No you can't come in before we open!

[Legacy_of_Torment]

It's the bank holiday weekend and here at sucktomer cinema we have been seeing a distinct increase in the number of SC's walking through our doors. For once it's not parents with unruly spawn, although I will admit, many of the pensioners that visit are often worse than a hyperactive child, pumped up on pick n' mix throwing a tantrum

It was a group of these individuals I encountered when trying to get into the building to start my shift. If there's one thing that can be said about these SC's it's that they are keen! They will arrive up to half an hour before doors open and camp there, trying to get your attention by glaring imperiously through the glass doors, tapping on the Windows and grumbling whilst gesturing at the locked door. The opening hours are in nice, bold typeface on the doors themselves, so it's not like they could miss them.

Another favourite tactic of these SC's is to ambush staff as they arrive and attempt to force their way in as the manager arrives to let the staff in. This is precisely what they did to me today.

I arrived 45 minutes before my shift was due to start, foolishly believing that I would bypass the 30mins to go sucktomers and get in to the building with no fuss. Foolish because I was oh so wrong. There, standing right up against the door were four elderly customers, all looking through the glass like angry wasps caught inside a glass bottle just waiting for the chance to get out and sting you.
Wonderful. So loudly "excuse me-ing" to the front, I wave frantically to get my managers attention when it begins...

Old lady SC: *Very stern voice* "Can we come in yet? We have been waiting ages!"

Me: "No sorry, we aren't open yet, *pointing to the sign* "

OLSC: *much tutting and sighing* "Ridiculous, can't we just come in and sit down??"

Me: "No I'm afraid not, there is unsecured cash on the premises at this time of the day, if we let customers in now it would be gross misconduct."

My manager opened the door at this point and yep, you guessed it, they all made a bid for the tiny gap, imperious old lady leading the charge! Did everything I just said go in one ear and out the other? I guess it must have because I'm not sure how else you could interpret a big fat "NO!"

Thankfully I managed to slip in before I was crushed against the glass. These people REALLY want to see a movie!
Old lady has her stick wedged in the door so my manager can't close it again.

Manager: "I'm sorry we aren't open for another 40 minutes, I can't let you in until then."

OLSC: "Why not?! They let me in last week!"

I hate it when SC's try the "But so and so let me blah blah last time!" No they didn't, the same manager was on duty that day and later told me that was a blatant lie.

Manager: *Manages to push the stick out of the door jamb* "Well I'm saying now that you can't. You'll have to wait or come back at 9."

Much grumbling and skyward gestures abundant from old lady, but she chose to wait. I mean why go to the perfectly good cafe next door when you can stand outside a cinema doing nothing on a Saturday morning?
All was fine until the trainee manager showed up. It was like watching a disaster in slow motion. She's going for the door...she's got her keys oh God noooooooo!

She had scarcely turned the key than OLSC and her crew were through the door. By this time the DM had run to intercept the four before they made themselves comfortable anywhere.

Manager: "Excuse me, we aren't open yet!"

OLSC: "It's only 15 minutes until you open for goodness sake!"

Manager: *Clearly annoyed now* "You said it yourself, 15 minutes UNTIL opening, now please, wait outside or you will delay our opening by however long you are in here."

Eventually, after a lot of arguing, they went back outside, which actually delayed us opening by 10 minutes. And when OLSC did, eventually get in?

"You're ten minutes late!"

[Lace Neil Singer]

People like that really get on my nerves. At the petrol station, I rarely do opening cuz early hours and me don't mix, but I have done the occasional Sunday morning to help out due to the fact that it's easier to find cover for my daytime Sunday shift than it is to cover the morning shift, so I've swapped my hours as a favour before. Anyway, once when I was opening on Sunday with my colleague Lisa, covering for Nina who was on holiday, this SC drove in just two minutes after we'd gone into the kiosk. We have to get to the petrol station half an hour before opening time in order to get the checks done, like counting the tills, which have to be done before we start trading. This SC bugged Lisa as she went outside to unlock the pumps, ignoring her repeated statement that we were not open yet. The moment she unlocked the pump he was at, he grabbed a nozzle. I didn't authorise it cuz we weren't open, he glared at me resentfully.

Basically, this guy stood there for half an hour with the nozzle in his car while we went about our business. By the time we were open, his pump had timed out but by then we were so fed up with him that we just left him to it. He eventually put the pump back and drove off.

[greensinestro]

I have to ask. Why didn't anyone call the police and get them to leave? It sounds like this was getting on the verge of physical with this oldie goldie leader sticking her cane in between the doors, then barreling their way in like that. You know she and her followers will be back.

[eltf177]

I agree. Management needs to have a serious talk with these earlybirds and give them a stern warning: "We open when we open. You will NOT be let in early, and you are not to ask or try to force your way in. If you do you will be banned for x days. A second attempt will get you a permaban. If you persist or make a nuisance of yourself the police WILL be called and we WILL prefer charges. Do you understand?"

