Irritating new work policy

[Lace Neil Singer]

Recently, my supermarket has put in a policy that we are not to touch customer's cards. Tho we can do so for the points card or staff discount card, altho they prefer us not to, we can't touch the payment card under no circumstances. This to me doesn't make sense, and I've had so much trouble with it.

It takes roughly twice as long to get the customer to process their cards as it would for me to do it, and I've done it a couple of times when I've gotten disabled or blind people thru the till, so why not do it for everyone? I'm hardly going to remember their card number after touching it once. Basically the whole system is a pain in the arse for everyone, tho it's quite an achievement to come up with a policy that irritates both customers and staff.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

And how, pray tell, do they plan to enforce this?

Will they have the baggers scream "NO TOUCHY!" if the cashier touches the customer's card?

[Barefootgirl]

In England, we don't have baggers....but this is a truly STUPID policy. Lace, do you work for the biggest of all big supermarket chains, that begins with a T, and that sells Finest and Value lines? Because if you do, the day I run into the policy for the first time, I'm sending Head Office a Rudegram. And then I'm going to shop at Waitrose instead, where they are still human.

I normally use my Amex card when grocery shopping, just to bulk up Reward points, and I still have a chip-and-signature card. Kind of hard for the cashier not to touch it when she's the one who's got to swipe it, right?

[Lace Neil Singer]

I work for T's biggest rival, along with cheese I think. And we have self service Chip and PIN machines, and I for one hope that the person who came up with this stupid idea gets crabs.

As for swipe cards, they don't work in the flipping C&P machine, so I have to swipe, all the time looking over my shoulder to make sure I'm not being watched.

[Becks]

it's quite an achievement to come up with a policy that irritates both customers and staff.

Wow. That IS an accomplishment. I wonder how they managed.

[Barefootgirl]

Ah, that explains it. I used to work for the same company *waves to ex-colleague* and they are UTTERLY incompetent at Head Office. I mean, truly, they are deeply, deeply stupid. When I was there, in the mid-1990s, they refused to implement any policy that hadn't already been test-driven by the supermarket that begins with T. They were the epitome of the follower business, and it drove me nuts. So I left.

[Lace Neil Singer]

Didn't know you were an ex victim of the S supermarket! XD Now they're telling us to interact with customers more; altho, the only interaction that is happening is as follows:

Customer: This new policy is stupid.
Me: Yes. Yes it is.

Fricking moron Head Office people. *shakes fist*

[chainedbarista]

can't you have the customers fill out comment cards? i'm betting that if corporate was swamped with those, they'd change that policy asap. for once, kissing ass works out for both ends!

[Worker-Intellectual]

I work for T's biggest rival, along with cheese I think. And we have self service Chip and PIN machines, and I for one hope that the person who came up with this stupid idea gets crabs.

As for swipe cards, they don't work in the flipping C&P machine, so I have to swipe, all the time looking over my shoulder to make sure I'm not being watched.

So, in other words, they made it against policy to do your job?

Wow

That's

Wow

Why do the people who make the policy in the retail world have to be so inculated from reality?

[Gypsy-Rose]

Oh, I could see that now where I work....

ME..."Sorry ma'am, I can not touch your card"
C..."But, I can't see the machine, nor reach it."...(C is in wheelchair)
Me,.."I know, but it is againsit policy for me to touch your card."
C..."This is just BS....How in the heck can I pay when I can't see or reach the machine?"
Me..."Let me call a CSM..."

And of course, CSM comes to the register 20 minutes later and looks at me like I am an idiot, customer is upset, and the line is humming in anger...

Oh Yep.....That would fly really well where I work. Especially for X-Mas....

And gift cards are the worst, they can be swipped by the customer, but I have to scan them. Half the time, they don't even work...Grrrrrrrrrr

[Dark Psion]

If they pay with cash, do they have to put it in the register for you?

Or more important, do they get to take out their change?

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

Didn't know you were an ex victim of the S supermarket! XD Now they're telling us to interact with customers more; altho, the only interaction that is happening is as follows:

Customer: This new policy is stupid.
Me: Yes. Yes it is.

Fricking moron Head Office people. *shakes fist*

Do you have the card readers at the registers for customers to wipe their own cards?

If I were the cashier, the conversation would go like this

Me: And your total today is...X dollars and Y cents.
(customer hands me her credit card)
Me: Oh, sorry, I'm not allowed to touch that.
C: Really, why not?
Me: New company policy.
C: Well that's stupid
Me: I know. If you want to let corporate know about this, just call them or write them a letter or e-mail (I might even have the contact info printed on business cards to hand out to customers). We keep trying to tell them that it's not a good policy, but they don't listen to us. They're more likely to listen if a customer compalins about it.

[DGoddessChardonnay]

So, in other words, they made it against policy to do your job?

Wow

That's

Wow

Why do the people who make the policy in the retail world have to be so inculated from reality?

I think this may have to do with having Corporate people hired off the street instead of being promoted from within. Most of the corporate people at the Kitty, for example (as far as my knowledge goes) are hired from other companies (where they worked at corporate level.) They haven't worked in the retail end of the spectrum, so they don't see things from the grunt worker's POV b/c they never were grunt workers themselves.

Makes sense, doens't it? And I didn't need a BS degree to reach that conclusion

[DistantStar]

I think that ANYBODY who is management of any sort, or corporate -- basically, anything at the top of store level or above -- should be required to work at the bottom for a good six months or so. I'd love to see what they'd think of their corporate BS if it was inflicted on them. So much of it makes our jobs so much more difficult, but if it wasn't for us, they would be screwed. It's like they don't KNOW that. Morons. Really, they should be looking out for us, not trying to work us to death and treat us like garbage.

Why yes, my store is critically understaffed and there is no change of that changing in the near future and everybody's stress level is at Red Alert...how DID you guess?

[CrankyPants]

I don't really care if the cashier touches my card or not.

I only frequent a few regular stores, so I know which ones touch it and which ones won't. Either way, as long as I get my stuff, I don't care.

That's just a stupid policy because we all know the majority of customers couldn't find their arse with both hands.

Maybe you should just tell them to swipe their card and if they give you a confused look, take it from them and do it. That way you won't have a line of irate customers behind the one that hasn't got a clue.