I always work with a cart full of groceries

[Retail Associate]

I swear. Customers are getting lazier by the minute. They never bother to find what they want on their own and expect us to hold their hand while they shop. Today I had to pick up some groceries after my shift was over. As I headed out the door with my bagged groceries, some asshat who was just entering the store stopped me and asked, "You work here, don't you?"

I looked him in the eye with my infamous death stare and said, "Yes I do...but I'm not working now." I desparately wanted to point at my groceries and say, "What the hell is wrong with you? Why don't you, for once in your lazy, worthless life just go inside and look for what you want before harrassing the first employee you lay eyes on. I'm off the clock so leave me the f**k alone."

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Just needed to rant. I feel better now.

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[Dave1982]

I had someone do te same thing to me today. I was carrying outside food, which should indicate quite clearly that I'm not on the clock (I was on a 30 minute lunch break) and yet someone stopped me to ask where something was. Easy to answer, but still. I'M. ON. LUNCH. and of course, answering the question risks the dreaded follow-up "Will you show me?" as if aisle 1 requires a map and a compass to find or something

[Bloodsoul]

Come on, people, our store's motto is "Your Home for Adventure Shopping!" That means you go out and see, by youself, using your own wit and ingenuity, what new and wondrous things abound. Behold, the adventure! Because it's not an adventure if you have to ask where everything is.. it's like using cheat codes in videogames.

[bigjimaz]

I used to hate this. Even worse for me were those asshats that used to see me sitting out front on a bench having my smoky treat and a Mountain Dew on my break and yet still ask me where something was. My usual response was to ask someone inside.

[BookstoreEscapee]

I used to hate this. Even worse for me were those asshats that used to see me sitting out front on a bench having my smoky treat and a Mountain Dew on my break and yet still ask me where something was. My usual response was to ask someone inside.

Jeezuss if you can't even make it into the store before you have to ask for help, you shouldn't be allowed to go shopping by yourself.

[MadMike]

I had one stop me on the way to the breakroom, with my lunch in my hands. I'm not sure how he even knew I worked there, because I didn't have my smock on.

When I told him I was on my lunch, he got an attitude with me (i.e. "Well, that's just great!"), and then demanded I get someone else to help him if I couldn't.

I took a step toward the breakroom door, and I was about to tell him I would once I put my food down on one of the tables inside, until he called me an "asshole." No way I was lifting a finger for him after that, especially since I wasn't even on the clock.

[mattm04]

I had one lady who wanted to place an order with me and me only. At the time she was talking to my boss and the store GM. They both told he I was on break and would not be back for 30 min. The GM paged me and described the lady. I told him she always wants to order X product, just take the order. She wandered around the store for a few minutes, went back to my boss complained that they wouldn't pull me off break, paid for her groceries and left. She called back about an hour later and placed the order. She never picked it up. we haven't seen her since.

[SubwayGirl]

I have had people actually stop in public (at the bank, at the grocery store, at my son's football game) and place a catering order with me for an event they have coming up. Sometimes I am uniform and sometimes they know I am the manager. It is really annoying because I have had to scramble for a pen and paper or try to remember it when I get back to home or the store. The one time that really annoyed me is when my husband gave his boss my cell phone number because it was my day off (something I very rarely ever get). I almost killed my husband when he got home.

[MadMike]

The one time that really annoyed me is when my husband gave his boss my cell phone number because it was my day off (something I very rarely ever get). I almost killed my husband when he got home.

Oh, I know that feeling as well. One day when I was still working at the home improvements store, my dad and I stopped by on my day off to pick up some building materials for an addition he was building onto the house. While we were looking around, some guy asked my dad, as one customer to another, if he knew where something was. My dad said he didn't know, because it was his first time in there, but that I would know, because I worked there.

After I got rid of the guy, I told my dad not to ever do that to me again. I don't think he understood why I got so bent out of shape. True, it would have only taken me a second to answer, but once someone gets "outed" like that, next thing you know, ten people will suddenly expect you to help them.

[JustaCashier]

Subway Girl, Wanting to place orders with you off the clock, and away from the store is totally uncalled for.

are these idiots thinking?!?

I wish I had a solution for you that would not "offend" even the biggest entitlement whore, but alas, I don't.

I would probably try something like ".....could you please call it into the store? I'm afraid I may lose my notes, or get it the order wrong not having written down on a proper form", all the while thinking "How DARE you, you a**wipe, expect me to take your g-d catering order on my day/time off away from the store!"

Of course, many will be offended, no matter how politely you decline, but that's where it would be nice if you could expect the store franchisee/district management/corporate/whatever to back you up 100%.

Hell. some days I don't even want somebody mentioning my work to me even if I'm just on my lunchbreak at a nearby fast food joint!

Mike

[RammsteinGirl]

People, you are in NO way obligated to help people once you are punched out. You can point them in the direction of whatever they're searching for, but tell them that sorry, you're no longer punched in, they will have to find an employee on the clock to help them. And don't feel bad about it either!

On my yearly review, my manager docked points from me for not saying "Hello" to every customer I pass, even while in transit to/from break or punching in/out.

Sorry, but the MOMENT I punch out for break or to go home, I do not even LOOK at any customers I pass. I take off my nametag and stuff it into my pocket. If someone does ask me where an item is, I just point in the general direction. I'm not going to walk them. I don't work at Kmart out of the goodness of my heart to feed people's materialistic greed, that's for sure, so if I'm not getting paid, I'm not going to go out of my way to assist someone in finding something that they could probably find themselves (there's a map of the store up at the service desk, but no one ever looks at it of course).

[Imogene]

it's like using cheat codes in videogames.

Now, although I tend to use cheat codes AFTER I've beaten a game once, there are times where the game just gets too tough for me, or I want to expedite parts of it (usually? Item collecting) So, if I've found the item in your store once, the next time I'm in, I'm asking you where the hell it is. *grins*

[ShootMePlease]

I always get asked for stuff when I'm not on the clock. Hell, if I show up there in my street clothes, I get asked for stuff. I guess I look like I work there. And most of the time, I'll help them anyway, provided they aren't shitheads about it.

The most fun is getting asked "When are you getting Wii's ? " when I make the mistake of wearing my uniform in other public places. When will people realize that we have private lives ? I would never ask someone who is clearly not in their workplace a question about their workplace.