Customer complains because I had the audacity to close at our POSTED TIME!

[CrazedClerkthe2nd]

This happened last week.

For whatever reason I seem to get a surge of customers in the last 30 or 40 minutes before we close. It's like they suddenly think "oh shit, the game store closes in half an hour, we better get our asses down there!".

Sunday was no exception, we had our usual surge of late minute arrivals.

Now Sunday is the only day of the week we close early, every day we stay open until 9. For some reason, every week without fail, people will forget that we close at 6 on that day, as a result, it's the toughest day of the week to get the store closed on time.

So 6PM rolls around on Sunday and I still have three customers in the store. I was working on some of our closing procedures while CW stayed on the register to ring out the last few stragglers.

I got caught up in what I was doing and when I looked up it was 6:06 PM and the second of the three customers was just getting rung out. I also realized I had not locked the door yet.

You might wonder: Why lock the door if there are still customers inside?

Well mainly to keep anyone from else from coming IN. It's easy enough to unlock it to let the customers out.

Now the moment I realized I hadn't locked the door, I saw an SUV pull up in front of the store. I made a dash to lock the door and kill the OPEN sign. I saw a door open on the SUV, but no one made any move towards the store.

Flash forward to yesterday...

I come in and my assistant manager said a customer complained that I "deliberately rushed to the door, slammed it in his face and locked it" when I saw him approaching and he was very upset about it.

I repeat, I locked the door at 6:06 PM!! We CLOSE at six!

And also as mentioned above, there was no one coming to the door, just the guy who appeared from the open door of the vehicle (which is who I assume made the complaint).

Now my Assistant manager told me I wasn't going to get written up or anything but in the future if customers are approaching the door, to just stick my head out and let them know we are closed rather than dashing up to the door and locking it as fast as I can.

I admit I might have been a bit um...hasty in getting the door locked, but I was right at the end of my EIGHTH straight day working and in desperate need of some rest and time off, so yeah I was kind of wanting to get people out of the store and get the place closed up as soon as I could. Nevermind that due to the last minute surge I knew we'd be there until an hour or so past close anyway.

This also does not change the fact that this customer showed AFTER OUR POSTED CLOSING TIME and yet still had the nerve to complain. Good grief.

I wonder how he would have felt if he were in my position, odds are he'd be wanting to get the door locked as fast as I did.

[StanFlouride]

I wonder how he would have felt if he were in my position, odds are he'd be wanting to get the door locked as fast as I did.

Eventually one outgrows the fairy tales of childhood, belief in Santa and the Easter Bunny, and believing that SCs are even capable of imagining themselves in our position.

[dispatch]

someone needs to invent and market and affordable remote door lock for doorbuster sales and closing time issues like this. It would also come in handy when carrying my groceries in at home....hmmmmmmmmmmmmm.....where's an engineer when you need one?

I'm sure there's already something like this out there, it's just not common enough. I wouldn't want the door buzzers like security desks and apartments have, I mean like a watch or pendant sized remote control

[WhiteRose]

heh...then you could 'accidentally' hit the lock button whenever known SC's come to the door....

"But I can never get in the door because it's always locked..."

"I'll call the locksmith to take a look at it, sir, i swear..."

[BookstoreEscapee]

someone needs to invent and market and affordable remote door lock for doorbuster sales and closing time issues like this. It would also come in handy when carrying my groceries in at home....hmmmmmmmmmmmmm.....where's an engineer when you need one?

I recall an episode of Law & Order (Criminal Intent maybe?) where Bob Saget played the bad guy and he had a lock like that on his front door. It was like a car remote.

[Jay Fear]

I share your pain CC the 2nd! My store, a large drycleaner and tailor, closes at 2pm on Saturdays, yet we inevitably get people rolling up after close and knocking on the door or calling the store to ask that we stay open.

Special cases include the perenially late old lady who will barge in saying "I'm not paying X amount to be refused service", an odd statement considering we don't take payment til the orders are picked up.

There's also the sad-sack passive agressive guy who'll act apologetic and say he'll try be earlier next time. EVERY. SINGLE. WEEK. WITHOUT. EVER. F***ING. CHANGING. HIS. HABITS!

The Saturday just passed was particularly bad, I served three customers who came in after 2, only to find another rolled in and started honking her horn. As we had about 4 other staff still clocked on, I assumed they'd sort her out. Apparently not. So when I left she was still there, honking in futility. I hope she accidentally set off her airbag and broke her neck.

[Apathy]

Eventually one outgrows the fairy tales of childhood, belief in Santa and the Easter Bunny, and believing that SCs are even capable of imagining themselves in our position.

Yeah, but it's a nice ride while it lasts.

