To think people are quite petty to object to charity shop staff getting "first dibs" when they are BUYING the items?

[SorcererGaheris]

For context, I am a volunteer in a charity shop myself, and if I see something that I want, I will purchase it. The shop doesn't give staff discounts, either; staff pay full price - the last item I bought, a book, cost me £40.

Anyway, I COMPLETELY understand people objecting if volunteers were to just take donated items for themselves, but I've seen some online discussions in which people complain about the staff getting first pick of donations when they are paying for them. I really don't see the problem in this case, and think people who object are rather out of line. Other retail workers surely sometime purchase items from the shops they work in, so I don't see why volunteers should be begrudged that. A volunteer is a customer as much as any other.

I agree with you.

As long as items are fairly priced and the staff pay the full sale price then I'd class it as perk of the job, which is usually a volunteer role.

The charity gets its money for the item regardless who buys it, which is the whole point of donations and charity shop.

YANBU. When I used to volunteer in a charity shop we were allowed to buy items we liked. They made a fortune off me!

Exactly. I don't think there's an issue with having a small staff discount either, and I understand that some charities offer that, but that charity shop I'm in doesn't do so.

As long as you’re paying the same price as a regular customer there’s no issue.

However, having worked in several charity shops I know some do heavily discount to staff and I can see why some people get annoyed.

Surely that's just a perk of volunteering! If they care so much about it then maybe they could volunteer their time free of charge too.

I am a Girlguiding volunteer and my daughters get priority on waiting lists/moving up units as a perk.

Some people don't get that retaining volunteers can be challenging for charities, and small perks like this really help keep people willing to give their time.

Problem is, if staff buy all the good stuff you'll get fewer people through the doors to buy the rest of the stock.
But charity shops should do what works best for them. If dibs keeps the volunteers happy and doesn't harm revenue then I don't care.

What was the £40 book?

£40 for a charity shop book?? The books in my local charity shop are all £2.

and no, I don’t think there is anything wrong with you having first dibs…, you are giving up your own time to work there for free and are paying full price for items.
I do think that charity shops have become very expensive though.

No issue with it at all. Perk of the (unpaid) job.

It was 'Sorcerer's Screed' - an Icelandic book of Magic Spells. I expected it to be relatively pricey, as I'd seen it on sale a year or two ago in my local pagan/witchcraft shop.

Sorcerer's Screed: The Icelandic Book of Magic Spells : Amazon.co.uk: Books

Paying for them - not a problem. The only thing is, normally just see junk in shops so why would I bother going in 🤷🏼‍♀️
Taking them I would have a problem.

I know someone whose relative volunteers at a food bank and takes the quality items and gives them to her well to do niece (our neighbour). I think my face said it all…

It was a unique, rare and special book, not a regular paperback.

Stealing from a food bank is low. People donate nice items to food banks so the recipents can have something to enjoy.

I completely understand your reaction in that case. That's why I felt I needed to specify the circumstances of charity shop staff purchasing the items, as 'first dibs' by itself could be interpreted as meaning just taking/stealing them.

The only thing is, normally just see junk in shops so why would I bother going in

I think this is the only reason I can see for objecting to volunteers getting first dibs, as it could lead to the decent stuff getting siphoned off and therefore decreasing footfall because people only expect to find junk. On the other hand, tastes vary and one persons "decent" is another's "junk"!

To be honest, I don't really see an issue, as long as the items are paid for and as long as it's occasional/personal purchases vs removing a sack load of items (that might otherwise attract customers in) to flog on Ebay etc...

It's fine. Charity shops must go through huge volumes of a huge variety of stuff. Volunteers are only going to buy a tiny proportion, it won't mean there's only rubbish left to sell. And there have to be some perks for the volunteers.

If they pay the same as someone coming into the shop, fine by me.

I spent some time in a refuge 25 years ago, and the volunteers used to take their pick of the nicer donations such as chocolate and biscuits meant as a treat for the residents. They saw it as a perk of the job

It's a bit different if the donations are specifically meant for the residents of the refuge. When people donate stuff to a charity shop, it's for anyone to buy.

No problem, provided the price is fair and they're not selling things on (if they think they could get more for it elsewhere, they should up the price).

As well as it making no difference to the charity who purchases things, some charity shops struggle for space, so the quicker things are sold, the better, as they can then get more goods out on display, and hopefully increase the overall turnover.

No I don’t have a problem with what you are suggesting, after all there is only so much stuff you can acquire.

@SorcererGaheris that was more in relation to the PP about the food bank, ie I quite believe that some volunteers grab the fancy items

In my experience, that doesn't happen in the shop in which I volunteer. Staff do purchase items they'd like to own, but there's still plenty of good stock to go out, and a steady flow of donations.

That tends to be the case in the shop I volunteer in. (The shop has had to actually temporarily put a halt on donations coming in as there was so much unprocessed stock downstairs.) We generally get regular donations and while some stock can be pretty shabby and unsaleable, there's a decent amount of good stuff too.