Am I not worthy to speak to you because I make minimum wage, or what?

[TravisRB69]

Most of the time it is SO painfully obvious which customers have been in the same boat and have worked in retail or food themselves before, and are therefore usually sympathetic to our plight.

..................

And then there are THOSE people. The people that have clearly never had to work retail or food, never had to deal with people like THEM, never had to get their hands dirty, and probably got EVERYTHING handed to them by mommy and daddy growing up. This same group is significantly larger in number, especially due to the fact that it includes people that call on the phone instead of....ACTUALLY SHOWING UP.....and expect us to be their own personal shopper (Do you have this? What color is that? Do you have a different color? How much is that? Who is the head inspector at the factory that made this product? What is that person's entire life story? How does this model compare to the other brand? How much does that other brand cost? Do you have the other brand in that color? What other brands do you have in that color? Could you check some of your other locations for me? Boy, I can hear in the background that you sure sound busy over there! But don't worry, I'll just keep you on the phone a little (lot) longer!) This group are the usual offenders of the "Oh you make minimum wage and your hands are dirty so you're nothing in my eyes!" treatment.

I care about the first group and will go the extra mile for them and bust my butt to make sure they're happy.

The second group? Fuck em, if what they want isn't in stock and I'm anything more than 40% sure we don't have it in the back, we ain't got it.

[PepperElf]

well... i'm not always in a chit-chat mood. sometimes i just wanna get my stuff and go.

however that being said... the simple things of "thank you" and smiling aren't to be forgotten

[NoLongerAShoeDog]

Maybe these people have never worked with the public before. If they had they would know what its like (or they're just assholes). I go out of my way as a customer to be nice and friendly, and my teen daughters want to know why I'm so nice, "Because I've been in their shoes!"

[Seshat]

I'd just like to make a note that some of the customers may have a hearing problem. I do, and I have to be expecting someone to talk to me if I'm going to actually understand what they said. (This happens on the phone, too.)

So I often don't hear or fully assimilate the first thing I'm told in a social-niceties conversation. And I tend to respond to what I expect, out of embarassment at that (yeah, I know, I'm just making things worse).

However, over the rest of the social-niceties conversation I am paying attention. I know how important it is to be treated as a person, not a Borg drone.

[jjllbb]

>.> I think I'm in love with my manager Bryant. He doesn't take anyone's crap.

I think I'm in love with your manager too...

I know some people are in a rush, or they don't feel like talking, but my store REQUIRES that I ask the customers seven specific questions. "Each and every guest each and every time" is the mantra. If I don't I'm in a whole lotta trouble.

I LOVE when a customer actually gets that i'm forced to say all those things and they say:

"You poor thing, they make you ask everyone all of this?"

And i smile gratefully and nod silently. *siiiiiigh*

Like it's been said thousands of times before, I don't care how your day was and you can shove it.

[jjllbb]

If I'm ever in a store or restaurant where I hear any of this employee should be fired for "being rude" or "poor customer service" crap, unless the employee just punched the customer in the face, I swear I'm going to go postal.

I made that plan eight years ago when I started in retail. I swear if I ever see someone giving an employee a hard time i'm going to unleash a verbal (and if necessary physical) beating.

[Teysa]

I love these kinds of people too. This is one of my personal favorites.

Me: Hi, how are you today?
Customer: No, just looking.

Depending on my mood, I'll point out that I was asking them how they were doing and not trying to sell them anything. Many times, they'll laugh a little and apologize.

[Blade]

I'm somehow not required to give a standard greeting (HalleLUjah), and since (1) it bothers me when people ask me "how are you?" when the answer is "REALLY SHITTY," and (2) I work in a drugstore, so I *know* a lot of people aren't doing so well, I never ask people how they're doing as a generic conversation starter. However, when people come up to ME and ask "how are you today?" my reflex is apparently "fine, thanks, and you?"

... which has led me to think that some people ask me how I'm doing *entirely* so they can tell my JUST how unpleasant things are for them.


