We’d like to remind Forumites to please avoid political debate on the Forum.
This is to keep it a safe and useful space for MoneySaving discussions. Threads that are – or become – political in nature may be removed in line with the Forum’s rules. Thank you for your understanding.
📨 Have you signed up to the Forum's new Email Digest yet? Get a selection of trending threads sent straight to your inbox daily, weekly or monthly!
Refused to buy a U cert DVD as had no ID
Comments
-
What retail employee...
I just happen to have a clue as to what happens when any employee breaks company policy, and why that employee won't put their job at risk for someone they don't know, especially with the jobs market as it is at the moment, and given how easy it is to replace a checkout operator.
The chances are almost certain that the DVD/Blu-ray listings on the backend for the till will probably default to a "check age" prompt (safer for the store legally), probably with it manually requiring whoever enters the data for the individual stock items to override it as needed (something that is very easy to overlook when you're entering lots of data, which is the reason it'll almost certainly default to on rather than off)
The Checkout operator will be under instructions to always check ID when prompted (Saves issues with accidentally selling something to someone under age - check 21/25 as policies aren't particularly foolproof and don't offer any protection to the store if a mistake is made).
So checkout operator sees the item has popped up an age restricted flag, and mindful of their job follows company policy.
To do otherwise risks disciplinary proceedings regardless of the legal restriction on the item.
Companies do run random checks on their employees to ensure procedures are followed, so checkout operators may not want to risk their job.
I've seen similar things happen with:
DVD players, monitors, computers (without TV input) and even an AV cable in regards to a TVL form - because they're listed in the AV category and the system has obviously defaulted to be on the safe side when TVL notification was legally required upon purchase of a TV receiver (DVD players and computer monitors very frequently).
I've seen it happen with plastic cutlery - because the system has obviously seen defaulted to marking it as age restricted the same as cooking knives.
I've seen it happen with various glues, because the system defaults to it and I suspect it's easier/safer to stick to it for everything than expect the data entry people to know what glues can be sniffed.
Usually when it's happened to me (only a few times) I've laughed about it with the checkout operator who is often well aware of how silly the situation is, but wishes to retain their job.
I've also laughed quietly about it later when someone has "taken a stand", caused a scene and basically wasted far more time than it would have taken to just comply.
In very short form.
If you work for a company, you follow it's procedures if you want to keep your job.
You can bring up issues with your line manager/manager, and call over a supervisor if needed on the shop floor, but you do not take it into your own hands to override a procedure (for example you can point out the issue to the relevant person who may be able to override the prompt on that item for all future transactions, but overriding it yourself is leaving yourself open to problems).
One of the reasons companies get upset about employees overriding the age checks without actually doing one, is because they don't know how often you've done it, and under what circumstances, and they face joint prosecution if you do it at the wrong time.
I never knew this was all so fascinating :eek:0 -
unholyangel wrote: »If the cashier had said "this daft things asking for ID for that Universal rated Dvd, hang on while I get help/double check that I need to ask for it etc" instead of actually asking for ID, I'd be more inclined to agree.
A little common sense goes a long way.
you might get sacked for using common sense.
As shown here by this employee who's also can't think for themselves
"
A woman was asked to prove her age when buying a packet of teaspoons - as a shop worker claimed they could be used as drug paraphernalia.
Elinor Zuke, 25, was told by the self-service checkout at Sainsbury's that she needed age verification as she tried to buy a £1.19 pack of spoons.
A shop worker then intervened and said it was because of the risk they could be used for drugs - heroin users 'cook up' the drug in teaspoons.
Heroin is an illegal Class A drug - so it is irrelevant whether someone is over 18 - the spoon should not be used for that purpose anyway.
The maximum sentence for possessing heroin is seven years in prison or an unlimited fine."
You wouldn't cook up much heroin in a teaspoon now , would you...0 -
No I agree with the OP that they were thick.
It's a U dvd which means anyone can buy it. The till may flash the message up but anyone with a bit of intelligence would have just clicked the accept button.
It's this sort of lack of initiative that will doom the cashier to a life permanently in the minimum wage sector.
Couldn't have put it better...We’ve had to remove your signature. Please check the Forum Rules if you’re unsure why it’s been removed and, if still unsure, email forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com0 -
I will declare an interest as I'm involved in the legal team which runs a bar and restaurant chain. Although different in principle we do have problems with this because only certain staff have discretion. We don't give discretion to the most junior staff because it's not fair on them, they can get fined (not us - although we can) if they make a mistake.
In the OP's case it is a system failure somewhere but companies do have very tight rules on where discretion falls. It is not unusual for cashiers not to be given discretion, not because we think they're thick, but because a supervisor has received all of the training and is more experienced.
