Tonight's Christmas Cheer update: One of my cashiers broke down and cried

[LeftyMom]

She's only been here a few weeks and she's still a bit shaky with unusual transactions. She doesn't make mistakes, she just takes her time when she needs to and she calls for a supervisor when required, as she should. She's a very nice girl, if rather quiet. I guess today the stress of it all and a few rude customers got to her, and she broke down and cried right in front of me.

I took her back to the break room and got her a cookie out of my stash (the poor girl hadn't eaten, which probably didn't help) and let her stay back there and calm down for a bit. We told her a few funny stories about bad customers to let her know it happens to us all, and reminded her to call for help whenever she needs us (I'm perhaps 20 feet away from her register most of the day, so I can go fix stuff for her before it gets to be an issue.) After about half an hour, she felt up to it and came back out to work. I was proud of her.

I'm afraid she'll quit.

If customers are being that awful to her or she can't handle the holiday grumpiness and occasional real jerks, maybe it's best for her that she does.

Christmas shopping brings our the worst in people.

[Mojambo]

1. I'm a cashier and one of these days I'm going to make a customer cry. n/t

[BelleCarolinaPeridot]

4. I know exactly what you mean.

[miss_american_pie]

11. Word

:thumbsup:

[Kajsa]

14. Do what this lady did.

This is a great story I got in an e-mail, yesterday.

Having worked as a bank teller for years, I sure can relate!

A crowded United Airlines flight was canceled. A single agent was
re-booking a long line of inconvenienced travelers. Suddenly an angry
passenger pushed his way to the desk. He slapped his ticket on the
counter and said, "I HAVE to be on this flight and it has to be FIRST
CLASS." The agent replied, "I am sorry, sir. I'll be happy to try to
help you, but, I've got to help these folks first, and I'm sure we'll be
able to work something out."

The passenger was unimpressed. He asked loudly, so that the passengers
behind him could hear, "DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHO I AM?"

Without hesitating, the agent smiled and grabbed her public address
microphone, "May I have your attention please, " she began, her voice
heard clearly throughout the terminal. "We have a passenger here at Gate
14 WHO DOES NOT KNOW WHO HE IS. If anyone can help him find his
identity, please come to Gate 14."

With the folks behind him in line laughing hysterically, the man glared
at the United agent, gritted his teeth and swore "F*** You!". Without
flinching, she smiled and said, I'm sorry sir, you'll have to get in
line for that too.

Lefty Mom, please pass this on to the new girl.
You are a great manager!

:hug:

[ironflange]

43. Aw, now I'm curious

Who was he?

[WindRavenX]

2. I feel ya

Check out my blog for some stories-- college students are such jackasses to dining service employees :(

Where do you work?

[EFerrari]

3. Christmas shopping is the opposite of the spirit of the holday

because you're trying to buy something before someone else gets it instead of trying to give something to someone before someone else does.

To you all working retail, :hug:

[SeattleGirl]

5. Oy, I hope this girl makes it.

I never worked in floor sales in retail (worked in the managerial offices), but I did work fast food joints for several years, and know that there are nasty people out there who think that cashiers in whatever industry are their personal doormats. I hate that crap. I am always nice to clerks, and go out of my way to be especially nice if it seems they are having a bad time. In fact. sometimes I'll say, "Bad day at the office?" That seems to help their mood a lot, because they realize that someone is recognizing that they are human, they have feelings, and they deserve respect too.

[NMMNG]

6. I worked more than 5 years in retail so I know just what you mean

People can be so nasty to customer service employees, often without reason. I go out of my way to be polite to them since I know what it's like to work in that environment, and if I see someone else being rude I'll be even nicer to try to offset the damage that person did.

Retail is such a thankless field to work in.

[Az]

7. I always make it a point to try to raise the spirits of those that help

As a customer I will crack jokes and make fun of our species (customers) with the cashiers. Particularly during holiday seasons. I used to do retail and I know how it gets. It doesn't hurt me to be nice or try to encourage them.

