Bagging correctly makes people mad

[Food Lady]

I've posted before about the woman that asked "Is there a REASON you're putting things on the side like that?!?" Yeah, she kept handing me stuff one at a time because she wanted them scanned in a certain order (didn't say that, but I knew). I kept setting the smaller items aside because I wasn't going to put them in the bag and then try to fit a laundry detergent on top. I told her as much. So that's the precedent: they're control freaks here.

On to today: like everyone, huge packs of TP and paper towels, and then piddly stuff on top. I always set the little stuff aside and scan the big stuff. I don't scan the little stuff before setting aside because I can guarantee you I will get confused and overcharge the customer. I should have today. I moved the small item far to the side (need the counter space) and she shot me a weird look. Strike one. I knew she was perturbed--who knows why--and I chose to ignore it since she didn't say anything. Well, I forgot the item and she asked if I got it and right away I apologized. It's rare for that to happen, but I'm overworked. She got charged correctly and we didn't have to do a second transaction, and I apologized, but I could tell she was really annoyed. I can't tell you how many times something small like that has happened and the customer was forgiving. But this one was already angry I didn't scan her doggie poop bags first.

[Slave to the Phone]

I put things on the belt in the order I want to load them into my trunk. Heavy stuff first, then the cold stuff and then the toilet paper/paper towels. That way I can put the big light stuff in the back of the trunk, the cold stuff on the left side and then the heavy stuff in the front.

I've never had someone bag things differently than how I put them on the belt. Maybe that's because I do it logically?

[Seanette]

I've gotten some seriously random bagging, and I do sort logically when loading the belt. You seem to have good baggers in your area.

I have managed to train DH on my preferred style (which he agrees is rational), since we frequently shop at bag-your-own grocery stores.

[EricKei]

I've never had someone bag things differently than how I put them on the belt. Maybe that's because I do it logically?

This usually works for me -- then again, sometimes they guy doing the bagging will, say, put bananas in with a 2-pound can of pumpkin like the other day >_>

[WishfulSpirit]

The plastic bags here are about as strong as tissue paper. I had a bagger put all my canned goods into one bag. Which promptly split the second I picked it up. I'd say you're doing a good job by trying to do it right.

[OneMoreTime]

When I was a cashier I put a dozen eggs in a bag, then put a loaf of bread on top, that is all. The customer immediately removed the loaf of bread. Did she think it was going to crush the eggs?

[Slave to the Phone]

I don't know if the baggers here are well trained, or just don't care. They bag in the order of stuff getting to them. I've had them put eggs on top of bread in the past, that's why I'm so careful about how I unload my cart. I know what they are going to do, they do what I expect...all is good

The poor baggers are probably too busy to actually pay attention to what they are doing, anyhow. 3 baggers for 12 check outs makes for a lot of rushing around. If there isn't one at my lane, I'll bag my stuff myself. If there is, I'll help. It makes it faster.

I know that shopping involves waiting, but the people who tick me off the most are the ones who watch their cashier bag their stuff and load their cart, then and only then swipe their card. I sometimes often always feel like hitting them over the head with a bag of kitty litter.

[Monterey Jack]

When I was a cashier I put a dozen eggs in a bag, then put a loaf of bread on top, that is all. The customer immediately removed the loaf of bread. Did she think it was going to crush the eggs?

My managers strongly encourage us to put non-heavy items on top of eggs to conserve bags, like bread, marshmallows, and the like. Customers rarely complain.

[notalwaysright]

Yeah, she kept handing me stuff one at a time because she wanted them scanned in a certain order (didn't say that, but I knew). I kept setting the smaller items aside because I wasn't going to put them in the bag and then try to fit a laundry detergent on top. I told her as much. So that's the precedent: they're control freaks here.

If someone is such a control freak that they have to have their food scanned a certain way, how do these people function? I ask that daily, actually. I feel bad because I get critical of the baggers here. Broken eggs, and bags loaded so heavy I can't lift them. I should note, I would put two reusable bags on the belt and the bagger would only use one and make it weight like 50 pounds.

