UKH

Something's been on my mind this past week and, if I think about it, for many years before this. 

The question is in the thread title, really. 

Some context. I (despite my persona on here) am in real life quite chilled out and tolerant, in general. I don't want my wanderings along high streets to be interrupted by chuggers trained to pretend that they are volunteering, but I'm usually polite enough to them if they do manage to catch my attention, and more often I'm adept at displaying the "do not approach" body language. The genuine needy - the homeless - I will always acknowledge and sometimes even give some spare change to, and I'll never be rude to THEM

Sometimes however, I am too tired or otherwise grumpy to play polite. I would hope that any chugger could spot this, but some can't and they get given very short shrift indeed. 

Around 12 years ago an overenthusiastic one literally bounded up to me when I was with colleagues walking into town for a lunchtime coffee, she started her spiel and I wordlessly cut her off with a sort of "zip it" mime hand gesture and didn't break step. In my mind, I did her a favour, I saved her a few wasted minutes. I heard her say to her colleague "did you see what that man did? He didn't even know what I was going to say" I was very tempted to turn back and say "I've got a pretty good idea petal and I'll have you know I donate direct to your charity cutting out that 30% that covers you lot harassing people in the streets", but I didn't, because I am nice. 

This all came back to me last week in Milan, on Wednesday just before lunchtime, in front of the Sforza Castle. I was utterly worn down after overdoing my travels, and just wanted to sit for 10 minutes doing nothing and chill out. 

I was approached by numerous folk trying to sell woven little bracelets and I "shooed" them away like flies. Then someone decided that the fact that I was looking at a smartphone meant that I must need earphones and he spent 10 seconds too long trying to foist some earphone tat onto me, I gave him one polite "no" but when he basically just pushed them closer into my face, I lost it a bit and gave it a full shouty "NO! NO!" right in his face, he looked a bit frightened. 

I know these peddlers are desperate, on the fringes of society etc, so should I feel guilty for giving them a hard time for a few seconds before they move on to the next hapless punter, or should I feel that I've given them a lesson in how to better read people that they are not going to profit from?

I've been feeling a bit bad about the Milan ones for a week hence this post. 

I donated about £400 to a range of charities last year, if that helps with your judgements. 

In reply to Blue Straggler:

I think you should continue exactly as you are doing, especially when it comes to addressing women you don't know.

In reply to Blue Straggler:

With chuggers I just keep walking and smilingly tell them they really need to work on  their 'spot the miserable bastard' skills. It usually gets me a smile back

In reply to Wiley Coyote2:

I have a slightly lurid green baggy cardigan/fleece/hoody thing that I bought out of boredom in a German TK Maxx once, which I sometimes wear if the weather is right and I don't care what I look like. 

On one such occasion, an insanely chirpy (and presumptious and overfamiliar) chugger bloke gave me a "where've you Beeeeeeen, bloke in Greeeeeeeeeeeeen"

I loudly told him to "duck off" which is as rude as I've ever been and he deserved it, and I don't feel bad about that one. 

In reply to Tom Valentine:

You've lost me there Thomas. 
Do elaborate. 

In reply to Blue Straggler:

I generally find 'no thanks' whilst walking past is enough. If they ignore that polite rebuffal, I think I'm at liberty to stop being polite.

I'm wary of overly persistent people abroad (less so at home, but still wary of having my personal space invaded), having had my pocket picked by a group of children in Rome many years ago. About a decade later, the Rome authorities finally cracked down on the Fagin-like gangmasters running these gangs, taking the children into care.

In reply to Blue Straggler:

With life being enigmatic/random like it is, I guess a third option is that how you responded might mean that he's slightly more wary now, and potentially won't get on the wrong side of a nutter?    

I wouldn't think about it anymore than you have.  

On the subject of reading people, a few people have told me ' you have something about you ' that comes across as peaceful, and somebody tried to steal my bike while I was on it the other day. I'm seriously pondering taking up taekwondo(sp) to compensate as a result, surprising people wouldn't be a bad thing.  

In reply to Blue Straggler:

You may think you know what they are going to say but...

