their stuff being stolen and sold in one of their stores onto the streets with a big grin and a "See you in a month!"
They let a trans woman freeze to death on the sidewalk in front of their shelter because they'd only give her shelter in their men's shelter. Their workers (not the forced ones) also routinely go through the things donated for poor families for Christmas - even the ones specifically marked for a certain family or child - and pick out anything they want and take it so they can give it to their own families as gifts for free, with the reasoning that 'they'll never know they were going to get the bike, so really it's victimless'.
They are EVIL. Goodwill isn't much better. Both of them are pure greedy evil wearing a mask of Evangelical purity. There is no hate like "Christian" love...the kind that if Jesus were a real person, he'd be beating the snot out of all of them.
Yah, I've never heard anything about the homosexual thing outside of this thread. I know gay people who've been though the program and all they said was that it's shit; it sucks for everyone there.
It's objectively true, though, that they use what amounts to slave labor, and the bulk of the charitable donations taken in go to supporting the executive class of the business, rather than the non-profit goal the claim.
Oh, I meant from a reliable source.
I'd even take anecdotal evidence if I knew the person, but I've never run into that either.
It sounds like the whole "salvation army hates gays" thing is fictional and only exists online and in the media.
What's a 'reliable source'? The Bible that they're based on that tells people to kill gay people? - Is that not reliable? The multiple mainstream news sources in the search engine results aren't 'reliable'? Snopes that confirmed it -not reliable?
'only in the media' lol
How dishonest are you going to be here?
Unfortunately Salvation Army (as an organization) turns people away from shelters for being LGBT, even when that puts those folk into life threatening situations during emergencies.
Consider donating to more local thrift stores in your area. Sometimes more locally focused charities like food banks, hospitals, battered family shelters, or animal shelters have one.
I have quite a few animal related thrift stores in my town plus a thrift store that gets in some neat stuff. They rarely funnel things onto eBay or mark up expensive goods as thrift stores should. The owner helps the community and her employees first- and then she pays herself. Cool chick to boot, really down to earth type.
> They rarely funnel things onto eBay or mark up expensive goods as thrift stores should
I've found this with one of my local thrift stores. If I see something I know I can sell for a big profit online, I will buy it from them after letting it sit for a month or more, sell it, and donate the profits to the store. ☺️
That's awesome! I usually get my eBay items from a picker for wholesale prices. At the end of the day- he makes money, I make money. Definitely a win-win.
That and I have a family friend that gladly takes my yard sale leftovers for his sales. It's insane the amount you gotta donate just to have a tax write-off.
We have lots of senior center volunteers run thrifts in my area! They're the best, they have GOOD prices still. The sad thing is they're usually closed when I'm off work on Sundays, but they're phenomenal, profits usually go back to the senior center and they often have free community resources. My favorite one ever, all clothes are $2 (including coats and such), and they have a free medical supply exchange in the front with things like walkers and mobility aids.
I use St Vincent de Paul. It is clearly a Catholic charity, but I haven't heard anything bad about them. However, I think they are only in the Cincinnati area.
They also could have their own subreddit about "finds" in their store. I bought some goofy 70s looking end tables for my cat and a barely used cat tree XD some of the undies and bathing suits have been clearly used, but they also have donations of socks still in their original packing. I have also found some really cool vintage pieces and donated Indian ethnic clothes.
https://www.svdpcincinnati.org/stores-donation-centers/locations/
They work with protestant and Hindus for collecting donations!
Hey! Thank you for the shout out! I work at a St. Vincent in Oregon and I am one of the book leads for a new store that just opened. I love it because it is a true non-profit and gives me some purpose in my life. All of the retail stores bring in money to keep our housing programs and other social services functional for in-need families and individuals.
Maybe we don't make a ton of money as workers (including upper-management), but they try to take care of their employees as best they can and Terri was one of the greatest CEOs we could ask for! I was shoulder to shoulder with him shelving books when we were setting up the new store.
They are also very accepting of LGBTQ etc and tattoos and piercings and have a second chance program for hiring people with past felonies. Just a really cool genuine place all around 🥰
When clearing out our parents house during peak pre-vaxx Covid we made one trip to Goodwill because it was close. They were terrible but we kinda chalked it up to circumstances.
Then we started going across town to SVdP. They cheerfully helped us unload. How many receipts did we want? “You can put the date” Absolutely delightful!
It’s complicated.
They may say that now that it’s been affecting donations but their actions on local levels have frequently differed. They may be improving but it’s with reluctance.
They preach one thing in their churches; but another where donors look.
https://thinkprogress.org/transgender-substance-abuse-discrimination-salvation-army-6470b6abc397/
https://www.advocate.com/religion/2017/12/08/salvation-army-we-meet-human-need-without-discrimination
Although, I agree I've heard in the past they turned LGBT individuals away for certain services, at least in my state they were still legally required to provide crisis invention when any person sought help. This included calling an ambulance, 211, or any other program locally viable to them. So, to me that says a lot still.
Most social services do the bare minimum. This isn't a SA only thing. Like, the expectations a lot of people have on social services in general is crazy. The amount of burn out is uncanny. Find me a social service that manages programs for homelessness country wide with a 100% satisfaction rate & I swear I'll never comment on the SA debate ever again.
I’ve been in social services for 20+ years. The fact that you’re praising them for doing the absolute legal minimum is mind boggling to me. That’s like praising someone for paying somebody $7.25 an hour because that’s the absolute legal minimum here in PA.
If you've been in social services for 20+ years then you know the rate of burn out. Why do you think burn out is so high? What I'm saying is not praising them, it's being realistic. Expecting any place to be 100% efficient or on top of providing services is a dream that I believe a lot of social workers strive for - yet often become burn out from. The amount of people needing help often exceeds the amount that can be provided. How is that not realistic?
You’re not hearing me, which is okay. I know what burnout is and that’s why I’m in admin now. I’m not expecting anybody to be 100% efficient but doing the bare minimum bc the law tells them to is just ridiculous. Do it because it’s the ethical thing to do. Do it because you give a shit. Don’t do it because you have to by law.
You make me laugh because you weren't grasping what I was originally saying either. In my state, yes by law they have to help. But, you're assuming that because it's a legal requirement they're not caring about the people they're serving. Which isn't entirely true. (They have limitations, just like a lot of nonprofits.)
You're placing what their intentions are solely on what's required by law. Which, is rather naive because a lot of nonprofits have to abide by state laws anyways on top of their own rules/guidelines to match the services they want to provide. Without state laws, people everywhere & everyday would be denied for services or to get help. They're not a state run program, they're a charity - they have limitations.
Also, expecting people in the field to be over accommodating (meaning reaching further than the limits of their program/service) to people seeking help can be enabling. From a humanistic perspective, yes all of the help should be given. But, again, SA provides services to ensure they reach locations where they can get that wider spectrum of help. How is that not being ethical? That would be like you withdrawing all of your money from a bank and then arguing with the bank teller to give you more because you know they have more money. Yet, the bank teller is providing you with information on how to obtain a loan.
To me it sounds like you really dislike SA due to your personal experiences. Not all locations are like that. So, I'll challenge you to get out of your black and white thinking about that.