HOWEVER, recently I have not had any problems with bags being too heavy, so that's cool. I very vaguely put stuff in groups, like cold food or heavy items like cans. I do wonder, when the cashier doesn't have a bagger, should I bag the stuff myself? I usually don't because I feel awkward leaning over their area to do it, and also if I go down the end of the lane the person behind me will immediately move up, even though I have to go back to the credit card scanner to okay the transaction once the cashier has finished scanning. So yeah.

[Food Lady]

I do wonder, when the cashier doesn't have a bagger, should I bag the stuff myself? I usually don't because I feel awkward leaning over their area to do it, and also if I go down the end of the lane the person behind me will immediately move up, even though I have to go back to the credit card scanner to okay the transaction once the cashier has finished scanning. So yeah.

I think it's totally fine to say something like "Could all the frozen items go together? I have a long way to go home and they'll stay colder that way" and then a thank you. I LOVE when people communicate with me instead of staring at me while I bag. I assume people want their re-useable bags packed full because most of them tell me to do so, but if one didn't want that then letting me know is great. I will do whatever they ask of me as long as they are willing to communicate with me. It's the ones who don't that frustrate me.

One funny rule I have is "square stuff goes together." Any and all boxes go in the same bag, standing up, unless I can fit one laying down with stuff on top of it. But generally I start grabbing boxes first. It's a plastic bag, but I can make it act like a paper one that way.

[Monterey Jack]

I always used boxed items to prop up long, skinny items (like 2-liter bottles of soda) whenever possible. And I always try to fill reusable bags as full as possible, unless the customer specifically requests that they be "light". I mean, I can look down the belt and usually determine who will ask for light bags (any woman who looks over the age of sixty will usually do the "make the bags light" thing, which usually means fifty items spread across forty-five bags ). If you appear able-bodied, and unless you specify, I will fill the bags as much as possible.

[Food Lady]

I'm 41 and I look fine, so I will ask the cashier to bag light. Actually, I tend to use the self-checkout most of the time.

[notalwaysright]

This totally rings a bell from a post I made a while ago. (why can I never search and find my old posts??) Because I remember being confused. If I put up two bags... It just makes sense to use both. My brain really doesn't get the logic of overloading one bag, I mean, they're my bags which I bought... I can accept that baggers are inclined to get as much as possible into one bag, even if I don't fully grasp why. I can move on from that, and I'm not mean to anyone about it. I have enough to stress about, I don't need to add something more.

But here's the thing. I have asked multiple baggers to use both bags, or make them light, or try to make the weight even... And been stared at blankly. Or the bagger uses one bag and proudly announces "I got it all in one for you!" Nobody seems to understand, so I don't say anything at all. Then I sort the bags at the exit of the store. As long as nothing is broken, I'm fine.

[Chromatix]

Here, the norm is that the customer does their own bagging. There aren't any employees dedicated to doing it, in any case. Effectively, each checkout has two conveyor belts - one on the input side, and one on the output, with the latter divided so that one customer can pack up while another is being scanned through.

Sometimes cashiers will help, if it's slow or if there are concerns about particular types of goods. Frozen things are often put in a thin bag of their own, not to be carried separately but to keep them together. Some ready-meals have surprisingly fragile packaging, so I've sometimes seen cashiers wrap a thin bag around those as well.

I bring my own bags, of course. These might sometimes just be the store's plastic bags, reused because they're Finnish and therefore awesomely strong. (I may have posted about that in the past.) Often however it's my bike's panniers and/or a 25-litre backpack.

With panniers, it's a good idea to keep the weight balanced between the two sides of the bike; it's also preferable to keep the heavy things in them rather than putting it on my back. Conversely, if I don't have the bike I'd rather have the weight on my back than in my hands. The panniers also have a rather particular method of being closed (for water-tightness) which means they can't be filled beyond a certain level.

These are things I wouldn't expect a bagger to know without being told - so I'm perfectly happy to play shopping-tetris by myself rather than having to babysit one.

[raudf]

When I cashiered, I had a couple of customers go off on me because I put the bread on top of the carton of eggs when bagging. Nope, gotta have two separate bags! MUST HAVE TWO SEPARATE BAGS OR THE WORLD WILL EENNNNNNDDDDD!!!! I mean f-bombs and the works.

I try to put things in the order I want them bagged on the belt. Mostly, getting the cold stuff in one pile, the boxed stuff in another, cans in another, chemicals in another and the rest in their own. Please don't put the eggs on top the bread!