A few years ago I was on a business trip to Austin Texas and I went for a walk around the centre of town pretty early in the morning.   I ended up on this street which was full of bars, all shut up with shutters over the windows and there were people sleeping in the doorways.   I'm starting to think this is dodgy, but it was the direct way back to my hotel.  One of them gets up, a big guy,  and gets right in front of me so I couldn't just walk past.

And he says: "Sir, I'm a poet."

In reply to tom_in_edinburgh:

Roses are red, violets are blue

Gimme your wallet

Or I'll waste you

In reply to Blue Straggler:

With chuggers, assuming I'm not genuinely in a rush and do have time to stop, I'll generally wait politely until I can get a word in edgeways and tell them that I absolutely, positively will not be signing a direct debit mandate with them but if they'd like to continue to tell me about the charity's work, I might well be persuaded to sign up directly via their website so they won't be paying any commission on my donations.

So far I've never met one who didn't immediately drop it, often as not without another word, and go back to finding someone else to pounce on.  I walk away feeling better about it than I did when I used to more or less tell them to bugger off since I haven't been rude to them or even turned them down - just told them they won't get a cut of my donations if they do make a 'sale'.  When the conversations ends it's because they're the ones who aren't willing to support the charity as an altruistic gesture, not me.

In reply to deepsoup:

If they're being paid per person they sign up, I'm not sure if you can say they're not being altruistic given the modern economy?

In reply to tom_in_edinburgh:

In Xanadu did Kubla Khan

Gimme your f*cken hotel key

In reply to Timmd:

They're not being altruistic in the sense that, given the opportunity to support the charity voluntarily the way they invariably pretend they already are doing, to spend a couple of minutes of their time talking me into setting up a regular direct-debit donation that they won't get to take a cut of, thus far I have never known a chugger to not just drop it immediately and walk away.

In reply to Blue Straggler:

With chugger and the like a simple "no thanks mate" works, if they follow me and carry on then it "I said I'm not interested", if they still persist it becomes "f*ck off before I hurt you".  I have done quite a bit of tin rattling myself and you don't need to be a tw*t about it. I always find that dressing the fool and making people laugh = lots of donations. 

The guts selling tat abroad are a different case, I always start politely saying no thank you but they won't stop unless you walk away or intimidate them enough to stop. 

In reply to Blue Straggler:

'zip it' gestures and 'shooing them away like flies'? Seriously? Just say no thanks and carry on walking, or look the other way.

I don't agree with their practices but let's be honest, it's hardly there fault. It's not like they're making their millions chugging! 

In reply to Blue Straggler:

I'm assuming this is actually just a piece of Partidgesque satire?

In reply to Blue Straggler:

Long ago, based on what an old boss said to me, I decided to spend some time researching what charities I wanted to support and then set up direct debits with them.  This means I am supporting charities I want to support and they get the full benefit of long term support through my direct debit and associated gift aid.  If I am then approached for donations to other charities either by friends or strangers I politely decline telling them I am already supporting a number of charities.

In reply to Blue Straggler:

I ask them if they want to carry on the discussion in my van parked around the corner, where there are some puppies to pet. no takers so far...

In reply to Blue Straggler:

So, why change on here?

She wasn't to know you contributed to the charity she was working for and was just "doing her job", imagine if you encountered such rudeness on your daily job?

So, some street peddlers approached, by their standards, a wealthy looking guy and asked them to buy something, how were they to know you had been repeatedly asked this question, they are only trying to make a living 

Treat people with respect/dignity, it doesn't cost 

It doesn't, but good for you, I guess most people do donate - my bugbear is that I am known for not sponsoring people to do the "amazing" feats that they want sponsored for - walks/runs/cycles/duration of dances etc. as none of these things are actually that hard and I already have some monthly direct debits from my salary to the charities I wish to contribute to me - yet people feel the need to comment that I never sponsor them for things - oh well, such is life. On the other hand I have never asked people to sponsor me to do things either .

Anyway, the sun is shining, off out to enjoy the day, I wish you a good day, try not dwell too long on your behavior to charity workers or street peddlers, i'm sure they are not dwelling on your behaviour.  

In reply to Blue Straggler:

When I was in my teens a friend of mine screamed hail satan into the face of a religious peddlar who started hassling us as we were leaving glasgow central one afternoon. It seemed hilarious at the time and they just froze and then backed away but I think the novelty of over-reacting to street peddlers wanes quite quickly.