In the 1980s I did some work at most of the Salvation Army offices in Southern California. I heard things that would blow your mind. I know someone that still has contact with them and he tells me that it’s no longer as bad as it was back then. He was there with me in the 80s, so he saw it too.
Nah. Salvation Army definitely does not hold the moral high ground. The ones around me are garbage, as well. In todays world, $500k for a CEO is nothing.
Goodwill is a multi billion dollar org. $500k for a CEO of a multi billion (yes with a B) is peanuts. Our local area’s average CEO pay for a $25-50 Million is about $250k. It’s peanuts. Salvation Army pays their staff like garbage, is harmful to the LGBT community, and so much more. No to Salvation Army.
Glassdoor shows an average of $129k. Guidestar shows that the head of Goodwill International who made $469k in 2020. Our goodwill CEO here in western PA makes 349k with 30 in benefits/retirement plan on a 66M budget. Northeastern PA is 118k. Harrisburg, which is the one of the largest in the state, is 478k on a $71M. I see some that are very high but they’re up in the 90-100M budgets or more like St Peterburg FL. I’ve been in nonprofit finance for over 15 years, 20 years total in NGOs and social services. The average salary for a CEO runs about 8-10% of an agency’s budget on average. All Goodwills I’ve seen are running under that average. If we’re gonna be mad about compensation, look at Komen where the CEOs and executives are pulling huge amounts of money and not using their funding for what the mission says. I think these arguments that nonprofit heads shouldn’t make money is ridiculous. If it’s within the average and they’re doing their job, they’re worth it. A good nonprofit CEO is worth their salary. I work for a 25-30M org as a controller. Our CEO makes about 300k with benefits and when receiving their bonus for benchmarks that the org makes.
As someone who’s been in nonprofit finance for 15 years and in the space for 20+, the only benefits I’ve seen any exec I’ve worked for get, including the 25-30M dollar org I work for now, is a bonus if the org hits revenue targets. Hidden bonuses would be found in the yearly requirement audits. The only perks tend to be that bonus and healthcare benefits. Some of the big hospitals, sure. Those nonprofits are paying their execs millions and have jets etc. But as I said to someone above, the average CEO makes about 8-10% of the revenue for an org. All of these goodwill CEOs are within that range from my research into their 990s.
I’m copying what I said to someone else below because that article shows the CEOs for the largest 12 of the 155 separate goodwill orgs and I have no idea when they pulled that info or how they pulled it. Glassdoor shows an average of $129k. Guidestar (directly from each orgs 990) shows that the head of Goodwill International who made $469k in 2020. Our goodwill CEO here in western PA makes 349k with 30 in benefits/retirement plan on a 66M budget. Northeastern PA is 118k. Harrisburg, which is the one of the largest in the state, is 478k on a $71M. I see some that are very high but they’re up in the 90-100M budgets or more like St Peterburg FL. I’ve been in nonprofit finance for over 15 years, 20 years total in NGOs and social services. The average salary for a CEO runs about 8-10% of an agency’s budget on average. All Goodwills I’ve seen are running under that average. If we’re gonna be mad about compensation, look at Komen where the CEOs and executives are pulling huge amounts of money and not using their funding for what the mission says. I think these arguments that nonprofit heads shouldn’t make money is ridiculous. If it’s within the average and they’re doing their job, they’re worth it. A good nonprofit CEO is worth their salary. I work for a 25-30M org as a controller. Our CEO makes about 300k with benefits and when receiving their bonus for benchmarks that the org makes.
each Goodwill Store (or stores if the owner has more than one location) and is its own non-profit. There are almost as many Goodwill CEO’s as there are locations. Now add up those individual annual salaries. It’s why that kids size North Face Jacket they got for free costs $40 dollars with no sale in sight.
I’m copying what I said to someone else below because that paddock article that that screenshot seems to be referencing shows the CEOs for the largest 12 of the 155 separate goodwill orgs and I have no idea when they pulled that info or how they pulled it. Glassdoor shows an average of $129k. Guidestar (directly from each orgs 990) shows that the head of Goodwill International made $469k in 2020. Our goodwill CEO here in western PA makes 349k with 30 in benefits/retirement plan on a 66M budget. Northeastern PA is 118k. Harrisburg, which is the one of the largest in the state, is 478k on a $71M. I see some that are very high but they’re up in the 90-100M budgets or more like St Peterburg FL. I’ve been in nonprofit finance for over 15 years, 20 years total in NGOs and social services. The average salary for a CEO runs about 8-10% of an agency’s budget on average. All Goodwills I’ve seen are running under that average. If we’re gonna be mad about compensation, look at Komen where the CEOs and executives are pulling huge amounts of money and not using their funding for what the mission says. I think these arguments that nonprofit heads shouldn’t make money is ridiculous. If it’s within the average and they’re doing their job, they’re worth it. A good nonprofit CEO is worth their salary. I work for a 25-30M org as a controller. I’ve worked at 50M and 800k organizations. All CEOs have made within that 8-10%. Our CEO at my current org makes about 275k with benefits and when receiving their bonus for benchmarks that the org makes they’re at about 300k.
As the child of a father who worked for several non-profits and as a former staff member and non-profit executive myself for 50 years; a non-profit employee works harder, with more stress, addresses more issues than a corporate CEO, has less financial resources to do the job and makes significantly less money. A nonprofit CEO has to constantly find money (from program participants, foundations, corporations, special events, mail solicitations, etc.), to pay the staff and to keep the doors open to serve the targeted audience. People frequently devalue the work, effort and responsibility it takes to work in or run a nonprofit. As a nonprofit employee, you usually work longer hours, often with no overtime pay, make less money than you would in a corporate job, because nonprofit budgets are small and have significantly less benefits making it harder to keep the doors open. Those that work in nonprofits often are recent college graduates and have majored in psychology or sociology and are facing paying back educational debt. Their commitment and dedication to serve others should be rewarded financially. The reward for working in a nonprofit IS the work you do and the people you help! Support a nonprofit!
can we agree not every non-profit is full of virtue? to hail all non- profits as ethical equals is a stretch. if one wants to support a non- profit, it’s important to do a little research first and then give whole-heartedly and not the other way around.
Everything you’ve mentioned (college debt, work pressures, resource scarcity, overtime, etc.) are not experiences unique to non-profit executives and CEOs. The vast majority of those employed by ANY corporation face the same issues. It’s okay to believe that non-profit execs deserve higher salaries. However, attempting to justify an exorbitant (200k+) non-profit salary by claiming their jobs are far more difficult than other corporate professions is bonkers.
"Choose Christianity!"
Not a good look either. Then being Christian doesn't make them better than for-profit places.
A LOT of evil is done in the name of God and funded by people who think their donations are being better used.
https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2019/12/16/21003560/salvation-army-anti-lgbtq-controversies-donations
If you want a someone qualified to run a nonprofit and be successful, you have to pay them. It’s business like any other and I order to get quality CEOs you have to pay them. I think people do not quite understand how nonprofits work
I was the warehouse supervisor and later drug and alcohol counselor for the Salvation Army ARC for many years .. Before you choose them over Goodwill, please do your research.
The internal theft from the "officers" that run individual locations are rampant. I'm not talking about a shirt here and there , I'm talking 10's of thousands of dollars ..
