"I Don't Work Here" megathread

[Mixed Bag]

posted on the old boards:

They can't figure out that I work there despite the fact that my nametag bears the following: 1: a leash with the company name on it 2: a tag with my name and the company name 3: a Bug's Life Button 4: a Babe: Pig in the City Button 5: a Prince of Egypt soundtrack sign 6: a button with the name of the mall on it But when I come in on my day off, they all of a sudden know I work there. (I guess they traded in their common sense for sixth sense.)

[RecoveringKinkoid]

I have never had the experience of someone being really rude to me when they thought I was an employee, though I have had many cases where they simply thought I worked there and asked me for stuff. Most just go "oh, sorry" when they find out differently.

A lot of you are getting a lot of rude, though, to hear you tell it. Don't miss your big chance here. I don't mean your big chance to be rude back. I mean your big chance to maybe make a clueless person give a little more thought to what they are doing and how they are treating people.

I am wondering at some of the continuence to be polite and subservient sounding to obviously rude people I'm seeing here. I certainly don't blame or condemn anyone for trying to be polite, but it might be working against you in some of these cases. Maybe you should be taking a firmer tact. After all, most rude people are only rude because they thing nobody's going to call them out on it.

I find the best disinfectant is sunshine. In other words, naming the problem will frequently end it. Why not try saying, in a polite but firm voice, something like "Ma'am, do you realize you are picking a fight with a total stranger right now?" That might snap them back into reality. I mean, I've read a couple cases here when someone, instead of apolgizing for disturbeinga stranger, say stuff like "Don't dress like you work here." WTF? Who are they to tell you how to dress? Even knowing you are not beholden to them in any way, these people are so out of sync with reality they think they can tell you how to dress.

These people desperately need a wakeup call. Give them one.

[Requilum]

I kinda had the opposite yesterday. I was giving Ladieswear some of their clothes back from returns, and this womans looking at me kinda apprehensively. I'm about to go "Can I help you?" when I hear her mutter "Does she work here...No, she can't do." and walks off. I was kinda confused. There I am in work uniform carrying loads of Ladies clothes (trying to put them back on hangers as I walk), and...yeah.

Ugh... I get that all the time. Customers will come up to me and ask, Do you work here? And then they don't believe me, and so the inevitable Are you sure? gets asked after I say yes. Apparently the fact that I'm wearing the uniform, the nametag, AND most of the time putting away a giant stack of games, CDs or DVDs is not enough for them.

Worst off though, is when it's my day off and they just approach me and just start asking questions. If they can tell I work there when I'm wearing street clothes, then why do they need justification when im in the uniform?

[Sandman]

SC: "So you won't help me with a bra fitting?"

I would love to, but I might become a sex offender afterwords.

[Ezrockspants]

This happened to me in Sportsgirl once...
The girls there wear Sportsgirl clothes and jewellery (and shoes too, in some cases) as well as nametags.
I was waiting outside the changerooms for my sister wearing (old) clothes not from there, but I was *possibly* wearing Sportsgirl earrings. A girl was trying something on and needed a different size, and was talking to an *actual* employee about how another *actual* employee had gone to get it for her, but was taking a while. She then looked straight at me and said:
"It was her. She was the one I asked."
I just looked at the actual employee and i'm sure i had the same "WTF?" look on my face as she did, and i then said:
"I don't work here..."
The girl looked embarrassed, but tried to laugh it off, saying "haha, you look like you work here, and the girl i asked looks like you"

The actual employee she asked was short & skinny with long dark brown hair.
I'm tall, curvy with midlength red hair.



At least she was polite...

For some reason i always get asked for directions and information about buses while waiting at the bus stop. I guess i must just look approachable...

[air914]

I've very rarely had anything like that happen - usually it only happens when I'm doing a sampling event in a store - I'm there to sample, but people think that I might actually work for the store - and when I tell them I don't, they usually just go away.

But I can't believe they ask "Are you sure?" I'd love to just stand there and hit myself over the head and go "Oh, you know what - you're right, I do work here - gosh it's a good thing you came along - I had totally forgotten!" And oh shoot, I totally forgot to wear my uniform & nametag too..... now where did I put those?? Wait, did I ever get a uniform and nametag??? hmmm - nope maybe I don't work here..." Either your saracasm or your conversation with yourself will hopefully make them think you're crazy and go away.....

The biker guy thing is too funny though - I mean maybe if you were at a bike shop - or a tattoo parlor...... or a bar.... but anywhere else, I would assume a biker would not work - or at least would not be dressed like that at work.

[SonOfSpam]

I've had it happen to me only a couple times; I'd be shopping at the place I worked at in my street clothes on my day off and some regular customer would recognize me from retail and ask me if I knew where such-and-such was. But it never turned into a big thing, I'd just point them in the right direction. I couldn't imagine wearing regular clothes in a Best Buy or Blockbuster and being bothered with questions, maybe SC's are smarter around my neck of the woods.