Ignoring people and avoiding eye contact has never not worked for me so I've never had cause to escalate things, but then I probably look too miserable for them to bother approaching me. Maybe you have developed an approachable look without realising it? Or maybe it's just karma for zip-it gestures, still referring to people as petal and shooing people away like flies

In reply to Blue Straggler:

I initially assumed that this was going to be a thread about Deliveroo cyclists.

In reply to deepsoup:

Why are they pretending they're being voluntary about chugging (if that's what you mean)? I generally pressume some are being paid in some way, in having heard about that in the media. I've come across people who'd say something similar to you, and that would be their way of absolving themselves of looking up about the charity when they get home, when deep down they have not much intention of doing, but they're placing the blame upon the chugger. With it being a form of deflection or self deception if you like. 

It's hard to tell on the internet, and I've never met you, rather than me casting aspersions...

In reply to subtle:

To better fit in  

For Heaven's sake. This was one incident out of many, over a decade ago, and it has stuck with me because I do feel a bit bad about it. Did you fail to grasp the overall point of my OP?

Did you not read the bit where I said I'd given a polite "no"? 

Again, maybe I just wasn't clear enough in the OP. The vast majority of the time, I treat chuggers and peddlers with respect and dignity. I would take issue with your claim that it doesn't cost, though. There is a cost to personal mental health when one's politeness leads to peddlers pestering and following you for 30 minutes when you are trying to get on with whatever it is you're doing. I know from many years of experience that politeness is seen as an invitation to persist. I'm only brusque because I know it is the only clear signal they'll accept to "move on". 

Woven bracelet peddlers are fairly well known to drape one over the wrist of an oblivious tourist and then more persistently "menace" some payment out of them because they've "tried it and bought it and are wearing it"

In reply to deepsoup:

I just speak Russian to them and watch them panic. Backfired on me the last time though...

In reply to Blue Straggler: That's a good point, I think I'd not let anybody invade my personal space like that anyway, one never quite knows, ie whether they've an accomplice who might take something while you're distracted. It's probably good to be aware of what's going on - or what might be going on.

In reply to Yanis Nayu:

Ooh maybe I can try "Nyet! Nyet!"

In reply to subtle:

Using a “zip it” hand gesture to dismiss a chugger trying to interrupt your day is not rude.  In cutting them off promptly, the OP helped minimise the waste of their time, raising their productivity.

The stranger is being quite rude.  

I walk very purposefully on a path maximising distance from chuggers.   I contrive to always be walking away from them and to never make eye contact.  I walk at about 4 mph. It’s abundantly clear from my gait, path and body language that I have no interest in communicating with them.  So why the flying —— do some of them insist on getting in my face and being all matey with me?  It’s almost like they want me to punch them in the face.  It’s a flagrant violation of social norms, it’s rude and it’s flipping annoying.  Airplane! called it 40 years ago.

In reply to Blue Straggler:

I have always believed that charitable donation should be spontaneous. By persuading people to sign up to a DD they are removing the spontainaety(sp) and  creating an imposition. I was once signed up to a DD with a well known charity. It was not long before they were writing to me to try to get me to increase the amount. I cancelled the DD and told them why.

If I'm approached by a chugger I usually cite that to them but then say that if they have a collection tin I will gladly donate what I feel I can afford out of my pocket.

When confronted by doorstep chuggers I use a similar spiel and also point out that I do a fair bit of voluntary work myself so that my conscience is clear about not opening a DD.

If I see somebody standing in a street or shopping precinct with a tin and they are obviously not in peoples' faces and it is a charity I support I will happily donate. I have done tin rattles and it always pleasantly surprises me how generous people can be. Once upon a time it used to be coins, nowadays it is not uncommon to see people pop fivers, tenners or even twenty into the tin

In reply to Yanis Nayu:

My mother just continued to repeat, "I'm sorry, I don't understand. Do you speak English?". This particularly flummoxed those who spoke English.

Although she was horrified when my dad tapped his ear and pretended to be deaf when somebody tried tell my dad about God.

In reply to Blue Straggler:

Dress like you ain’t got no money, honey.

In reply to Removed User:

I was in a TK Maxx top, with trousers from George at ASDA!