[mdog]

One problem I always have. I work in a gift store in the airport. We close at 9pm, and without fail, there will ALWAYS be a rush of people coming in at 8:50-8:55pm, just before closing. Probably because a flight comes in right at that time. But it is very irritating when tons of people start coming in at that time, and then shop, and wonder why or don't even have a clue that we're closing, even though the signs clearly state that we close at 9pm (and so does most of all the other stores, although those stores don't seem to have as much of a problem as we have), and even when the gate is halfway down (so far that you have to duck under the gate to avoid hitting it). When it gets to closing, I'll turn all the store lights off, and people will still shop in the dark, and even come into a dark store. People are clueless to the fact we closed, getting them out can be hard at times, and even after closing the gate, people will still ask (rather boldly) if I would re-open the store just for them to shop, supposedly promising they would spend a lot. And some think I'm being rude for not staying open a little later just for them. Some major things that SC's never seem to think about (or don't want to think about):

1) Not all of us employees have the luxury to hop into our wonderful cars (like the SCs probably do) and drive home after work. Some of us, like me, have to rely on mass transit light rail trains and buses to get home. My commute takes about 1.5 hours as it is. The way my connecting bus schedule works is that if I don't make my 9:40pm train, I have to wait another whole hour before I can get home, getting me home well after midnight. But SC's just think I'm being rude, even though it's because I gon't want to miss my bus and want to get home at a decent time.

2) Our store, like many other stores that operate in shopping malls, are under contracts, and the contracts usually specify the hours that we must and must not operate. This not only means we have to be open from such and such a time, but we must also be closed from such and such a time.

3) Our company has a very strict policy against unauthorized overtime. Since all the closing shifts I do are without any management being on duty, and usually with me being alone, it is up to me to make sure I monitor my own hours, and especially if running close on my hours, that I get everything closed out on time.

But unfortunately, these are things that SC's NEVER realize or try to think about.

[Lace Neil Singer]

Plus there's a security issue; at least for the supermarket where I used to work before I transferred over to petrol. Having people wandering around in the store after closing is dangerous when there are staff working in the cash office and the tills are being counted.

At petrol, we have to close on time due to the small fact that the following tasks must be completed before we can go home:

1. Cash up last till.

2. Lock up cigarettes.

3. Lock and switch off pumps.

4. Lock up all tills.

5. Empty bins.

6. Count and tie up excess newspapers.

7. Bring in fire extinguishers and local newspaper stand.

8. Turn off forecourt lights.

9. General tidyup.

10. Lock key box.

11. Lock fire exit.

12. Turn off shop lights and switch on alarm system.


Of course, some of these tasks, like taking in the extinguishers and paper stand, and doing the newspapers, can be done before we close, but most have to be done after closing. So if we're still dealing with stragglers after closing, then we're going to be late leaving; and if I've worked a Sunday or night shift, I'm fed up, starving and tired and want to go home. -.-

I want to find out where these SCs work and go bother them at their quitting time, just so they finally know what it feels like.

[chinashirtgirl]

The thing I find most annoying is that the OP even got a "talking to" about the situation.

"Just poke your head out" is fine but the SC wasn't even at the door like he lied and said he was.

Plus tough titty if the OP did rush to the door, it was five past closing. Come in time next time if you don't want the door locked in your face.

OP's manager is a jerk for even listening to the SC and the SC is definately a jerk for complaining about something that was his fault to begin with.

[Jester]

someone needs to invent and market and affordable remote door lock...

I'm sure there's already something like this out there...

There is. A very short google search gave me this, and I have no doubt there are more like it.

I hope she accidentally set off her airbag and broke her neck.

One of the funniest comments I've seen all week!

[CrazedClerkthe2nd]

To be fair, my manager didn't make a big deal of it, more of just a general reminder to play nice with the customers as much as possible. He knows that we only have the SCs report to go on and there are always two sides, that's why he didn't really make much of it.

I remember working at the call center, even if my shift ended at 6:30 but I was mid-call at the time, I couldn't just hang up and leave (no matter how badly I wanted to). If made it out promptly I could catch the early bus home, if I didn't, I'd have to wait 15-20 minutes for the later one. I ended up having to take that later one a lot more than I would have liked.

[Digitalpotato]

This happens ALL The bloody time at Subway. Lemme recall an event that happened last year.

Now while it's justified that customers may not know the hours because they're actually kinda posted in an out-of-the-way location, you'd think they get the hint.

SC: HI I'd like a-
CW: I'm sorry we're closed, it's 4:30 PM.
SC: WHAT?! you're closed?!?! When do you close?!
CW: at 4.
SC: Why're you closing at FOUR?!? People need to eat their dinners you know!
CW: You do know there's another subway right that way and across the street, right? It's open until nine.
SC: WHAT?! That'll take too long!

-_-

[chocoBug]

omg customer pet peeve! do they think we live there or something?! I even hate the polite ones that turn up at closing time on the dot "i'm really sorry but i meant to get here earlier, can i just look around"? No. you cant. i dont live here; i dont have a bed i roll out from under the till. I have somewhere to go after my 9 hours in here. argh! good for u! even if he was at the door you shouldve locked it and waved through the window

[WhiteRose]

I remember a time when I was a 'customer'...Can you all tell me if we were sucky or not?

It was at a fast food restaurant (not McD's, BK or Wendy's) that had a drivethru and we went through the drive thru...our order was wonky, so my foster mom (i was 14 so i didn't really have an active part in it) walked to the window and asked about the order being fixed (the person was right there and no one else was coming). She was snottily told to go inside to have the order fixed. No big deal, my foster mom told me to just run inside and show the receipt and get what we paid for...when I got to the door the person locked it, gave a $&!#-eating grin and walked away...My foster mom went back to the drivethru window and tried to lodge a complaint but the drivethru person wouldn't listen that the dining room was locked (after she was TOLD to go in, which was what made her angry)...