Red Shirt Lesson

[blas]

There's an awesome urband legend around here of someone's parents pwning the hell out of Mr. Menard himself when he was making one of his *unwanted* appearances at his store to berate and be an ass to his employees.

[Kogarashi]

Back in undergrad, my hubby had the uncanny knack of wearing his red button-down shirt with his tan khakis when we shopped at Target, and his blue button-down shirt with the same khakis at Walmart. I had to laugh at him after the third such shopping trip with people confusing him for an employee.

There's an awesome urband legend around here of someone's parents pwning the hell out of Mr. Menard himself when he was making one of his *unwanted* appearances at his store to berate and be an ass to his employees.

Ooh, I'd like to hear more.

[blas]

The urban legend goes that someone's parent was wearing their kid's Menards team jacket (I think you can really get any kind of attire you want while working there), and the jerkwad thought that person was his employee and was trying to rip them a new one for not working and goofing around.

I've never worked for any of those industries he owns, but he has a reputation for randomly showing up and finding ways of being a dick to people.

[Pizzacommando]

I've been mistaken for an employee of some place i don't work multiple times, especially at the hardware store that we go to for supplies for our store. Funniest time was when i had to get a new hose. I'm standing in the aisle looking at hoses when this guy walks up and asks if i can help him. I replied that since i didn't work there that i didn't know if i could. The guy leans over to look at the logo on my uniform (which looks nothing like the BRIGHT YELLOW vests that the hw people wear) and says "oh, i guess you can't, " and walks away.

[Shalom]

I'm waiting to hear a story of someone being woken up in the middle of the night by a neighbor, demanding they go open up the store they work at so they can shop. "But the customer is always right, and you work there, so you have to do this"

I am pretty sure that this is the very reason my FIL, who lives down the shore and is in the same line of business as I am, works in the Bronx rather than in one of the many pharmacies in his own home town.

[Jay 2K Winger]

I got that once or twice when I wore a red shirt to a Bullseye store, usually when going over there after work at the wholesale club next door. Fortunately, I didn't get any Suck when I told them "I don't work here."

I still get some questions from people when I go to the wholesale club to shop/browse/commiserate with my former CWs. All of them are surprised when I tell them, "I don't work here anymore."

Them: "You don't work here anymore?"
J2K: "Not for the last year or so, no."
Them: "Oh."

[cashierbex]

I was wearing shorts, a t-shirt and a hat at a store once and got asked where something was. Told them I don't work there.

I had a customer who didn't let me get a word in while I was leaving my store for the day. Yeah, not fun. Also had people try to talk to me while I was on my ipod, dude, I'm on break. I can't "hear" you. I always too great pleasure in that actually, cause I couldn't get in trouble.

[AlmightyALT]

This has happened to be several times at my local Wallys. Although each time I was wearing different colored shirts!

Take last Friday as I was grabbing some curtain rods for the new house. Lady on a phone hangs up and asks me where so and so is. I'm in my work khakis and a BROWN polo with the initials of my (well known in the area) hospital workplace emblazoned on the front. Fortunately when I told her I didn't work there she was embarassed and apologized. Last time that happened I was in my PINK work polo. And I think it also happened again while in my GREEN work polo.

[Food Lady]

I can walk around work on my break or whatever in work clothes and no one bothers me. But I can do the same in my swewtshirt with my purse in a cart and they stop me. It's the pants.

[firecat88]

My mom got the 'Do you work here?' at the World of Wally once. And she was wearing her scrubs from the surgery center (green pants, floral-print shirt, and a white coat) and her name tag because she'd just gotten off of work.

I'm surprised that, before Borders closed, I never got asked if I worked there. I knew the entire store like I know my own house.

[Freak]

Now that I think about it, I have a particularly ridiculous example of this principle:

I was in a department store looking for some particular action figures, when a customer asked me if I worked there. Okay, this clearly happens a lot to people, so nothing extreme about it, right?

I was wearing a cape. Yes, a long, flowing black cape. The person thought I worked there. I really should have told them that if they knew of any workplace that allowed their employess to wear capes while on duty, then I'd love to get a job there.

[wagegoth]

The urban legend goes that someone's parent was wearing their kid's Menards team jacket (I think you can really get any kind of attire you want while working there), and the jerkwad thought that person was his employee and was trying to rip them a new one for not working and goofing around.

I've never worked for any of those industries he owns, but he has a reputation for randomly showing up and finding ways of being a dick to people.

It's probably here; I haven't read all of it yet: http://johnmenardjr.crazybillionaire...hnmenardjr.php

[CarcinogenCrunchies]

I worked at a major grocery store for about four years. My new company just happens to have the same dress code. When I shop before/after work at my old store, I still encounter people (both customers and former co-workers) who don't realize I have moved on, and they treat me like an employee.

That's why I didn't think much of it when I was there the other day and a customer asked me if I worked there. I said, "No, but I used to." I told her where to find her item and went on my way. A few minutes later, I realized that I was actually wearing my company's weekend uniform, which means a red polo rather than a white button-down shirt. I don't know why she thought I was an employee in that outfit.

[dragon_wings]

Back years ago when I worked at the buffet restaurant I went to Wally World after work in my weekend uniform (black pants and polo with company logo, most likely blue). I was browsing the CDs and some kid comes up and asked me something like 'Where's are the yo-yos.' I looked at him and told him I didn't work there.

[Dreamstalker]

I tend to get asked 'do you work here?' when I'm at the local not-Yellow-Tag computer store. Most of the askers are good about it when I politely say no (and point out someone who does if I see an available employee; I know those guys work on commission). If they open with 'do you work here?' I'll point out an employee. If they open with the question (or worse, just a number) they get ignored.