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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

..to have complained about the cashier at sainsbury's this afternoon...?

184 replies

americantrish · 27/03/2007 17:43

i got two bottles of soda at the cigarette counter and after paying her (exact change), she just turned her back, didn't offer a receipt, a thank you. NOTHING. seriously f**ked me off. so i went to customer services and then spoke to the cashier manager person who was apologetic (sp?) and said she'd have a word with her.

i felt a BIT bad after, but if she treats most of her customers like that....(and i've worked in customer service (albeit in the US) for 10+ years...) being decent is being decent. a thank you or have a nice day would have been nice.

meh!!

OP posts:
kslatts · 28/03/2007 12:07

I don't think you are being unreasonable.

She should always be polite.

JanH · 28/03/2007 12:07

Not feudal - just that being polite to customers is part of her job, so if she's not polite (and silently turning your back is rude even if it isn't quite as bad as gobbing on your shoes, lol, zippi) she's not doing her job properly and deserves to be complained about - if eg a car mechanic didn't do his job properly and your wheels fell off you'd complain, wouldn't you?

OTOH if you're going to complain about poor service you should equally praise for excellent service so make sure you always do, trish

Caligula · 28/03/2007 12:17

I don't really think it's about cashier/ customer tbh.

It's just normal human interaction.

Nbg · 28/03/2007 12:21

I know the whole "paid to do the job thing" grates on some but
she is!

powder28 · 28/03/2007 12:35

Some shop assistants are like that character from little britain 'computer says no...'
I once went onto a travel agency with my dh and the girl was just like that. We went to a different agency aand the woman there was excellent. No fake smiles, no bullsh*t etc, just spoke to us in a normal way, and found us a fantastic holiday.

madame · 28/03/2007 12:37

Life is short, only worry about things that you can change

speedymama · 28/03/2007 13:38

This thread has had me in stitches.

I like Kimi's "employ a local ming mong" whatever that is as well as Margo's half hour in Sainsburys. Real ife is so much more entertaining than fiction.

I side with OP. Can't abide rudeness. The customer is king (equally customers should be polite too).

ipanemabunny · 28/03/2007 13:56

I think a quiet word with the manager is fine - but ime criticism is always more acceptable if you mix it in with praise: i.e. 'the staff here are usually so nice etc so I was surprised to be served this abruptly - just to let you know...'

If people in the uk never complain, they'll never get service that's good enough.

I think if you can't/won't be civil in a service industry then you should NOT work in a service industry and do a job that doesn't involve dealing with the public. We do need to raise standards in the uk!

ipanemabunny · 28/03/2007 14:03

having lived in the usa, they have much higher standards and what those standards recognise (in my opinion) is that the

Customer
Is
Important!

It's that simple; anyone actually in paid employment in a service industry should at the very least be able to grasp such an easy concept!

contentiouscat · 28/03/2007 14:11

I can understand you being annoyed but NO sorry I think you were completely out of order to complain. I would have made a loud sarky comment and left it at that - her manager may be the type of person who has a quiet word or the type who will now make her life hell.

I was once told by a woman working in a supermarket that CUSTOMERS were unbelievably rude as many assumed she was not clever or as good as them because she was doing that job.

expatinscotland · 28/03/2007 14:14

'But somehow it's a bit of a feudal attitude - 'she is paid to be nice to me and if I don't get nice I'll complain to her superior [instead of addressing it with her]'. '

Spot on, berolina.

ipanemabunny · 28/03/2007 14:19

but contentiouscat, americantrish wasn't rude I don't think? I wouldn't propose over politeness to rude customers.
But in a service industry I think it is a prerequisite to have some simple forms of politeness:
saying Thank you
for example, it doesn't need to be more than that. But that cashier is representing the whole company at that moment - it really does matter I think.

I remember being a waitress and having a bad day and he pulled me over and said 'dont ever ever take it out on the customer' and I think he was right!

bundle · 28/03/2007 14:21

i complained in sainsbo's once when a checkout boy told me to sod off (I'd asked him - politely - to use the carrier bags i'd brought from hoem to pack with)

DonnyLass · 28/03/2007 14:26

I think we're commenting based on OUR ways of interacting ... that is I am sure we have all been

polite, grateful customers

and/or

polite/professional workers

However ... all too often people actually behave in the OPPOSITE way so that cocks it up for all of us.

