Ginger, Yours For Only $40 Dollars

[TruthHurts]

I was ringing up a woman and put a bag of ginger on the scale. I turn to the register and enter it, it rings up at $40 dollars. I look over at the scale and notice that the guy behind her decided to put his gallon of milk on it.

It was more than obvious that it was a scale and that I was currently using it to weigh something. And still he felt it was o.k. to set his stuff on it. I inform him that he set the milk on a scale and move in over on the counter.

I remove the $40 dollar charge and go to weigh it again when I see him place a bag of apples on the scale. I tell him that I was still ringing up the previous girl's groceries and to not set anything on there until I was done.

He finally got the hint.

[Imogene]

Why was he so close to her stuff? "Get out of my SPACE!"

[bainsidhe]

Or you get those customers who try to "help" you scan. They shove their stuff over the scanner while you're ringing and I'm convinced it's because they want to hear the beep. I see little kids do it, but I when the adults do it.

[XCashier]

What is it with customers who, when you tell them not to do something because it's dangerous/causes inaccuracies/other darned good reason, they'll do what you say, only to go ahead and do what they did again a few seconds later?! Open your ears and listen, idiots!

[KabeRinnaul]

What is it with customers who, when you tell them not to do something because it's dangerous/causes inaccuracies/other darned good reason, they'll do what you say, only to go ahead and do what they did again a few seconds later?! Open your ears and listen, idiots!

I always have a fun time with that one when I'm on SCO. Here's one from the past week. To start, I'll note that SCO lane 4 was punched a few months back and the screen's been damaged and less sensitive ever since, though they finally replaced it Thursday.

So I see this woman tapping the screen on #4 with the tip of her fingernail. She'd be lucky to have this read even on the more functional ones, but there's no hope of that on this station.

SC: *taptaptap*
Me: Ma'am, this screen is slightly damaged. It can't read taps like that.
SC: Huh? Yeah, it's a touch screen. *taptaptap*
Me: Yes, and it's damaged. You need to press your finger flat on the screen.
SC: Yeah, I hear ya, it's a touch screen. *taptaptap*
Me: No, try like this. *demonstrate pressing with the whole fingertip rather than tapping*
SC: Oh yeah, I get ya. *taptaptap* It's a touch screen. *taptaptap*

And then I gave up.

[bean]

All of this annoys me too, but...

The worst was when I was on express, which has NO bagging area. Out of instinct, I just smack TOTAL when I'm done scanning so my IPMs don't suffer. The customer reached over and grabbed the hand basket from next to me, but in doing so, dragged it across CASH and ENTER, and cashed out the transaction entirely.

At least he was understanding.

But yes... don't shove shit in front of my scanner/on the scale unless I'm READY for it. And I'm just going to chuckle when you ignore me and wave a barcode frantically in front of the scanner before it's ready/I turned it off.

Right up there with people who shove someone out of the way to push their credit card into the card reader, before I'm done with the previous customer's transaction. I look at them, smile, and thank them for paying for the previous customer's groceries and how nice of a gesture that was.

Finally, our registers won't allow you to void anything over $19.99... cumulative, per transaction. So if someone shoves their 10 pound jug of milk on my scanner while I'm weighing a $5.99/lb item... a manager has to come over and authorize the void, and EVERY SINGLE VOID AFTER THAT for the entire transaction.

[Chromatix]

I'm at a loss to imagine the checkout layout that would allow/encourage such suckiness. It might simply be a ergonomics factor that hasn't been taken into account over there.

With the checkouts used in both Britain and Finland, there are three distinct sections:

- A conveyor for customers to put their goods. This has a set of dividers so that customers can separate their stuff from everyone else's. In Finland, the bags are also kept under this, because bags have to be paid for and are therefore put on the conveyor with everything else. The conveyor automatically stops when anything reaches the end of it (there's a laser detector).

- A middle section for the cashier, containing all their equipment, which is separated from the customer lane. This usually incorporates a small writing desk for signing receipts, which doubles as extra protection for the register from the customer. The scales are incorporated into the scanner unit, which is in the most protected part of this area.

- Another conveyor and tray to collect scanned goods and allow the customer to retrieve/pack them. There's usually a divider here as well, this time operated by the cashier, so one or two customers can be packing while another is being scanned.

There's generally a mirror put somewhere strategic to catch people who try to smuggle goods past the cashier.

Some stores have a light on a pole to indicate open checkouts, but this is usually ignored - much more obvious to customers is the gate across the lane and the sign on the conveyor. In practice I see lights more often used to signal to employees, where they're fitted.

[XCashier]

Mine is mostly the cutting counter (fabric store) instead of the cash register, but I still get some nonlisteners and space invaders.

At the cutting counter, there is a small metal groove for cutting the fabric straight. Per company policy, we don't let the customer hold down the fabric, move the fabric, and I prefer that they stand out of the way of the cutting zone, especially small children whose faces are the same height as the table. Now, most people get this. Scissors are sharp, they can slip, accidents happen, the best you can do is stay out of the danger zone.

So, why do people insist on handling the fabric I am in the process of cutting? (Which, btw, also makes the cut go crooked!) Why do folks insist on leaning on the counter, hovering over the fabric? Why in the name of all that is holy do parents not keep their children away from the cut zone?! Get out of the way of the sharp scissors, like I asked you twice already, I don't want your gouged eye or sliced hand on my conscience!

And when I ask them to move, they'll move, then five seconds later go right back to where they were!

[Jester]

With the checkouts used in both Britain and Finland, there are three distinct sections

As described, it pretty much sounds like almost every grocery store and supermarket I've been in in the U.S.

That is one thing I love about working behind a bar. People cannot fuck with my register, unless they physically come behind the bar itself, which is, of course, a HUGE no no.

I still get people trying to wave their credit card at me to pay while I am cashing someone else out, or making someone else drinks, or doing a hundred other things. The best is when I have my hands completely full, with drinks, dirty glasses, meals going out, dirty dishes coming back, whatever, and some douche is not just waving their money or card, they are actively trying to put it in my occupied hand. Admittedly, this happens to me more as a waiter than as a bartender, probably because of that aforementioned bar between myself and the customers, but it still happens, and it's still fucking annoying.

[EricKei]

I think bean meant that the lack of a proper bagging area on that particular register was unusual.

Most register stations in the States do have a 3-part setup like that (tho some stores, like one I used to work at) have these really high, shallow baskets and are in a split configuration -- there is a diagonal slot in between the main "walkup" (with no conveyor at all) and the bagging station, and the cashier pulls the cart *through* this area (the baskets are designed in such as way as to facilitate this). They even have a little gate on the front of the basket to allow for just dragging stuff out of there straight over the scanner. Confuses the hell out of first-time shoppers ^_^

[TruthHurts]

We are a small market and don't have conveyor belts. The scale sits right next to the counter. I've had people set their stuff on the scale before but never while I was actively using it.