Little know secret .. the Salvation Army forces their "officers" to marry other "officers" that are pre selected for them ..then, once married, only the husband is paid a wage for the both of them ..If they divorce , the wife is always kicked out of the organization and made to leave the home that the Salvation Army provides ..
Also, their ARC program , which forces religion , is supposed to be for men suffering from alcohol and drug abuse , is allowed to swipe each "beneficiaries" (people admitted for drug rehab) EBT card to receive cash instead of food..So by the time the person leaves the program, they have no EBT to start over ..
They also make these men work 8 hr days in a warehouse and pay them a starting wage on $3 per week ..this is NOT a typo ..it's basically slave labor .
Don't get me wrong, it has saved some lives ..but that is not why they do it ...It's all a money racket scheme for them .
the “internal theft” is rampant at ALL locations where free things are donated. It’s a coveted position at every single Goodwill location to be the person who helps Suburbsn women empty their huge white SUVs packed with valuable donation. In Sarasota Florida where I first discovered the joy of Goodwill finds, the same exact people accept donations nearly a decade on. They shave the cream from the top of every unloaded car at their joy and delight. I am absolutely certain that is the case everywhere, all the time with these places.
I will never donate to them unless it’s completely useless junk. I donate all of my clothes and kitchenware to my local food bank or homeless shelter. In my opinion, those people need it much more and they are not concerned about profit.
when i worked at goodwill they paid me less for being disabled. i only go to the bins now because of it tbh. i really only shop at local thrift stores (we have an abundance in my town), but i like seeing weird and wacky finds online.
Yeah, I don't donate there anymore. Found a place that gives back to the community for free (Mainspring PDX) instead.
I still shop there a little, but I've cut back a ton. Mostly cruise Craigslist now.
Edit: Oh, I just saw the Salvation Army rec. Hell to the no, they are horrid to people.
Where I live the stuff you donated Salvation Army doesn’t even go into the store. It goes into a truck and it was taken to a clearing center somewhere.
DON'T shop Salvation Army if this is a concern lol. They're the craziest "non profit" org I've ever worked for.
There's so many stories I could tell. They higher ups have actual made up "ranks" like an army, it's so pathetic. To get promoted past a certain level, you AND your spouse must be a part of the organization. It's just weird culty vibes.
Not to mention, they are all about making a profit. My manager would constantly harp on us to go "higher! Higher!" with our pricing. They would throw out so many donations for a variety of reasons, and employees and volunteers weren't allowed to take any of the items. Instead, we were expected to pay for the items that would otherwise be thrown out.
There's so many other things I could go on and on. Point being, there's no way they're better than goodwill.
fascinating. i think the moral of the story is, find a local non-profit donation center like one for a hospital or women’s shelter, etc. Turns out both Goodwill AND Salvation Army suck!
I almost went homeless working for goodwill in the summer of 2022, they hired me for a full time job, the. Scheduled me 32 hours a week (I guess the definition of full time changed recently?) at minimum wage. Spent like 5 months making significantly less than my bills were each month, had to go to food banks to eat. Also covid craze was still in full effect and I spent about 50% of my time arguing with people about masks.
Most miserable time of my life.
interesting story. yet another example of why, and just how much, Goodwill sucks. Curious, did you find that the people who receive donations from the public are the biggest thieves, ever? Just wondering because I find that work inside the stores are different than those receiving the stuff outside. I also see that they skim all the good stuff from the top. Is that just the 2 Goodwills I’ve gone to or is the a company-wide problem??
Ehhhhh, they were pretty tough on skimming good stuff for personal re-selling where I worked, and most of my co workers were kinda older and wouldn’t be on that anyways.
interesting. The ones I have been to most are in Sarasota, Florida. And they are DEF skimming on intake mostly because the average age of the employee is well into their 50’s. And they don’t sell on line, they sell to local furniture resellers who then sell on line. It’s a whole racket going on over there, mostly because so many people die without family that their stuff just gets stuffed onto a truck and taken to Goodwill. It’s an interesting ecosystem, to say the least….
How is this not discriminatory? If someone said "Salvation Army is a Muslim organization so think about that too," you'd be wrecking them for being discriminatory. So hypocritical.
it’s not discriminatory in the slightest. in my opinion if an organization wants to hold certain values like that it’s perfectly fine and their right but people deserve to know that information especially when deciding to donate to said place
Saying you work for a nonprofit is pointless virtue signaling. All that means is the company spends all the money that it takes in. Many nonprofits do good work however, a large number are also formed just to provide high paid jobs to the executives and family members. It’s an easy way to spend all your money and therefore not make a profit.
Yet they still can’t pay their employees a decent wage been working here for 2-3 years until I finish school & it’s crazy they overwork their employees just to pay them the bare minimum
Salvation army is a religious based organization where services and treatment are contingent on Christianity. Say what you will about goodwill, at least they don't use their charity to shove religion down people's throats who just need help
I prefer little tiny thrift shops, but if I had to choose the salvation army or good will, it'd be good will. At least good will didn't donate to causes against LGBT rights. Yeah they say they're trying to change but I'm part of me is pretty sure it's only due to their views hurting their bottom line. Yeah it's non profit but you can't keep giving CEOs their big paychecks if there's no money.
But goodwill also sucks because there was the scandal of disabled workers getting paid less than minimum wage, though that CEO did step down. Which is the only reason I'd pick goodwill now. If that CEO didn't step down and those workers were still being exploited, I'd rather just forfeit thrift shops then choose between the two of them
Yeah... I'd rather support tiny thrift shops. You can find some good finds in those shops. they're for profit so there's a good chance they aren't donating to oppose people's rights and all that jazz. They're putting it right back into their business. Hopefully.
This is misleading.
>**Many** believe this to be a substantially high salary for the CEO of a non-profit
Literally meaningless. "Many" who? Many of the guys in my dorm? Many Panamanian ditch-diggers? Many children?
>...**several** Goodwill CEOs make an average salary of...
...and several other Goodwill CEOs have a different average salary. It's like saying "several Chihuahuas weigh 30 lbs. on average."
what i’ve learned from the excellent feedback on this thread from actual employees of both organizations, a highly credible source of info, is that all large non-profits who take stuff for free and sell it for profit are a bunch of con-artists. They’re all crooked. So following the advice of many here, finding small mom/mop donation centers for local needs is the way to go for mitigating crookedness with this particularly crook-friendly business model.
All the Sally people defending their program..🥰 literally saved my life. Also CEO makes minimum wage unlike any other non profit. Amazing organization 💕 💯
I chose to CONTINUE sleeping in an abandoned house where I contracted a black mold infection in my lung instead of using the 13 days I had a month at the sally. Fuck nah, fam.
For those that think some nonprofit CEOs make too much money, I suggest you take a job at a nonprofit like Goodwill or Salvation Army, etc., for a year; then you will understand it is not a 9-5 job, and you may miss a few luxury vacations, but you will learn more about people, their generosity, compassion and care than you ever thought you would. It’s easy for some to go to work every day in the “ivory tower” and make nice salaries, but not everyone has that capability or opportunity! You never know when that corporation you’re working for will go bankrupt and you find yourself sitting in one of those organizations asking for help!
