Where is everybody?

[Anakah]

The other night my fiance and I went to Walmart.

Anyway, it was pretty late, around one in the morning or so and it was pretty much a ghost town. I noticed tons of employees around, which made me happy because usually when I need help I have to run all over the store to find someone.

Well, I was really excited to find these cute pajamas and wanted to try them on. I went to the fitting rooms and there was nobody there. Oh, I figured they were just putting away merchandise or maybe assisting another customer. I waited a good ten mins and then started to look around. Nobody. It was as if all the employees I saw earlier ran like hell and just disappeared.

I understand being busy and stuff but maybe they could've left a door open or something? I hope I'm going down into SC ville or anything.

After searching up and down each isle, I found a woman putting merchandise away. She had on a blue shirt but no Walmart name or name tag or anything. I almost wondered if she was a customer herself. I asked that question that we all hate. I even felt embarasssed to ask.

"Do you work here?" I wanted to crawl into a hole. Thankfully she did.

"Um, I'm sorry to bug you but is there anybody that can help me, I'd like to try these on."

She sighed pretty loud. "You know instead of coming all the way over here you should've just gone to the front of the store and went up to a checker."

I was a bit shocked. It made sense but damn if I ever said anything like that at my job, I'd have gotten into trouble.

"Go over there. They can call a csm, sm or whatever." And then she turned her back on me.

I admit it, I was stunned. I was grumbling all the way back to the fitting rooms. I figured, screw it.

But as I approached it, I saw a girl coming out of one of the fitting rooms and just before she shut the door I was like: Wait!

We both had a good laugh and I got to try on my clothes. But still, I understand it may not have been her department but she was a bit rude with me. I thought maybe she had a bad night or something. Am I being over dramatic?

The only good thing, I bought the pjs and they are awesome.

[Kittish]

She could have been nicer about it, but she kind of has a point. At the walmart I shop at, the phones (visible ones, anyway) are all up front by the cashiers. But she could have been a LOT nicer about it.

[Broomjockey]

"Could have been nicer."

Are you serious? That was completely rude! It may or may not have been faster to go up front, and may or may not have been easier for all involved if Anakah had gone up front, but having a valid point doesn't excuse that in any way, shape, or form.

If it had been me as that worker, bad day or not, I'd probably have said "In future, it'd be faster for you to go to the front, as they have phones up there, but I'll run there now and get someone to meet you there."

[crazylegs]

If I'd have treated anyone like that during my retail days I would have been disciplined, although its not that persons department they could at least taken the OP to the correct location and been polite about it!!!

[Bella_Vixen]

Every EES I've ever been at use the fitting rooms as the phone reception area. (They are the ones to answer the phones, in other words.)

There is NO reason that cow could not have walked herself over to the fitting rooms and called for someone.


Not to mention that almost every department has it's own phone...and if it doesn't, the department 5 feet over DOES.

[PepperElf]

i could be wrong... but i think i remember the walmart i use to shop at didn't always have the booths monitored. i think there was a couple of times when it was open so i just went in and tried on my stuff.


but in a way im not surprised on how she acted. i've heard stories about night shift getting treated like shit (even stories about workers being locked in the store unable to leave) to make sure they do the full shift.

not saying she was right in how she acted - nowhere near it - but i find that workers often act the same way they're treated.

[marasbaras]

There is no excuse for how the employee reacted. The OP had a very reasonable and well-within normal request.

You know, I see a pattern here sometimes ... how is the ordinary shopper supposed to know some things? I see some folks here griping that "I can't believe I was asked that question AGAIN!?!?!?" Well, um, maybe because whoever setup your store SUCKS and it's not obvious?

In any case, going up front to have a cashier call for someone to open the changing rooms is NOT OBVIOUS. In fact, it's a totally brain-dead way of doing things.

I would've dropped the PJs on the floor in front of her and walked away. If she wants to be a sucky worker, she gets to be treated like one.

Of course, I would've then gone and gotten another pair of them, gone up front and gotten the door opened, and bought the awesome PJs.

[Broomjockey]

I would've dropped the PJs on the floor in front of her and walked away. If she wants to be a sucky worker, she gets to be treated like one.

So you'd act like an SC, to punish someone who most of us have agreed was probably having a bad day (despite that being no excuse for that level of rudeness).

Nice.

Something else you might want to notice some members of the board are saying from time to time:

Don't pass on what you get, pass on what you want.
That means, just because someone treats you badly, don't treat them badly in return. You just might save someone else from the same fate, either through shame or snapping the person out of it.

[powerboy]

(even stories about workers being locked in the store unable to leave) to make sure they do the full shift.

Off Topic:

When I was stocking shelves over night at OfficeMax, we were locked in. But that was for our safety.

On Topic:


I have gone to Wal*Mart in the middle of the night. I like doing that better because, I can actually shop in peace. But if I got treated like that from an employee, I would say something to him/her and mention it to a manager.

[GolfCart34]

Off Topic:

When I was stocking shelves over night at OfficeMax, we were locked in. But that was for our safety.

On Topic:


I have gone to Wal*Mart in the middle of the night. I like doing that better because, I can actually shop in peace. But if I got treated like that from an employee, I would say something to him/her and mention it to a manager.

Ok, to sort of mimic your post with my own ...

*Off Topic*
When my brother occasionally works the overnight shift at the grocery store they are locked in but it's also for their own safety. And when they lock the doors they lock them so they can get out if it's an emergency. Opening the doors does trigger an alarm once the manager leaves so he makes sure to instill in them that they can't leave unless it truly is a dire emergency.

*On topic*
I think the most challenging time I had finding an employee at a Wal-Mart was just a couple of weeks ago. BF and I went to Wal-Mart to buy him some pants (he likes their el cheapo pants). He gained weight since he bought his last pair there so he wanted to try some on before buying them. Well, it took us about 20 minutes to finally find an employee to open the door so he could use the fitting room. And I swear, in the time it took us to find said employee the phone rang about a dozen times and nobody answered. Of course, the employee looked like she wasn't too happy with having to open the door. I mean, seriously, how hard is it to take 2 seconds to unlock a door so somebody can try something on? After all, that's what the big yellow smiley face is paying you to do.

[Rine]

I don't understand...all the Wally Worlds I've been into have many phones scattered throughout the store on columns and the fitting rooms have two phones as well. I guess some stores only have phones at the front of the store? Which, to me, doesn't make much sense and seems to be a safety hazard.

I know that sometimes when I'm working busily way way out at the ends of the store where there are no phones, I've gotten slightly irked when someone has asked me something that requires paging over the phone, but I NEVER show it to the customer. It's not their fault.

That worker was very rude, IMO. I can't believe she said that to you at all.