[LaurenG]

8. Wow LM you sound like a terrific

person to have around. :hug: You even gave her a cookie!

I also noticed that only the very nicest people have posted to this thread.

A bunch of compassionate liberals!

[billyskank]

9. That makes me want to

:cry:

[Dr Batsen D Belfry]

10. I've seen this happen twice

Both times the offending idiot was in front of me in line.

First time, I grabbed a candy bar off the shelf to include in my order, and left it for the cashier.
Second time, (different place) I got out of line, grabbed a pack of tylenol extra strength and a bottle of water, and put that in my order and left it for the cashier. This one was having one hell of a bad day, had a horrible headache, and just plain got abused. You should have seen the look on her face.

Doing what is right is important to me. It obvoiusly isn't to others. I work for a small software company, and as such, I do my share of first-line tech support. I get the same abuse, so I won't dish it back out.

DBDB

[wildhorses]

15. doctor's orders--huh?

:thumbsup:

and welcome to the Lounge :hi:

love your username:loveya:

[blondeatlast]

46. Love the way you think!

Having been on the wrong side of that register often enough I remember the great customers like you long after the baddies have vanished down the memory hole.

[redqueen]

49. awww

:loveya:

[grace0418]

12. You're a good manager LeftyMom. Share this story with her...

When I was in retail most of my managers would never have been so nice. If the customers weren't making you cry, your managers were. So thank you for your kindness from someone who's been in that girls shoes.

Anyway, I do have one really great story from my days in retail. Maybe you could tell her this one.

When I first moved to Chicago I worked in the Art Institute gift shop. Words cannot describe how insane this job was. If you have ever been in that gift shop on a Saturday near closing time, you would maybe get an inkling. Wall to wall people, many of whom didn't speak a word of English. Although the foreign tourists were almost never the problem (it just took longer to wait on them). The people who paid for a membership to the Art Institute were the real problem, and it was AMAZING how badly they behaved. Membership at the time cost something like $40 a year. Not cheap but not *that* expensive. It got you and a guest free admission as often as you wanted to come, plus many extra perks like sneak previews, discounts at the gift shop and the restaurant. But for some reason, many folks thought their membership entitled them to a team of personal shoppers, no lines, and all manner of extra ass-kissing. If they had to wait for one minute in line they started bitching.

Well one Christmas I was working the front register on an insanely busy day. We had as many people stationed at each register as possible (one ringing, one bagging, one wrapping, etc.). Still the lines were incredible, the store literally had to be close or over the legal fire capacity. If it were me out shopping, I would've taken one look at that shop and said "NO THANK YOU" and moved on.

Anyway, I was at the register ringing away, and most people were being fine. But one woman (a Member!) was bitching from the moment she got in line. First she started with the usual "Well, I'm a MEMBER and I shouldn't have to wait this long!" but soon she graduated to "You know, I'm ON THE BOARD of this museum and blah, blah, blah...." I was just about at the end of my rope with this woman, when I looked up to see the PRESIDENT of the museum walking toward her with a few purchases of his own in his hand. He approached her and said "Hello, I'm John Doe (I can't remember his name), and I'm the president of the museum. I don't believe we've met..."

I swear, in my head it was one of those movie moments where a crowded room falls completely silent and looks at the person making an idiot of herself. She looked completely stricken, totally busted in her lie. It was great. The museum president then calmly walked to the back of the line and waited like everyone else. She finally shut the hell up and waited her turn too. I went back to ringing up customers with a satisfied (and shocked) smile on my face. A few people winked at me knowingly as they approached. It was great. When she got up the the front, all of us were soooooo sugary sweet to her, and it was hilarious to see how uncomfortable that made her.

When the president got up the front, I thanked him profusely. He said that he was just sorry to see anyone behaving that badly when they knew what the were getting into as they walked into the store.

I found out later that he had actually been *ahead* of her in line but gave up his spot to prove his point to her. I didn't even see him in all the craziness, but that is one class act.