I've seen complaints of our staff being called thick, and it's nothing to do with it. It's the systems we've given them, and sometimes there are minor delays whilst a manager is found (although we have ways of avoiding that being obvious).
This country is doomed...We’ve had to remove your signature. Please check the Forum Rules if you’re unsure why it’s been removed and, if still unsure, email forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com0 -
So, say the cashier was following a policy? The cashier isn't thick then, the person who created that policy is thick.
No doubt some automaton that works with the 'legal team'.We’ve had to remove your signature. Please check the Forum Rules if you’re unsure why it’s been removed and, if still unsure, email forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com0 -
Most importantly I'll see if I can get permission to name the ASDA store but apparently this very situation has occurred in their store and the cashier had to refer it to a colleague as per the rules they were told.
Which is like I said at the beginning. It might be the store rules and not the cashier.
:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:
You're just the gift that keeps on giving Lucy...We’ve had to remove your signature. Please check the Forum Rules if you’re unsure why it’s been removed and, if still unsure, email forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com0 -
I'll let others decide whether or not to agree with my observation.
And you have NOT "explained in great detail on this thread why the employee is stupid" - you've simply given your opinion. Nothing more. There are some who share your opinion, and others who do not.
Are those people trolling as well?We’ve had to remove your signature. Please check the Forum Rules if you’re unsure why it’s been removed and, if still unsure, email forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com0 -
you might get sacked for using common sense.
As shown here by this employee who's also can't think for themselves
"
A woman was asked to prove her age when buying a packet of teaspoons - as a shop worker claimed they could be used as drug paraphernalia.
Elinor Zuke, 25, was told by the self-service checkout at Sainsbury's that she needed age verification as she tried to buy a £1.19 pack of spoons.
A shop worker then intervened and said it was because of the risk they could be used for drugs - heroin users 'cook up' the drug in teaspoons.
Heroin is an illegal Class A drug - so it is irrelevant whether someone is over 18 - the spoon should not be used for that purpose anyway.
The maximum sentence for possessing heroin is seven years in prison or an unlimited fine."
You wouldn't cook up much heroin in a teaspoon now , would you...
Not plastic spoons for sure.This is a system account and does not represent a real person. To contact the Forum Team email forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com0 -
peachyprice wrote: »The store can't enforce Think 21/25 without training the staff what it actually means, so not only would they have been trained to say they can't sell a 15 cert to an under 15, an 18 cert to an under 18 or alcohol to anyone under 18, the law regarding knives, solvents and liquer chocolates, they would also have been told they can sell a U cert to anyone without asking for ID as there is no minimum age.
The training contains no such thing. It contains videos which basically are horror stories of people losing their jobs, being fined and going to jail for failing checks. Basically "you screw this up? we won't support you in any way."
Actually training them to know anything about the actual products likely to come up saying ID check? Nope.
Seriously, when I was there I had someone come through with non-alcoholic beer. The ID prompt came up and luckily they had ID. I actually checked with the lead when I went on break as to why and she didn't know. One of the others did (or claimed to) - its because of the processing methods and that there is still a tiny percentage of alcohol in it even though it claims to be non-alcoholic.
Point is that it is an area where they rule by fear NOT information. And therefore it could be that for all the cashier knows there IS some restriction on who can *buy* the DVD even if its rated to be watched by all.
It comes down to one thing: It just isn't worth her damn job once she's asked for ID to do the sale anyway if the person won't show it.0 -
ShadowPuma wrote: »The training contains no such thing. It contains videos which basically are horror stories of people losing their jobs, being fined and going to jail for failing checks. Basically "you screw this up? we won't support you in any way."
Actually training them to know anything about the actual products likely to come up saying ID check? Nope.
Seriously, when I was there I had someone come through with non-alcoholic beer. The ID prompt came up and luckily they had ID. I actually checked with the lead when I went on break as to why and she didn't know. One of the others did (or claimed to) - its because of the processing methods and that there is still a tiny percentage of alcohol in it even though it claims to be non-alcoholic.
Point is that it is an area where they rule by fear NOT information. And therefore it could be that for all the cashier knows there IS some restriction on who can *buy* the DVD even if its rated to be watched by all.
It comes down to one thing: It just isn't worth her damn job once she's asked for ID to do the sale anyway if the person won't show it.
Yes we all get the the " they might lose their job" theory....
But we don't get the lack of " I'll call a supervisor if this doesn't seem to make sense"
Are you saying they'd lose their job for calling a supervisor
0
This discussion has been closed.
Confirm your email address to Create Threads and Reply
Categories
- All Categories
- 352.3K Banking & Borrowing
- 253.6K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
- 454.3K Spending & Discounts
- 245.3K Work, Benefits & Business
- 601.1K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
- 177.5K Life & Family
- 259.2K Travel & Transport
- 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
- 16K Discuss & Feedback
- 37.7K Read-Only Boards