Shopping bags

[PizzaDrone]

I don't see what the big deal is about paying for a bag. It's so cheap. I'd take a reusable bag more, only I tend to find a lot of use for plastic bags around the house, (I'm a messey hoarder) so I'm willing to pay. The fuss some people make is ridiculous about such a small thing. It always baffles me that these people can make such a big arse about something...what about the big things in life?

[edible_hat]

Just shows how idiotic customers are when they a) are fully aware of the bag ban (it's been extensively advertised in stores, and has received wide media attention)

The bogans I have to deal with aren't aware of it, they just don't pay attention. (the same people who can't understand simple concepts like "type the number, then enter the car wash" or "we're sold out").

In 2001 my mum worked in the same geographical area that I do now, and had this conversation about 9/11 several times a day for a week:

mum: "Wasn't it terrible what happened in America?"
bogan: "What happened?"

[earl colby pottinger]

More suck to come

Prepare if any posters here work in Toronto grocery stores.

The City of Toronto has not banned plastic bags, they have left you the freedom to use them if you want. BUT! They have made it the law that there is now a charge of five(5) cents per bag.

That right, the charge on a bag is not a cost saving (profit gorging) move by the stores, ITS's THE LAW!

I can just see the SCs already lining up the complaint, the register clerks smiling as they say, "Sorry, you have to pay for the bags, it's the law!"

[rerant]

Prepare if any posters here work in Toronto grocery stores.

I'm in Toronto. Customers will never accept it. Well, some will, but the ones who won't will bitch until they're blue in the face. It's pathetic. Pay for the damn bag, bring your own, or tie your shit to your legs and suffer, but don't complain about something that is for the benefit of everyone.

I'm crabby today.

[fireheart]

Re the shoplifting: that was addressed in the article. Now we've all been taught to check bags thoroughly for stuff like that and security has been increased. Basically, now if we leave our register unsecured and a shoplifting incident occurs, we get logged.

Re the laziness: Yeah, that's true. We ran a trial about 6 weeks in the lead-up to Christmas and ohh man, that was hell. Lots of people said they'd shop at competitiors....I actually had to giggle at that. Why you may ask? well it's simple:

1) Our competitors are smaller than us...we have waaay more floorspace.
2) less checkouts. More customers is gonna equal slower service even with every single checkout open.
3) They'll have to suffer too!
4) It's now become shoplifter heaven as in they don't bother checking bags anymore....corporate ruling.

[TWOLF]

I have to wonder tho...with people walking around carrying their own bags, (non-see-throught to boot) won't that make shoplifting easier?.

There is a website where they were talking about a news program was talking about how to shoplift by lining your back with set materials. Have to try to find it. I wouldn't shoplift though

[RetailWorkhorse]

I'm certain most of them also have velcro in place of laces.

*Pulls off sneakers*

Velcro AND lights up! My best friend is going to kill me.

[Chromatix]

I don't notice any problem with taking reusable bags into the supermarket - and most of the local bags are fairly opaque, and some are also dyed a dark colour. Bear in mind that the bags themselves are charged for here.

My usual pattern though is to take a normal-sized rucksack in (not one of the huge 40-litre+ ones), with a set of reusable plastic bags in the pocket. Heavy things go in the rucksack first. If I know I'm not getting much, I might take just a plastic bag stuffed into my pocket.

I do however try to avoid going through a store with already-bought goods that are "typically" sold there. There are exceptions - when looking for Christmas cards, wrapping, etc. it's impossible to find everything you might like in one place, but a big roll of wrapping paper is difficult to miss on the cameras when coming in.

[TOLady]

I'm in Toronto. Customers will never accept it...

I'm close to rerant's location and we're just starting to implement the "have to pay" for the bags in Our Fair City.

I'm certainly not looking forward to the suckiness on Saturday mornings at my local grocery store. It's already got the lowest prices for the most part, but hey - the extra $.05 is certainly going to make for severe suckiness.

I actually much prefer the cloth bags. I'm able to get them with an extra long strap that I can hang them over my shoulder and not have the handle cut into my hand. They also hold those 12 roll TP much easier.