In reply to Blue Straggler:

I said dress you like ain’t got money, not class.

In reply to Blue Straggler:

Is it any harder to simply say, "no thanks" or "sorry I'm busy"?

Making a zipped lips mime or shoeing someone away, is a little superior if you ask me.

Well done for donating to charity, but being a little more civil doesn't cost you anything.

In reply to krikoman:

Is it hard to read the whole OP properly let alone the later comments?
I'll save you some time:
Politeness is very often utterly ineffective in the cases both of chuggers and peddlers so escalation is necessary

In reply to krikoman:

Not just directed at you, but a general response. I found this quite interesting, it is in the context of workplaces but applies to life too - interesting points about "surface acting" and "emotional labour"

I politely suggest that you read it, it's short. 

https://hbr.org/2016/09/managing-the-hidden-stress-of-emotional-labor

In reply to Timmd:

Likewise.  That's how I know they're on commission too - the company they're working for will be taking a significant cut (as much as 30%) of any donations made during the first year or more of any DD they set up.  As to "pretending to be voluntary" - you just try getting a chugger to admit to that! 

They talk about the charity in the first person: "We do this", "We do that", "Our volunteers..."  They wear the t-shirt and the badge, and want us to think they're just like a British Legion poppy-seller, for example, with their collecting tin.  (I'm non-patriotic non-poppy-wearing leftie scum, but I have so much more respect for a British Legion poppy-seller than a chugger.)

Try getting them to admit even that they are working, in their job, as they talk to you.  A "have you had an accident lately" ambulance-chasing insurance fraud encouraging everything-that-is-wrong-with-our-society Satan's little helper and ruiner of all things good will at least do that much!

Here's a lesser challenge - try to get them to give you a website URL where you can sign up to make a regular DD donation to the charity later, or on your phone right in front of them, instead of filling in the form on their clipboard.  Ever tried that?

Question for you: how would you feel about someone rattling a collecting tin for a charity instead of looking to sign people up to a DD mandate - they look exactly the same as other people you may see with a charity collecting tin, but what they won't tell you is that they're actually a full-time professional tin rattler on commission and 30% of whatever you put into their collecting tin will go straight into their own pocket.  The other 70% really does go to the charity though, so, y'know, altruistic.
Does that strike you as honest?

Have these people told you that's what they're doing, or are you just judging them the way you say you're not judging me?

They (or perhaps I should say "we") don't have a responsibility to look up the charity when they get home.  I can't speak for my fellow self-deceiving heartless bastards, but in my case if I have the time I am genuinely perfectly willing to listen to the chuggers' spiel and give them the opportunity to tell me about it - and if I like what I hear I will look them up online when I get home and may set up a DD there - 100% of which would then go to the charity in question.

There is a bit of a hurdle to overcome though, in that I find the use of professional chuggers somewhat distasteful, it is manipulative and borderline dishonest, and therefore tends to be a bit of a disincentive to support a charity that employs them.  Door to door chuggers especially so.  So I'm more likely to look up a charity that does not employ chuggers - one that I've heard about some way other than being hassled on the street (or at my own front door).

(Speaking of my own front door - a minor side-whinge about door to door chuggers: at least the Jehova's Witnesses, being local people, understand the layout of Sheffield terraced houses well enough to knock on the correct door.  Not the one that is never opened unless you're moving house or have bought a new sofa - if you can even find the key.)

Having said that, if one day I finally meet one who actually says "Well of course that's fine, I don't care about earning the commission I just want to tell you about this charity because it's brilliant" and directs me to a website where I can sign up, I'll be so surprised and impressed I'll probably do so immediately.

One of the emotions they most manipulate is guilt.  And for any of us who isn't a complete sociopath, who doesn't always feel at least a little bit guilty that we're not doing more than we are?  I have found I feel less wretched about the encounter afterwards when it's the chugger's human failings that bring our conversation to a close instead of my own.  Don't think I need to apologise for that.

In reply to deepsoup:

Fair enough - I deserved an essay having pondered your character, or approached doing so.  

I dare say cycling everywhere (sometimes where I'm not strictly supposed to) means I painlessly past them without having had to think as deeply about it as you have.

