I lost it. (u-scan story)

[Ree]

Any bets on how long it takes for someone to post that it was wrong and a not-nice thing to do?

ha ha, i would take the bait, but i don't wanna get myself in trouble.

I don't take sucker bets!

Okay, I guess I have to be the first one to say it was wrong. No offense, but I think you went WAY too far.

Well, I guess you ruined it for all those who had bets that I would be the first to speak up, but, just so they aren't disappointed, I'll confirm their bets that I would speak up.

I think it was rude and way over the top.

I understand you didn't want to have to deal with a "stupid cashier" (I'm surprised more of our cashier members didn't pick up on your generalization of them as stupid in their haste to crown you as the "Comeback King of CS") and you wanted to use the U-scan.

You said yourself the store wasn't busy, and you're a patient person, and you mention all these other lanes the other person could have used, so why didn't you just bite the bullet and go there?

Why get so stressed out over something like that? In the grand scheme of things, was it hurting you, other than being an annoyance?

I'm sure it made you feel a lot better, though, that you did speak up.

[ShadedWings]

*applauds* woo hoo!

I do think that it might have been a little over the top, but it was definitely a wonderful rant and you are fantabulous for wordage. I worked in a grocery store for over a year as cashier/front end coordinator, and I definitely saw way too many people who did the full-cart-through-express-uscan thing. Pissed me off every time. I think that she did deserve at least -some- rant at her for being uppity at you and insisting to "wait your turn" when by all rights your turn should have already been and gone. Kudos.

[Shengirl]

I understand you didn't want to have to deal with a "stupid cashier" (I'm surprised more of our cashier members didn't pick up on your generalization of them as stupid in their haste to crown you as the "Comeback King of CS")

That's because, to be fair, there are a lot of stupid cashiers out there. In the chain for which I work, even, I've gone to other stores and have had truly retarded problems. That's why I try to uphold a higher standard of intelligence at my store. If someone inputs a wrong amount of money by accident or is given change after they've already put an amount into the computer, and they call me, I either walk them through it or just make them figure it out. I then tell them that this confusion is not acceptable.

Now, before anyone gets angry, I do have a good idea of the intelligence level in my store. I've had some super nice cashiers that were truly just not smart, and to them I would be kinder. However, we also have some sharp but lazy high schoolers, as well as the occasional newbie who just sort of panics and calls for help when something goes differently than usual, so I teach those types to think it out. I don't know about you guys, but I feel embarrassed for all cash register workers when I go to a McDonald's, give someone bills and change, and have them just look super confused and give the change back as if I've done something stupid. No wonder some people think we're all retarded.

[NightAngel]

That's because, to be fair, there are a lot of stupid cashiers out there.

Which, in the minds of some, also means there are some stupid cashiers on here as well. Well, really- they pretty much think we're all losers who are too stupid to find anything "better" than this.

I'm pretty sure there are boards out there dedicated to the morons that are Customer Service employees (aka- you and me). This doesn't happen to be one of them.

And yes, I don't agree with the OP. I can see maybe saying something but there was no need to be so hateful.

[Shengirl]

Which, in the minds of some, also means there are some stupid cashiers on here as well. Well, really- they pretty much think we're all losers who are too stupid to find anything "better" than this.

o_O No need to get upset. Obviously I don't think all cashiers are stupid; I've even participated in the conversations along the lines of, "No one knows why you're REALLY in customer service, so they should stop being dicks." A good portion of our front end is working its way through college (me included), and one deli guy is working on his master's. Besides the traditionally educated, we've had some sharp and skilled people who may have never finished high school. As such, this board doesn't encourage making assumptions about any given cs worker, and it certainly doesn't encourage treating anyone poorly because of an honest mistake, or even honest stupidity.

However, the OP just said that he'd had bad experiences at that store and, rather than put himself in a situation where he might get upset with someone's honest mistake and become SC-ish, he removed himself from the situation and went to a self-scan. That's fair, I think. Because there really are stupid cashiers out there - just like there are stupid doctors and stupid mechanics. I see no point in denying the fact. That store apparently just has a higher-than normal concentration of them.

[bob the goat]

I did not mean to demean cashiers, as I used to be one. However, I am more than capable of scanning a bar code, and like to bag my own groceries (I sort by where they go), so if there is some savings to be had, I will gladly do the work myself.

If it was a simple matter of then not knowing some detail, and a bit of information would have remedied the problem, then I am the first one to offer a kind word of help. However, this is a person that clearly felt entitled to be in that lane, and was mentally incapable of operating what is in fact a very simple machine. Even worse, the contempt in her responses to my helpful suggestions shows that she was not capable of learning in her current state.

The old adage “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks” has some truth in it. The human mind, as it gets older, realizes that it knows how to do some things. Once a person feels that they know how to do something, they stop learning, and only depend on memory. In her current state of mind she felt as if she knew how to run the machine, and was ignorant to the fact that she did not possess that skill. In order to teach her something new, I needed to shock her into realizing that she did not know how to do everything. The state of shock that my diatribe caused allowed her to open her ears and listen. Hopefully, some of the bits of truth that sprayed on her soaked in, and she will know how to handle the machine…or at least be open to learn how.

I learned this while teaching swim lessons for 5 years. My first year I could take a kid that was a good swimmer and improve them a little. I could take a kid that hardly knew how to swim and make them better than the first kid, because the second kid was open to listening. After I realized this, the first week of training I would race the kids and blow them out of the water. This made them realize that there was a lot they could learn from me. Then I could take the kid that was a good swimmer and make them great.