[Jester]

I can just see the SCs already lining up the complaint, the register clerks smiling as they say, "Sorry, you have to pay for the bags, it's the law!"

Yeah, well, it won't be that simple. Having used the "it's the law" line for both asking for IDs and for refusing to serve someone who doesn't have acceptable ID for alcohol purchases, I can tell you that something as lame as "the law" does not matter to the type of people that are going to complain about such things.

They'll say things like "I appreciate your point of view" and "this is ridiculous" and "you're going to lose business" and "can't you make an exception?" and "it's okay, who will know?", etc, etc., etc., etfuckingc.

The law matters not to SCs and entitlement whores. Haven't you figured that out yet?

[Sirloracaz]

Wow, go Australia!
We don't have a bag ban here in AZ (usa) yet, but there are lots of cloth bags that you can buy to re-use. Some stores give me a credit of 5cents a bag on my shopping bill, so most of my bags have paid for themselves. I will buy one from each store that has them (and doesn't overcharge). One store doesn't give 5cents, but puts me in a drawing for a gift card. Good enough. I don't usually go to stores that don't do anything for the re-usables, or I at least don't bother bringing them in (they give me weird looks, or act like I'm trying to steal).
So what plastic bags I do get, I re-use as trash bags, or keep and recycle.
For a while, my work couldn't get in plastic bags.... no Idea why. we have one now that is brown instead of white, and says recycled, but we still have the other sizes in white. We started selling re-usables too, but I'm only getting the cute ones (my collection is getting bigger than I could ever actually use on a full day of shopping).
Anyhow, I feel bad for Aussie workers getting abused over something that helps the environment. They are trying to make life better! I don't know about over there, but here bags are $1.... a single bill. Not bad, since ppl shop for crappier stuff at the $1 store. The bags are at least useful. And people can bring in their old plastic bags, or spend their nickles. Geez.
Protecting the environment is expensive. It's us being cheap that messed it up in the first place!

[edible_hat]

I don't know about over there, but here bags are $1.... a single bill.

Most are $1, which is a single coin here.

I noticed that one major supermarket has cheekily replaced their "buy these pens and stuff to support charity" displays with bag displays that don't mention a charity.

[Cat]

I LOVE resuable bags (as mentioned in the other 'bag' thread, I have a bag addiction) My trunk is full of them, and they are all well used. My best ones are from Target, since they fold up and fit in my shoulder bag.

There is one store where the cashiers always laught at me for my resuable, even though they see me almost every day, haha. Anoter store I went to, the cashier waxed poetic for a good 5 minutes how he loved I brough a bag in, because he hates the plastic ones (if his store was closer, I'd go more often)

It's curbed my spending too, if I don't have my bag, I (usually) won't buy anything


But I digress, while I have seen more people use the cloth ones, I am waiting for CT to ban plastic, and I know there will be an outrage....

[batmoody]

Sure reusable bags are great! IF you keep them clean and actually give them to me BEFORE I start bagging.!

I am so sick of customers shoving a wad of nasty, smelly canvas bags at me,

I swear, some peoplel let their dogs sleep on them, cats pee on them. Many times they are crusty and stained with who knows what, sometimes they are wet.

NASTY!

Oh, and it defeats the purpose to dump all your reusable bags on the belt at the END of your order. By the time they get to me, I have already bagged everything in plastic.

Common sense PLEASE!
Oh gawd who am I kidding!

[fireheart]

Sure reusable bags are great! IF you keep them clean and actually give them to me BEFORE I start bagging.!

I am so sick of customers shoving a wad of nasty, smelly canvas bags at me,

I swear, some peoplel let their dogs sleep on them, cats pee on them. Many times they are crusty and stained with who knows what, sometimes they are wet.

NASTY!

Oh, and it defeats the purpose to dump all your reusable bags on the belt at the END of your order. By the time they get to me, I have already bagged everything in plastic.

Common sense PLEASE!
Oh gawd who am I kidding!

One of my coworkers had a cockroach crawl out of one of his.

And chucking them at the end of the order is easy. Because most of the people who bother to bring their bags do a big shop, they'll dump them on the end of the belt, so I reach over, grab them and THEN start scanning. No complaints.