Call your manager!

[bars.of.a.rhyme]

Ever get those people who insist that you call your manager? Like, right now? What makes people think that they have the right to intrude on my supervisor's life so that they can get a three dollar rental for free?

Sorry, dumbass...it's my manager's day off. I like the new manager. So far, he's the first store manager who hasn't taken off his pants during performance reviews or stolen money from his naive and too-helpful employees. He gave me the position that I had before I left for school, the one I was promised when I came back four months ago and just got this week. I can swear in front of him - profusely - and not get in trouble. I think he has plans to fire the people at work that I don't like, just as soon as we hire some more people. Long story short, it's in my interests to make him like his new position enough to stay, and that means not calling him every fifteen minutes to have him authorize a free movie credit.

What is it about having disposable income that makes people think that their movie rental is more important than our free time away from work?

[TNT]

I think the Handbook for Sucky Customers emphatically states, "Speak to a supervisor or manager and you'll get your way, no matter how wrong you are. This is guaranteed to work."

I've had customers actually laugh at me when I tell them they can't have their way.

Me: I'm sorry. Your bill is two months and $300 past due. Unless you pay, you're not going to be able to order a $50 fight.
Customer: Ha, ha. Let me speak to a supervisor and we'll get this problem taken care of. Ha, ha.

It's then that I take an almost pathological pleasure in informing the customer:

Me: You're more than welcome to speak to a supervisor... and one will be here bright and early Monday morning.
Customer: Monday? But the fight is on in ten minutes!
Me: You'll be able to discuss it with a supervisor on Monday. Is there anything else I can help you with?

[Phone Jockey]

Me: I'm sorry. Your bill is two months and $300 past due. Unless you pay, you're not going to be able to order a $50 fight.
Customer: Ha, ha. Let me speak to a supervisor and we'll get this problem taken care of. Ha, ha.

I hate when they don't pay their bill then think they can get past it. The sup is the one who laughs at ME if I want to add credit to an account w/ a past due balance. If the sup will laugh at me, s/he'll laugh at you. Trust me, moron. Now pay up.

[Canarr]

Sorry, dumbass...it's my manager's day off. I like the new manager. So far, he's the first store manager who hasn't taken off his pants during performance reviews or stolen money from his naive and too-helpful employees.

Okay, I gotta ask... could you please, please tell those two stories?

[Mr. Rager!]

One time I had a guy in that wanted to do a warranty exchange on a mower. Now, he called it warranty exchange because he knew so much more about the warranty than I did. When I told him I couldn't authorize the exchange since it was out of our exchange time frame he wanted me to call the manager. I told him that our manager wouldn't be back for a couple of days. Then he goes, "doesn't he have a cell phone."

That's when I stopped him and said, "sir, I'm not going to call him on his day off. I'm not going to call his cell phone. You'll just have to wait."

[Lace Neil Singer]

I think the Handbook for Sucky Customers emphatically states, "Speak to a supervisor or manager and you'll get your way, no matter how wrong you are. This is guaranteed to work."

Well, it worked for any customer who demanded to see the IM who was my manager at the garden centre. No matter how outragous the customer's demand was, he'd cave in.

[angelicafire]

Yeah, see my manager has this line that he'll say. I work for a cell phone company in the cancellation department. People usually want to talk to a manager about an early termination fee. We're allowed to get away with saying a lot more things than a regular customer service rep would say. If someone wants a credit for something as a courtesy, and there's nothing to warrant it, they ask for a supervisor. I'll say something along the lines of "You're more than welcome to speak to one of my supervisors, but they are going to tell you the exact same thing I am."

My direct supervisor, if he gets asked for his manager, always says no. When they ask why?

"I'm sorry. We don't have layers upon layers of supervisors for you to talk to to get the answer you want. This is the correct answer, and that's how it will be."

