WIBU To ask for a different lady to scan my shopping?

[goodoldsussexbythesea]

I do my big shop in Tesco once a week. I usually have around 100 items. I do scan as you shop and I seem to get picked a lot for a random basket check. Fine.
There's one lady who always seems to be working on the self-scan when I go in. She's an older lady and she is incredibly slow. It's so frustrating as I usually don't have a lot of time.
I don't just mean a little bit slow either. I mean about 10 seconds or so between scanning each item. With lots of sighing and breaks and stopping. I think last time she could see the frustration on my face because she said "it's stressful, isn't it?" and I'm like yes... because you are being so slow (didn't say this out loud). I almost asked if she'd like to give me the scanner and let me do it for her but I didn't want to be rude.
Last time, the scanner was telling her she needed to scan over 80 items so it took absolutely forever.
And she puts it all back into the bags wrong too.

So anyway, today I went to tesco, got selected for random bag check and saw this lady was on. My heart sank. I needed to rush home and put it all way and then go on the school run. I didn't need another 20 minutes adding on. She started making her way very slowly towards me and I said, in the politest voice I could muster "do you mind if your colleauge does it?" She looked really taken back so I said "it's just I'm in a bit of a rush, sorry" I tried to look as apologetic as I could but she looked really confused and a bit upset.

The colleague heard the conversation, came over and started scanning. I was out of there and in my care in under 5 minutes.

I feel so bad though. I don't like upsetting people and I keep thinking of her face. I just couldn't do it though, it's so bloody painful.

I don't want to be mean enough to say anything to her supervisor but I really don't think she should be on that section. She should be sitting down on one of the tills, where she's not on her feet and customers haven't chosen a quicker option.

WIBU?

Dont be ridiculous. She didnt treat her badly - this woman had even admitted to the OP she finds this part of the job v stressful which means she isnt suited to it and should be placed elsewhere in the shop. Politely requesting someone else do it isnt "treating someone badly" FFS.

Now, if she had sworn at her or insulted her or spat at her, yes, that would be treating her badly.

Good grief.

Have you never heard of reasonable adjustments- it's a legal requirement? if someone is disabled and is finding parts of a job stressful and its making them feel flustered then the sensible thing would be to move them into another area of the shop that isnt so stressful or time bound for them. Eg stock checks or refilling shelves for example. Something that is more appropriate to their capabilities.

To keep them in a role that is causing stress for them AND the customer is crap and its disingenuous to imply the only two options this woman has are: carry on in this specific role at work OR be sacked/not have a job at all.

You what?

Honestly, I think her “admitting” she finds it stressful too was probably a really awkward attempt at addressing OPs impatient look. She likely didnt even mean it, she just wanted to align with her to break through the tension.

I shouldn’t laugh, but this is hilarious. I can totally see why you are pissed off every single week dealing with her. Fair play to you for asking for someone else.
I’m such a people pleaser that I’d have stood there all day letting her scan everything.

It will probably give her a kick up the arse. You can’t be the only person frustrated with her.

I think the suggestion about doing one small Tesco order online, which should then allow you to do larger online orders in the future is a good idea.

Even if this is true, the fact its taking her so long when its not taking others that long indicates there might be an issue for her (tiredness/coordination etc) and putting a time pressure on someone who is already finding it hard isnt a good idea. There are other jobs in the shop she could do that dont carry the pressure of customers waiting.

This seems glaringly obvious to me

You’ve had a lot of grief on here op with many not reading your answers.
to answer your original op you are absolutely not being unreasonable to ask said lady not to do it! It’s that’s simple. If tescos want to check people’s self scan they must be able to staff it with people who can do it swiftly and efficiently. I would be making a complaint if they weren’t able to do so ( in this case they did ) perhaps this woman could be employed in the store elsewhere

If scan and shop is so fraught with problems and customers can't be trusted (either incompetent or dishonest), why do the shops have it as an option in the first place?

Either they accept that some people might genuinely forget to scan some items and others will deliberately not scan some stuff, but they accept the pay-off of much less in staff wages for them, or they just don't offer it.

