There is nothing positive to achieve from being vile towards retail staff. Why act this way?

[uihd]

Yesterday evening I bought a few items from a supermarket on the way home from work. There were some customers being very rude and disrespectful towards the staff. It has got worse in the past 5 years.

Why do people think it’s ok to act like this? What do they want to achieve with this attitude? Do they realise that people are leaving retail and avoiding looking for work in the retail sector due to their behaviour?

Nothing positive can be achieved from acting like this. If people get a kick out of this, they are just pathetic people.

The staff in supermarkets have no control over
. Prices
. Stock availability
. Products that have been discontinued. Both in store stop selling it and brand stops making it
. Staffing issues
. The number of self checkouts installed
. The law
. Company policies
. Lottery rules

I have done my share in working in retail. Never I want to do that again

I think it's best if we just agree to disagree

Absolute bollocks, I worked in retail int he 80s there wasnt a single day in the two years I did it went by when I wasnt yelled at by some rude twat.

I worked in retail for nearly 20 years, I finally got out a couple of years ago when I became a cleaner.
I’ve been disrespected in so many ways over the years for things I have no control over.
I think if everyone had to work a stint in retail or hospitality people would be more respectful.
I’m always kind to retail staff, too many Christmas’s in retail have made me loath working with the public.

They are really not invested in training people well unless they can see an increase in profit because of it. If people quit it’s not that big a deal. There will always be people ready to take that job.

Sadly some people look down on retail workers... actually they are the same people that look down on anyone "less" than them.
Couple that with a bad day, and they turn into knobs.

They have beef with the store, but take it out with the person on the shop floor.

Most tips you now have to register as a resident so assume a lot will try and use the facility who may not live there.

Workers will say no, person will kick off.

Well yes, if someone’s rudeness tips over into offensive, they can be banned, but the bar is pretty high for rudeness to ban someone from a large store.

(I do remember years ago doing a stint in a call centre and having to put up with being shouted at and called stupid but the bar for hanging up on someone was swearing, we’d get in trouble for just hanging up on someone ranting, I had many miserable calls when I was positively giddy when they finally swore so I could terminate the call.)

Sadly, a lot of people know they can push really quite a long way before they get any sort of negative consequence. The cunts of this world dance in that space beyond where a kind person would step and before managers of large companies will take action.

Good manners cost nothing and take you far.

Sadly not my invention :)

It's a book by Cory Doctorow.

Voted YANBU, but people behaving like this is generally due to their personal inability to regulate their emotions. Forr sone thats because they don't know how, for others they don't realise that they should and for some they just can't due to MH, medical, medication or drugs etc.

Quite right its nothing positive, but unfortunately those dysregulated folk won't understand or care, sadly.

The training in store is an interesting one. It's a kind of double edged sword as staff are cut to the absolute bare minimum, which is especially dire if one or 2 ppl call sick plus a couple on annual leave. In the past newbies would be buddied up with someone for at least their first 2 days to learn the ropes now there is not the ratio of staff to be able to do that and so they're kind of thrown into the deep end from day one. There are ofc endless online trainings of heath and safety, cyber security, fire safety, etc etc there is product training but even as an experienced person the way to learn about the products is to work with them and sell them not watch videos about them!!

Our vets have been physically assaulted numerous times. We're a charity vets helping to treat the animals of owners that can't afford private treatment. We are only trying to help the animals, and yet the owners can be so awful that police have to be called regularly and owners have put vets in hospital. Of course many are lovely and grateful. But some people's default mode does seem to be confrontational and unpleasant.

I work in customer service but on the phones. I agree it has got significantly worse over the last few years. People can be extremely entitled & act like they are owed whatever they demand! The crazy thing is that if someone is nice & polite, I’ll bend over backwards to move processes & speak to senior managers as much as I can to help achieve why they want. On the other hand, there are. Lot of things I dont need ANY approval to decline if they are being obnoxious 🤷🏻‍♀️

I remember going to a PDSA vets, and they had plastic screens up (this was long before Covid) and multiple signs up saying that abuse of the staff will not be tolerated.

Why would people do.that