[starsaucer]

I was supposed to cut someone's credit card in half because it was no good. She freaked out and called my manager, who said, "Just let it go through" - WHAT?! She was all smug after. Like, hey lady you still owe all the money you charge on this thing you know. The next cashier hopefully will not have a wimpy manager.

[HawaiianShirts]

I find the demands for my manager rather amusing. Most of the time, they want me to get the manager involved in the sale just to see if they can get any discounts (which I'm not authorized to give). If they're being nice, I'll let them talk to R or A. If they're being jerks, I'll let them talk to C or S. R and A are friendly guys who are often willing to work with customers on large purchases. S is stingy, always worried about losing a penny or two in revenue. C is lazy and won't do anything.

It works a little differently when it comes to angry people. I refer the angry people to R or S. S, because he is stingy and doesn't really care what customers think of him. R, because he explains things just as they are. It's funny to hear him say to someone stuff like:
"Actually, there's no law OR store policy that says I HAVE to accept your returns."
"Well, I would think that if you signed a contract for a two-year service, you would have at least tried to understand what you were signing. I mean, I would. That's the intelligent thing to do."
"(Laughs) Whining like my 4-year-old isn't going to help, sir."

I like having managers like R.

It's interesting to me to think of the power retail slaves actually have over customers. When they demand managers, we get to decide which manager they talk to. We can tell them what they want to hear, or we can tell them to bug off. We can be helpful, or we can just make someone think we're being helpful. It's not a lot of power, but at least we do have ways of fighting back.

[RecoveringKinkoid]

I've actually had the OPPOSITE problem, if you can believe it. This has happened on more than one occasion and at more than one job.

Jerkwad wants to complain to me about something I can't fix.

Me: I understand why you are upset, but I can't fix this without the manager. Let me go get him for you, okay?
SC: I don't need a manager. I'm just pissed because I dont like blah blah blah
Me: I understand that. I'd be angry too. You ought to tell the manager becauase he can help you. Let me go get him for you.
SC:No, I don't want to talk to the manager, I just want blah blah blah

Yeah, pal. I know what you want. You just want to bitch. You don't want a solution. I hate people lke this. I've actually run to get the manager and had him at the counter in 20 seconds or so, just in time to see the SC practially RUN out the door. My manager was just about the nicest person you'll ever meet, so it's not like they were afraid of him. He was kind of a big, buff man, but he was far from scary. No, these people just want to waste my time venting. I just didn't have time for it.

I actually had people call me with practically the same conversation when I worked in a television station (I am sort of a jack of all trades) at night. Good lord the idiots that call television stations. One night, some moron got the janitor and had pretty much the same conversation with him. Like the janitor decides what a station airs, right? Idiots!

[TNT]

Like the janitor decides what a station airs, right? Idiots!

They don't? I'm just a lowly rep at the cable company, and (according the customers) I have the power to decide programming at all networks, I can replay a movie they missed, and I can make the NFL and Major League Baseball change their blackout rules. I don't even have to ask for permission to do those things... all I have to do is 'press a few buttons.'

[Broomjockey]

I get so many people asking for a manager straight off, and probably 50% of the time its something I can handle, 25% something noone can do, and 25% a legitamate manager issue.
Example: Someone wants a refund on their ticket, I can do that. Someone wants showtimes for tomorrow, I have those. Someone wants to know showtimes for next weekend, they haven't been made yet. Someone wants to praise (unlikely I know) or blame an employee, time for a manager.

Those are the absolute most common reasons I get for someone wanting to talk to a manager.

[Jester]

I like the new manager. So far, he's the first store manager who hasn't taken off his pants during performance reviews or stolen money from his naive and too-helpful employees.

Um...say WHAT????

Okay, I know I am a guy (or at least that is what I have been told) and so am not generally subjected to some of the same bullshit that women are, but are you telling me that previous managers either stole from employees or (seeing if I am reading correctly) took off their pants during a performance review?

As someone else here said, I REALLY want to hear these stories!