Did I Cause These People to Get Fired? - Poor Customer Service

[gtaus]

I think if no one speaks up about a problem, then the management may never know about the problem.

True that, Plus, I know if I don't make a complaint about extremely poor service then I go home feeling upset about not being proactive in trying to resolve the issue. It's certainly easier to choose to do nothing and hope the next customer takes action. I guess I'm that other person in the cases I mentioned.

I'm old-ish, but I remember when customer service could make or break a company. I used to work for one that lived by it. Word of mouth (or word of text) advertising is still worth a lot, if it's good.

It must be hard for these retailers. It seems like they have new employees every other week, especially on the lower paid jobs. I am confident that the employees consider their job at the store only temporary as they look for something better elsewhere. Add to that, these checkout people are being replaced by self-checkout machines, so you know they have little to no self-worth on the job they perform.

 

[Brooks_]

. I don't want to see what the world will be like 50 years.

I like that.

smoke 'em if you got 'em.

 

[gtaus]

I have never been rude to ANYONE waiting on me...

Well, me either. I hate to think that anybody considers me hard to deal with, I'm not.

She needs to find a job where she doesn’t interact with the public. I’m pretty sure she treated others the same way. Not acceptable.

Some people are better off not having direct customer contact. That does not make them bad people. But management should put people where they can benefit the company best. Sometimes that is in the back warehouse working with boxes of goods.

 

[Brooks_]

self-checkout

I refuse to use them. Outside of say a single water bottle, I will wait in line.

They don't offer any discount, Why should I use it? Other than to have my stuff bagged right? Yes, I want my milk bagged. I do not want my milk jug getting all dirty then into the fridge.

 

[Sally PB]

Add to that, these checkout people are being replaced by self-checkout machines, so you know they have little to no self-worth on the job they perform.

My own rant...

Meijer is the local (big) grocery chain here. A few years ago, they got rid of the conveyor belt that took the items from the cashier down to a bagger. It was replaced with a lazy susan arrangement that held bags, and the cashier bagged the items as they were rung up. A bunch of baggers out of jobs.

Well, they put in a whole bunch more self checkouts about a week ago. Ok, I rarely use them. I write checks. Someone has to come take care of me if I do that. Or if I buy beer. I like having a live person ring up my stuff. I use self checkout only if I'm paying cash and have just a few items.

When they put in all those new self checkouts, they returned to the conveyor belt system. Except the conveyor is MUCH shorter. A large order, even my small order, will not fit on it, nor in the space at the end.

So, did they hire a bunch of baggers? NO! I saw one bagger at one lane. Everywhere else, my lane included, the cashier rings up, the customer bags. Or, if the customer won't do that, the cashier has to do both. Which slows the line down, big time.

The store wants to get rid of cashiers and have everyone use the self checkout, I guess.

This is going to be a MAJOR problem in a month or so, when people start shopping for the holidays. I will NOT be going during busy times. If I see management, I'll tell them why I shop at 7am. Their store is a pain to deal with at any other time of day.

 

[gtaus]

Unique situation. Great in one role, but no where else.

please don't get sick or take vacation. I don't want to put employee X on the sales floor.

I don't how good he was in the warehouse, but management was ready to take the hits when they needed him to cover the sales floor. I don't envy having to make those management choices and getting negative feedback from your customers.

Personally, I think employee X was a problem for the store no matter where he was working, but they could not replace him with nobody. And that was the situation at hand for the manager.

BTW, I knew that floor manager at Fleet that I talked to because he had been out on the sales floor for a number of years and he and I had lots of pleasant interactions over those years. I also congratulated him on his promotion to management when he got the opportunity. So, we knew each other and that is why I think he was so honest with me on my concerns. He knew I would not complain about trivial matters because of our years long relationship.

But most of the time, I have no idea who that manager is in most stores. Some of the big retailers, like Menards and Home Depot, seem to have managers that last less than 6 months and then they are gone. It must be a tough job or one that wears you down fast.

 

[Brooks_]

Well, they put in a whole bunch more self checkouts about a week ago. Ok, I rarely use them. I write checks. Someone has to come take care of me if I do that. Or if I buy beer.

Buy multiple 6 packs and wine and smokes. Pay separately with checks.

 

[gtaus]

I refuse to use them. Outside of say a single water bottle, I will wait in line.

They don't offer any discount, Why should I use it? Other than to have my stuff bagged right? Yes, I want my milk bagged. I do not want my milk jug getting all dirty then into the fridge.

Self-checkouts are really becoming the thing for my area. I don't like them either, but you are forced to use them.

Worse yet, if you make a mistake at the self-checkout and something does not scan right, you can be suspected of shoplifting. I have heard of lots of stories about people scanning a low-priced item in the cart and putting an expensive item in their checkout bag. One-time, Dear Wife got charged $50 more on her checkout than she had in her cart. She called the supervisor over and they found out that the previous customer had scanned the items but left without paying. I don't pretend to know all the ways people can cheat those self-checkouts, but the stores must feel it costs them less to take that loss than to have to pay a real live person for doing the job. Anyway, you can make an honest mistake, or the machine can malfunction, and you can find yourself on the wrong end of a shoplifting concern.

 

[Brooks_]

Self-checkouts are really becoming the thing for my area. I don't like them either, but you are forced to use them.

Same here. Some more than others. Local Home depot still has the garden center manned? Labored? Can I say either of those?

 

[CedarLane]

Self-checkouts are really becoming the thing for my area. I don't like them either, but you are forced to use them.

Worse yet, if you make a mistake at the self-checkout and something does not scan right, you can be suspected of shoplifting. I have heard of lots of stories about people scanning a low-priced item in the cart and putting an expensive item in their checkout bag. One-time, Dear Wife got charged $50 more on her checkout than she had in her cart. She called the supervisor over and they found out that the previous customer had scanned the items but left without paying. I don't pretend to know all the ways people can cheat those self-checkouts, but the stores must feel it costs them less to take that loss than to have to pay a real live person for doing the job. Anyway, you can make an honest mistake, or the machine can malfunction, and you can find yourself on the wrong end of a shoplifting concern.

I had this happen once, but I noticed the previous transaction was unpaid before I started ringing mine up. I called the assistant over and notified her. She admitted that yes, that does happen. My daughter and I were both shocked that someone would actually do that. Before we left the lady and her two grandchildren were back in the store wanting to pay for their transaction. I'm not sure what exactly had happened but it was not intentional. She was very embarrassed and wanted to pay. I'm not sure how she realized the mistake. We felt a lot better about the situation, but still saddened by the cashier assistant's claim that it happens more than you would like to think.