The Goods, Not The Garbage: The Goodwill Asks People To Please Stop Donating Trash

Goodwill stores want people who donate to stop sending them their trash.

According to NBC 4 New York, homebound people across the country have been cleaning out their homes and sending Goodwill stores defective or completely worn-out items that can’t be used period, and the Goodwill wants it to stop.

While the Goodwill stores don’t want to discourage donations, saying most of the items sent are perfectly usable, they highlight an overwhelming amount of unwanted items. The stores emphasize its need to provide for struggling American families, but they call the issue a teachable moment.

“I’m careful not to shake my finger at donors because, without them, we wouldn’t have a business model,” said Megan Fink, a marketing executive at Palmetto Goodwill. “But we are trying to educate.”

Not only are the worn-down items hard to dispose of, but they also rack up the stores’ garbage disposal costs. In addition, it takes staff workers hours to process the contributions, NBC 4 New York reports. “It actually ends up costing Goodwill rather than helping them,” said David Courard-Hauri, a professor of environmental science and sustainability at Drake University. The news outlet reports the increase in trash expenses can take away from the funding the stores would like to put toward other community services.

“We’ve had all sorts of donations with people cleaning out their house. I think it’s important to educate donors that we can’t repair items,” said Julie Deming, a merchandising director at Goodwill Industries of Southeastern Wisconsin.

To find out if the item is unwanted, overused, or worn down, Goodwill workers say donators can always check their local agency’s website.