Little Shit

[IscreamUscream]

AIBU to be a bit cross that a member of staff at Tesco called a school boy a Little Shit. Granted the Boy was messing around at the self service till and he should have known better. But the reaction from the staff member was rude and unprofessional towards a year 7 child.
Member of staff grabbed some receipts boy was messing around with and said to him aggressively "think your funny do you, you little shit". Yes the boy was in the wrong but it didn't warrant the reaction.

I think posters are answering two different questions here as if it was the same.

1. Was it unprofessional and therefore unreasonable as an employee of Tesco?

1. Was it unreasonable as a human reaction regardless of the job/setting?

I would answer unreasonable to the first and not unreasonable to the second. As an employee it wasn't right, the customer is always meant to be right and all that sort of mindset prevails in such places, it presumably goes against company policy so from a professional perspective HWBU. As an individual, who maybe was at the end of his tether or just reacting naturally without regard for policy, HWNBU.

Bollocks bruthas. You would think it's ok for a staff member to call an adult customer a dick? Really?

It's ageism. Happens a lot here on MN. Both with older people and children.

Not appropriate at all and I am surprised by the comments saying otherwise.

If a checkout operator called me a shit I would be complaining so not sure why it's acceptable used against a child. Yes, they probably were acting like little shits but while in uniform, you don't say it.

Yep. I really do. When I worked in retail I had people screaming abuse at me, I had one guy calling me a "fucking tramp" and threaten to wait outside for me because I refused to serve him alcohol as he was pissed. I did call him a dick, because he was one. Would you have reported me to my manager for saying it?

emst
how do you know the seven year old was in uniform ?

In an ideal world the staff member would have said 'now young man. Please stop doing that'.
And in an ideal world kids wouldn't behave like little shits.

But we live in the real world and it does kids no harm to occasionally hear a spade being called a spade in relation to their behaviour.

I meant the member of staff in uniform.

Also, the child wasn't seven, in year seven I believe.

Totally inappropriate to call anyone that whatever age.

Calling him a nuisance may have been more appropriate.

It mightn't have been appropriate but maybe it gave the little shit nuisance a shock and he'll think twice before annoying shop staff again. Job done!

Yep. I really do. When I worked in retail I had people screaming abuse at me, I had one guy calling me a "fucking tramp" and threaten to wait outside for me because I refused to serve him alcohol as he was pissed. I did call him a dick, because he was one. Would you have reported me to my manager for saying it?

Yep i really would. Not acceptable at all. Not good representation of your employer's business. Not professional. Not going to instill confidence in any customers who overheard that you dont talk about them like that when they arent there.

Ive also been verbally assaulted many many times in work and managed to remain professional and follow protocol. It's what you do if you value your job.

This child wasnt even being abusive to anyone! No excuse for it at all.

Unless you would speak to a youngish man, who looks like he could land a punch, in the same way, then it's bullying behaviour.

I see it on here, towards old people.

I see it in RL, directed mainly at Women, daily.

I also hate the way that Tesco's staff are allowed to swear and discuss inappropriate topics, in earshot of all.

They're getting like the old Kwik Saves, "rough as.," to be in.

I avoid at all costs.

No, not appropriate at all. A bit shocked anyone thinks it's okay really.

I would hazard a guess that that is against a Tesco policy somewhere.

You could refer it if you had a mind to.

If I had seen it, I think I would have asked for the manager to raise my concern. I fully understand that the staff member was cross, but they should not be swearing at a customer.

Or in front of other customers.

So it's okay to call a Year 7 a little shit?

How about a Year 8? 10? University student? 30 year-old? (losing the word 'little' obviously) When does it stop?

Of course it's not acceptable. Doesn't matter how he was behaving, there would have been a 'proper' way to speak to him.

And that wasn't it.

I LOVE how people on this thread are sticking up for the staff member, but if it was their own child called that they would go ape shit! Also, if the OP had said 'was I AIBU to call a boy a little shit?' they would have been against the OP.

I know 'AIBU' isn't one person, but it is funny how on a different thread at the moment, a man told kids to go inside and sing when they were being really loud at 9 in the morning, and he has been called 'grumpy,' 'aggressive,' and a 'cunt!' Oh my days. Only on AIBU.

That's not at all acceptable from an employee in a customer service type role in particular, to a member of the public, however badly the boy was behaving.

Fair enough STOP, I personally have no problem with people being called dicks if they are behaving like such. I think the customer is ALWAYS right attitude is why so many members of the public believe they can get away with speaking to service staff in a manner that they wouldn't speak to anyone else.

Not ok, I would have complained. Don't expect to hear tesco staff swearing, not a good example to those around including my children. I work in retail and have never and would never talk to someone this way.

The reason why it got my goat was I was once with my dsin a well known phone shop with my ds aged about 8 at the time. I was speaking with a shop staff member about which service provider was best to use. To which he replied "don't go with O2 they are a bunch of cunts". I was speechless and my ds face was shocked at the c word.

On that occasion I took offence and reported him.
How is it that nowadays customer service had gone down the pan and some not all young retail staff think its acceptable to speak like that to customers.

There wasn't a period of antagonising this staff member by the child. And I was in the que at the time and witnessed the child messing around with some receipts. Myself and the child arrived in the shop at the same time.

But maybe the staff member has to put up with kids day in day out behaving like annoying brats and just snapped.
I'm not saying the expression he used was ideal, but I can totally understand how frustrating supermarket staff must get with kids of that age. Some of them are unbelievably rude and self entitled and often have parents who don't give a damn.
I'm not saying that was the case with this child, but he might have been paying the price for other kids' appalling behaviour.