Don't take it out on the check out girl/boy

chou_123

I remember when I was working in a small M&S store that was mainly food, if people were still browsing at closing time, we would turn the lights off in the fridge and freezer compartments, close up the fridge and freezer compartments and turn off some of the aisle lights!
That usually got people to the tills sharpish!

I should add that we got paid until 30 mins after closing time, but the reason we needed customers out of the shop was so we could cash the tills.

GrammarGirl

Takoda wrote: »

Doug - You are obviously trying to bait me with the copper comment so that adds you to my ignore list immediately.

To everyone else.....you really don't know what happened to that person that day. There might be a really good reason why they arrived late into your shop. But you don't care about that because you are only interested in the money in your pocket.

I guess what it boils down to is that if a person cares about doing a good job then they will willingly go the extra mile to help someone out. But obviously a lot of retail people don't feel that way especially on this thread.

I don't get paid for lunch hour. So I dismiss my class and all of them go except one. The one who needs some help with some aspect of their lives - bullying, loneliness, a bereavement. Or maybe they just discovered something and want to share it. Or maybe they enjoyed the topic we just studied and have a question about it. Or maybe they want to use the computer to find something out (they can't stay in alone). By your reckoning I should tell that kid to Foxtrot Oscar! Get lost kid I'm not being paid for this - go ask someone who cares!

I have always gone that extra mile in whatever job I've done. Paid or voluntary. But that's they way I live my life and it won't suit some of you wage slaves. When I look back on my working life so far I feel happy that I did my best.

This thread depresses me - it signifies a lot that is wrong with Britain today. Grumpy, selfish, clockwatching people who have no empathy with others and don'tcare.

I don't plan to come back to this thread for all the reasons above.

In the words of the Dragons "I'm out!"

I agree with your sentiment but not the way you deliver your message. I don't think anyone in this thread has displayed grumpy, selfish, clockwatching behaviour. You're sensationalising everything and portraying yourself as holier than thou!

We're only human. Things get on our nerves. We get mad at people. We hate people for no reason other than we find them annoying. We're irrational and stupid at times. We're not emotionless borgs nor do we live in happy-go-lucky land where everything is lovely and delightful!

dfh

I have just had a grumpy customer ahead of me in the queue at Tesco's.The girl asked"Do you need a bag?" And the answer was "How the hell am I going to carry it otherwise?" A simple "Yes,please" would have been sufficient.People like that make me mad.

vyle

Takoda wrote: »

Doug - You are obviously trying to bait me with the copper comment so that adds you to my ignore list immediately.

To everyone else.....you really don't know what happened to that person that day. There might be a really good reason why they arrived late into your shop. But you don't care about that because you are only interested in the money in your pocket.

I guess what it boils down to is that if a person cares about doing a good job then they will willingly go the extra mile to help someone out. But obviously a lot of retail people don't feel that way especially on this thread.

I don't get paid for lunch hour. So I dismiss my class and all of them go except one. The one who needs some help with some aspect of their lives - bullying, loneliness, a bereavement. Or maybe they just discovered something and want to share it. Or maybe they enjoyed the topic we just studied and have a question about it. Or maybe they want to use the computer to find something out (they can't stay in alone). By your reckoning I should tell that kid to Foxtrot Oscar! Get lost kid I'm not being paid for this - go ask someone who cares!

I have always gone that extra mile in whatever job I've done. Paid or voluntary. But that's they way I live my life and it won't suit some of you wage slaves. When I look back on my working life so far I feel happy that I did my best.

This thread depresses me - it signifies a lot that is wrong with Britain today. Grumpy, selfish, clockwatching people who have no empathy with others and don'tcare.

I don't plan to come back to this thread for all the reasons above.

In the words of the Dragons "I'm out!"

So you're saying that if, after you'd finished your marking, packed up and were about to go home, a kid came in saying "I need you to mark this for me right now," you would be only too happy to?

Mobeer

I don't mind being asked to leave, but just please do it in a nice way.

I was in a big Japanese department store at closing time. Security very politely helped customers to find their way out whilst all the sales staff stood at attention behind their desks. It all seemed very polite and friendly, but yet it was also clear that this got everyone out quickly.

By comparison some shops near me seem to have half their shutters down and be virtually forcing (potential) customers out the door well before closing time, whilst the weekend staff look like they wished you weren't there in the first place. It just leaves a negative experience that makes me more inclined to shop elsewhere.

