
The Dark Reality Behind America’s Greatest Thrift Store Empire - thrifter
https://medium.com/@aliceminium/the-dark-reality-behind-americas-greatest-thrift-store-empire-183967087a1e
======
sidstling
It’s an interesting story, though also tragic and frightening. I probably
would’ve lead with reason five. It seems to me that abusing holes, in employee
safety laws for disabled people, is one of the worse evils they commit.

I wonder how much of this goes around. Recently it was revealed that a local
restaurant in Aarhus, Denmark, that put disabled and mentally ill to work on a
type of welfare program where the municipality pays part of the wage for
people who can’t work full hours, was also abusing their employees for profit.
And that just another story in a long line of these.

~~~
kermittd
O very interesting. At the particular store I worked there was a teenage
“volunteer” working due to legally mandated community service.

~~~
anfilt
Well generally one can choose where to put their community service hours. I
knew someone when growing up who had to do community service and choose to do
so at the local animal shelter. Although, I have heard of judges also
specifying where. So they could have "voluntarily" chose good will instead of
some where else. However, community service is not voluntarily done, and t
must be completed. However, definitely not what one commonly thinks about word
"volunteer".

------
peterwwillis
Another fun charity fact: Locks of Love doesn't donate most of the hair it
receives to people that need hair. It removes the hair not suitable for wigs,
then sends it to a wig manufacturer, who then rejects half of that hair
donated. About 80% of the hair LoL receives never makes it into a wig. It
sells another good chunk of the hair for profit to fund its operations. Much
of the money they make goes to overhead and executive pay. And apparently, up
to $6 million in hair donations goes unaccounted every year.

People who want to donate hair would do well to research charities that will
take their particular type of hair, and take less for profit.

~~~
toomuchtodo
Do you have a citation for this I could keep handy for reference? Grossly
inefficient non-profits to the point of malfeasance is one of my pet peeves.

~~~
scarejunba
The Wikipedia page
[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Locks_of_Love#Criticisms](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Locks_of_Love#Criticisms)
cites their tax forms as saying they have 35% efficiency

~~~
maxerickson
That's a weird calculation there. The research grant to Columbia is in
addition to their other activities and isn't any kind of representation of
their efficiency.

I guess if they are only providing 194 wigs and hairpieces it isn't surprising
that they are engaging in other activities.

------
sverige
The Salvation Army is similarly exploitive. I knew a manager of one of their
facilities and had a tour that was (probably unintentionally) eye-opening. For
example, he talked about how any clothes they didn't sell in a certain amount
of time were sent to their "ragging operation," made into bales, and then
shipped to Africa.

The only difference from Goodwill as described here is that the population
being exploited are addicts and ex-cons rather than mostly disabled folks. I
want to like these organizations, I even think they started out with the right
intentions, but greed takes over and ruins them.

~~~
mental1896
I'm not certain what's changed over the years but I used to love going into
Salvation Army or Goodwill and browsing their stuff because you never knew
what cool thing you might find. Nowadays, they all seem to carry the same
picked-over stuff.

I think part of it may be that they have also noticed the cool items and moved
them to an online marketplace where they can get more cash for them.

~~~
astura
With the rise of the Internet and ecommerce, there's now hoards of people
buying all the good stuff to resell on Amazon, eBay, Craigslist, Facebook,
etc. Many professional resellers go to charity shops daily.

------
jkingsbery
Many good points, and not paying the legally set minimum wage seems like it's
breaking the law (or at least skirting it). But I don't see how "Goodwill has
actively fought against legislative proposals to raise the minimum wage" is
inherently "Dark" \- it might be self serving, but it's possible that it could
also lead to layoffs and store closures. Whether or not that's actually the
case seems like something that people of, ahem, good will can reasonably
debate without labeling each other "dark" or "evil."

