OT: Treatment of Women In Hardware Stores (Yes, this is a Rant)

[Grass]

i love it when i send my wife for something....she knows what exactly she is going for and when they start to give her run around about it she calls me from her cell phone and hands the phone to the person helping and says here you talk to my husband about it...99.9% of the time she comes out with what she started out to get.yes most ladies do get treated like they stupid in hardware stores i've seen it personally ...even worse when dealing a mechanic.or even just picking up a part for a car from a parts store.

 

[Ga Chicken Mom]

Yes, I've also been treated like I know nothing in the big box stores. Just wanted to add, if you are treated well, get the employees name, go to the front of the store and ask for he manager. Watch the look on his/her face when they approach you. Once you tell them you have had good service and commend the helpful employee, the frown turns to a smile. The manager will remember you if you complain in the future about bad service and the helpful employee should be rewarded when it is time for a raise or promotion. I try to compliment good service more often than complain about poor service. In our small town the managers get to know me and the emploees are nicer in the long run.

 

[coffeelady3]

Quote:
Works for me!

(Sorry, I just couldn't resist!)

 

[coffeelady3]

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Nicely put. I worked in the service industry for 15 years, and you rarely hear about you doing something right. Only when you screw up, which happens even to the best of us. Letting people know when they're doing a good job only encourages them to continue doing a good job. In training it's called Positive Reinforcement!

 

[hensdeliverthegoods]

Quote:
This attitude only perpetuates the problem. Women should not have to act like sex objects to get what they want and need.

 

[pbjmaker]

My 2 cents here: Went to Menards the other day and was told they don't cut plywood anymore - but I could buy half sheets. I pointed out they were almost twice as much in price and he told me then I could just pay to have a full sheet delivered. So my husband came up with our cordless saw and we bought a full sheet and just cut it up ourselves in the parking lot - it was funny and we got a lot of odd looks. But when I went back to get something to latch the doors a couple days later a young kid helped me and help he did - he was suggesting different ways we could secure the coop doors and was facinated that we had built our coop for about $40 using scraps and pieces from a gazebo we tore down. He told me his mom loves to make things from nothing and had taught him to "puzzle through" things and make it work.

On the thing about work ethic and young people - I agree - my daughter who doesn't turn 18 for two weeks was asked to interview for assistant manager position at her job because she has a better work ethic and is willing to learn new things than most the young twenty- somethings that apply for that job.

 

[cthrash1]

I've had that happen at a transmission repair place yrs ago...Had my tranny rebuilt at the only place in town to do it at that time, drove it home and it was still not right and taking too long to kick into passing...Took it back and they told me it was supposed to do that, I disagreed and they just brushed me off...So I go tell DH what happened and he took the car back. Told them that his wife brought the car back earlier with a problem still showing and they literally said, well she's a woman she doesn't know, we told her it was fine...My DH proceeded to tell the man that this is his wifes car and she drives it every day and she would know if something is not right with it and that he agreed the tranny still wasn't right...After having it a day or two longer and rebuilding again for free this time they told me it was still a bad clutch or something of the sort...Well DUH!!!

 

[1acrefarm]

I know at times gender does play a role in customer service. I do not believe it plays as much of a role as it used to. I think customer service has got to the point where it is so bad it would be difficult to do any worse for gender.

I have auto parts stores tell me they don't have a part I just saw was instock on the website all the time. I have to tell them yes you do and show them the printout from 10 minutes earlier.
They say let me check again and it magically appears. I always look up the availability and factory part numbers of what I need before going to an auto parts store. Saves me alot of headache.





I went to the local hardware store recently. They have a small engine shop with a parts desk up front of it. I took the engine cover with me because it has all the numbers on it and I had it off anyway. The part I was replacing was in it as well so they had a visual. The cover says murray right beside briggs and stratton. They said oh we can't get murray parts. I said this is a classic briggs engine they did not make them any different for murray. The part I need has only 2 versions get me the new style. He looks it up and says we can't even order this part and nobody else will have it either. Your lawnmower is too old and it is a murray. (not even 2 years old) I said ok whatever and came home and looked the part up. I then called with the factory part number they say yeah we have 3 of those in stock. When I went back I asked if they were hiring because they need a real parts man. I was a little upset.

 

[drom]

Quote:
This attitude only perpetuates the problem. Women should not have to act like sex objects to get what they want and need.

OH, my. Now everyone is getting very serious. So, look here is my serious response for what it's worth...

Ladies, I don't know any men who would ask someone to cut 2 inch boards for them. I am a small woman and I don't ask them to do that for me. You can practically chew through one of those with your teeth.

This is a do-it-yourself supply store-it's for folks who want to save a few bucks and try to build it themselves.

Those boards aren't heavy or difficult, don't require a power tool, don't need two people to lift and cut them.

They cost about $1.20 each out here. After material cost, shipping, facilities overhead, labor, etc... I'd be surprised if the margin left on each one is 20 cents. It doesn't make good business sense to me, to lose money paying your employees $8 to $10 bucks an hour to cut inexpensive lumber that people really, truly don't need help with.

I don't think they were trying to insult Yanna

. Why would anyone want to do that.

I don't think it had anything to do with the fact that she is a woman or her age or anything like that. Sometimes young employees don't have the communication skills or savvy to explain things diplomatically and can come off like morons, but I think, with specific regard to cutting lumber, this is just a company policy with the big box building supply stores.

 

[joebryant]

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This attitude only perpetuates the problem. Women should not have to act like sex objects to get what they want and need.

Huh!

SAY WHAT!