To be really pissed off about my office's attitude towards our food bank donation

[LookingForAHandHold]

Every year we run an office collection for a local food bank. This year we're doing one for families with nothing and young children.

So far im the only one who has really donated. I understand times are tough, but it's £1 for a pack of biscuits in Iceland.

People are making horrible comments too, about the branded names etc and the ungrateful brats who don't deserve it. It's for young children. It just breaks my heart.

I'm so close to taking it all home and donating it myself

By supposed to I mean it's something that's encouraged, the company gives an amount for us to spend and then the rest of us are asked to donate if we can. It's just infuriating to me that people are so rude about it

It’s not the money it’s the effort. You want me to remember to get something extra and buy it and remember to bring it in for a certain day? Nope. Not doing it. I have a gazillion to remember to do this time of year, I don’t need to go buying extra stuff and remembering what to do with it.

Having said that our work has a QR code next to the donation spot and I scanned that and donated £20. Cash yes, things items no.

Glad to see the spirit of Christmas is alive and well. Warms your heart doesn’t?

Is one of the kids Tiny Tim?

Sorry, couldn’t resist. Look I agree it’s disgraceful that some children will struggle to get fed at any time , not just Christmas, but you have no right to judge people for not giving. Their nasty comments - pull them up on it. But nobody has to donate anything

Doesn't excuse the brats and branded comments, but a lot of people really resent being organised into donating to a charity of our employers choosing at work. It's not for my job to ask me what to contribute my money too, as a matter of principle.

I think people have compassion fatigue this year has been so so tough people don’t have disposable cash and what they do have they choose what to donate. I wouldn’t donate to a mandated charity I support Many Tears and my friends dog rescue that’s if

Maybe it's the performative nature of the collections that is annoying people.

Many people donate to charities all year round and don't feel it necessary to announce it, or 'encourage' others to donate to their chosen charities. Donate what, if and to whom you like, and leave others to make their own choices.

See also announcing on SM 'I can't be bothered/don't want to spend money to send Christmas cards this year but I've donated to X charity'. I don't need to know whether or not you've donated to charity at any time. I know many people get a lot of joy from receiving cards, so I don't think you are particularly virtuous choosing not to send any, but it's up to you. And, if you don't think I'm worth your time, effort and money to send a card to, fine, but I'd rather you didn't spell it out to me.

I agree people are donating less due to cost of living but to make comments is just nasty.
my husband and I used to have really good jobs and everything is ok. Within 2 years of each we both became disabled. I can’t work at all and my husband can only work part time.
we have been plunged into having to live month to month and a couple of times have had to use food banks to get through.

People don’t think it can happens to them but it can then they will be the ones crying out for help.

I managed to get a horrid man backtrack on Facebook when he was going on about people with disabilities choosing not to work. I asked him if he would employ me when I have up to 20 seizures a week, lose my memory with half of them. Lose control of my bowels and bladder. He then said he was not talking about the “real” disabled like me 😡😡

People are entitled to donate or not as they see fit. And it isn't for you, or anyone else to do the ' but it's only £1' guilt trip. They may have very good reasons for not donating. They may not agree with the particular cause, or the way it operates. There were (maybe still are) some charities that collect shoe boxes at Christmas. Yes, that is for children and people who have very little, but a large number of people have issues with the way the charity operates. There are some good causes I will not give to, not because I don't agree with the core message, but I have real issues with how they are run. I also give to various charities throughout the year so often don't give at work because I don't always have the spare cash. People are entitled to make their own decision about where to spend their money without being judged for not spending as you think they should.

The comments are out of order though, they should just ignore it and not be rude.

I'm obviously not saying it to them.

I just think it's really hypocritical to say "oh I wish I could BUT" while spending so much each day. This is a tiny charity, nothing shady just good people helping others.

The charity may not be shady, but a work setup where anyone thinks you're 'all supposed to donate' is. The problem would go away if your employer minded their own business.

next year focus your efforts elsewhere. Volunteer at the food bank or make a donation directly or whatever. You can’t change your colleagues sadly.

Where does it end? Do we all have to walk around in second-hand hair shirts and eat only gruel while giving every spare penny to charities? “Oh you can afford a nice lunch, that could have gone to charity!”. You could say that about anything.

Also it's nearly always the lower paid staff who feel pressured into it while the well paid set it up and don't donate.

And what they choose to spend on lunch from the salary they earn is entirely up to them.

Whether you donate to other charities or not you can (generally) afford £1 to buy biscuits or a can of something.

I know it's voluntary but I bet some don't donate just because they can't be bothered.

I think you need to stop taking this so personally. There will be lots of small charities doing good work all around your local area and people can't support all of them. You have no idea what your colleagues are giving or not and it's nothing to do with you even if you did. Focus on what you do, and not what everyone else is doing.

The whole sentence is ' I wish I could BUT ....I don't want to'

Of course it is.

But would it kill them to spare £1?

And it really does make a difference

I don’t know how anyone can disagree with it.

I mean this kindly - but I think you just have to accept that they do, or they don’t want to donate. And that’s up to them at the end of the day. By all means, encourage it and promote the idea that it’s a good cause. But other than that, I’d just leave it.

Obviously not. But while we're all heading home to our warm houses and nice meals it just feels horrible

People are making horrible comments too, about the branded names etc and the ungrateful brats who don't deserve it.

Where do you work? People who say dreadful things like that must have form for being generally nasty people, so I'm not surprised they are not donating.

I no longer give to certain charities . There have been a lot of scandals revealing huge misappropriation of funds . Some for directors personal use. Don't like the World Vision shoebox thing as they also use it to promote religion.

They might not want to give to that charity for various reasons and that is their right. If I only had a pound left to give, I’d donate to a charity of my choice.

This.
I can think of 3 places where I am regularly where they have Food Bank Collection Points. If anyone were monitoring me, they would see I never put anything in any of them. What they can't see of course is my Standing Order that goes out EVERY MONTH so the Food Bank can buy what they are short of and the people really need. If I worked with you, I wouldn't necessarily tell you this, so you would probably judge me.