Edit: It's a harsh world where you have to have to gauge how far to go in helping others, I've a (rather distant) friend who's been surviving on benefits recently, and getting messaged about being down to bread and cheese and on emergency electricity, and needing bus fair to take their food bank voucher for some food, rather tugs at you even if on a tight budget. Thankfully their rent now gets paid by Shelter or thanks to them sorting the administration out, so I'm off the hook a little bit. They'd have been screwed without my help, its a reality many don't seem to be aware of.

In reply to Blue Straggler:

It annoys the hell out of me that I can't go out at times without having to fend off people approaching me, partly because I would just like to get on with what I'm doing without the interruption and partly because I very much work on the principle that if I want goods or a service, I'll go out looking, not the other way around.

In town centres, it's chuggers, but every time I go to the supermarket I get asked if I want my car washed.

Years ago, I used to walk past the same Big Issue seller in the high street practically every day and, every day, he'd ask "big issue?", despite me once taking time to explain that I'd never bought the big issue from him and wasn't ever going to, so please could he leave me alone. Next lunchtime, sure enough, "big issue?"!

When I was on honeymoon in Asia, especially, our supposedly romantic meals out and strolls along the streets/beaches/wherever were constantly plagued by people wanting to sell us souvenirs or tuk-tuk rides - on one occasion, they were pretty much queueing up waiting for us to pay the bill.

We're off on holiday in a couple of months, where I'm sure I can look forward to being harassed by people trying to sell me everything from crap sunglasses to warm slices of what might once have been fresh fruit while we're trying to relax

I've got absolutely no problem with anyone trying to make a living, but if you want to sell something, set up a stall somewhere, don't come pestering me.

In reply to Timmd:

I'm not ranting to punish you, I'm ranting to educate you.  Ha ha.

I didn't think I had thought about it particularly deeply.  I'm as surprised as anyone - had no idea until I started replying to your post that I had so much to say on the subject..

In reply to Blue Straggler:

I cycle through the pedestrianised section of town to avoid them! I can go at walking pace, but as I am on a bike they ignore me! It's excellent. Other tactic is just don't even look at them and walk past. 

If they are going to be rude and try to hassle me, I can be rude and not acknowledge them. 

In reply to LastBoyScout:

Well that's just weird.  It's almost as if he wasn't really giving the job his full attention.

Unless you might have met a homeless person who doesn't have a very good short term memory?  Nah, that's probably a bit too far fetched.

In reply to Timmd:

Because, traditionally, people wielding collecting tins were volunteers; they were not on commission; charitable work was about voluntary effort. So, unless you're aware of the rise in the chugger phenomenon, you might assume that people acting on behalf of a charity were volunteers, not working on some gig-economy commission-based contract. I can't say I'm a big fan of the 'the end justifies the means' approach taken by many large charities these days.

In reply to deepsoup:

Sometimes you don't know how much you know, it was justified whatever the motive.    I've only been lending £10 here and there, btw, but that's poverty for you. The UN report was dead right about the Conservative approach being callous and punitive, and inhumane. A person with a recent degree and unemployed due to mental health issues, shouldn't need to be asking friends for bus fare money to get to the food bank and help keep the power going.  

In reply to girlymonkey:

I was going to say that although I would have used "impolite" rather than "rude". I'm generally not actively offensive I just prefer to be off putting in the hope that if everyone were the same said beggar/chugger will get the message and give up.

In reply to Blue Straggler:

You might do the same

..., she started her spiel and I wordlessly cut her off with a sort of "zip it" mime hand gesture and didn't break step. In my mind, I did her a favour,

Is not "No thank you" or "sorry I'm busy"
I was approached by numerous folk trying to sell woven little bracelets and I "shooed" them away like flies.

Is not "No thank you"or "sorry I'm busy", it's shooing them away like flies.

I gave him one polite "no"

Is not "No thank you"or "sorry I'm busy"

 I lost it a bit and gave it a full shouty "NO! NO!" right in his face, he looked a bit frightened. 

Is not "No thank you"or "sorry I'm busy", it's intimidating and shouty.

You seem to be trying to justify, that you've been a bit of an arse, and then argued with people who've pointed out what you might have done better. If you're looking for absolution, there is none for not being polite or civil.

I don't know why you'd start this thread other than to try and justify something you know to be wrong.
 

