One at a time

[rerant]

Ah the quantity key, a good friend of any cashier.
Sometimes I use it, sometimes I don't.
If someone has two or three of the same item I'm not going to bother, but anything above three and it just makes sense.

The thing about this key, though, is that when used, the item will show the price of just the multiplied amount. An item that is 99cents shows to be $1.98, $5 becomes $10 and so forth.
The receipt will show the number of items beside the article name and price, so if ever there is a confusion about the price we can show them that we indeed just used the quantity key and they weren't overcharged.

Some people notice the multiplied price and spout the, "Umm.. this was supposed to be X dollars, not Y dollars," and we simply tell them we did two or more at once and all is well.

Usually.

This particular woman was buying many cheap-o vases, pillar candles, filler rocks, and fake flowers.
She had the same number of everything.

I start with the vases. 35 of them.
I hit 35+quantity and scan one.

SC: Uh, no, you wanna tell me why these are coming up as $69.65 and not $1.99?
Me: I just did all them together. They are $1.99, and this price is the price of all 35 together.
SC: Don't do that again.
Me: ... Do what again?
SC: Scan them all together like that.
Me: ...
SC: How am I supposed to know how many you're really putting in?
Me: The quantity is right here on the receipt *shows her*.
SC: I said don't do it again!
Me: So you want me to ring through every single item one at a time?
SC: What part of this aren't you understanding?
Me: The logic part.

Yes I said that. I was not about to scan 140 individual items that could have easily been done by scanning each one of the four different items once while using the quantity key.

SC: Excuse me?
Me: It makes no sense, and I have a line. This is going to take way too long and I'm not holding up my line for it.
SC: Well how am I supposed to know everything is right?
Me: *hands her a calculator* Here, you can do the math while I scan.

She didn't take the calculator and I didn't scan 140 items.

I cannot for the life of me think of a reason as to why she would want me to do everything one at a time; all the information is right there on your damn receipt, so you can check it to make sure everything is correct.

*sigh*
At least today is my day off.

EDIT:
I forgot the best part! I'm so ashamed of myself.

After everything had been run through and paid for we have this exchange.

SC: Now where the hell are your bags?
Me: Oh, our bags are 5cents now, and have been for the last five months.
SC: So now you're telling me I have to pay for bags, too!?
Me: You don't have to do anything. Bags are, and always have been, completely optional.
SC: *seethe, seethe, seethe, leaves*

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

What is this quantity key of which you speak?

JK. But at my store the cashiers are only allowed to use it at Back to School time, when people are buying notebooks, folders, pens and pencils in mass quantities. Otherwise you scan them all individually, or just take one and scan it once for each of the same item they have.

[rerant]

What is this quantity key of which you speak?

JK. But at my store the cashiers are only allowed to use it at Back to School time, when people are buying notebooks, folders, pens and pencils in mass quantities. Otherwise you scan them all individually, or just take one and scan it once for each of the same item they have.

When I worked at Wal Mart we were forbidden to use the quantity key, and when people would come through buying school stuff we would still have to scan ever single one. Or, like you said, the same one as many times as needed.
People would buy 100+ of those little folders with the bendy metal bits to hold papers and we would have to do every. Single. One.

Not using the quantity key just doesn't make sense to me.

Wal Mart's reasoning was that whenever we used it the quantity information would have to be sent to head office and they would have to manually do... something... to show that it had been one $1 item x 100, and not one item at $100.

Worst. Process. Ever.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

Ahhhh...so it's an inventory thing.

That's what happens when you leave ordering strictly up to the computers.

[LifeCarnie]

And that explains the HUGE lines at Walmart when it really isn't all that crowded.

[weirdboy_1]

SC: Well how am I supposed to know everything is right?

I don't know, math?

Good job on not giving in to her demands. Did any of the boss-people hear your comments?

[rerant]

And that explains the HUGE lines at Walmart when it really isn't all that crowded.

That and the fact that if something doesn't scan cashiers can't type in the barcode number, and instead have to call a CSM to get a label printed that they can scan, which can take forever.