[Legacy_of_Torment]

I actually suggested that he call the police, but as he said to me, despite the fact the police station is literally two streets away, they were unlikely to come out to something this minor unless the old coot had become physical. Even so, in his shoes I would have called them anyway. He's had words with these people before and yet every week there they are, conveniently forgetting the world doesn't operate on their time.

[Dark Psion]

We don't have customers when we are closed, we have trespassers.

Would you like to learn more?

[XCashier]

I agree. Management needs to have a serious talk with these earlybirds and give them a stern warning: "We open when we open. You will NOT be let in early, and you are not to ask or try to force your way in. If you do you will be banned for x days. A second attempt will get you a permaban. If you persist or make a nuisance of yourself the police WILL be called and we WILL prefer charges. Do you understand?"

Seconded, and use that exact wording. If they persist, call the cops. This sort of nonsense must be stopped. I don't care how old you are, you have no right to force people to do what you want.

[Android Kaeli]

We don't have customers when we are closed, we have trespassers.

Would you like to learn more?

Working at Random Craft Store we were allowed to hound customers to GTFO of the store, because the longer they stayed, the longer we had to stay and there were plenty of times that the DM bitched at the SM of the day, who in turn bitched at us, for going over hours.

At the Warehouse? I worked last night and the last customer who left didn't leave until 9:30, a full HOUR after we closed. Management there doesn't want to intrude on people shopping so they let them. Nevermind the fact that by the time some of these customers comes to a register there is only one cashier and most of the customers have a cart overflowing with things, which if there is five or six customers in line and two more enter the line the customers are waiting a good while anyways.

[Lace Neil Singer]

Where I work, we could lose our petroleum license if we allowed people to stay past closing time. We're allowed a five minute leeway, but after that, then all customers have to be gone. There's always the risk of a sting happening; a store down the road was caught staying open late on Sundays and given a stonking fine. Since they've done this before, they are on their final chance before they lose their license to serve alcohol; they've also been done for selling to underage kids.

Still we get customers who throw a wobbly when not allowed in after we close. Even taking the law thing out of consideration, if I've been at work for eight hours, I don't want to stay there any longer!

[Argabarga]

Back before 24 hour grocery was a thing, we used to just shut the lights off on customers who didn't listen to the courtesy warnings we were closing. That usually made our point. Only once did a manager have to get a flashlight and go find someone that was content to keep shopping in the pitch black when we killed the power on them. And naturally, they STILL didn't see what the issue was.

[Monterey Jack]

How early are the first showings of the day? who sees a movie at 9:00 in the morning? I mean, I prefer early matinees myself (cheaper, fewer annoying people), but usually the earliest my preferred theater will show a movie is around 11:00 AM, maybe 10:30 for really long films like Wolf Of Wall Street. And I often have time to kill before a show, but I usually spend it browsing around other stores, or maybe sitting down somewhere and reading a book/magazine. Why spend it just STANDING in front of a door, especially with FORTY MINUTES before they're scheduled to open? You people are old, you should at least find a nearby bench to sit at.

[icmedia]

Luckily for me, we have a back door...which I started using after multiple instances of people trying to shove past me to be the FIRST! in line, despite the fact that I show up 45 minutes before opening and don't log into the system until that time.

[WishfulSpirit]

Luckily for me, we have a back door...which I started using after multiple instances of people trying to shove past me to be the FIRST! in line, despite the fact that I show up 45 minutes before opening and don't log into the system until that time.

Over at Jeers, we get in via the Merch Pickup door. The outer doors will open automatically but you have to push the inner (sliding) doors open. I am very, very careful to push them back closed after going through, or I KNOW someone will come in after me, because shopping for lawn mowers at 8:45am is SO important.

[MoonCat]

These twits could solve their own problems very easily: They could stay home until it's closer to opening time! Good God, FIND something to do at home. Go sit on your front steps and complain about the neighbors like all the old biddies around here.

[notalwaysright]

If they pushed their way inside despite specifically being told you weren't open yet, that's trespassing and certainly cause to call the cops. Management might feel that it would cause backlash to do that for elderly, which is total bull, but still might be part of why they are hesitant. It particularly irritates me because being elderly shouldn't mean you can do whatever you want. I mean, allowances are fair, like for dementia, but these people seem to be completely aware of their actions.

When regular employees used to be allowed to open the front doors for coworkers I hated to do it when an early bird was standing there. Reason being the doors open if there is motion. So early bird moves, and the door opens. Moves, opens. Repeat. And heaven forbid it's 8:55. I don't get to decide when we open, so unless management says to open I can't let anyone in. Cue the following.

"Sorry, we're not open yet."
"But it's 9:00!"
"I'm sorry, it's five till, so I can't open."
"Five minutes!? Are you serious?"
"Yeah, I'm sorry I can't open yet."

And when they come in they make some stupid comment about how ridiculous we are. Who's the ridiculous one, the one standing outside a store before it opens, or the one WORKING in that store?