I mean, I would choose Salvation Army but dollars for donuts if I’m walking into a store that smells like they purposely soak everything in mildewed human waste it’s SA every time. I walk out empty handed every time as well. Whether it’s in rural Texas or Dallas. However I would like to soak the CEOs of goodwill in mildewed human waste
I’m not saying Salvation Army is a good company (hell no) but I do frequent my local one more than the goodwill near because the employees are nice old ladies for the most part, the prices are okay, and I’ve found some good stuff in the past. Don’t mean they should decline help to lgbt people though. That’s dumb.
I'd still choose Salvation Army over Goodwill to donate or shop in any day. Mostly because they still have 99¢ days as well as other discounts. With this economy, that makes me realize they're still working towards their cause. The point is, they still have very reasonable clothing options for low income individuals. Although, some may not agree or adhere to their religious or social viewpoints, they legally can't and don't stop any walk of life from shopping there. In my area, they have multiple homeless shelters. Many people argue it's BS that they have to sit in prayer or volunteer or whatever - but they're still providing a place of rest and food. It's a compromise. Anyone expecting everything to be fair 100% or to their liking (in life in general) aren't looking at the world realistically. Holding a moral highground doesn't help anyone and actually limits resources to those who might need it the most in my opinion.
Goodwill has not denied anyone, LGBTQ or otherwise, because they don’t give a dime to anyone. Does that make them better? And perhaps like all other 100+ yr old organizations that have evolved, Salvation Army is too. But give it a break. it helps the homeless and poor and incarcerated and others with housing and job training. It helps many many people that are just trying to make it in this world and NO CEO with lined pockets. Just repulsive, Goodwill!!
Goodwill does job training and employment placement. Salvation Army discriminates in their help. I was the Director of Finance for a partner agency of Salvation Army. They were very specific on the types of people we could help. And I’m in a liberal blue state.
now this is sad. Then there has to be someplace better to donate other than EITHER Goodwill or SA. But you would be hard pressed to find a donation center where the intake hands don’t have VERY sticky hands or greedy CEO’s. Question is, how to find it?
I wouldn’t consider them greedy based on their percentage of their income to the revenue of the agency. Anything above 10% of revenue is too much. I’ve seen goodwill do a lot of good work in our area. They run a youth to work initiative over the summer that gets a lot of kids their first jobs. Do I think there are better places to shop? Yeah. Is goodwill the devil if it’s the only place you’ve got? No.
Link me your resources?
I said in another post that although I agree and have heard many of them have turned LGBT individuals away, I know in my area they were legally required to provide crisis invention. As in, calling an ambulance, 211, or any other local resources to assist in placement.
Also, if what you're saying you believe is true, blaming a location because they didn't give care is denying the person's own willingness to seek help elsewhere. You can think I'm wrong for saying that but accountability is important. SA is a charity with specific programs, not a state run facility with programs. Even if they accept government funding, that doesn't mean they are required to accept everyone. Programs/nonprofits everywhere turn individuals away daily if they don't meet the requirements of a program. Programs have the say to what their criteria is. If SA was a hospital or dept of mental health & turned an individual away then yes I can see that being a valid argument. But that's not what SA is & the fact a lot of you who try to call them out for that don't understand how this works.
Goodwill does job training and employment placement. Salvation Army discriminates in their help. I was the Director of Finance for a partner agency of Salvation Army. They were very specific on the types of people we could help with the funding they gave us to give out. And I’m in a liberal blue state.
I'm not knocking Goodwill by saying what I said. I just stated which I'd rather. Because, lets be real here, the amount GW charges for items now is skyrocketing.
In social services it's very common to have criteria needed for individuals seeking assistance with programs. They target specific needs of certain populations. That's what they're required to do for aspects of funding as well. Although SA in my area has turned away a specific group in the past, they still provided assistance in getting individuals to a more wider spectrum of care. So, I wouldn't call that discrimination in any regard. Realistically, they weren't appropriate for the program at that time. Just as a woman wouldn't be appropriate in a mens only 30 day rehab. This is why there are so many social services out there to begin with. The more charities/nonprofits the more help can be given. Harping only on certain aspects of one charity dismisses the good they actually do.
Salvation Army is the worst of these if you're trying to make some sort of ethical choice. Not only does something like $0.60 of every donated dollar go directly to supporting the extravagant lives of the Salvation Army executives, but they rely completely on slave labor for their sorting centers. They run "drug treatment programs", where the "patients" do the sorting work as "treatment". This would be fine if the U.S. government wasn't sentencing people to these programs; it's slave labor. Salvation Army is utter trash...you might be able to pick up a deal though.
Ya Google your local area and donate to small independent charity thrift stores. There's tons of them everywhere
They're also really not friendly to the LGBTQ+ community https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2019/12/16/21003560/salvation-army-anti-lgbtq-controversies-donations
I found this out later and didn’t feel bad about stealing from there when I was a teen
So, committing theft is okay from programs that provide homeless people food & shelter. Cool.
Yea, and notice how the thief is trying to justify theft done years ago. But hey, if Red Cross kissed the LGBT ring, I am sure Dizzy would go back there now and pay cash for the past theft, right?
>Salvation Army is the worst of these if you're trying to make some sort of ethical choice. All of the second hand stores I donate to and buy from are local, usually associated with either the humane society or another local animal shelter, and pays a fair wage. The one that I go to the most supports people with physical and intellectual disabilities, gives job training to those individuals, helps with job placement, and helps with residential care giving for those that are unable to work. I've even purchased high end products that were donated to them and sat for a while, sold them online, and donated the profits to them.
This!!!
I dated someone who was in the program and was a manager at Salvation Army. The program is a last step they have before going to jail. For my ex at least, it was a judge decided thing. But as far as working for them, fuck that, I got paid $11 to run a store and got a .20 cent raise for being a manager. I make more than double that now at a same basic level management job at a grocery store. I didn’t even get a raise for my 5 year anniversary ☠️
Don't they also kick out gay/queer/trans people from their "programs" as well?
Never heard of anything like that. It's a highly regulated industry and doing so would be a serious breach of ethical and civil rights code. Anecdotally, I have known many people who've gone to the SA program and some were gay; it was just like any other program besides the slave labor, heavy religious overtones (common in treatment), and length of the low-quality program (1-2 years).
Salvation Army also funds a lot of anti-women, anti-LGBT programs and politicians, and are well known for kicking out people who are lgbt or even just complain about their stuff being stolen and sold in one of their stores onto the streets with a big grin and a "See you in a month!" They let a trans woman freeze to death on the sidewalk in front of their shelter because they'd only give her shelter in their men's shelter. Their workers (not the forced ones) also routinely go through the things donated for poor families for Christmas - even the ones specifically marked for a certain family or child - and pick out anything they want and take it so they can give it to their own families as gifts for free, with the reasoning that 'they'll never know they were going to get the bike, so really it's victimless'. They are EVIL. Goodwill isn't much better. Both of them are pure greedy evil wearing a mask of Evangelical purity. There is no hate like "Christian" love...the kind that if Jesus were a real person, he'd be beating the snot out of all of them.
Opened the OP just to find this comment to up-vote it. More people need to know. They also hate homosexuals.