~~~
NeonVice
I agree that fighting the minimum wage is not "dark". If two able-minded
parties voluntarily agree on a wage, then no one should be able to tell them
what the correct wage should be. The minimum wage may prevent a lower-skilled
worker from getting a job, because an employer would only pay a higher wage to
a higher-skilled worker.

~~~
WalterGR
_If two able-minded parties voluntarily agree on a wage, then no one should be
able to tell them what the correct wage should be._

That opens up the door for so much exploitation that it boggles the mind
someone could truly believe that.

Do you support the repeal of minimum wage laws? What about workplace safety
laws? Laws that limit the number of hours demanded by the employer?

Incredible.

------
everybodyknows
Better to shop in locally-run stores, even if they're "for profit". Because
their profits, what with competition and the burden of paying full minimum
wage, are likely not even enough to replace the carpeting before it turns the
color of the parking lot.

~~~
peterwwillis
I shop at a local store called _Philly Aids Thrift_
([http://phillyaidsthrift.com/](http://phillyaidsthrift.com/)) whose proceeds
are donated to HIV/AIDS-serving institutions in Philadelphia. Other big
metropolises probably have other donation-oriented stores, too.

------
natch
The most irksome reason that got left off this list is that some types of high
value items simply never make it to store shelves.

Instead of sharing good deals with the community, they put these items up on
eBay for the highest bidder.

Sure, it's their right to decide how they want to do things, but it's a bit
deceptive since they try to get people to donate on the premise that you are
giving back to your community. Yeah, you are giving, but very indirectly, and
your best items may never be seen by anyone in your community.

Taking away the best nuggets leaves the store inventories mediocre at best,
yet they still ride on the perception that you can find treasures there. You
still can, but they've made it much less likely.

~~~
slouch
Do they use eBay, too? I thought it was
[https://www.shopgoodwill.com/](https://www.shopgoodwill.com/).

~~~
natch
They used to... I don't know, maybe it's changed. But that site looks like
eBay under the hood, whitelabeled maybe?

------
izzydata
How long until Goodwill goes brankrupt and the death of Goodwill is blamed on
millennials?

------
Cd00d
Where should I be taking my lightly used, but no longer desired clothes? I try
to clear out my closet once a year or so and eliminate anything that doesn't
fit, doesn't reflect my current workplace dress, or isn't ever worn. I don't
buy a lot of clothes, but there are still generally several
shirts/pants/jackets (both outwear and dress) and shoes that I wish to pass on
to someone.

I had thought My annual Goodwill drops were the best way to do that. What are
the alternatives, especially that can contribute to my underserved neighbors?

~~~
astura
Homeless shelters sometimes accept clothing, my homeless shelter actually runs
a charity shop. Local charity shops are an option, but we don't know if they
are run better.

------
kermittd
Regarding the tag line:

[https://goodwillsp.wordpress.com/donate-to-
goodwill/](https://goodwillsp.wordpress.com/donate-to-goodwill/)

Seems there are variations based on region.

------
baking
Can I add #11? If you have large bulky items like furniture that you want to
get rid of, everyone tells you to call Goodwill. When you call, they ask you
your location and they says they don't have pickup there, but they give you
another number to call. That number then refers you to a third company which
will then charge you to haul away your "trash." Turns out the middle-man is a
broker that is kicking money back to Goodwill for the referrals.

------
Dirlewanger
How do they purportedly pay less than minimum wage? Because they're a
nonprofit? I feel like I'm missing something.

~~~
opencl
[https://webapps.dol.gov/elaws/whd/flsa/14c/](https://webapps.dol.gov/elaws/whd/flsa/14c/)

"This Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) Section 14(c)... authorizes employers,
after receiving a certificate from the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) Wage and
Hour Division (WHD), to pay special minimum wages - wages less than the
Federal minimum wage - to workers who have disabilities for the work being
performed."

------
purplezooey
If this crap is true that's horrible. They should be paying people _better_
than min wage. Wtf.