[BelleCarolinaPeridot]

13. There are still nice people out there.

Good story.

[I Have A Dream]

18. That's a wonderful story, grace. It sounds like something that the...

president/CEO of my company would do. (He's a great guy also.)

[Rosie1223]

52. Grace, I was at the Art Institute yesterday,

and it hasn't changed. Some woman had had a cashier put some merchandise back for her. Then when a different cashier coundn't find it, she was all "I'M A MEMBER" and really rude to the poor cashier. You'd think she was the frickin' Queen of England the way she was carrying on.

[ebdarcy]

16. Poor Girl.

I was a cashier/customer service rep for almost six years. I never had a customer make me cry, but I had a few that made me feel like dirt.

You could always tell when it was holiday time. The customers got noticeably meaner. Most customers are fine, but it only takes one or two nasty customers to ruin your day or week.

When I was a supervisor, I always tried to take care of my cashiers. I pissed a couple of my managers off, but I didn't care. They didn't know what the cashiers went through on a daily basis. I was so happy to leave retail.

That was a very nice thing you did for her. The girl's lucky she has you to look after her.

[krispos42]

17. Words of wisdom: "Customers Suck!"

I wound up leaving Subway after I wanted to use a bread knife on a particularly annoying customer one day. I wanted to give her the patented "U-gouge" that I, a trained "Sandwich Artist", had been doing to bread for 4 years.

[Beausoir]

21. LOL. The U-gouge. That's hilarious.

[krispos42]

22. That's what it was called

Until they changed it to the more conventional side-cut thing that they do now.

I still do it for my sandwiches. :-)

[Haole Girl]

19. That's just very sad...all the way around.

:cry:

[Beausoir]

20. You sound like a great boss!! I've worked retail and it is really tough.

I worked in a florist and gift shop. By FAR, the rudest people in.the.world. are the wives of physicians.

Who do these dames think they are? The florist was located in an area where many physicians lived due to the location of the hospital. Condescending, sneering, "I want it RIGHT NOW!" types.

I despise doctors wives to this day...and I am one.

Here's to hoping for happy and calm times for all those in retail. It's a very tough job. I promise I will be patient and treat you with the respect you deserve.

[knitter4democracy]

27. Me too *giggle*

I know exactly the types you mean. I avoid them like the plague. Hubby's not that kind of doc (he's an internist), and I'm not that kind of wife. They tried to rope into joining the auxillary and the Junior League (the accepted charity around here for doc's wives).

When Hubby was an intern, I was hanging out at the (new to me) local yarn shop for a knit-in. I was asked what wife number I was by another doc's wife at the table. I didn't know what she meant, so she explained that she was Dr. So-and-so's wife #3, and then they went around the table, saying what their wife numbers were. There was only one other wife #1, and she was boiling mad but didn't say anything. I was shocked. Boy, were those some nasty ladies.

I clerked for awhile in a yarn shop when Hubby was a fourth year because the owner let me bring our baby to work. People are a whole lot nicer to a clerk holding a baby than you'd think. She sold a lot of yarn, too. ;)

[Beausoir]

36. Oh wow...do I EVER know what you are talking about!

I just get so sick of these putrid women...who think that because of their husband's profession, they are somehow entitled to the red carpet. The vulgarity of their ridiculous over-consumption. Their horrendous taste. Their "keep up with the Bush family" mentality.

I loath them. I despise them. They make me embarassed. I do ONE medical related function per year...and that is because I love the non-doctor people that my husband works with. They must put up with so much crap! He really has a great crew of people to work with. And he's a nice man.

I HATE the wives of doctors. Hate them. With the exception of you, Knitter! You sound like good people.

:hi:

[knitter4democracy]

37. You too! We would totally hang out together.

Btw, I've found that it's the specialists' wives who, in general, are the worst. Then again, I know a Med/Peds guy whose wife is just plain nasty.