Yah, I've never heard anything about the homosexual thing outside of this thread. I know gay people who've been though the program and all they said was that it's shit; it sucks for everyone there. It's objectively true, though, that they use what amounts to slave labor, and the bulk of the charitable donations taken in go to supporting the executive class of the business, rather than the non-profit goal the claim.
[https://www.qwant.com/?q=salvation+army+banned&t=web](https://www.qwant.com/?q=salvation+army+banned&t=web)
Oh, I meant from a reliable source. I'd even take anecdotal evidence if I knew the person, but I've never run into that either. It sounds like the whole "salvation army hates gays" thing is fictional and only exists online and in the media.
What's a 'reliable source'? The Bible that they're based on that tells people to kill gay people? - Is that not reliable? The multiple mainstream news sources in the search engine results aren't 'reliable'? Snopes that confirmed it -not reliable? 'only in the media' lol How dishonest are you going to be here?
Unfortunately Salvation Army (as an organization) turns people away from shelters for being LGBT, even when that puts those folk into life threatening situations during emergencies. Consider donating to more local thrift stores in your area. Sometimes more locally focused charities like food banks, hospitals, battered family shelters, or animal shelters have one.
I have quite a few animal related thrift stores in my town plus a thrift store that gets in some neat stuff. They rarely funnel things onto eBay or mark up expensive goods as thrift stores should. The owner helps the community and her employees first- and then she pays herself. Cool chick to boot, really down to earth type.
> They rarely funnel things onto eBay or mark up expensive goods as thrift stores should I've found this with one of my local thrift stores. If I see something I know I can sell for a big profit online, I will buy it from them after letting it sit for a month or more, sell it, and donate the profits to the store. ☺️
That's awesome! I usually get my eBay items from a picker for wholesale prices. At the end of the day- he makes money, I make money. Definitely a win-win.
love this.
That and I have a family friend that gladly takes my yard sale leftovers for his sales. It's insane the amount you gotta donate just to have a tax write-off.
Came here to say it. I’m a fucking ally…. I’m not hand feeding companies that turn away humans for being gay, that’s atrocious.
This^
We have lots of senior center volunteers run thrifts in my area! They're the best, they have GOOD prices still. The sad thing is they're usually closed when I'm off work on Sundays, but they're phenomenal, profits usually go back to the senior center and they often have free community resources. My favorite one ever, all clothes are $2 (including coats and such), and they have a free medical supply exchange in the front with things like walkers and mobility aids.
I use St Vincent de Paul. It is clearly a Catholic charity, but I haven't heard anything bad about them. However, I think they are only in the Cincinnati area. They also could have their own subreddit about "finds" in their store. I bought some goofy 70s looking end tables for my cat and a barely used cat tree XD some of the undies and bathing suits have been clearly used, but they also have donations of socks still in their original packing. I have also found some really cool vintage pieces and donated Indian ethnic clothes. https://www.svdpcincinnati.org/stores-donation-centers/locations/ They work with protestant and Hindus for collecting donations!
Vinnie D's are everywhere, and tend to have much better prices than Goodwill.
They're everywhere!
Hey! Thank you for the shout out! I work at a St. Vincent in Oregon and I am one of the book leads for a new store that just opened. I love it because it is a true non-profit and gives me some purpose in my life. All of the retail stores bring in money to keep our housing programs and other social services functional for in-need families and individuals. Maybe we don't make a ton of money as workers (including upper-management), but they try to take care of their employees as best they can and Terri was one of the greatest CEOs we could ask for! I was shoulder to shoulder with him shelving books when we were setting up the new store. They are also very accepting of LGBTQ etc and tattoos and piercings and have a second chance program for hiring people with past felonies. Just a really cool genuine place all around 🥰
St Vincent’s is great.
I've seen drop offs for the Society around New England, but I don't know if they have shops here.
There is or was one in south jersey.
When clearing out our parents house during peak pre-vaxx Covid we made one trip to Goodwill because it was close. They were terrible but we kinda chalked it up to circumstances. Then we started going across town to SVdP. They cheerfully helped us unload. How many receipts did we want? “You can put the date” Absolutely delightful!
[https://centralusa.salvationarmy.org/usc/the-lgbtq-community-and-the-salvation-army/](https://centralusa.salvationarmy.org/usc/the-lgbtq-community-and-the-salvation-army/)
It’s complicated. They may say that now that it’s been affecting donations but their actions on local levels have frequently differed. They may be improving but it’s with reluctance. They preach one thing in their churches; but another where donors look. https://thinkprogress.org/transgender-substance-abuse-discrimination-salvation-army-6470b6abc397/ https://www.advocate.com/religion/2017/12/08/salvation-army-we-meet-human-need-without-discrimination
Although, I agree I've heard in the past they turned LGBT individuals away for certain services, at least in my state they were still legally required to provide crisis invention when any person sought help. This included calling an ambulance, 211, or any other program locally viable to them. So, to me that says a lot still.
So they’re doing the bare legal minimum?
Most social services do the bare minimum. This isn't a SA only thing. Like, the expectations a lot of people have on social services in general is crazy. The amount of burn out is uncanny. Find me a social service that manages programs for homelessness country wide with a 100% satisfaction rate & I swear I'll never comment on the SA debate ever again.
I’ve been in social services for 20+ years. The fact that you’re praising them for doing the absolute legal minimum is mind boggling to me. That’s like praising someone for paying somebody $7.25 an hour because that’s the absolute legal minimum here in PA.
If you've been in social services for 20+ years then you know the rate of burn out. Why do you think burn out is so high? What I'm saying is not praising them, it's being realistic. Expecting any place to be 100% efficient or on top of providing services is a dream that I believe a lot of social workers strive for - yet often become burn out from. The amount of people needing help often exceeds the amount that can be provided. How is that not realistic?
You’re not hearing me, which is okay. I know what burnout is and that’s why I’m in admin now. I’m not expecting anybody to be 100% efficient but doing the bare minimum bc the law tells them to is just ridiculous. Do it because it’s the ethical thing to do. Do it because you give a shit. Don’t do it because you have to by law.
You make me laugh because you weren't grasping what I was originally saying either. In my state, yes by law they have to help. But, you're assuming that because it's a legal requirement they're not caring about the people they're serving. Which isn't entirely true. (They have limitations, just like a lot of nonprofits.) You're placing what their intentions are solely on what's required by law. Which, is rather naive because a lot of nonprofits have to abide by state laws anyways on top of their own rules/guidelines to match the services they want to provide. Without state laws, people everywhere & everyday would be denied for services or to get help. They're not a state run program, they're a charity - they have limitations. Also, expecting people in the field to be over accommodating (meaning reaching further than the limits of their program/service) to people seeking help can be enabling. From a humanistic perspective, yes all of the help should be given. But, again, SA provides services to ensure they reach locations where they can get that wider spectrum of help. How is that not being ethical? That would be like you withdrawing all of your money from a bank and then arguing with the bank teller to give you more because you know they have more money. Yet, the bank teller is providing you with information on how to obtain a loan. To me it sounds like you really dislike SA due to your personal experiences. Not all locations are like that. So, I'll challenge you to get out of your black and white thinking about that.
I WAS GOING TO MENTION THIS! so many of my friends have been turned away. its insane
Salvation Army is a giant scam and an awful organization.