------
bitcurious
I'm pretty annoyed by the mix of actual issues and misleading statistics in
this article, so here are some thoughts on all of the items.

>1\. Less than one eighth of the company’s profit goes towards its charity
work.

There are a few issues with this section.

"The company" in question is a specific Goodwill - Goodwill Omaha.
Extrapolating from one operation to the entire network of Goodwills is a bit
extreme.

The bigger issue comes from definitions - profit, charitable work,
administration.

Charitable work: if the only thing Goodwill did was run a chain of stores that
facilitated reuse, I would argue that this is a net good to the world. However
none of the money that is spent on running these stores counts as charitable
work, because it's not written into Goodwill's mission.

Administrative costs: on this topic, let me quote the linked article. "While
Goodwill Omaha runs job training and assistance programs that serve thousands
annually, nearly all of those activities have been funded by government grants
and contract". These government grants and contracts don't fall out of thin
air, they require a staff to apply for, measure, track, report back on, etc.
Another way of saying Goodwill spends $2.5MM on administrative costs is to say
Goodwill spends $2.5MM to raise $?MM from the government to spend on programs.

CEO compensation: The stated example of ~$1MM for the CEO of Goodwill Omaha is
on the high end, but still within the norm for the CEO of an organization that
runs 17 retail stores and a large jobs training program with an annual revenue
of >$30MM.

Not to say that there aren't red flags: "The organization [Goodwill Omaha]
includes a number of highly placed staff members who are related to the CEO or
board members or their own supervisors."

>2\. Your donated items get shipped out to neo-imperialist buyers that
threaten developing industry in third world countries.

Having lived in poverty in a developing nation, this wasn't a bad thing. There
was no local cheap local clothes industry - it had already been decimated by
cheap Chinese imports.

You might say: but bitcurious, wouldn't high quality clothes at that same
price undermine the Chinese importers? Yes, but what's the difference between
an importer of cheap clothes vs an importer of donated clothes? They need the
same amount of labor.

You might say: but bitcurious, wouldn't access to high quality goods at a
cheap price undermine the potential for locally made high quality goods at a
higher price? Perhaps, but speaking from experience, there was a lot of stigma
associated with shopping at a second hand clothing store, so anyone who could
afford to buy high quality goods was already doing so, if only to avoid that
stigma.

The undermining local industry argument is incredible relevant for industries
that exist - farming, energy, etc. For clothes? I'm don't buy it.

>3\. Goodwill has actively fought against legislative proposals to raise the
minimum wage.

Probably fucked up, definitely so if true. I'd love to see a citation.

>4\. Goodwill seized on an archaic 1938 law to justify paying workers as
little as 22 cents an hour.

Pretty fucked up, but seems to be an accounting issue. "According to Labor
Department documents dug up by NBC, Goodwill has paid workers in Pennsylvania
as little as 22 cents, 38 cents and 41 cents an hour." Per Forbes/Goodwill:
"(Goodwill says those ultra-low-wage figures are distorted because sometimes
workers run into emotional or physical issues, don’t finish their shifts, and
then wait for a parent or caregiver to arrive; in those cases Goodwill must
still count the total amount of time the worker stays on the job, which
translates to an abnormally low hourly wage.)"

So they got paid for the time they worked, but the hourly wage was calculated
based on the time spent on premises.

Looks like it's not typical: "The average hourly wage for the roughly 7,000
Goodwill employees who are paid under the FLSA provision is $7.47, says
Goodwill. And that’s just 5%-7% of the organization’s workforce. An additional
25,000 disabled workers make an average annualized salary of $29,000, it
says." per Forbes[0]

[0] [https://www.forbes.com/sites/susanadams/2013/07/30/does-
good...](https://www.forbes.com/sites/susanadams/2013/07/30/does-goodwill-
industries-exploit-disabled-workers/)

>5\. Many people with disabilities have actually died from injuries borne of
Goodwill’s unsafe workplace safety practices.

