Applicants outnumber jobs for Salvation Army bell ringers

CRANSTON, R.I.—The Salvation Army says it pays to pay bell ringers.

But this year, it had more applicants than positions.

The familiar sound of the season is already echoing through parking lots and store fronts, beckoning for a little change.

“It rings out a sound of cheer for the Christmas season, for the holiday season.  As soon as you hear that bell, you know your heart is already starting to warm up. You know all the bountiful blessings you have, and you open up your heart and you give to this campaign,“ Maj. David Dunham said.

In years past, the Salvation Army couldn’t fill all the bell ringer positions.  This year, there were twice as many applications than jobs available, at minimum wage, for 8 to 10 hours a day.

“We had 150 applications for bell ringers three weeks ago,“ Dunham said. “A couple of years ago when we offered to give some folks an opportunity to work for minimum wage they said, ‘Are you kidding me?  I can make 10 bucks an hour flipping hamburgs.  I’m not going to take minimum wage from you.‘  Well, now that’s a different story these days.“

With just a kettle and no ringer, the average collection for a day is about $30 to $35.

“With a bell ringer, if it’s a good bell ringer and on the job most of the time, we can easily get $450 in one day,“ Dunham said.

The whole idea of the bell ringer is to catch the ear of customers so when they get to the store door, they can put some money in.

“If we fail at this Christmas time, we’re going be hurting at least the first six months of next year,“ Dunham said.

The Salvation Army hopes to raise $275,000 in Rhode Island this season to help provide toys, clothing and food to those in need.