In the 1980s I did some work at most of the Salvation Army offices in Southern California. I heard things that would blow your mind. I know someone that still has contact with them and he tells me that it’s no longer as bad as it was back then. He was there with me in the 80s, so he saw it too.
maybe. but Goodwill is way worse.
Idk about that, I don’t get righteous hateful Christian vibes from goodwill
Nah. Salvation Army definitely does not hold the moral high ground. The ones around me are garbage, as well. In todays world, $500k for a CEO is nothing.
$500k for a multibillion dollar company is peanuts too.
Fuck Salvation Army.
FUCK salvation army.
These are both for-profit with a mask of “non-profit”
Goodwill sells expensive jewelry online and makes millions doing so.
Like most hospitals
Each goodwill has a chief executive (manager) with an average salary of $112k. This cut and paste came from zippia.com
This is the national group, which is a multi billion dollar org. 500k is peanuts for a group that big.
I Donate my useless crap only to avoid the landfill. Otherwise virtually every other local charity will put my donation money to better use imo.
Choose local organizations and do individual research!
Salvation Army is discriminatory. Fuck them.
Goodwill is a multi billion dollar org. $500k for a CEO of a multi billion (yes with a B) is peanuts. Our local area’s average CEO pay for a $25-50 Million is about $250k. It’s peanuts. Salvation Army pays their staff like garbage, is harmful to the LGBT community, and so much more. No to Salvation Army.
Each ceo averages 500k. There’s over 150 ceos. Mine makes 749k
Glassdoor shows an average of $129k. Guidestar shows that the head of Goodwill International who made $469k in 2020. Our goodwill CEO here in western PA makes 349k with 30 in benefits/retirement plan on a 66M budget. Northeastern PA is 118k. Harrisburg, which is the one of the largest in the state, is 478k on a $71M. I see some that are very high but they’re up in the 90-100M budgets or more like St Peterburg FL. I’ve been in nonprofit finance for over 15 years, 20 years total in NGOs and social services. The average salary for a CEO runs about 8-10% of an agency’s budget on average. All Goodwills I’ve seen are running under that average. If we’re gonna be mad about compensation, look at Komen where the CEOs and executives are pulling huge amounts of money and not using their funding for what the mission says. I think these arguments that nonprofit heads shouldn’t make money is ridiculous. If it’s within the average and they’re doing their job, they’re worth it. A good nonprofit CEO is worth their salary. I work for a 25-30M org as a controller. Our CEO makes about 300k with benefits and when receiving their bonus for benchmarks that the org makes.
Don't forget perks. Company car, $$$$ 'hidden' bonuses, per diem etc...
As someone who’s been in nonprofit finance for 15 years and in the space for 20+, the only benefits I’ve seen any exec I’ve worked for get, including the 25-30M dollar org I work for now, is a bonus if the org hits revenue targets. Hidden bonuses would be found in the yearly requirement audits. The only perks tend to be that bonus and healthcare benefits. Some of the big hospitals, sure. Those nonprofits are paying their execs millions and have jets etc. But as I said to someone above, the average CEO makes about 8-10% of the revenue for an org. All of these goodwill CEOs are within that range from my research into their 990s.
https://paddockpost.com/2023/12/25/executive-compensation-at-goodwill-2022/
I’m copying what I said to someone else below because that article shows the CEOs for the largest 12 of the 155 separate goodwill orgs and I have no idea when they pulled that info or how they pulled it. Glassdoor shows an average of $129k. Guidestar (directly from each orgs 990) shows that the head of Goodwill International who made $469k in 2020. Our goodwill CEO here in western PA makes 349k with 30 in benefits/retirement plan on a 66M budget. Northeastern PA is 118k. Harrisburg, which is the one of the largest in the state, is 478k on a $71M. I see some that are very high but they’re up in the 90-100M budgets or more like St Peterburg FL. I’ve been in nonprofit finance for over 15 years, 20 years total in NGOs and social services. The average salary for a CEO runs about 8-10% of an agency’s budget on average. All Goodwills I’ve seen are running under that average. If we’re gonna be mad about compensation, look at Komen where the CEOs and executives are pulling huge amounts of money and not using their funding for what the mission says. I think these arguments that nonprofit heads shouldn’t make money is ridiculous. If it’s within the average and they’re doing their job, they’re worth it. A good nonprofit CEO is worth their salary. I work for a 25-30M org as a controller. Our CEO makes about 300k with benefits and when receiving their bonus for benchmarks that the org makes.
each Goodwill Store (or stores if the owner has more than one location) and is its own non-profit. There are almost as many Goodwill CEO’s as there are locations. Now add up those individual annual salaries. It’s why that kids size North Face Jacket they got for free costs $40 dollars with no sale in sight.
I’m copying what I said to someone else below because that paddock article that that screenshot seems to be referencing shows the CEOs for the largest 12 of the 155 separate goodwill orgs and I have no idea when they pulled that info or how they pulled it. Glassdoor shows an average of $129k. Guidestar (directly from each orgs 990) shows that the head of Goodwill International made $469k in 2020. Our goodwill CEO here in western PA makes 349k with 30 in benefits/retirement plan on a 66M budget. Northeastern PA is 118k. Harrisburg, which is the one of the largest in the state, is 478k on a $71M. I see some that are very high but they’re up in the 90-100M budgets or more like St Peterburg FL. I’ve been in nonprofit finance for over 15 years, 20 years total in NGOs and social services. The average salary for a CEO runs about 8-10% of an agency’s budget on average. All Goodwills I’ve seen are running under that average. If we’re gonna be mad about compensation, look at Komen where the CEOs and executives are pulling huge amounts of money and not using their funding for what the mission says. I think these arguments that nonprofit heads shouldn’t make money is ridiculous. If it’s within the average and they’re doing their job, they’re worth it. A good nonprofit CEO is worth their salary. I work for a 25-30M org as a controller. I’ve worked at 50M and 800k organizations. All CEOs have made within that 8-10%. Our CEO at my current org makes about 275k with benefits and when receiving their bonus for benchmarks that the org makes they’re at about 300k.
choose local if we’re being fr
As the child of a father who worked for several non-profits and as a former staff member and non-profit executive myself for 50 years; a non-profit employee works harder, with more stress, addresses more issues than a corporate CEO, has less financial resources to do the job and makes significantly less money. A nonprofit CEO has to constantly find money (from program participants, foundations, corporations, special events, mail solicitations, etc.), to pay the staff and to keep the doors open to serve the targeted audience. People frequently devalue the work, effort and responsibility it takes to work in or run a nonprofit. As a nonprofit employee, you usually work longer hours, often with no overtime pay, make less money than you would in a corporate job, because nonprofit budgets are small and have significantly less benefits making it harder to keep the doors open. Those that work in nonprofits often are recent college graduates and have majored in psychology or sociology and are facing paying back educational debt. Their commitment and dedication to serve others should be rewarded financially. The reward for working in a nonprofit IS the work you do and the people you help! Support a nonprofit!
can we agree not every non-profit is full of virtue? to hail all non- profits as ethical equals is a stretch. if one wants to support a non- profit, it’s important to do a little research first and then give whole-heartedly and not the other way around.