When we had just moved up here for residency and bought our house (program helped us--good deal), I was invited to a residents' spouses stamping party. Now, I'm not into paper crafts at all, but I thought it would be good to get out of the house and get to know the other spouses. What a nightmare that was! Let's just say that the party started with them asking me if I'd picked out our "attending house" yet and if I knew which car I wanted when he became an attending. I told them that I loved our house (it was in the wrong neighborhood for them--they wouldn't even let me host playgroup because of where it was, but it was a lovely neighborhood), and that I wanted a Ford Focus stationwagon. I was shunned after that for about half an hour. It went downhill from there.

Gah! Those people annoy the heck out of me! I didn't go to med school, Hubby did. I made his path smoother, but he would've done it all on his own, too.

I'm going to miss the Christmas party this year. Hubby works with some amazing people (not the partners--they're total jerks), and they throw a good party. The partners basically made Hubby leave, though, when he refused to take a $50K paycut so they could be even more profitable (he was already making them a lot of money), and he's in the 120 days until he can leave and go to a better job that starts in Feb. Stupid partners.

[grace0418]

32. I don't know, photographers and interior designers would give doctor's wives

a run for the money. I used to work in a frame shop and those were the absolute worst customers we had. They were so smug and demanding and totally sure they were right about EVERYTHING. Nevermind that most of us working at the shop were artists, photographers, designers, etc. AND framers, we were treated like dirt. The photographers would all come in about a week before whatever art fair they were going to be in (with about 500 photos) and expect us to drop everything and cater to their ridiculous demands. They never wanted to spend a dime but expected the world.

Interior designers would come in with their clients and be on total power trips (maybe having to suck up to rich clients made them want to take it out on others). They'd talk to you like you were a total idiot and treat you like their personal slave. I actually had designers come in and expect me to run down the street and fetch them (and their clients) coffee, pull their cars around to the front of the store and load them, wrap their fur coats in plastic and hang them in our office while they picked out products, cut out frames and mats for them "just to see" but not pay for... They were ridiculous. The worst thing was how utterly tacky and tasteless and lacking in any kind of design knowledge some of them were. They would try to put half-inch mats around a picture, or really cheap frames that overwhelmed the artwork, or colors that looked terrible together. And their clients would just smile and nod. Those of us who worked at the shop (who actually studied design, color theory, etc.) would just laugh at how much those people were being ripped off.

[Beausoir]

34. I can totally see where you are coming from. n/t

[Midlodemocrat]

23. Man. I hate that. I've chewed a few people a new one for hassling

a cashier or customer service person who is doing the absolute best that they can.

Poor kid. You were good to her, LM. :yourock:


BTW, was it a vegan cookie?


:hide:

[LeftyMom]

24. Yes, it was a vegan cookie.

I keep a whole stash of food I can eat in my locker since I sometimes have to work past the time the nearby store closes and I get crabby when I go too long without eating.

[mikeytherat]

39. Midlo: I ripped one of these jerks apart in Ukrop's about two months ago

I'm in line and the well-dressed woman in front of me looks familiar - where have I seen her? She starts arguing with the cashier immediately about items that were "2-for-1" (none of the items she has, of course), she demands a price check on almost every items, and then it hits me: "Oh my God! It's the 'Receipt Lady!'" I had gotten in line behind this woman over a year ago, and I remember her checking EVERY single item on the receipt against her purchases. Every. Single. Item. And, of course, she is NOT going to exit the aisle, free up the cashier, or take the issue to Customer Service - she is going to complain, to everyone within earshot (which would be about a 12-mile-radius as this woman is yelling at everyone and everything)!.