Hopefully, I took the bad shopper and made her better. Going to a different lane, or standing there waiting for her to finish would have left one more bad shopper out there, and one more potential SC out there to deal with. I hope that I did my part to eradicate the SC attitude.

[katie kaboom]

I hope that I did my part to eradicate the SC attitude.

Well i applaud you for what you did and i think it's a real shame that some people can't see the good in it. Don't let your critics get you down.

[NightAngel]

o_O No need to get upset.

Sorry about that.

... i think it's a real shame that some people can't see the good in it.

What good? All that woman took home in her head was a bunch of insults and probably the thought that Bob the Goat was a loudmouth jerk.
Sure, maybe she was an idiot and maybe she felt entitled. I can understand the irriatation of that kind of SC. Yes, she was wrong for having way over 12 items in a 12 items or less area. I completely agree with that.

I would have backed Bob the Goat up if he had stopped with this:

Me (top officially blown): No. That is wrong. You have NO RIGHT to be here. There is a large sign there stating that this line is reserved for people with 12 items or less. You have ZERO right to be here.

Everything after that was just as wrong as her being in the 12 items or less lane.

[rerant]

No stupid cashier,...

Am I the only one who was irked by this statement?

[katie kaboom]

Am I the only one who was irked by this statement?

Why? There are stupid people in every single profession that exists. It isn't meant to imply all of any one profession is stupid.

[rerant]

Why? There are stupid people in every single profession that exists. It isn't meant to imply all of any one profession is stupid.

I know that, thank you.

[Ree]

The old adage “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks” has some truth in it. The human mind, as it gets older, realizes that it knows how to do some things. Once a person feels that they know how to do something, they stop learning, and only depend on memory. In her current state of mind she felt as if she knew how to run the machine, and was ignorant to the fact that she did not possess that skill. In order to teach her something new, I needed to shock her into realizing that she did not know how to do everything. The state of shock that my diatribe caused allowed her to open her ears and listen. Hopefully, some of the bits of truth that sprayed on her soaked in, and she will know how to handle the machine…or at least be open to learn how.

We weren't there, and we didn't hear your tone of voice, but I will take your word for it that the first part was offered in a helpful way without any trace of irritation, and the lady just turned sucky because she was an idiot.

I just can't help but think of my mother shopping, though, and running into a situation like that, and it would pain me so much to think she might be treated that way someday by a stranger who got impatient because she didn't understand all this technology that's 'just so simple, a child could use it'.

I know other people who panic when they get into a situation like that, and the more they receive proper instructions, the more panicked they get, and they keep screwing up. (I work with a woman like that. It's so frustrating. "Left...I said left....left...no, your other left!" ) Maybe that's what was happening.

Like I said, I wasn't there, and I don't know, but I do know people, and I also know that the key to avoiding conflict in the first place is to approach in a non-confrontational manner to begin with.
I just don't understand how one expects to educate if one is tearing down in order to build up.

I just don't see how cutting a person to the quick, and claiming that she must have been artificially inseminated because no sperm that dumb could ever have won the race, assisted in helping her to learn the proper way to use a U-scan.

[ArenaBoy]

I understand you didn't want to have to deal with a "stupid cashier" (I'm surprised more of our cashier members didn't pick up on your generalization of them as stupid in their haste to crown you as the "Comeback King of CS") and you wanted to use the U-scan.

There is stupid people in every profession, that's why we have COC and MIN along with Sightings. As much as we gripe about stupid customers we will gripe about bad employees, I use the U-scans for a lot of reasons and sometimes the items I buy do not need to be known by the cashier.

I just can't help but think of my mother shopping, though, and running into a situation like that, and it would pain me so much to think she might be treated that way someday by a stranger who got impatient because she didn't understand all this technology that's 'just so simple, a child could use it'.

The age of the lady in the OP wasn't mentioned I believe, if it was an older woman I'm sure the OP would have been understanding. I tend to be if I see someone my grandmother's age having a hard time with technology.

[Ree]

There is stupid people in every profession

True, but that was a pretty blanket statement, which to me was saying that cashiers, as a general rule, are stupid, so it's just easier to do it yourself.

It would be different if the OP had knowledge that the cashiers on that particular day were incompetent, but I wasn't seeing that as the case.

[iradney]

The age of the lady in the OP wasn't mentioned I believe, if it was an older woman I'm sure the OP would have been understanding. I tend to be if I see someone my grandmother's age having a hard time with technology.

Since when is reading a sign technology?? I understand there are people out there who are functionally illiterate, or dyslexic, but since EVERY supermarket has an express line that is 10/12 items or less, and you see that the people in the line are carrying handbaskets that are not even full, you generally could put 2 and 2 together.

(Wow that was a long sentence). I'm not known for being observant, but even I can cotton on that if I'm a line, with a full trolley, everyone else has handbaskets, and the sign by the till is 12 items or less, or has a picture of a handbasket on it, I would obviously move to the correct line.

If the lady in the OP had only 10 items and was struggling, then BTG would've been out of line. But she didn't have 12 items or less, she had dozens. She was holding up other people that had popped into the store quickly for a few staples.

If that woman had been my mother, and she came home and told me about what happened, I would've sided with BTG. She was standing in the express lane even tho she was over the limit - but then again, my mom wouldn't do that, as she is a zillion times more observant than I am, and courteous to a fault.