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How much did you pay for this bright idea...?

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  • How much did you pay for this bright idea...?

    As I might have alluded to in my "New AM" thread, the department manager has decided that it's a super-awesome-fabulous idea that we get radios with earpieces.

    ...for all three of us on the floor. We think it's just a control thing, we all know V and M don't really like the fact that I know more than the two of them combined because I've been there forever (so anybody with a question--in any retail department, and even a few from quick-service and restaurant--comes to me). It's already been decreed that we must be reachable on the radio all the time, and if we're called and don't respond immediately she wants to know why...gee, this sounds an awful lot like asking to use the bathroom.

    The radios are cheap as shit and poorly/not shielded, so if we happen to be standing under one of the overhead speakers we hear either nothing or static...I just found out that they run on the cellular network and coverage in certain areas of the store at certain times is utter crap. I've worked school/community theater crews on shoestring budgets that had way better kit than this. Security has the same radios we do, and my pal R hates them....I got my paw slapped today when M got it in her head that I went on break without telling her. I did notify the team, not my fault if she didn't hear me (or that she left her radio in the warehouse...of course you're not going to hear me if you don't have it).

    The earpiece cord can be a safety hazard when stocking; I lost count how many times I got tangled up in it yesterday (doubleplus ungood on a ladder when you're also trying to pay attention to customers banging into your perch). So my speed suffers because of this stupid thing. I've also found out that if I have the earpiece in (which I will rarely use, due to some weirdness with my ear shape it doesn't stay in and if I have even the slightest sinus problem--which is becoming common in the store during the winter--I can't hear a damn thing) customers will not ask for help. If I'm not wearing it, they ask away. Mom's dealt with workers wearing earpieces before, she says it's very offputting to be asking a question and all of a sudden the worker is replying to something completely different (impression she gets is that they're not actually paying attention to the customer). I'm not sure if this was planned so that the stockers "can't" answer customer questions.

    Unfortunately, the mic/earpiece is a single unit with a proprietary connector so I can't request just a lapel mic or use my own.

    ETA: Somehow I wound up with the packaging from one of the radios, so I went to the website. A company I've never heard of out of China (surprise) and the website doesn't exactly project quality with assorted Engrish, grammar mistakes, etc. It looks like the model we have is around $20 a pop.
    Last edited by Dreamstalker; 01-28-2019, 10:28 PM.
    "I am quite confident that I do exist."
    "Excuse me, I'm making perfect sense. You're just not keeping up." The Doctor

  • #2
    Sounds about right. Someone went shopping online and looked at the picture and the pricetag as the only important bits. Tech specs were never important, right?

    Sadly, when all you look at is the pricetag, you end up buying... more than once. Hopefully, someone figures out what is really needed the next time around and actually looks at those pesky details.

    Still, working off the cellular network means that these things are an ongoing expense. Monthly connection fees and whatever other surprises. Per unit. How many of these things are scattered about the place again?

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    • #3
      And you're sharing ear pieces? That's a big fat nope in my book.
      https://www.youtube.com/user/HedgeTV
      Great YouTube channel check it out!

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      • #4
        Let me guess, Baofeng brand radios?
        Seph
        Taur10
        "You're supposed to be the head of covert intelligence. Right now, I'm not seeing a hell of a lot of intelligence. Covert, overt, or otherwise!"-Lochley, B5, A View from the Gallery

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        • #5
          I want to say the store has at least two dozen between us, Housekeeping and Security.

          Some company called Retevis. They do make a mic-only attachment (think police-radio lapel mic), but I doubt I can get V to agree to get me one. I'm not paying for it...I also want an actual belt holster so it's not falling off all the time. Don't think they'll pay for that either, I think I have a couple spare nylon pouches around that I can repurpose.

          We're not being forced to share earpieces, thank Dog; we're given the option to take them home with us or leave them in the office. I think one person takes his home; I'm not letting them hold me responsible for company-owned kit when not clocked in so it goes in the office at the end of my shift. I don't clock out until the electronic leash is returned..I wouldn't put it past either of them to radio me 30 seconds before end of shift about something (you're already cutting my hours, I do not work for free).
          Last edited by Dreamstalker; 01-28-2019, 10:30 PM.
          "I am quite confident that I do exist."
          "Excuse me, I'm making perfect sense. You're just not keeping up." The Doctor

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          • #6
            Quoth Dreamstalker View Post

            The earpiece cord can be a safety hazard when stocking; I lost count how many times I got tangled up in it yesterday (doubleplus ungood on a ladder when you're also trying to pay attention to customers banging into your perch).
            Do you wear an apron at your job? The Store uses radios with wired earpieces and I find that running the cord underneath my apron stops it from getting caught on things.

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            • #7
              Quoth Dreamstalker View Post
              I want to say the store has at least two dozen between us, Housekeeping and Security.

              Some company called Retevis. They do make a mic-only attachment (think police-radio lapel mic), but I doubt I can get V to agree to get me one. I'm not paying for it...I also want an actual belt holster so it's not falling off all the time. Don't think they'll pay for that either, I think I have a couple spare nylon pouches around that I can repurpose.

              We're not being forced to share earpieces, thank Dog; we're given the option to take them home with us or leave them in the office. I think one person takes his home; I'm not letting them hold me responsible for company-owned kit when not clocked in so it goes in the office at the end of my shift. I don't clock out until the electronic leash is returned..I wouldn't put it past either of them to radio me 30 seconds before end of shift about something (you're already cutting my hours, I do not work for free).
              I'd be temptred to throw 10 bucks at a throat mic setup just to see the look on her face when she tries to tell you that you need to be wearing a headset. Allows for less flappy cabling as well, just snake it up under your uniform.

              If you are interested they do appear to have a big variety of accessories on AliExpress (which also, probably, why they brought that model as well)
              Lady, people aren't chocolates. D'you know what they are mostly? Bastards. Bastard-coated bastards with bastard filling. Dr Cox - Scrubs

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              • #8
                Those are the earpiece/mics we have. I can probably thread it under my work shirt if needed..the issue is that the earpiece as designed doesn't fit me very well (cord doesn't go over my ear properly with my glasses and pulls it out of my ear) and I would do better with a typical earbud.
                "I am quite confident that I do exist."
                "Excuse me, I'm making perfect sense. You're just not keeping up." The Doctor

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