Anyway, here I am, behind The Receipt Lady and she is doing her schtick, except this time she has an accomplice - her husband. His role in this "game" is to turn to everyone in line and say things like, "Can you believe this shit? Would you ever shop here again? Can you believe how bad this store is? Doesn't Ukrop's suck?" etc. After about three minutes of this routine, I step right into this woman's private space and make the following offer: "If you take this to Customer Service, and let the rest of us get through the line, and I will wait for you outside store. I'll set my stopwatch for five minutes, and for those five minutes you can yell at me all you like. Use any language you like. I'll stand there, silently, and let you show the world what an ass you are." I got about five minutes of applause from those around me, and Receipt Lady took her stuff and walked over to Customer Service. After I bought my stuff, I walked over to Customer Service (where Receipt Lady was still waiting), and asked them if they would watch my purchases for a few minutes. I walked outside and waited.

Receipt Lady walked right past me, and never said a word.

mikey_the_rat

[Midlodemocrat]

40. Good for you! I think I was behind the same woman

at KMart a few years ago. She was complaining to everyone within earshot that everything was priced wrong, the cashier was too slow, etc., and then she tried to get back into line to protest a receipt discrepancy. I got right in her face and told her to take it to customer service because her five minutes were o.v.e.r.

I HATE people like that.

[mikeytherat]

41. Well-dressed, lots of faux leopard print and horn-rimmed glasses?

Definitely gives off a "CCV" kinda-vibe? Might be the same woman!

mikey_the_rat

[ulysses]

25. I got dragged to Target last night.

Much as I get over Christmas shopping trips *very* quickly (10-15 minutes after arrival), I make a point of not being an ass to the folks who are working.

I've done retail during the holidays, and wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy. Good on you for taking care of her.

[Shakespeare]

35. DRAGGED to Target???

You mean it's not an exciting trip to Happyland for you like it is for me? :7

Signed, Robin
Target Addict.

[ulysses]

38. it's certainly better than

some other Temples of Stuff to which I get dragged. I just have a low tolerance for meandering aimlessly around stores. :)

[Midlodemocrat]

45. I'm with you. I'm a guerilla shopper, in and out.

My daughter, OTOH, will try on every single outfit in the store that even remotely appeals to her before deciding she wants to buy the first one.

:eyes:

[ulysses]

47. know what you're going to get, get it, and go.

Yup. My dear spouse and your daughter would have fun.

[Kali]

26. Poor kid.

Nice that her "boss" is you.

[tigereye]

28. I always try to be empathetic to the folks who have to work so

hard this time of year. There's really no call to be rude or obnoxious to folks trying to do their job.
Many years of waitressing and food service taught me this lesson.

good for you. :thumbsup:

[Ellen Forradalom]

29. I always give cashiers the very best holiday wish

"May the public be kind to you this holiday season!"

[hyphenate]

30. No shit

The pressure on people in retail work is so absolute and so high that it's ridiculous, and certainly not worth it for many. I know I could never work in retail again--I did it right out of high school as a "Dollar Day" at Jordan Marsh (for those who remember both Jordan Marsh and "Dollar Days"!) and believe me, it was worse than horrific at times. Nursing was nearly as bad, but there were a few more breaks.

[riderinthestorm]

31. Uh oh, watch out for the tirade

from the "How dare you rain on my Christmas joyful parade, just suck it up you grinch?" group.....

:hide:

I actually applied for a seasonal holiday retail job a few weeks ago, at Target, Lowes, Barnes and Noble etc. Got job offers at all of them (I did a LOT of peeing in cups for the drug screens) but that week of waiting for the drug screen and background check to go through before they offered me the jobs was enough to turn me off. I had been shopping myself and was already appalled at peoples' crummy attitudes and rudeness!!! And this was a few weeks ago!!

I already find this holiday season to be totally crass, I recognized that taking one of those jobs would put my cynicism meter over the top and into the boiling range.

You done good for that poor cashier. Cookies even?! :applause:

[last_texas_dem]

33. That was nice of you

for being understanding and trying to make her feel better. If she does decide it's too much for her, I hope she can find a job more suited for who she is. After working as a cashier at couple of places myself, I had to come to terms with the fact that the combination of dealing with the public and being expected to do transactions very quickly (working at a grocery store was hell, especially) is not for me. I was on the edge all the time, and it just wasn't worth it for me.