Huge issue, should really be the entire article.

>6\. Employees that criticize Goodwill’s practices end up getting fired,
threatened, and publicly defamed by the company.

Fucked up, but it's the same issue as #5.Goodwill blames the employee in
question for the death. Cal-OSHA disagreed and fined the ~$100k.

>7\. Employees are subject to strict, unrealistic performance quotas, and
their wages are docked if they’re not fast enough.

This is specific to people with disabilities. The alternative is that they
simply don't get hired. This is a larger problem than goodwill - it's the lack
of a good social safety net.

>9\. Goodwill’s legal status as a charity wins grants and tax subsidies,
manifesting in hugely lucrative quantities of profit for executives that are
not evenly distributed among the people they are intended to benefit.

More on Goodwill Omaha, and then a bit about national compensation. I spoke
about Goodwill Omaha above, so here's the national part: $53.7MM total
executive compensation vs. a national revenue of >$3Bn. Not crazy.

>10\. Perhaps most of all, it is troubling to promote your business as a
charitable institution, project a false image of your workplace practices, and
abuse the public’s trust.

Being a charitable organization is a tax status.

~~~
pergadad
Just to respond to your first comment - government contracts normally contain
margins for admin (which don't need to be justified by actual cost), most
organisations will use these to cover part of the writing process. Equally,
mutually they will have explicit scope top indicate admin hours, etc, and any
tender for public funding would plan (& declare at the end) more than actually
needed for the performance or project.

In other words: grants/government contracts don't fall from the sky, but in
any half competent organization it's easy to come out positive, even when you
consider cost & time for tendering, unsuccessful tenders, cancelled projects,
etc. Don't believe for a second that goodwill or any other org is putting up
money to perform contracts/services at no gain.

------
kermittd
O and the sales culture regarding donations is quite distasteful.

------
kermittd
Glad to hear this come out. Worked at a Goodwill store for a summer. Involved
lots of heavy lifting of furniture, strict managers, insane scheduling
rationale, and auschwitzean like propaganda regarding the power of work.

~~~
panarky
_> auschwitzean_

Do you mean "arbeit macht frei" [1] or "work will set you free"?

Were you prevented from leaving?

[1]
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arbeit_macht_frei](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arbeit_macht_frei)

~~~
kermittd
No not all. It’s why I said auschwitzean like.

O there is the corporate tag line. I think it goes improving lives through the
power of work. I’ll get a source on that

~~~
ben1040
I've seen this line on their billboards around town, "the power and dignity of
work."

