To be sick of misogynistic aggressive male chuggers?

[Bearsdolovetrees]

I work near a major London rail station and get harassed by male chuggers constantly. They don’t take no for an answer, block my path, and walk alongside me even when I’ve asked them not to.

Two examples:

Today I said “no thank you” to a Stop the Knife fundraiser. He followed me, kept asking if I was sure, and when I changed direction to move away he said “wow, what an attitude you have.”

A few months ago a Shelter fundraiser blocked my path and kept trying to fist bump me. After I said no several times, he called me unkind and ‘not a nice woman.’ I complained to the charity and they said they’d investigated and had a word with him, but ultimately, “found no evidence” which is obvious as it’s their word against mine. Am I supposed to film my walk to the station every day?!

This is daily now: young male chuggers using forced compliments about my hair/earrings/dress to try to get me to engage. I’m pretty sure they’re not genuinely into my 50-year-old style — it’s just another tactic. And, yet, they’re always offended when I don’t fawn a thank you and I get some nasty comment.

I’ve tried being pleasant, being rude. Complaining seems to go nowhere. It’s misogynistic and intimidating, and honestly not okay behaviour from men representing charities. What can I do?! What do others do?

Has anyone watched Small Prophets? The way Michael puts his hand right in front of his boss' face when he takes a call on his mobile...really tickled me, but now I'm wondering if a hand in front of their face would be a good tactic for the chuggers! 😂 Maybe accompanied by something along the lines of "If I can't see you, you can't see me" and then cackle maniacally!

I hate it, they are on commission contracts so will do/say anything. The next week they sling another tabard on from another charity and continue their harassment.

They are an absalute pain in the arse.

More needs to be done to remove them from lots of towns and cities.

Some will back away if I nod my head left to right to indicate no but this does not stop all of them.

Closed answers are difficult for them to wriggle out of and " NO" is my favourite.

I find the are so used to people going "er sorry" that a strong "no thanks" sometimes disarms them and they dont know where to go from there.

I dont understand why charities use these people. Noone on their lunch break is suddenly going to go "oh yes Ive been meaning to donate to oxfam monthly, thank god you are here". I bet 99.9% cancel after the first payment and is that more than yhe chuggers wages? Doubtful.

I hate them. They harrass and intimidate people, I have had them leap out in front of me and block my way and accuse me of "not caring about......" (insert whatever cause they are promoting). That incenses me I have sometimes reeled off a long list of charities that I donate to as and when I can afford to and finish off by saying it that I will now never donate to the charity they are working for because of their aggressive and unpleasant behaviour.

Ooooo I love this, I will borrow your “so inauthentic” line.
They are a menace and I’m sick of being complimented when they absolutely don’t mean it at all.

Last summer the fake knife crime charity guys sidled up to DD who was 13. She is tall and does look much older. I snapped, “she’s 13” he responded “she’s beautiful, nah she don’t look 13” and laughed. Ironically we were in London getting her emergency passport so I whipped her passport out of my bag and waved it about and loudly said “please leave my 13 year old child alone you are an adult and your inappropriate behaviour will be reported”. Best come back of my life, usually I think of these things when the moment has passed.

I binged-watched Small Prophets last night! Best thing I have seen in ages, loved it. I want to grow a hommonculous or maybe not 😃

I work for a charity that's a member of the institute of fundraising which has a strict code of conduct. There are a lot of rules - for example we are told we aren't allowed to rattle money tins for attention.

Complaints may not come to much individually but they are logged and tracked at reputable charities. The people on the streets are usually third parties (agencies) and will have their contracts stopped if enough complaints are received.

So, if they aren't registered then I would say I'm not donating to charities that aren't compliant with iof standards. If they are registered, then Def do complain to both the charity and the IOF. I'm surprised Shelter were not better with their response. but I expect they will still have a log of it and it might have some impact down the line if people complain.

I saw someone say one of them wasn't a real charity. Im which case it's a police matter surely?

Also, you need a council licence to collect money on the streets. So maybe could complain to the council?

Start filming you interactions. Use social media to shame the charities that use them.

You are magnificent. 😂

Don’t hate me but I did a brief stint as a chugger in my early teens and our “training” consisted of a weird middle aged man encouraging us to flirt with people to get donations and role playing these scenarios with him 🤢. They’re so aggressive though I agree.

The knife crime one isn't a charity - Why can't anyone stop Inside Success and the fundraisers outside London stations?

I usually say I am in need of the toilet and if they delay me I am likely to pee on their feet.

I will certainly copying the PP who on being told they look nice replied they were a c* really.

I’ve had my path blocked so many times by them. I say get out of my way or stop blocking my path and if they don’t I tell them to fuck off. I’m an older woman so they look a bit shocked. Mostly I say to them I support other charities and they leave me alone but it’s ones that persist that irritate me the most.

I speak Welsh at them. If I was ballsy I'd bark at them. Or "no thank you no thank you no thank you". But it's so unfair for you to have to deal with that so often. We used to get lots knocking our doors when I'd go for "I can't afford to set up any more standing orders or direct debits, I donate my bloody, my stem cells and I'm on the bone marrow register, I simply have no more money to give".

Surely this is illegal. I thought even shaking the tins was ilegal.

Kings Cross or Farringdon?
The knife crime ones, I just politely (and loudly) say "You are not a charity' and carry on walking. I'm normally pretty blunt with all of them but tend to get quite shirty if they won't pack it in (Racing for a train when I have three hour journey home and had one singing at me about how lovely I looked and he knew I'd want to talk to him) and tell them that as soon as they give me money in the street, I'll return the favour.

A confused look, a vague wave and "No English" in some odd accent seems to work.

I always say “no thank you” and keep walking, but yes, they 100% use the looking lovely today/Miss/young lady/sweetheart approach - even though I’m far from young, so it actually feels like some sort of backhanded insult these days!

They rely on people like I was when I was 20 - a stupid people pleaser who was easily flattered. I ended up signed up to a monthly subscription charity back then for a while because of that tactic.

I think that’s the really bad thing - really they are targeting vulnerable women as their main target market. Charity’s (or any company) shouldn’t be allowed to do that.

From observing them it seems to be the older generation who stay and talk to them

I just shake my head and keep walking. Once had a young guy telling me emphatically, "You can help the homelessness crisis for only the daily price of a cup of coffee" Meanwhile I'm thinking, I don't buy a coffee every day, I can't afford it.

I did have a pleasant interaction with a female charity fundraiser recently. She was at the door of the place. I used the vending machine before I left the building and made sure to avoid eye contact with her. She obviously could tell, and simply said, "bye, have a nice day," as I walked past her to leave

Send one back then.
“Fuck off” also works, I find.

I've never had a chugger be rude or pushy but they do have to try desperately to find ways of engaging people. I've not seen the knife crime ones which is supposedly fake.

One said I dropped something, then I went back to look for it, and he started laughing at me. I laughed too out of nerves but told him 'don't do that to people you nearly gave me a coronary.' He got my attention but not to actually pitch me even one sentence. So pointless really.

Ultimately though I feel sorry for the ones doing it for a legit charity. They're just desperate for work clearly and trying to make a living. It's not a job anyone would choose if something better was available.

I go with a firm No Thank you and continue walking at pace. If they manage to block the path somehow I say firmly ‘I never give to charities on the street’.

Luckily not had any abuse so far.

Something that did put me off giving to cancer charities was I came across sort of protesters showing signs with pictures on them of cats being tortured for cancer research. It was horrific