But yeah, why that handful of customers can't just at least pretend to be decent people for those couple of minutes they're getting their orders taken care of is beyond me. Most customers are nice or at least indifferent, but it's as if a few of them are just waiting for some small issue to come up that they can be a jerk about. And one or two of those in a day can make the whole day feel horrible.

[MorningGlow]

42. Good work, LM!

You sound like a great boss!

I worked retail (bookstores) for years, so I've seen all kinds of horrendous behavior from customers. Although most of our managers were jerks (big-box-bookstores--bleah--brings out the worst power-trippers to be in charge for very little cash), the regular staff members were a great mutual support system. Plus we got kind of proud of our war stories!

I hope your employee makes it through the holiday season (always a tough time to start as a cashier). After a while (the break-in period), she might see that line of customers as we did--a video game: knock 'em down as fast as possible but points off for errors, so be careful. Alas, just like evil aliens, those customers keep coming...

[blondeatlast]

44. Could the cookie have corrected a hypoglycemic episode?

It's amazing what a few simple carbs and enough time to metabolize them can do when the BG is low.

[seemunkee]

48. Its been a long time since I worked retail

but the words of my boss will always ring true
"Retail is a whore's business. You open up your legs and just let everyone fuck you."

[Bullwinkle925]

50. Okay LM -

I'll set this one on fire. #50

[BluePatriot]

51. Thanks for your compassion

My first job I was a cashier on Christmas Eve, mid-shift. There were only four of us and it was time for me to go and leave the closing crew to their work, as the store was strict on OT. The mob quite nastily PHYSICALLY PREVENTED me from shutting down my register and closing up shop while the weenie managers hid in the back. 20 minutes later I left, shaking and sobbing. The next year I worked at a different retail place.

Ugh. People, please be kind and patient with your cashiers, and if you have waited until the last minute and the line is very long, it's your own stupid fault.

[chaska]

53. Shopping bad -- LeftyMom good!

[GoddessOfGuinness]

54. I've been there...25 years ago

I was working in a record store (this was before cds), and the line was non-stop. It was stressful, but we took turns between working the register and the floor. On Christmas Eve, during my first stretch at the register, I watched in amazement as this guy took a six inch stack of records and tried to stuff them in his pants. I said, "Uh...ExCUSE me?" and the guy replied, "Oh...You want me to put them back?"

The floor was the easy part, for me...at least that was what I thought. I started to help these two big, tough-looking guys, who were slitting albums open. I told them they were welcome to examine the merchandise at the register; but we couldn't let customers open albums on the floor without first pying for them. One of them towered over me and said, "Oh we can't?" as he slit another open.

At that point I went to the register and got the big, tough-looking assistant manager to handle the situation; and at some point as I was madly keying items in on the register (it was pre-scanner days, too), a kindly woman gave me the sweetest, most sympathetic look, and said, "It must be hard working here on Christmas Eve." And that was when I totally lost it.

I swore that day to NEVER work retail again.

You were really sweet to your employee... :hug:

[Dastard Stepchild]

55. Perhaps there are some things she could do to make her feel more steady...

Like taping a cheat sheet for odd transactions to her workspace. Then she could just follow along on her little checklist until she gets to know it better. I did that when I was first learning retail work and it helped to make me feel more confident.

[wain]

56. I've implied this before

A few of your posts exhibit an innate nature of maturity and insight. Your handling of this new cashier (by someone as young you) portrays an understanding of leadership that many execs lack. People are the base of successful enterprises (such as your store). People with a sense of balance between corporate goals and personal lives. Others in your leadership position would take an unfeeling, harsh approach to your problem resolution.

I know your life is full with school and motherhood, but when you get a chance take a look at some leadership books in the bookstore. Written by corporate CEOs. I think you'll be surprised that many successful executives value staff and customers before stockholders. Treat staff and customers as you want to be treated and profits will follow. Sounds like the golden rule, doesn't it?

:)