The rant of a supermarket cashier .....

I've been working on the checkouts in Tesco for nearly a year now and there are SO MANY things that do my head in about bloody awkward customers. So I'm gonna have a huge rant. Any other cashiers (or customers even!) wanna join me?

Ok, here goes. I bloody hate it when:

1. Little old ladies hold the queue up for 5 minutes when they're digging 86p in two-pence pieces out of their little change purses

2. We get it in the neck even when it's stupid customers holding the line up

3. We have to ask the customers 1000000 questions, to all of which the answer is: 'no'. Not 'no thanks'.

4. When we pack the bags for our customers: and then they have the cheek to unpack them and start again, packing it "their way". Why not just do it yourself from the word go?!

5. Pervy old people call you by your first name

6. We have to smile and be polite, even when we get sh*t on!

7. People take ages to find their bloody clubcard - it's WORTHLESS!

8. Couples have tiffs while you're serving them - don't wanna hear it

9. Couples French eachother while you're serving them - don't wanna see it

10. People put their babies/tots on the conveyor belt "cause it's cute". It's bloody dangerous and we'd get sacked/sued if anything happened to them!

11. Lazy families of 4/5 stand over and watch you pack for them

12. People "nip off quickly" for a pint of milk and come back 5 minutes later. Hey presto! - all of their packing is done for them! Magic!

13. People come with like twenty-odd items at the "10 items or under" till. They usually disguise it with a newspaper on top so it's too late to turn them away once you've started

14. Stupid people forget their credit cards - you don't know whether they're gonna run off with their stuff while you call the manager

15. People throw their credit cards/money at u - this really narks me

Ok, that's enough for now. Anyone got any they wanna add?

Scroll to see replies

Reply 1

Muse

Hey,
I'm a Tesco Front-End Section Manager. Seems like your ECOH skills need some work... :wink:

Reply 2

cymruambyth

timeofyourlife

Hey,
I'm a Tesco Front-End Section Manager. Seems like your ECOH skills need some work... :wink:

Every Customer Offered Help?! Didn't I just say that I ask everyone?!

Reply 3

Muse

cymruambyth

Every Customer Offered Help?! Didn't I just say that I ask everyone?!

Only being pedantic! I used to hate checkouts so got trained on the customer service desk, ended up hating the bloody customers there as well.

Reply 4

claire1985

All of that sounds familiar, I work at WHSmith so it's just as bad! You have forgotten when they make conversation and say 'Oh, so do you work here full time?' and when you say no they ask what you do with your time, they as suprised to know you aren't stupid and actually go to school. I hate being treated like i'm stupid, so i'm jacking it in this summer and having odd jobs instead.

Reply 5

Danithestudent

I used to work in my local Alldays and it made me physically sick how dirty the place was. I mean there were dead things everywhere and you wouldn't even notice unless you worked there. It leaked when it rained as well and we had several explosions whilst there due to leaking water going over the electrical parts of the fridges etc.

As for customers we always used to get the drunks and stoned people in at 1 minute to 10 and then proceeded to hang out for another hour there.

I always found that if people gave you crap you just had to be sarcastically nice to them, they could never do you for that. You were polite and everything, you could never be reported for the "tone" you used!

Reply 6

kingslaw

As a waiter in a posh restaraunt (the 'posh; part is important as it means the customers are even more arrogant than normal!!), I could also create such a list of things that annoy me about the job. So you have my sympathy!!

Reply 7

Daveo

timeofyourlife

Only being pedantic! I used to hate checkouts so got trained on the customer service desk, ended up hating the bloody customers there as well.

Customers are completely insane, I say that from experience of being a customer.

Reply 8

Muse

One thing that gets on my nerves....
When some bint queues for ages with an old receipt wanting to get their clubcard points put on for a grand total of £2.
Oh, and I can't stand cashiers that continually get off and go for walks. Messes up one-in-front completely.

Reply 9

Danithestudent

kingslaw

I used to do silver service waitressing when I was a bit younger and the worst customers I ever had were this group of Christians on Easter Sunday (2 years ago today in fact!) and they were the bunch of rudest mofos I'd ever met!!!!

They complained to me for 2 hours about not having any marmalade which was rather ironic as there wasn't even any toast included on their menu and there was me and one other person to 45 Churchy people and 40 residents as well, all at once!

That was HELL!

Reply 10

Danithestudent

The only people in the world I hate are the general public.

Reply 11

fishpaste

I used to love working with the customers when I worked in partners, because most of the time they just had me doing all the donkey work in the stockroom, which I hated with passion. I was just happy to get the chance to talk to other people.

Reply 12

kingslaw

Oh, sorry. I have to ask, do you get the same jokes over and over and over again?? We do, and we have to laugh and pretend its funny.

Reply 13

Muse

Daveo

Customers are completely insane, I say that from experience of being a customer.

And don't get me started on the new 'Self Scan' checkouts they've installed at my store. One cow tried putting her money into the display screen.

Reply 14

Muse

kingslaw

Oh, sorry. I have to ask, do you get the same jokes over and over and over again?? We do, and we have to laugh and pretend its funny.

Yes, and I can't stand customers that talk to me either.

Reply 15

cymruambyth

timeofyourlife

Oh, and I can't stand cashiers that continually get off and go for walks

I know what you mean. Yesterday, I was working in front of a woman who would keep getting up to avoid getting customers with huge trollies-full. Guess who ended up getting them ... moi!

Reply 16

kingslaw

timeofyourlife

Yes, and I can't stand customers that talk to me either.

I don't mind them talking to me so much. Its when they try and have big conversations about my life with me when I am clearly very very buisy!

Reply 17

Muse

cymruambyth

I know what you mean bout the other cashiers getting up for walks. Yesterday, I was working in front of a woman who would keep getting to avoid getting customers with huge trollies-full. Guess who ended up getting them ... moi!

I tried implementing a 'strap staff into seat' programme at my store, but some human rights law got in the way of it :wink:

Another annoyance is when I'm cashing up the tills at the end of the day with a hand-full of green-bags and till check readings - a customer always comes along when the belt is pulled across the front of the lane and asks if i'm open. If I was bloody open I'd at least have the courtesy to pull open the 'Closed' gate.

Reply 18

Danithestudent

I think the funniest thing that ever happened to me whilst working in Alldays was some poor senile little old lady had totally forgot about the introduction of self service shops. She came up to the counter and asked for a large side of beef. Which was rather amusing a) Because she was supposed to wonder around and get it and b) We were a convenience store not a butchers.

It took me 20 minutes to tell her where to go and ended up having to take her to the butchers where she decided to ask for a box of soap powder. I actually got my raise because of that!