a word of warning ... make sure and doubly sure that anything he puts to one side has been legitimised for him to take... maybe more than his supervisor's word. I know first hand of someone who was threatened with police action when they needed redundancies cos he had regularly gone through floor sweepings to look for useful bits. Everyone knew he did this, it was no undercover habit.
The people throwing out arent stupid, theyre not in the know, they havent got the time, they dont want to entertain tyrekickers insulting their loved one's possessions, they just want rid.