[lordlundar]

It only happened before I started to work. I was happy and polite.

Now I exude this aura of "I will break your spine if you ask."

[0oAmericanGirl]

I've mistaken people in target if they're wearing a reddish shirt and khais, I always applogize. What I don't get is when you're in your work uniform that consists of a dark green vest and black pants.
One woman was trying to get somthing off the top shelf in target where it was clearly marked ask for assistance. I was on the isle in my work uniform and she looked at me and asked me to get a ladder or somthing. I informed her that I didn't work here and to that she responded," I know but I'm sure your manager would be proud of you for helping me out"... no he'd be angry that I took my full lunch break and went here instead of working through and helping him deal with his "I-want-a-bonus-so-I'm-cutting-hours-and-you'll-have-to-deal-with-it" mentallity.

[phoenix_rising]

Customers!

Well, here's my "Do You work here?" story. It's short, but stupid.

Every weekend, my family stays at a hotel in lower Ohio because we have a business down there. I went down 3 weekends ago and a group of college-age boys was there as well. I was in the pool area with my little brother (I'm 17) and I saw that there were teas in the main lobby. Me being a fan of tea, I went to look at them.
I was inspected the Chamomille when one of the college guys comes out to the front desk. I was just standing there in a pair of capris and a t-shirt and he asks "Do you work here?"
I look at him and politely say "No, I'm just looking at the teas."

I wonder how often these people think to just randomly ask anyone they see if they work there!

[Jack T. Chance]

The CS T-Shirt...

This reminds me... back on the old site, when Mr. Slugger was running the show, there was an official CustomersSuck.Com T-shirt with the following slogan on it:

NO! I DON'T WORK HERE!!!

I remember there being stories on the old board of grocery store employees wearing that shirt under their uniform, and taking off their uniform shirt/smock/whatever at the end of their shift, then walking around the store with the CS.Com shirt on while they did their personal shopping! I always meant to order one of those, and wear it on MY days off!

But sadly, I never did. I wonder if Raps is going to bring back the T-shirts?

[Rapscallion]

But sadly, I never did. I wonder if Raps is going to bring back the T-shirts?

Me too.

I want the site steady and with a decent front page before I look at things like that. I'm somewhat hampered by being in the UK when the main audience is in the US.

If anyone has suggestions - Cafepress is expensive, but one option - let me know.

Rapscallion

[Lehk]

Me too.

I want the site steady and with a decent front page before I look at things like that. I'm somewhat hampered by being in the UK when the main audience is in the US.

If anyone has suggestions - Cafepress is expensive, but one option - let me know.

Rapscallion

cafe press is definitely the way to go, easy to design the shirts and you can set the price all the way down to "at cost" more importatnly if you don't need a premium shop it costs nothing at all to run or to do single run shirts.

[appliance god]

I apolgise as this story is kinda long..

I think that there is an aura around customer service employees that mark them out to others as being helpful no matter what the extenuating circumstances might be. No matter how many indicators there are that a person does not work in a particular area, or has no relationship with the desired function a customer wishes him or her to perform, there is something about us which draws the SC to us at what can be the most inappropriate moment.

This actually happened...

I was in the middle of a fantastic world trip....in fact I was in Zanzibar, off the coast of Tanzania where my wife and I were engaging in a little sightseeing. We felt safe having been told that crime was not a real problem when some little hoodlum grabs my wifes bag and runs off with it, complete with credit cards, travellers chqs and about $200 USD.

Now have you guys seen those movies with settings in Arab towns with very narrow stone streets. Zanazibar is very like that. So this little twerp runs off with me in hot pursuit. I finally corner the guy in some random building and proceed to beat the snot out of him till he gives up the location of where he stashed his booty. Now normally I'm a very placid guy and not prone to violence but it would be fair to say this guy got a fair ass-kicking.

While checking the bag this guy takes off.

Next thing the local police arrive and think I've been stabbed. A fair assumption as I now have a large amount of blood down my right leg. None of it is mine. I refer you to the ass-kicking mentioned earlier.

The police want me to go down to the station to make a statement, so we walk down to the station.

Imagine this. There is a procession. My and my wife, not a little shaken, me with blood all down one leg, my grey shorts half covered in blood, escorted by three local policemen.

An American walks up to me and asked if I spoke english.

I said Yes.

He asked me if I knew of any good places to eat at.

[Knifeman]

Me too.

I want the site steady and with a decent front page before I look at things like that. I'm somewhat hampered by being in the UK when the main audience is in the US.

If anyone has suggestions - Cafepress is expensive, but one option - let me know.

Rapscallion

Find or contact a local screenprinter.

Cafepress's quality is horrendous. By going local, you can ensure quality and quantities. Maybe more expensive to start up, but far better in the long run.

As a graphic designer who has worked in screenprinting for a time myself, trust me when I say talking to a local screenprinter is far better a decision than trusting print on demands.