In reply to Blue Straggler:

I was once told by a Moroccan tout “You! You are ruder than the French”.  A proud moment.

There’s only so many times one can tolerate being followed by aggressive touts convinced the thing you desire most in life is to visit a god awful, literally piss soaked tannery that stinks to high heaven from a mile away.

In reply to Tom Valentine:

My mistake. You didn't actually address her as "petal".

In reply to Tom Valentine:

Thanks for owning up to having missed a rather important detail from the OP. Many on here haven’t !

In reply to Blue Straggler:

Thanks for posting

I'm sick of them after DECADES of it. I just walk on, or away, as fast as possible, with no eye contact. I'm certain that they can read (from my body language) that they'll get nothing from me

Good luck to you, chuggers, touts, and street sellers. But please leave me alone

In reply to thread:

This is efficient and remarkably well balanced

youtube.com/watch?v=5-3CyrGgKXM&

In reply to krikoman:

You are either being deliberately obtuse, or remarkably dense. I am guessing the former. 

I am not trying to justify my own rudeness. I am trying to deduce where it came from. The little article that I linked to goes some way to explaining this. A kind of emotional exhaustion. 

If all you are about to do is turn this reply around and put a load of comments in bold font saying "you're not polite", then clearly there is no fruitful discussion to be had with you. 

Have you ever been a tourist on the approach to some monument such as Borobudur? If not, try it out and see how exhausting the polite approach can be. 

In reply to Timmd:

Indeed.

In reply to Blue Straggler:

Its a challenge. I suspect all situations require their own individual assessment. How much am I helping vs how much am I being shafted. Am I helping or hindering their situation? But this song did make me think a little:

youtube.com/watch?v=36GhNNoYfOU&

In reply to girlymonkey:

It is indeed excellent. Looking at the floor and 'being elsewhere' works too. 

In reply to Blue Straggler:

Plenty of times, most tourist spots in India are like this, and I've always managed to stay civil, at least for the first three or four times someone pesters you.

Being tired, bored or simply sick of being asked doesn't excuse being rude, you're looking for excuses for the way you acted, or worse than that absolution. Your actions are your own, you own them, but you're trying not to.

The people after your cash aren't doing it for fun either.

In reply to wintertree:

You never know it might have been one of the most interesting places you could have visited.

A couple of fish markets come to mind, stunk to high heaven but wouldn't have missed them for the earth.

In reply to krikoman:

And what happens at the fifth?

You are wrong and you are betraying a poor grasp of basic comprehension. Bye!

In reply to Blue Straggler:

You tell them to f*ck off, quietly and to their face. Not shouting it loudly at them, the first time they try to get your attention.

You really need to re-read your OP.

"No" is not a polite response, "No thank you" is a polite response.

"Zip it" mimes are not polite responses.

Etc. etc.

What you've done is to demean people, and that's fine if that's what you want to do, obviously you know this, hence the post, and hence the guilt and the memory of 12 years ago.

Giving money to a charity doesn't absolve you of being civil or polite, neither does being tired.

Your whole post, smacks of "I don't agree with hitting children but, last night I was tired and Johnny just wouldn't go to sleep.......".

It fine what you've done, you were rude to another person and you've demeaned and treated others with no respect, I'm sure they've had worse from other people, it doesn't make it right and it doesn't make you the devil, but having a shit day and having to be nice to cnuts you have to deal with on a daily basis, isn't an excuse, you're in charge of you own actions.

Psychologically, you need to own you own feelings and actions, your anger is your own it's not someone else's fault, you have the ability to simply ignore the people upsetting you, or walking away.

"They made me do it" or "now look what you've made me do" doesn't cut it.

The article you linked to, half way down the thread by the way, is an apologists list of excuses for being a nasty tw*t, IMHO, of course.

By the way "Where've you beeeeen, bloke in greeeeen", would have made me laugh, and I'd have probably got a good response from me, or maybe a, "nice one, no thanks" from me.

It might be you're just an angry person, it takes a lot to wind me up, and I usually take most things as a joke. We're all different, thank goodness.

In reply to Blue Straggler:

10 minutes between me and the God squad on a Friday night is more than enough for people to start questioning their faith. They do have free coffee mind.

