i use the following method for giving my users access to my ftp directory. im fairly new to linux myself so im not sure if this is the correct way to do things, nor if its the most secure way but so far it has worked and i have had no troubles with it.
open up a new Terminal and try the following:
start your vsftp service:
[root@whoever tmp]# service vsftpd start
create a new user directory:
[root@whoever tmp]# groupadd ftp-users
[root@whoever tmp]# mkdir /home/ftp-docs
Make this directory accessable:
[root@whoever tmp]# chmod 750 /home/ftp-docs
[root@whoever tmp]# chown root:ftp-users /home/ftp-docs
Add a user and a password:
[root@whoever tmp]# useradd -g ftp-users -d /home/ftp-docs user1
[root@whoever tmp]# passwd user1
now restart your ftp service:
[root@whoever tmp]# service vsftp restart
this method seemed to work fine for me. try it out and good luck