Fact or Fiction

Fact: This one’s easy to debunk! All team members start at or above minimum wage. Team members are also eligible for Goodwill-funded benefits, including paid time off, insurance, and retirement.

Fact: Goodwill has several policies to ensure everyone has an equal opportunity to score those unique finds. Team members are not allowed to shop while they are working, and all items must be on the sales floor for a specified amount of time before they can be purchased by Goodwill employees.

Fact: Goodwill is a responsible steward of all funding streams — retail/online sales, private donations/grants, state/federal grants, staffing services, and business contracts. For every dollar earned or received, more than 85¢ of every dollar is reinvested back into the communities Goodwill serves to provide no-cost programming to help individuals obtain and maintain employment.

Fact: All items donated to Goodwill go through a comprehensive sustainability lifecycle. If they’re not sold in-store within a certain amount of time, they’re transferred back to a Goodwill warehouse, where they are processed for recycling if possible.

Fact: For over 100 years, Goodwill Industries of the Greater Chattanooga Area has been recognized by the IRS as a non-profit 501(c)3 organization. Our mission is to help people transform potential into opportunity. We’re committed to serving the underserved – people lacking education, people with disabilities, people facing homelessness, people with a criminal background, and youth lacking opportunity – and all the funding we receive powers our programs.

Fact: While it is true that we may set aside some items like fine art and designer handbags to be sold on shopgoodwill.com that doesn’t mean that shoppers don’t have access to the same type of items in-store! Whether an item is sold online or in-store, all sales support our mission to help people transform potential into opportunity.

Fact: This story often circulates on social media. As a 501c(3), Goodwill does not and cannot have an owner. The President and CEO of Goodwill Industries of the Greater Chattanooga Area is Gena Weldon, who was selected by a locally elected Board of Directors. Mark Curran has never owned Goodwill or worked for Goodwill Industries.

The CEO of Goodwill Industries International is Steven Preston, who also reports to a volunteer board of directors.

Fact: Goodwill was founded by Edgar J. Helms with the philosophy of providing “a hand up, not a handout.” This mission is still true today. Goodwill doesn’t just help someone once; we believe in teaching people the skills they need to find sustainable success.