Mobeer

dfh wrote: »

I have just had a grumpy customer ahead of me in the queue at Tesco's.The girl asked"Do you need a bag?" And the answer was "How the hell am I going to carry it otherwise?" A simple "Yes,please" would have been sufficient.People like that make me mad.

I wouldn't go that far, but sometimes people on tills can act so dumb. If I have 10 items and no means to carry them, then just give me a carrier bag. Easier, simpler, quicker. Yet so few till assistants show any initiative.

I was in Waitrose and the till assistant firstly refused to give me a carrier bag. Then the explanation about this being a "green till" that does not give out bags (which I had never encountered before) turned into a lecture. I don't mind the till being a "green till", but the lecture I can do without.

My conclusion is, if you want fewer grumpy customers, use more thought in treating each customer.

hieveryone

Not added to this thread before but thought I'd add my experience of 'not leaving early' - I used to work in Thomsons (holiday company) call centre and finished at 11pm on weeknights. Had a call come through at around 10.30pm to book a holiday, which is fine, plenty of time.

Except the system broke down and I had to book it manually (was leaving in a weeks time or so). So there I am, with the handbook, trying to input codes and special characters to book certain things, checking and double checking to make sure it's right. Was all in some 'safe mode', with commands to type in etc.

Anyway, sat there for about an hour and a half, very apologetic customer, my boyfriend ringing my phone 'cause he was waiting outside, and I went to ask the manager something. I said to her 'Listen I'm really sorry about having to wait so long, I know we don't get paid for this'.

She gave me the dirtiest look ever and said 'well you might not, but I'm management'.

I put the customer on hold for a little bit longer, picked up the command handbook and handed it to the manager and left

vyle

Mobeer wrote: »

I wouldn't go that far, but sometimes people on tills can act so dumb. If I have 10 items and no means to carry them, then just give me a carrier bag. Easier, simpler, quicker. Yet so few till assistants show any initiative.

I was in Waitrose and the till assistant firstly refused to give me a carrier bag. Then the explanation about this being a "green till" that does not give out bags (which I had never encountered before) turned into a lecture. I don't mind the till being a "green till", but the lecture I can do without.

My conclusion is, if you want fewer grumpy customers, use more thought in treating each customer.

Yet there are some people who will produce reams of bags out of their pockets and rage at you for trying to kill the planet with more bags. Really, shop staff are damned no matter what they do.

Helix

Mobeer wrote: »

I wouldn't go that far, but sometimes people on tills can act so dumb. If I have 10 items and no means to carry them, then just give me a carrier bag. Easier, simpler, quicker. Yet so few till assistants show any initiative.

I think you will find that the company policies stop till assistants using there own initiative like this. In my job I have to ask each customer if they need any bags unless I can clearly see they have there own. If I don't then I could fail any observations that are made, and fail the mystery customer test.

Also as the poster above said, often people have there own bags hidden away. Often I think this persons going to need a bag, I ask them and they say no and get there own from there pocket.

It gets so annoying how many people on this site complain about till assistants lacking initiative over things. When they are being made to follow certain procedures from those higher up or risk loosing there job. If you don't like being asked if you need bag complain to head office about the policy not accuse the till operator of lacking initiative.

fawd1

to be fair I think we've all had our fair share of stupid people serving us at shops but as a general rule there is absolutely no need to be rude or aggressive or anything like that. What I really really really cannot stand though is when staff treat you as though you're the idiot. That just makes my blood boil. Had it once calling up my bank because I got a letter from their collections department saying I owed them money. I knew I didn't so I called them to dispute it. They then told me that I did and that they were going to close the account but they couldn't go into details with me ( why? it was my bank account) and that I had to go into my branch. So I did, and I spoke to the manager at my branch who hadn't a clue what was going on and couldn't understand why they thought I owed them money as I had never been overdrawn and had about 600 quid in my account at the time,so he left a note on my account saying that I did not owe any money. I then called back the collections department to make sure everything had been straightened out and she told me that it was my responsibility to get the bank manager to call over whilst I was in the branch and explain the situation and that it was very foolish of me to assume that they could simply look on my account and that wasn't the way it worked and I should have known better. I could quite happily have killed the woman. Luckily my dh got on the line as he saw I was getting stressed, demanded to speak to the manager ( stupid woman wouldn't put me through despite numerous requests) and I got a very grovelling apology along with a letter the next day. but that first woman I could have KILLED!!!!