I really don't enjoy being pounced on in the highstreet and it can get extremely tiresome the third or fourth time. However, there's nowt wrong with a simple smile, shake your head, wave no thanks and walk on.

In reply to deepsoup:

In reply to Blue Straggler:

(Generic reply aimed at those who struggle with how charity fundraising works)

Years ago, I worked as a charity fundraiser and always find it hilarious how angry people get about the "pretence" that people aren't paid to do it. If it were voluntary, the number of people available to give up their free time to fundraise 35 hours per week would be minimal. It's a job.

Most people fundraising are paid an hourly rate. They also have targets to hit, like any sales driven job. They don't earn commission directly from people's donations but bonuses are available if targets are exceeded. If you're not doing your job by convincing people it's a worthwhile charity to donate to, but still being paid, you're losing the fundraising company money and won't keep your job for long. People who work in any sort of sales role are incentivised in the same way.

All charities reinvest a portion of donations into fundraising in one way or another. If they didn't, they would be unsuccessful. Charities employ fundraising companies that use door to door, street and telephone fundraising because as annoying as it might be, it does work. It makes them money. Charities are businesses and therefore rely on regular, long term income in order to achieve their aims. This doesn't come about by people chucking coins in collection tins held by volunteers at village fetes.

People who do well at fundraising have to be good at talking to people, knowledgeable and it definitely helps if you give a s**t about the charity. If people make it perfectly clear that they aren't going to donate, so what? Ask them if they have two minutes for you to tell them about the charity. A huge part of it is raising awareness. If someone doesn't want to talk to you, all they need to do is politely say so. Being rude gets you nowhere, apart from in the OP's case onto an online forum worrying about your own behaviour...

In reply to arast:

Very good points and well raised. Thanks. To be honest my OP was more about street hawkers than about chuggers but I realise it looks around 50-50 especially as most of the more detailed responses seem to be about the latter. 

I have some insight into the “business” end of charities and have certainly defended the seemingly high salaries paid to the top “executives”.

I participated in a large organised sponsored event two years ago specifically to get a feel for whether it was worth it or whether I’d have been better off just donating (it was the Yorkshire Three Peaks Challenge and I did spend about as much of my own money doing it, as I raised!)

A friend of mine worked for the charity in question and I did politely quiz her about that side of things (plus the whole footpath erosion aspect and the fees we paid to the charity to pay the trekking guides etc) and she correctly said that OVERALL it’s beneficial - as you say, there is the awareness-raising aspect too and I do wear my charity t shirts out and about!

FWIW I found the event ungratifying. 

Sorry but experience says otherwise. Many times a polite “no” has been seen as an acknowledgement and invitation to engage and try harder. Hence requiring either a wide berth, negative body language, or more assertive responses. I wish that a polite “no thanks” would be all that’s needed, and then this thread would not exist. 

In reply to elsewhere:

Hee hee. 

My late Mum when in a long hospital stay put her earphones in and pretended to listen to her radio, when another lady was talking a lot. Maybe life teaches one to be crafty and polite, I will remember the ear tap. 

In reply to arast:

There should be no doubt, no room for "pretence" (in inverted commas or otherwise):

Where a collector is a paid charity employee, paid officer or paid trustee, the collector MUST make a statement to the effect they are being paid to carry out the collection (see Legal appendices L10).

Source: https://www.fundraisingregulator.org.uk/code/public-collections  (Section 16.5e)

As you probably know this has been a legal requirement since 2008.  (I didn't know that, I just found out a few minutes ago.)  I've never known a chugger to actually do this, but maybe that's just me.

Genuine question for those posting here who regularly encounter street chuggers:
a) Were you aware that they are legally required to do this?
b) Do they?

In reply to Blue Straggler:

A friend and I were on Market St, Manchester, years back when ambulance chasers were just coming to the fore. A man with a clipboard asked "Excuse me, have either if you recently had an accident?". My mate Tom, without batting an eyelid, replies "Yes, I've just shit myself. Why, can you tell?" The man with the clipboard did a pretty passable silent impression of a guppy as we walked off.

In reply to Blue Straggler:

I've never actually done this, but I've always wanted to print a Direct Debit instruction form for a charity and carry it around in my wallet. If a chugger asks me to sign up for a DD then I'd whip out the form and tell them "I'll sign yours if you sign mine".