.. and also, I don't care *which* side of the register I'm on, trust me, the answer is still "shitty," but now I have to give a pretend answer to what was a pretend question in the first place, since we all know that as an employee I'm obviously just part of the cash register and must not have any of those icky "feelings" or "personal problems" that real people have.



At least I'm not working at a restaurant any more- it's harder to bite my tongue when the "I'm ignoring you and replying to my own inner script" answer to "Would you like anything to drink?" is "gimme two chicken enchiladas." ("Wow, can I watch?? You want them in one big cup, or cut up into little shot glasses?")

(Doesn't help that I get my natural smart-ass bent from my mom, who would reply to a question like "Yeah, you have anything like a box?" for leftovers with "Sure, I have a cup, that's sort of like a box...")

[Blade]

Did you find everything you were looking for: The usual is a negative response cause apparently we are completely invisible and impossible to find unless they are determined to bitch us out or else just won't acknowledge that you may just know where something in the store where you work is located.

Ok, what is THAT about! It drives me bonkers when I hear people telling each other things that just are flat not true ("Oh, they don't have this item...") then when I come up and ask if they'd like help finding anything, the answer is still "no." (Yes, if I heard them mention something specific, I'll still tell them where it is. Damn my deeply ingrained sense of customer service... *grin*)



... but if I'm walking untethered through the store, so many of them just *clutch* at me like a life preserver, as though a wandering person with an armload of boxes is THE one chance to get something answered, as opposed to any of the other people they've just ignored standing there in identical uniforms...


(...side note, what is with "Oh! You're a register??" .... Well, NO, but this weird looking machine, that looks exactly those ones you were heading to up there with the lines at them? IT is a register, and I can help ring you up with it. Hence the offer... not just tricking you, promise.)

[Nelsonette]

I have to suggest to everyone that they might want to order our number one (if they wanted it, they would order it).

I also HAVE to ask that hated question, "Do you want fries to come with that?"
Recently, we got rid of our platters, and instead, now every single meal comes with fries.

Apparently, very few of our customers understand that (nevermind that it is plastered all over every single menu), so when they order a #17, get their order and find out it has fries "OMFG I DIDN'T ASK FOR THESE I WANT MY MONEY BACK HOW DARE YOU TACK THIS ON MY BILL YOU HIGH SCHOOL DROP OUT!"

I especially hate when they insult my intelligence based on where I'm working. That assumption seems to go along with the "Ignoring you because you're a working class peon" and "Do my shopping for me!" behavior.

Nevermind that teachers have asked me to tutor other students, and students have sought out my help, and I've helped them successfully raise scores. Nevermind that the only class I've ever failed is French, due to a complete inability to pronounce that language. No, I work at Steak n Shake, and therefore I must be a mentally challenged redneck hick.

Argh.

[HowMayIHelpYouToday]

I usually have the opposite problem I have a couple of cashiers I've had a lot at my local market and if I see them I'll give them a huge smile and "Hi!! How are you?" and most of the time they just come back with Hey. But if I go through their line I get a have a great day They're always very helpful when I need to find something so I still like them

[MelodiousBubbles]

I get that a lot, too. FE supervisors in my store bag for the cashiers so that if someone needs them, they can step away quickly without leaving a register unattended. Needless to say, since I'm around the same age as most of our service clerks, I often get mistaken for one.
Which sets me up for a lot of fun, actually. Whenever I ask if the customer wants paper or plastic and they don't answer, I'll ask one or two more times in a progressively louder voice before I just go with plastic. Some people don't like that and the interaction about half way through me bagging goes something like this:

SC: I wanted PAPER! Not plastic!
Me: I asked you several times and you didn't answer, so I assumed plastic would be fine.
SC: You never asked! I didn't hear you ask!
Cashier: She did ask. A few times.
SC: No she didn't! I want to speak to a supervisor!
Me: Yo *wiggles badge*
SC: ...... Fine. Bag the rest in paper.
Me: Sure thing.

Pisses me off, and at the same time makes me want to giggle.