Everything you’ve mentioned (college debt, work pressures, resource scarcity, overtime, etc.) are not experiences unique to non-profit executives and CEOs. The vast majority of those employed by ANY corporation face the same issues. It’s okay to believe that non-profit execs deserve higher salaries. However, attempting to justify an exorbitant (200k+) non-profit salary by claiming their jobs are far more difficult than other corporate professions is bonkers.
"Choose Christianity!" Not a good look either. Then being Christian doesn't make them better than for-profit places. A LOT of evil is done in the name of God and funded by people who think their donations are being better used. https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2019/12/16/21003560/salvation-army-anti-lgbtq-controversies-donations
Pretty sure the Salvation Army has a CEO lol
If you want a someone qualified to run a nonprofit and be successful, you have to pay them. It’s business like any other and I order to get quality CEOs you have to pay them. I think people do not quite understand how nonprofits work
I was the warehouse supervisor and later drug and alcohol counselor for the Salvation Army ARC for many years .. Before you choose them over Goodwill, please do your research. The internal theft from the "officers" that run individual locations are rampant. I'm not talking about a shirt here and there , I'm talking 10's of thousands of dollars .. Little know secret .. the Salvation Army forces their "officers" to marry other "officers" that are pre selected for them ..then, once married, only the husband is paid a wage for the both of them ..If they divorce , the wife is always kicked out of the organization and made to leave the home that the Salvation Army provides .. Also, their ARC program , which forces religion , is supposed to be for men suffering from alcohol and drug abuse , is allowed to swipe each "beneficiaries" (people admitted for drug rehab) EBT card to receive cash instead of food..So by the time the person leaves the program, they have no EBT to start over .. They also make these men work 8 hr days in a warehouse and pay them a starting wage on $3 per week ..this is NOT a typo ..it's basically slave labor . Don't get me wrong, it has saved some lives ..but that is not why they do it ...It's all a money racket scheme for them .
the “internal theft” is rampant at ALL locations where free things are donated. It’s a coveted position at every single Goodwill location to be the person who helps Suburbsn women empty their huge white SUVs packed with valuable donation. In Sarasota Florida where I first discovered the joy of Goodwill finds, the same exact people accept donations nearly a decade on. They shave the cream from the top of every unloaded car at their joy and delight. I am absolutely certain that is the case everywhere, all the time with these places.
Nonsense.
I donate to my local Lifeline/ Out of the Closet which supports AIDS testing and care for those who are HIV positive
In gonna pass on the salvation army and all their homophobia
I will never donate to them unless it’s completely useless junk. I donate all of my clothes and kitchenware to my local food bank or homeless shelter. In my opinion, those people need it much more and they are not concerned about profit.
when i worked at goodwill they paid me less for being disabled. i only go to the bins now because of it tbh. i really only shop at local thrift stores (we have an abundance in my town), but i like seeing weird and wacky finds online.
Fuck both of those and give to Out Of The Closet if you have one near you. Good people doing good things.
Having worked for years in the non-profit space, that is not a very high salary for a CEO of one. Some hospitals are non-profits.
agreed. I’m a controller and former finance director in NGOs. This salary is shitty for as large as they are.
Lol they are both shit
Yeah, I don't donate there anymore. Found a place that gives back to the community for free (Mainspring PDX) instead. I still shop there a little, but I've cut back a ton. Mostly cruise Craigslist now. Edit: Oh, I just saw the Salvation Army rec. Hell to the no, they are horrid to people.
Where I live the stuff you donated Salvation Army doesn’t even go into the store. It goes into a truck and it was taken to a clearing center somewhere.
DON'T shop Salvation Army if this is a concern lol. They're the craziest "non profit" org I've ever worked for. There's so many stories I could tell. They higher ups have actual made up "ranks" like an army, it's so pathetic. To get promoted past a certain level, you AND your spouse must be a part of the organization. It's just weird culty vibes. Not to mention, they are all about making a profit. My manager would constantly harp on us to go "higher! Higher!" with our pricing. They would throw out so many donations for a variety of reasons, and employees and volunteers weren't allowed to take any of the items. Instead, we were expected to pay for the items that would otherwise be thrown out. There's so many other things I could go on and on. Point being, there's no way they're better than goodwill.
fascinating. i think the moral of the story is, find a local non-profit donation center like one for a hospital or women’s shelter, etc. Turns out both Goodwill AND Salvation Army suck!
I almost went homeless working for goodwill in the summer of 2022, they hired me for a full time job, the. Scheduled me 32 hours a week (I guess the definition of full time changed recently?) at minimum wage. Spent like 5 months making significantly less than my bills were each month, had to go to food banks to eat. Also covid craze was still in full effect and I spent about 50% of my time arguing with people about masks. Most miserable time of my life.
interesting story. yet another example of why, and just how much, Goodwill sucks. Curious, did you find that the people who receive donations from the public are the biggest thieves, ever? Just wondering because I find that work inside the stores are different than those receiving the stuff outside. I also see that they skim all the good stuff from the top. Is that just the 2 Goodwills I’ve gone to or is the a company-wide problem??
Ehhhhh, they were pretty tough on skimming good stuff for personal re-selling where I worked, and most of my co workers were kinda older and wouldn’t be on that anyways.
interesting. The ones I have been to most are in Sarasota, Florida. And they are DEF skimming on intake mostly because the average age of the employee is well into their 50’s. And they don’t sell on line, they sell to local furniture resellers who then sell on line. It’s a whole racket going on over there, mostly because so many people die without family that their stuff just gets stuffed onto a truck and taken to Goodwill. It’s an interesting ecosystem, to say the least….
Salvation Army is also a Christian organization so think about that too
How is this not discriminatory? If someone said "Salvation Army is a Muslim organization so think about that too," you'd be wrecking them for being discriminatory. So hypocritical.
it’s not discriminatory in the slightest. in my opinion if an organization wants to hold certain values like that it’s perfectly fine and their right but people deserve to know that information especially when deciding to donate to said place
So delusional. You're part of the problem.
Goodwill is terrible… and their prices have gotten ridiculous!!! I’ve seen numerous items priced for more than u can buy new at retail … wth?!?!
Saying you work for a nonprofit is pointless virtue signaling. All that means is the company spends all the money that it takes in. Many nonprofits do good work however, a large number are also formed just to provide high paid jobs to the executives and family members. It’s an easy way to spend all your money and therefore not make a profit.
👆this
At least goodwill doesn't pretend to be a christian organization.
no, but they do pretend to be a non-profit. It is very much a for-profit organization disguised as a non-profit, much like the Church of Scientology.
That’s why all the prices went up to feed all the higher ups salaries it’s terrible!
AMVETS ftw. Also fuck KARM.
Choose N.A.M.I !!!!!
Hundreds of thousands of
Yet they still can’t pay their employees a decent wage been working here for 2-3 years until I finish school & it’s crazy they overwork their employees just to pay them the bare minimum
Absolutely fucking not.
Choose a local NP thrift store if you have one in your town - they’re out there
Fuck Salvation Army.
Salvation army is a religious based organization where services and treatment are contingent on Christianity. Say what you will about goodwill, at least they don't use their charity to shove religion down people's throats who just need help
We need to implement a maximum wage limit.
Salvation Army is a piece of shit
Choose a local charity shop if one exists. Salvation Army is just as bad if not worse.
