I work as grocery store cashier. If a cashier has no customers, they are expected to find something to do -- often this means going to bag groceries at a different register. I was doing that tonight for a small group of male customers, and when I was finished, one customer held out a $5 bill. I was dumbfounded for a moment, before realizing he planned to tip me (the cashier said he was holding two bills, so it seems likely he was planning to tip us both). I thanked him but said we are not allowed to accept tips. He seemed a bit puzzled but nodded and put the cash away.
Later on I told a supervisor about it.
Supervisor: "What are you, nuts?! TAKE THE MONEY."
Me:
I passed the info on to the cashier. So if those guys ever come back and try again -- fingers crossed -- we will definitely accept the gratuity!
I should add that there is absolutely nothing in the building or at any register to indicate we expect tips --no tip jars or anything like that. That's a big reason why this seemed to come right out of left field.
The only time this has happened before was during the COVID lockdowns. One customer made it a point to go from cashier to cashier over a period of days, handing out either $50 VISA gift cards or $50 in cash, to thank us for being on the job. That time I asked a supervisor (probably the same one ) if I could accept the gift card and she said sure. But I figured that was a special case, unlike today's offering.
Later on I told a supervisor about it.
Supervisor: "What are you, nuts?! TAKE THE MONEY."
Me:
I passed the info on to the cashier. So if those guys ever come back and try again -- fingers crossed -- we will definitely accept the gratuity!
I should add that there is absolutely nothing in the building or at any register to indicate we expect tips --no tip jars or anything like that. That's a big reason why this seemed to come right out of left field.
The only time this has happened before was during the COVID lockdowns. One customer made it a point to go from cashier to cashier over a period of days, handing out either $50 VISA gift cards or $50 in cash, to thank us for being on the job. That time I asked a supervisor (probably the same one ) if I could accept the gift card and she said sure. But I figured that was a special case, unlike today's offering.
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