To think that customers are behaving in an increasingly unreasonable, rude and aggressive manner?

[TheyBrokeMeToday]

Customer service. Love my wee job. The customers broke me today. So much rudeness, aggressiveness and just general unreasonableness. It seems to be becoming a very regular thing lately. Anyone else? Broken.

Wow...thats disgusting....reminds me when I volunteered in local charity shop, woman went into changing room with some dungarees.....used them as a toilet / nappy....then put them back on the rail....I discovered the mess inside later and actually screamed !!

There have always been unpleasant customers. If it has got worse, I think company policies (of too many companies maybe not the one an individual is dealing with) have contributed. Though that is not the fault of the person who gets abuse from a customer.

Oh no op! I feel for you (and all retail workers) I hate people more and more !! Is it food or clothes you work in?

I respond to enquiries via my workplace Facebook account. Fuck me. Most impatient, rude, ill mannered bastards going. Certainly never used to be as bad! If anyone is really rude I just ignore them and watch them blow up.

This. No doubt some customers are rude but I am not and I’ve had increasingly terrible service since covid hit.

I work in a supermarket....today i answered the phone and a lady asked if she could come in at the weekend and pick up 60 to 70 £1 coins...I said no we cannot supply change and she got really stroppy....asked why can't i order it in...i told her no again as we are not a bank and she hung up on me.....totally bizarre.

I don't work in retail, but I do work with the public, some people are completely off the scale at the moment (up to and including threats of physical harm) and many are just incredibly rude and aggressive. This is often without any reason, it is fairly rubbish to be working with or for the public at the moment.

Also, no one seems to just live alongside each other, so much drama about little things.

I agree @whitefire. I work in a public service (although not customer service) and I genuinely have lost count how many times I've been threatened/shouted at/talked over.
OP- can I offer some advice? Don't refer to your salaried, professional role as a wee job. That kind of mindset/thought pattern means that arseholes will sniff you out and think you are an easy target.
One thing I've learnt to say is 'I'm going to finish what I was saying; blah blah blah" and if they're still going I just totally disassociate and say 'if you're not satisfied with those options I can get my senior/manager/whatever for you'
Just cool, dead eyed, grey rock

I hear all these stories

ive been spat at,sexually assaulted 6 times in 6 years (and called a liar when I wrote that on here),swung at,been spoken to like im scum,had pissheads/druggies start on me,sworn at-the list is endless

i once helped a lady put her order in,she paid and turned round to tell me that ‘you are utter scum,now fuck off and leave me alone you fucking bitch’ her young grandchildren who where stood next to her,didn’t bat an eyelid

i always have a smile and a friendly,helpful and ‘can do’ attitude-even when I feel like telling someone to fuck off

just today,I asked someone if I could help as I could see he was struggling with our self service machine-so he swung at me (thankfully he missed and stormed out)

police do fuck all-even though the whole building has cctv

99% of our customers are fantastic-it’s that 1%

Customer service has plummeted, dare to set foot in our bank on the High Street and some bloody rottweiler is barking at you before you are through the door. One member of staff refused to let me get a chair for my 89 year old Dad, one teller on and a queue a mile long, told me i couldn't move the chair because of covid and he would just have to stand like everyone else or come back another day. I wasn't polite when i replied to her, every time i walk in there now she disappears

I genuinely believe that no one knows how to resolve conflict. They don't have experience of being listened to, validated, and either a wrong being corrected, or having the thing explained. Often when you raise a valid complaint in the most neutral language possible the other person takes offence, with negative consequences. You often get shut down as being rude or abusive, especially if you're young. Probably worse if you're a person of colour. Add into the mix not enough staff so you have to wait for ages, staff not necessarily being trained in their processes (not their fault), clunky systems needing other people to authorise actions, being put on hold, passed from pillar to post, listening to awful hold music, the sheer amount of time it takes to resolve something, and I'm not surprised people sometimes explode.

I do appreciate that some people are just awful for no reason.

Oh my gosh I think i remember you - do you work at McDonald’s or BK?

I'm afraid that I have found that often I will try to patiently explain to a customer WHY something isn't what they think it is ..and I will be rudely cut off with a statement that they KNOW they are right, and they will listen to nothing else..quite often they have marched off to gather evidence to prove this and have to come back and admit that I was telling them the truth. It baffles me that anyone thinks I would deliberately mislead them about something..I mean I do this job because I actively want to make people happy..my customers, my employer, my colleagues, and actually myself too. Its bonkers really.

That is both horrific and hilarious

I agree. I used to love my job. Never dreaded going in. Now I have sleepless nights and worry all weekend because of the most horrendous customer complaints and demands. Our customer care is online so at least I don’t have to face them. They seem to have so much entitlement and think customer care can solve everything. They don’t realise that several departments control us and our requests and opinions are rarely if ever taken into consideration. We fight for the customer but no one cares. I can bend over backwards for a customer and do all I can and I never even get a thank you.

The only genuine thank you I have had in 4 years was from someone who wasn’t even a customer. A relative was and I helped her in a very difficult situation and she was so lovely to me I cried after reading her email.

Mcdonalds
i swear it’s getting worse-I’m on the verge of quitting as I’ve had enough

I worked in hospitality for years and couldn't be happier to not be dealing with the public anymore.

But I do also think that customer service is shocking too.

The amount of times I've been at the till or waiting for staff members who I can see (and hear) chatting to their mates or texting someone is ridiculous.

Tbh, I'm over it. If a staff member is rude to me I'll make zero effort as well.

In the past I’ve worked in both retail and hospitality roles, I feel for anyone dealing with customers at times.

I’ve noticed that the biggest issue at the moment is lack of staffing, and staff being fully trained. I know this isn’t the front facing staff fault , working hard and dealing with irate customers. It’s down to lack of staff availability, poor pay, lack of flexibility, bad management and customers attitude. Though I’ve been stood in shop with 2 members of staff & massive queue - management hiding.

I came across a Facebook page slagging off the company I work for.
Most people aren't happy with something that is clearly out if anyone's control due to the situation in the world right now.
However this man is winding people up and has suggested visiting staff homes if they wfh.

Obviously completely impossible to do and I'm not concerned but WTAF

I'm never rude to people who work in customer service, but some of the services provided these days are utterly appalling. Hello Fresh, looking at you, thanks for the mouldy produce and missed deliveries .

I used to work in a high street store and, when I moved to the NHS was struck by the difference in attitude when the public were patients rather than customers as I was treated with respect and politeness but not any more!
It seems as though everybody has become very demanding and have just lost all filters and ability to deal with others with any kind of respect or kindness.

I'm not surprised at this at all. I can see a similar situation evolving at my workplace. It's very worrying.

I agree with you. Fairly sick of the eye rolling and sighing over a simple question.

On the flip side, customer service in most industries has become increasingly appalling since Covid.

I'm seeing both sides.
Far too many entitled customers who seem to know their rights for some reason but I'm also seeing a lot more aloof and snippy staff .
Clearly a corroboration but still annoying.