To complain about shop staff emptying my "abandoned" trolley...

[LeftMyRidingCropInTheMortuary]

Evening all,

I arrived at a large chain homeware store at about 7pm last night, going round with a trolley. I put quite a lot in so it was heavy and I parked it whilst I finished browsing. At about 7.50pm, a storeperson reminded me they were closing at 8 so I went to get my trolley to get it through the checkout but it has disappeared.

It transpired that the staff had emptied it and put everything back on the shelves! They quickly grabbed back a few of the items and rushed me through the checkout as they were clearly desperate to get me out and the shop closed. I couldn't remember everything I had put in and it was clear they weren't going to give me any time to think about what was missing.

Had I not been desperate for the mattress topper I originally went for, I would just have left but I had promised to pick it up for a friend of mine who has joint problems.

The staff were very rude when I complained saying it was my fault for "abandoning" my trolley and that they were just trying to get the shop tidied in time for closing. They said that no other customer had ever "abandoned" their trolley in this way and didn't I realise they closed at 8?!

They all stood around obviously waiting for me to leave because it was shock horror 8.02pm by the time they had deigned to allow me to pay £75 for the goods shoved back in my trolley.

I have now got home and realised I am without various items I had originally put in my trolley such as a laundry basket, lampshade and under-shelf storage trays and wardrobe organiser. Which is a pain because I travelled specifically to this store and spend time choosing items. Now I have to make another trip and try and locate the items again.

AIBU to think this is off and that you don't put back stock and close the store until, er, closing time? And AIBU to think they should have apologised? AIBU to think that even if you think your customers are a massive inconvenience to you clocking off at 8pm on the dot, that you try and conceal that fact from the aforementioned customers?!

Thanks in advance.

It happens to me in Tesco but with a basket. The basket gets too heavy, I leave it down while I run off to get some item and the basket has disappeared when I come back.

Lavender - not ours. Our topped is semi solid, thick temper memory foam. Def wouldn't roll up

I park my trolley all the time as its easier if you realise you've forgotten something/ necessary if dc needs the loo but probably 20 minutes is a bit long.

Ywbvu! I worked in a shop where people regularly used to turn up to the till at closing time with a huge basket of stuff. We got paid until 5.30 and had homes and family to go too. Why should they finish late for you.

But when you told the staff what had happened they absolutely should have apologised and stayed open long enough for you to refill it with everything you needed. The practice of shooing any customer with the temerity to still be shopping ten minutes before closing really pisses me off- there are still ten minutes to go! I've worked in retail, and if a customer came in at the last minute you stayed open for them and were grateful for the chance to take more money.

Why should they have to stay behind to give her personal service. It was past 8 and they were entitled to go home and enjoy what little was left of their evening, have family time etc. OP chose to left the trolley unattended at her own risk. The money the shop makes does not go into the workers pockets their wages are a tiny percentage of overall takings, why should they feel grateful for the extra money! People are entitled to a life and staying 10 minutes past the end of their shift for free to serve a customer should not be expected. That 10 minutes once they've clocked off etc will mean they've left at least 20 mins past their actual finish time and as other posters have said may have to pay extra for childcare etc.

OP - you sound like hard work.

I find it odd that instead of blaming businesses for the poor practice of paying their staff min wage and not paying them for the actual hours they work, everyone would rather deem customers rude and inconsiderate for daring to enter a shop in the last few minutes of trading to y'know - buy stuff!

I've worked retail, one place didn't want to pay for clean up time, so I didn't clean up, and just left explaining that if they wanted to pay me I'd be happy to stay. Funny enough they paid me. Also worked for a big fashion retail chain and they do pay for after hours clean up, because if they didn't they would have this very situation with staff chivvying people rudely out the door and starting clean up whilst the customers are still shopping.
Direct your ire in the right direction. Shitty businesses who exploit their staff are to blame, not customers fgs!

I agree with you that the businesses are to blame for not paying staff for all time worked Bullshit Bingo but I also thing it's wrong to blame the staff for wanting to leave once their shift has finished given that they won't get paid beyond that time.