[http://www.goodwill.org/blog/advocate/the-power-of-
work/](http://www.goodwill.org/blog/advocate/the-power-of-work/)

~~~
sandworm101
That protestant work ethic has a long tradition in the US. It has informed
debates from slavery to obamacare. It is a great way to motivate a population
to work. It biult much of early America when a lack of labour was a limiting
factor on growth. But wherever labour is plentiful, or non-voluntary, such
ideas quickly lead to abuse. Owners start thinking that they do the employees
a favour just by allowing them in the factory door.

------
onomonomono
I don't get the feeling the author has a deep understanding of economics.

Point 2 - She says she hates companies who make clothes exploiting cheap labor
overseas, but then selling them cheap clothes is also bad? How is this
Goodwill's fault? Should Goodwill not auction their clothes and send them
straight to the landfill instead? (No, she's mad if they get sent to the
landfill, too.) If Country X wants to protect their emerging clothes industry
they can tax/tariff, but it's a strange argument that consumers in Country X
are too happy with the clothes they're getting from Goodwill's auctions and
they need to be harmed so local businesses can charge them more. (Also, am I
supposed to know what a "neo-imperialist buyer" is?)

Point 3 - Author complains about Goodwill fighting the minimum wage because
they have $3.8 billion in revenues. With 100,000 employees that's only $38,000
in revenue per employee per year. You could round up and say employees on
average are bringing in roughly $20/hr in revenues. After paying for operating
costs (buildings, land, trucks, electricity, gas, insurance, etc.) will there
really be a minimum of $15/hr left for every single employee?

Point 4 - Author complains that Goodwill pays disable persons under minimum
wage, one even made $3.27 for 24 hours of work. If you click through you see
that worker was paid that because in 24 hours of work they were able to put
327 articles of clothing on hangers at a penny per hanger. That's obviously a
sad situation but it's clear Goodwill wasn't exploiting them.

Point 5 - author says Goodwill doesn't provide safe working conditions for
disabled employees. The linked article (from socialistworker.com?!?) makes it
look like the unsafe conditions exist without regard to the worker's ability
level. Still, this is the first real issue brought up.

Point 6 - Not great, but lots of companies fire employees for bringing them
bad press.

Point 7 - "Performance Quotas" and Point 8 - "Corporate Responsibility" This
is where it becomes clear the author wants impossible things, literally
impossible. She says "...it is a company’s job to accommodate all employees’
needs, fairly compensate them for their labor, and give them the same tasks
and work conditions as an able-bodied co-worker." I'm not sure what she thinks
"fair compensation" for slowly putting t-shirts on hangers is but it's hard to
justify $10/hr. Disabled people are by definition not capable of completing
the same tasks as others, you can't give them the same tasks as others, if you
could they wouldn't be disabled.

Point 9 - Executive Compensation. The age-old argument. If you want competent
people to run your business with $4 billion in revenues, they're going to be
expensive. How expensive? Who knows, but the fact that Goodwill is still in
business means they're probably paying for decent leadership at least from a
business perspective.

Point 10- ...The author closes with "Corporate abuse of employees has become a
feature of modern capitalism, but doing so under the guise of charity? That’s
something especially concerning about that." This, along with the link to an
openly socialist website, makes me wonder what the author's been reading. She
seems to be blaming capitalism for harsh realities of the world we live in,
like disabled people not being able to work as productively as non-disabled
people. Or free trade hurting some businesses and helping others. Or the fact
that you have to make a distinction between an employee and a charity case.

------
zeveb
This isn't terribly fair.

Spending 12.5% of profits on charity seems pretty laudable to me. The article
complains about $57.3 million in bonuses, but the linked article neither gives
that figure nor provides a timespan. Half a million per year — a number from a
different linked article — for CEO compensation seems pretty fair for a
national ogranisation.

Agreed that shipping stuff to third-world nations is bad for their industries,
but what's the alternative? The article _also_ complains that Goodwill throws
out garbage.

The complaints about the wage paid to the disabled are misplaced, I think. I
don't believe anyone can seriously write, 'Disabled people aren’t inherently
less productive employees,' as does a linked Huffington Post article. It seems
pretty reasonable that the choice is between low-paying jobs for the disabled
or no jobs at all. Likewise, I think 'people with disabilities are not a
burden' could only be written by someone who's never dealt with the mentally
disabled.

The complaint about unsafe work places lacks context. Any workplace is
potentially dangerous (even we office workers must worry about
electrocution!). The key unanswered question is how does Goodwill compare to
other organisations? If they're worse, that's bad — but if they're not, then
what exactly is the problem?

The complaint about performance quotas could be turned around: perhaps those
explicit expectations are necessary in order to provide jobs to low-IQ
workers.

The concern about tax subsidies applies to _every_ charity. Note that this
campaign appears in part to have originated at the Socialist Worker, which
would like to see the State take responsibility for all charitable endeavours
— all under the expert guidance of the well-compensated, empensioned civil
service. That's merely trading one set of well-compensated managers for
another.

~~~
pmyteh
I have a mental disability. I also have a PhD and a well paid academic job.
Disabled people really aren't inherently less productive; it depends on the
job, the individual, and (critically) the attitude of the place they work.