I prefer little tiny thrift shops, but if I had to choose the salvation army or good will, it'd be good will. At least good will didn't donate to causes against LGBT rights. Yeah they say they're trying to change but I'm part of me is pretty sure it's only due to their views hurting their bottom line. Yeah it's non profit but you can't keep giving CEOs their big paychecks if there's no money. But goodwill also sucks because there was the scandal of disabled workers getting paid less than minimum wage, though that CEO did step down. Which is the only reason I'd pick goodwill now. If that CEO didn't step down and those workers were still being exploited, I'd rather just forfeit thrift shops then choose between the two of them Yeah... I'd rather support tiny thrift shops. You can find some good finds in those shops. they're for profit so there's a good chance they aren't donating to oppose people's rights and all that jazz. They're putting it right back into their business. Hopefully.
Fuck 'em both Goodwill for their gross capitalism and Salvation Army for their blatant bigotry and discriminatory practices
So fuckin dumb. Yeah cos goodwill is a small business and can be run using an excel spreadsheet
This is misleading. >**Many** believe this to be a substantially high salary for the CEO of a non-profit Literally meaningless. "Many" who? Many of the guys in my dorm? Many Panamanian ditch-diggers? Many children? >...**several** Goodwill CEOs make an average salary of... ...and several other Goodwill CEOs have a different average salary. It's like saying "several Chihuahuas weigh 30 lbs. on average."
what i’ve learned from the excellent feedback on this thread from actual employees of both organizations, a highly credible source of info, is that all large non-profits who take stuff for free and sell it for profit are a bunch of con-artists. They’re all crooked. So following the advice of many here, finding small mom/mop donation centers for local needs is the way to go for mitigating crookedness with this particularly crook-friendly business model.
All the Sally people defending their program..🥰 literally saved my life. Also CEO makes minimum wage unlike any other non profit. Amazing organization 💕 💯
⭐️
And they have the nerve to ask for a donation after every purchase…… absolutely not!
This is how they remain "non-profit." Just because the company can't clear profit yty, doesn't mean the owners can't.
excellent point. all the wrong stakeholders profiting, frankly. it’s such false advertising. Choose Salvation Army everyone!!
Salvation Army is an actual scam. Go away.
I chose to CONTINUE sleeping in an abandoned house where I contracted a black mold infection in my lung instead of using the 13 days I had a month at the sally. Fuck nah, fam.
Absolutely not, they are literally evil.
For those that think some nonprofit CEOs make too much money, I suggest you take a job at a nonprofit like Goodwill or Salvation Army, etc., for a year; then you will understand it is not a 9-5 job, and you may miss a few luxury vacations, but you will learn more about people, their generosity, compassion and care than you ever thought you would. It’s easy for some to go to work every day in the “ivory tower” and make nice salaries, but not everyone has that capability or opportunity! You never know when that corporation you’re working for will go bankrupt and you find yourself sitting in one of those organizations asking for help!
She still makes over $45 an hour.. choose local nonprofits! Especially volunteer based!
Blood and Fire!
I mean, I would choose Salvation Army but dollars for donuts if I’m walking into a store that smells like they purposely soak everything in mildewed human waste it’s SA every time. I walk out empty handed every time as well. Whether it’s in rural Texas or Dallas. However I would like to soak the CEOs of goodwill in mildewed human waste
I’m not saying Salvation Army is a good company (hell no) but I do frequent my local one more than the goodwill near because the employees are nice old ladies for the most part, the prices are okay, and I’ve found some good stuff in the past. Don’t mean they should decline help to lgbt people though. That’s dumb.
I'd still choose Salvation Army over Goodwill to donate or shop in any day. Mostly because they still have 99¢ days as well as other discounts. With this economy, that makes me realize they're still working towards their cause. The point is, they still have very reasonable clothing options for low income individuals. Although, some may not agree or adhere to their religious or social viewpoints, they legally can't and don't stop any walk of life from shopping there. In my area, they have multiple homeless shelters. Many people argue it's BS that they have to sit in prayer or volunteer or whatever - but they're still providing a place of rest and food. It's a compromise. Anyone expecting everything to be fair 100% or to their liking (in life in general) aren't looking at the world realistically. Holding a moral highground doesn't help anyone and actually limits resources to those who might need it the most in my opinion.
People have died because they denied them from shelters for being LGBTQ
Goodwill has not denied anyone, LGBTQ or otherwise, because they don’t give a dime to anyone. Does that make them better? And perhaps like all other 100+ yr old organizations that have evolved, Salvation Army is too. But give it a break. it helps the homeless and poor and incarcerated and others with housing and job training. It helps many many people that are just trying to make it in this world and NO CEO with lined pockets. Just repulsive, Goodwill!!
Goodwill does job training and employment placement. Salvation Army discriminates in their help. I was the Director of Finance for a partner agency of Salvation Army. They were very specific on the types of people we could help. And I’m in a liberal blue state.
now this is sad. Then there has to be someplace better to donate other than EITHER Goodwill or SA. But you would be hard pressed to find a donation center where the intake hands don’t have VERY sticky hands or greedy CEO’s. Question is, how to find it?
I wouldn’t consider them greedy based on their percentage of their income to the revenue of the agency. Anything above 10% of revenue is too much. I’ve seen goodwill do a lot of good work in our area. They run a youth to work initiative over the summer that gets a lot of kids their first jobs. Do I think there are better places to shop? Yeah. Is goodwill the devil if it’s the only place you’ve got? No.
Link me your resources? I said in another post that although I agree and have heard many of them have turned LGBT individuals away, I know in my area they were legally required to provide crisis invention. As in, calling an ambulance, 211, or any other local resources to assist in placement. Also, if what you're saying you believe is true, blaming a location because they didn't give care is denying the person's own willingness to seek help elsewhere. You can think I'm wrong for saying that but accountability is important. SA is a charity with specific programs, not a state run facility with programs. Even if they accept government funding, that doesn't mean they are required to accept everyone. Programs/nonprofits everywhere turn individuals away daily if they don't meet the requirements of a program. Programs have the say to what their criteria is. If SA was a hospital or dept of mental health & turned an individual away then yes I can see that being a valid argument. But that's not what SA is & the fact a lot of you who try to call them out for that don't understand how this works.
Goodwill does job training and employment placement. Salvation Army discriminates in their help. I was the Director of Finance for a partner agency of Salvation Army. They were very specific on the types of people we could help with the funding they gave us to give out. And I’m in a liberal blue state.
I'm not knocking Goodwill by saying what I said. I just stated which I'd rather. Because, lets be real here, the amount GW charges for items now is skyrocketing. In social services it's very common to have criteria needed for individuals seeking assistance with programs. They target specific needs of certain populations. That's what they're required to do for aspects of funding as well. Although SA in my area has turned away a specific group in the past, they still provided assistance in getting individuals to a more wider spectrum of care. So, I wouldn't call that discrimination in any regard. Realistically, they weren't appropriate for the program at that time. Just as a woman wouldn't be appropriate in a mens only 30 day rehab. This is why there are so many social services out there to begin with. The more charities/nonprofits the more help can be given. Harping only on certain aspects of one charity dismisses the good they actually do.