IYKWIM???

DH is in marketing and when pitching for business with a BIG burger company they asked him to serve behind the counter for a day to get an idea of what their customers were like and staff had to deal with ... he couldn't believe how utterly horrible customer (esp the more chavvy ones) could be ...

So I am ALL for customer-is-right service (and think the UK is prety wank on that front anyway) ... but you know, sometimes customer-is-shite for the sake of it

treat as you would like to be treated -- both sides of the relationship/interaction

expatinscotland · 28/03/2007 14:27

Damn, bundle! Yeah, but was really rude of him rather than just didn't say thank you or giving a receipt.

I hate it when people go to the kiosk to buy things because they can't be arsed to wait in the till queue.

The kiosk should be limited to fags and lotto tickets and things you can't buy at the normal till.

speedymama · 28/03/2007 14:28

Sorry Bundle but I just laughed at that. You definitely had a right to complain - what a shocking attitude.

ipanemabunny · 28/03/2007 14:28

oh absolutely donny, foul customers deserve cool treatment but not nice warm friendly ones surely!!!

expatinscotland · 28/03/2007 14:30

I hate shopping in the US and all that fake arse 'politeness'. Makes me cringe. I'd rather just be left in peace.

expatinscotland · 28/03/2007 14:31

The other day, I was standing in a long kiosk queue to get DH some filters for his fags, and this git showed up with a small basket of things because he couldn't be arsed to wait in the normal queue.

Luckily it was in Leith, where some heavily tattoed biker bloke in a leather jacket shouted, 'Hey, if yer no' buying fags or lotto tickets get tae f*ck' and the bloke left.

DonnyLass · 28/03/2007 14:31

OMG Bundle -- that's so dire its hillarious!

Was in WHSMiths in Manc airport once and heard woman asking if there were any copies of a paper left (it was about 5pm) cos she couldn't see any

he said YEH

'Right, urm will you please get me one then?'

'No. I've just taken them all away. I'm not going to get one now'

'I'm sorry -- what did you just say. You're telling me you're working in a newsagents and when a customer asks you for a newspaper you're refusing to get one because its a couple of metres away from the stand?'

[several people including me turning around, misbelieveing their ears]

'Well I just can't be bothered now -- I've put them all away'

Ya gotta love em!

ipanemabunny · 28/03/2007 14:34

each to his own expat but I LOVE being treated properly, just love it. I'm the customer, look after me and everyone wins!

lol at get tae f*.

rolledhedgehog · 28/03/2007 14:34

I worked in shops and a restaurant in my younger days and to be honest while on the till I would be in a sort of trance as it is so repetitive and I would say please and thank you automatically - bad day or not. It really annoys me when I don't get a please and thank you from staff in shops and even more when they say nothing througout the whole transaction. It is like they have decided to be as impolite as possible without actually telling you to f* off.

I have felt like complaining many times but I am too lazy but I usually say 'Thank you so much' in a sarcasitc tone which makes me feel slightly better.

DonnyLass · 28/03/2007 14:35

ipanemabunny

spot on

foul customer = cooler treatment
nice customer = great teatment

dont always go with the customer-is-right approach but do think you should work from a place where there should be mutual respect!

expatinscotland · 28/03/2007 14:38

I don't think being sucked up to equates to being treated properly.

In the US, it's hard to even shop in peace sometimes for all the 'greeting' and 'assistance' that goes on.

Drives me spare.

Gawd, I'm glad to be away from taht.

speedymama · 28/03/2007 14:44

I was in the Co-op once and as I arrived at the till to be served, the young lady's mobile phone rang and she answered. She then proceeded to tell the other person about what had happened when she went to the pub the previous evening. The queue is getting longer, I say "excuse me", and she turns her back and continues talking. Another worker comes over, gives her a filthy look, opens the till and apologises.

I hope she was disciplined.

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