Never go to a cash lane at Wal Mart that has a flashing light. Chances are they're waiting for something that will take a long time to rectify.

[Enigma]

That and the fact that if something doesn't scan cashiers can't type in the barcode number, and instead have to call a CSM to get a label printed that they can scan, which can take forever.

Never go to a cash lane at Wal Mart that has a flashing light. Chances are they're waiting for something that will take a long time to rectify.

I have to point out that the policy has changed. I work at wal-mart and the rule is that you can use the quantity key if it's 6+ items, and anything under you can just scane once, and press enter to repeat. And we don't use flashing lights anymore, we're tricky here, we send little messages to a hand held PDA that the CSMs have.

And as for the barcode, we can type in a barcode if we have it, but if there is no barcode, we have to call someone over to get another product with a barcode, which can take some time. But I think that's pretty common.

[rerant]

I have to point out that the policy has changed. ...

The one I used to work at is still exactly the same as it always was, with the only difference being new express lanes.
$10 says they'll never "get with the times".

[HawaiianShirts]

When I worked at Wal Mart we were forbidden to use the quantity key, and when people would come through buying school stuff we would still have to scan ever single one. Or, like you said, the same one as many times as needed.

My store has the annual Physical Inventory coming up. I don't mind doing it (because I've been working in the computer department forever, so I'm often more accurate than our computer system as to what's in stock, and because there's usually food involved), but the process is annoying. We're not allowed to do quantity either.

First, they bring in one of those outside companies that hires people to come do the counting for us. We follow these people around the store, making sure they're doing their job properly and not stealing stuff. Then all the employees on hand that night (after closing, of course) get scanners and count everything again. And we're not allowed to use the quantity key.

I know we have five of Item X.
I can see five of Item X on that peg.
One, two, three, four, five. All with the same UPC.
Can I scan it once and enter "5" like the outside company's employees can?
Nope. I have to take all of Item X off the peg, scan each barcode, and put them all back.

*sigh* It's retail. If it makes sense, it's not allowed.

[rerant]

HawaiianShirts, I'm so glad that we don't have to go through that at my store.
Hell, in the nearly three years I've been there we haven't even had to do inventory once.
We have one of those third party companies come in too, and they do their thing, then, if it matches up with what our computers have listed as proper inventory, we don't have to do it.
We even get a party to reward us for not having to do inventory, complete with free food and incredibly cheap booze.

Sometimes I really loathe my job, but other times I realise they do things to keep us happy so I shut up and take it.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

At my store we have the third-party inventory company come in as well. We're only responsible for counting the backroom and floor displays and maybe a few other things.

I've only had to work during the actual inventory once and being a regular peon I got to leave at the normal closing time. Managers and department heads have to stay longer because they're the ones doing test counts and such.

The day after inventory there is something called "reconciliation" which I've never had to do.

For the most part, our inventories have been pretty painless.

[ArcticChicken]

When I worked at X-grocery store we had the quantity keys, and the flashing lights and the price checks in under a minute. Now, at Y-grocery store we have the disabled quantity key, that sits there on my keyboard, taunting me, and the broken telephones, and the price checks that I'm incredibly lucky to have someone come ask me what needs checking within five minutes.*sigh*

[iviles]

Wal Mart's reasoning was that whenever we used it the quantity information would have to be sent to head office and they would have to manually do... something... to show that it had been one $1 item x 100, and not one item at $100.

Worst. Process. Ever.

Heaven fobid anyone at the head office should have to do their jobs! You should the crack heads at mine. We have to check price changes daily please explain how a .99 bag of chips is now 32.50. Also the only way it messes up invintory is if the csr isnt scanning correctly. Say I have three blue drinks and four red. If they are hitting quantity 7 then only scanning one drink then theres problems.

[ShinyGreenApple]

Hmm. From personal experience, I can tell you that there is way more chance of messing up/overcharging by individually scanning each of those items than using the quantity key. At Wallyworld, I used to have customers with purchases like that deliberately come through my line because I they claimed I was one of few that knew how to ring things up properly