Work

[snugglegirl05]

The grocery store chain I work for as a cashier is going through big changes.

A third u scan/self checkout was added to the front end earlier this year. At that time, the first attendant got to work at 6 a.m., the second attendant got to work at 11 a.m., and the third attendant got to work at 2 p.m. Currently all 3 u scans are open at 8 a.m. The first one opens at 6 a.m., the second one opens at 7 a.m., and the third one opens at 8 a.m. This is Monday through Sunday.

I heard the Assistant Customer Service Manager tell one of the u scan attendants that the Higher Up's want u scan usage to be 70% every week and manned registers to be 30% every week. According to the ACSM, the location I work at has u scan usage at roughly 64% every week.

The u scan attendants have to convince customers waiting in line at the manned registers to use u scan, especially customers who have small orders. This is supposed to make our u scan usage jump to 70%,

Hours for the part-time cashiers who are not u scan attendants as well as the baggers/courtesy clerks have been cut. We used to work 30 + hours a week. Now we work between 20 and 29 hours a week. It does not matter how long you have been working there. Your hours have been cut.

So I am looking for a job somewhere else.

I have been with the grocery store chain 3 years. This year I qualify for 2 weeks paid vacation.

[Buzzard]

Yup. Vacation time is now job search time. It's sad when the decisions are made purely on a profit line basis, without actually looking at how the customers and staff are going to handle it.

[MadMike]

The u scan attendants have to convince customers waiting in line at the manned registers to use u scan, especially customers who have small orders. This is supposed to make our u scan usage jump to 70%,

More like it's going to piss a bunch of people off. I guess those geniuses at corporate are too stupid to understand that if someone wanted to use the U-scan, they'd be using it already.

Personally, I prefer them if I'm only getting a few items. But some people don't like using them, and having someone pester them isn't going to get them to do it.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

The u scan attendants have to convince customers waiting in line at the manned registers to use u scan, especially customers who have small orders. This is supposed to make our u scan usage jump to 70%,

"nO tHaNKs i DOn'T wOrK hERe."

Get ready to hear that a lot. Or some coarser version of it.

[Kristev]

Agreed. I will use self-checkouts if I have just one or two things. But I strongly prefer a cashier.

[Sandman]

One major issue is for those customers who are on WIC. The self-service checkout isn't equipped for that. In my state they are very vocal that the WIC customers be able to use the same registers as anyone else.

[workerbee222]

Mmmhmm. Some of the stores still have their self-scans. Some have removed them, owing to customers who were cheating the store at the check-out.

Job searches stink. Hope you find something soon.

[Seanette]

More like it's going to piss a bunch of people off. I guess those geniuses at corporate are too stupid to understand that if someone wanted to use the U-scan, they'd be using it already.

Personally, I prefer them if I'm only getting a few items. But some people don't like using them, and having someone pester them isn't going to get them to do it.

Might well get those customers to down their prospective purchases and walk out, but that would still reduce the percentage insisting on human attention, so by corporate "logic" (which makes my cat having a tantrum look reasonable) this would still count toward their goal.

[little_miss_springfield]

Good luck on your job search!


Uggh, self check stats I hate how much those stats are emphasized at my library. Staff has to push the SCO so hard. It's fine to ask people if they'd like us to show them how to use it, but having to ask every customer that comes to the service desk to check out their stuff is ridiculous. I really wish somebody in management could explain why getting X percentage of customers to use it is so danged important. They say it frees staff up to do other things besides work the desk. Ummm. . . no, it really doesn't. It might if we didn't have a constant stream of new customers who don't know how to use it. Any time saved by old customers using the self checkout is offset by the time spent training new customers on it.

[Buzzard]

In theory, eventually everyone would use the damned things. Only thing is, in scientific terms, a theory is something that has already been tested, and a general consensus reached, that this does indeed seem to work. Some of these SCO setups are less than intuitive, and prone to ... strange behavior, which leads people to avoid them like the plague.

Of course, buying a really great SCO system would cost money, and they're putting in the SCOs to save money, so why should they spend more money on it, right?

[Mental_Mouse]

"Sir, the customers absolutely hate the self-checkouts."

"That is not acceptable. MAKE them use the self-checkouts"

"Sir, the customers are revolting!"

"Yeah, they stink on toast!"

[dalesys]

"..."Sir, the customers are revolting!"...

"The CEO is a FINK!"

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

Mmmhmm. Some of the stores still have their self-scans. Some have removed them, owing to customers who were cheating the store at the check-out.

Have those stores replaced the self-scans with more cashiers and more open checkout lanes?

Most likely not. Which is why I don't buy the line that self-scans eliminate jobs.

[snugglegirl05]

Yesterday an older male customer came to my line and asked me if my employer is wanting to make customers use u scan/self checkout. He noticed the number of u scan/self checkout lanes versus the number of manned registers.

I told him yes.

So then he asked me "is it worth it to complain about this because I do not want to be told I have to use u scan. I would rather go to a manned register?"

I told him to complain to the regional level, not the store level since the store level is told what to do by the regional level.

I also told him to not include the store location since the regional level would just send the complaint back to the store level.

[workerbee222]

IPF, couldn't tell you. It's a store I don't shop at a lot, maybe pop in on the way to work to pick something up for lunch. Since I'm rarely ahead of schedule, that doesn't happen often. I happened to notice they're gone at that location. And at another store, I was at the next SCO when a customer brought her SCO process to a halt by trying to cheat the store.

I have been to another store at which the SCO area was firing on all cylinders: all in use and a kick-ass employee covering six of them efficiently and pleasantly. Had barely dragged the wine across the scanner and she was there to enter the code to allow my aging, booze-starved self to continue the SCO process. That's rare, though.

In spite of being "of a certain age" I like the SCO. I dump all the refrigerated/freezer stuff together, even if the bags end up different weights. Telling someone else how to bag my things seems like micro-managing.