I used to work in retail.
I had one manager who would get very shirty about 'mess' in the shop, ie abandoned items on the floor and suchlike. She said that baskets and trolleys left about were health & safety hazards and needed removing as quickly as possible in case someone tripped over and we got sued.
I think she was a little too obsessed with tidiness and it regularly upset customers who'd put there basket down, wander off and then wonder why it had gone when they came back.
On the other hand, how do you tell the difference between a baket/trolley someone will eventually come back to and one that's been abandoned? You can't. All the shop staff know is that the manager will be cross if the shop isn't tidy.
We didn't get paid a minute past closing either. I was once accused of being 'unprofessional' for being less than happy about this by a trainee manager. I pointed out that the definition of professional was someone who was paid to do a job and as I was not being paid for my time at that particular moment then anything I did was strictly amateur.
She didn't get the joke. Didn't last long in the company either, swore at other staff members too much.
I'm so glad to be out of retail.

IKEA is open until 10, and probably cheaper

Was it one of those irritating places which is so badly laid out that negotiating the gaps between stuff with a trolley is a right pain? Got one of those near me and I usually abandon the trolley if I go in there too!

My dh does this everywhere he leaves every basket trolley we regularly annoy people get in their way but at least he doesn't ex p etc the shop to stay open late to accommodate him

I often leave my trolley but usually very close by - maybe the bottom of an aisle. I only leave it for a literally a couple of minutes because any longer - then yes. It is assumed abandoned and emptied.

I would be pissed off in your situation. I dont think many people wouldnt but if the trolley was left for 5 minutes or longer and you were not in close proximity for someone to check if it was yours then, it was to be expected.

The added inconvenience to you was that it was so close to the store closing time so refilling the trolley was a bigger problem than it had been at 2pm on a Saturday afternoon.

YANBU to be pissed off at what happend but YABU to have not pre empted this potential issue.

Thank you all for your responses!

I have learned my lesson!

:-)

I worked for Sainsburys, the store closed at 8pm. We were paid until 8pm, if any customers "got carried away browsing" after that we had to serve them but we wouldn't be paid...

When I was 16 I got a job in Next at a brand new shopping mall. I remember one customer trying on a load of clothes in the changing room who just wouldn't leave after the store closed and we'd done a million tannoys. A manager got involved and the woman eventually stormed out after throwing the clothes around everywhere. She then punched the manager in the car park.

Artandco - my friend got a memory foam mattress last year - not just a topper. It was rolled up. It's standard for non-sprung mattresses to be rolled up so people can take them home themselves without paying for delivery.

dD got a memory foam topper From Amazon and I was delivered rolled up too.

I feel bad for OP, she was obviously being U, but some of the scathing responses on this thread...

Yes ywbu but I'm sure you've learnt a lesson and are not likely to do it again in a hurry!

would they really not be paid? is there no timetabled tidy up period after the shop shuts? seems bizarre

I work in a customer service industry and get paid by the quarter hour. we have customers over-staying their welcome more nights than not but it's part of the job. we clean up when they're gone. we're paid for this.

No, they would really not be paid.

'I've worked in retail, and if a customer came in at the last minute you stayed open for them and were grateful for the chance to take more money'

That's not true, if it is you're a prize chump unless it was your own shop! Grateful to work for free for someone else?

Nope. Don't believe it.

You don't have to believe it, but that's how it worked.

I think people sometimes treat those who work in retail badly, with little thought to them as actual people. I used to work as a retail manager years ago and someone actually stopped me by pulling my hair........she only wanted to know if we had any Tiny Tears dolls in stock.
I've been spat at, shoved, had my family threatened by a shoplifter. I know these are extreme examples but even on a daily basis I was treated with contempt or ignored. People sometimes assume because you work in retail that you are not very bright.
As soon as I moved into a different field of work I was immediately treated with so much more respect and regard despite being the same person.

Well were you sucking up to get promoted then.

I think it's the shop worker's employers who were unreasonable in this situation. not allocating an appropriate amount of paid tidy up time at the end of a shift will inevitably result in shoddy service for anyone who comes in after 7.