Sophie's Column: No excuse for abusing charity workers

The High Street has never been short of shoppers or people trying to sell things.

It came as no surprise to me that there’s been the odd charity worker on the street trying to sell donation subscriptions to passers by.

What did come as a surprise to me, though, was the amount of hassle they were getting from shoppers, some of whom weren’t all that nice.

One of the girls I met at uni dropped out of her course and picked up a job doing exactly the same thing in Glasgow.

You can usually spot them from a mile away; they’re often wearing a bright red or yellow jacket, normally with a charity logo on the back, holding a clip board in their hands. They don’t really bother anyone.

Usually if you decline their offer or say you’re too busy to chat, they seem really understanding. She thoroughly enjoyed her job and said she very seldom got any backlash.

In fact, I’ve very rarely seen any of them getting any sort of abuse on Glasgow’s shopping streets. What’s the difference in Falkirk, then?

Over the past three days I’ve seen at least three of these people being screamed at, usually by shoppers of an older generation.

One man was practically jabbing his fingers in some poor girl’s face.

I understand everyone has a specific charity they may already support but screaming at sellers is no way to treat a human being who, at the end of the day, is just trying to do their job.

It doesn’t create a good impression of the people of Falkirk compared to other towns and cities, does it?