Tales from the Register

[Apathy]

I use alot of coupons.

Addition:

Bad Situation #8: Coupon Madness

I don't mind coupons in theory. I don't mind them at all if they apply to what you're buying. But you get the people in there with the coupon that says, "One dollar off when you buy three of this product."

"You mean I have to buy three!? THAT'S RIDICULOUS!"

"Maybe so, but you should have read the f'ing coupon before trying to use it.

Solution: Just give them the dollar off because I don't care.

[Danjo]

In our store the WIC items are clearly marked on the shelves right next to the price.


It doesn't stop poeple from picking up the wrong thing or complaining about it, but it does give us somehting to point to.

[Becks]

Why is it that when you're open, and the light's on, everybody asks if you're open, but the minute you turn the light off, everybody just starts banging their crap on the belt?

Because you're in Opposite Land!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Peppergirl]

Addition:

Bad Situation #8: Coupon Madness

I don't mind coupons in theory. I don't mind them at all if they apply to what you're buying. But you get the people in there with the coupon that says, "One dollar off when you buy three of this product."

"You mean I have to buy three!? THAT'S RIDICULOUS!"

"Maybe so, but you should have read the f'ing coupon before trying to use it.

Solution: Just give them the dollar off because I don't care.

I totally agree. I could start a BOOK on the idiots who make couponers look like assholes.

I'd never clipped a coupon in my life until I divorced and they became a necessity. I'll admit that I border on the fanatic, but I always am sure to use them correctly and to shop at off-peak times so as to wreak as little havoc as possible.

I've been told by at least three cashiers at stores I shop at that they appreciate my diligence with them. I think it helps that I cashiered right out of high school and that I know how it feels to get cussed out over a 35 cent coupon that expired 2 years ago.

[Can I Help Your A$$?]

Apathy, I think I like you. Maybe because I don't like people either, and because I have the exact same job as you, with the same surprises.

[Evil Queen]

Bad situation #1: Price Checkers

These people stare at the screen while I'm ringing their crap up. If anything comes up at the wrong price, they'll be sure to stop me, berate me for ripping them off, and tell me how much the sign in the back said it was.
Solution: Make any change that wasn't over, let's say, five bucks.

I admit I check the price but I'm generally nice about it. I do my best not to berate (except this one time... but that deserved it) and I generally try to go through a checker I know (like Geoff.... hmmmm..... Geoff.... <3).

All the others; I agree. Suck.

[anyanka2]

Am I really that rare?

WIC in Michigan at least changed their guidelines on what products are WIC-approved. Jif or another name brand peanut butter quit making the 16 oz jars, instead going to 18 oz ones that are not WIC acceptable. Some customers have complained because they have to buy the store brand ones. Also, WIC does not allow organics to be purchased with WIC funds due to the cost and the issue of certifying what is organic by the FDA.

WIC is going to a food stamps type card instead of the vouchers. It's better for the customers because they can get milk, eggs, and cheese whenever they want to ensure freshness, but it's a pain in ass for the stores because the prices have to be loaded into WIC readers weekly to correspond with sales. The prices also have to match between the store's price database and the WIC pricing one, something in my experience that still needs to be worked out. Unfortunately at my store, only three people bothered to actually read the training material and none of them have offered to share it with the other register trained people to ensure that they understand what's going on. Some people have been f****** up their WIC card orders so much that the rumor is that the store has lost $200+ due to their a combination of their own incompetence and managerial incompetence.

[Kogarashi]

My biggest coupon gripe was with this one lady at the first store I worked at, who always brought in a huge pile of coupons and tried to use them all. The process for sorting went like this:

Step 1: remove all coupons that had expired already. Minus 1/3 of the pile.

Step 2: remove all coupons that were BOGO (without price mentioned) or %-off coupons, since Wal-Mart doesn't accept those. Minus another 1/4 of the original pile.

Step 3: painstakingly go through lady's whole cartful of groceries to try to match coupons to products, because she didn't hand me the pile until after I told her the total, and everything is now sitting neatly in bags on top of each other. At the time, Wal-Mart's registers didn't match up coupons to products in the inventory system like it does now (yay!). Remove all coupons that don't match any products, or are for the wrong sizes, or for the wrong brand. Minus another 1/4 of the original pile.

Step 4: try to explain to the lady why you're throwing away 1/3 of her coupons and handing 1/2 back to her. Repeat yourself several times because she either legitimately doesn't speak English very well (speaking a foreign langauge as her native tongue), or she's playing it up as an act hoping you'll cave and scan them all anyway. (My money was actually on the first option.) Stand firm, until she finally accepts that she's not getting that extra $30 off her purchase.

Step 5: ring up the remaining 1/6 of the pile of coupons and add to cashier's bag. Wish customer a nice day, and get no response.

Step 6: wash, rinse, repeat in a week's time when the lady returns with yet another mountain of coupons.

[novicecrafter]

.

*shrugs* being a cashier sucks.. being a cashier at a grocery store sucks especially bad. But fortunately working for a company that has its **** together makes things alot easier. If an item rings up higher then on the shelf they get it for free. Period. Our computer system rocks. All you have to know is the first letter of whatever produce item it is and it pulls up a nice menu with pictures (no memorizing codes). Generally there is already a little sticker on the fruit so you dont even have to know what it is. Those big 24 packs of water? In there. That wierd fruit from god knows where? In there. Its nice. Things tend to run smoothly enough that customers never have a chance to get pissed and take it out on you.

[depechemodefan]

When I see a person with a gallon of milk, a half gallon of milk, cheese and beans, I go to another lane. The people with WIC might have everything correct, but then the cashier has to fill out things on each slip. Ugh. I see they have to but...

For some reason one day I was behind a couple with WIC (I guess I wasn't paying attention). I think the cashier told her she can get an extra gallon. If she doesn't then she won't be able to get it latter (before the new slips arrive). so she shuffles to the milk, which if far away and shuffles back. Ugh.

[d962831]

OMG, someone's who's been through the hell I'm going through now! I deal with all of that where I work, and to even top things off, management as well as customers look at the cashiers as less than themselves and so treat us all like crap. You have literally just described everything I deal with at least once a month!