Incidentally, I bet there are at least some people who will accidentally scan items twice and others who will change their mind and put a scanned item back on the shelf, but forget to 'unscan' it first - so they end up paying more than what their shopping actually costs!

All this bearing in mind that determined hardline shoplifters will just fill their rucksacks or hold-alls and walk out with it, unchallenged, without going anywhere near any format of checkout at all...

I'm still absolutely not getting why so many people are urging OP to move to online deliveries, and suggesting how to overcome any issues that she has - when it clearly works better/is preferential for her to go and shop in-person in the store, for whatever reason.

It seems mad that she should be expected to shop using a method that she doesn't want to/has issues with, just because of one single employee who makes normal shopping in the store untenable. It's not even like it helps this employee long-term, if her slowness drives everybody online - as she may well then find herself out of a job, if the one that she currently does (and hugely struggles with) really is the only one available for her.

I do online shopping i pretty much do online for everything now.
I cant cope with shops, the ques the people the faffing, some staff just the whole thing really.

So what do you propose companies like the one this supposedly 'slow lady' works for do?
Do you think she should be turfed out of her job (which maybe a job she's been doing in the same place for years) because she's slower than she used to be?

The OP has no idea how long the lady has worked for the company, or what she may be going through in her own life. Maybe she's developed a few health issues lately which make working a bit harder for her. Do you think her bosses should tell her 'sorry, we know you've been a good loyal employee, but now as times go on you're a bit past it and not fit for purpose any more so you know where the door is'?

Do you think they should move her elsewhere in the store? If so, where? Doing deliveries and putting stock out? You do realise that might even be more difficult for her.

@goodoldsussexbythesea said herself that another colleague came over when she asked for someone else to check her shopping, so clearly there are other staff members about who can step in to help if necessary.

So anyway, today I went to tesco, got selected for random bag check and saw this lady was on.

OP said they went today, (on the day they posted) I can’t see any mention of a Thursday in the OP

OP - you’ve been given a hard time here, some posters will do anything to go off at a tangent to derail a thread or harangue you about some other loosely related detail. I’m surprised no one has brought Wes Streeting or Katie Price’s husband into it!

But what you’re describing with the scanning would drive me nuts. I hear you, and I feel your pain.

The scan and go is basically the same as the self service tills, except people do their scanning while they're shopping and not at the end, so why bother with self service tills also you could say.

I'm guessing you've either never worked in retail, or you haven't worked in it since the introduction of self service tills, because if you had you would know that most shoplifters DO approach the self service tills and pay for a few items, whilst 'forgetting' to scan their expensive ones. It happens all the time.

And it's remarkable how people always know if they've accidentally rang an item in twice, and will ask a staff member to remove it, but they never usually realise when they've not rang in a couple of bottles of wine or boxes of dog food. Funny that 🙄

So you're wrong in stating that hard-line shoplifters will fill their bags and walk out. Yes, shoplifters often do do that, but the majority of them are stealing in plain sight on the self service tills, trust me.

Scan and shop not self scan

😂😂😂

what world do you live in? I frequently nip into a supermarket and don’t expect my shopping to be scanned!

YANBU @goodoldsussexbythesea - I recommend next time you are bag checked, go to customer service and ask them to check your account as you seem to be getting a lot of them. This is what we did when we had the same (on the recommendation of staff) as they told us that sometimes if you're picked once, the system puts in you in a cycle which can be long! Whatever they did sorted it out for us (PS husband works for a Tesco sister company so a bit weird we were checked every week).

Also, not sure why everyone is trying to get you to do an online shop when it's absolutely fine to just ask for someone else. We all shop to suit ourselves and our family, not sure why you're being asked to consider someone else's feelings quite so much.

With a big shop I find it easier just to use a manned checkout.

My mum wrote a shopping list on the back of packaging from a premium brand of ready meal fish pie and I somehow scanned the barcode accidentally. Sainsbury's gifted £9.50 by my mistake!

You missed this update:

Sorry. This week was a one off. My boss asked me to do a couple of extra hours at the pub I work in at weekends tomorrow (I take my daughter with me to this btw and she sits quietly in the staff room, it's a tiny family pub with a friendly and understanding owner), so as a return favour I asked him to pay me early so I could do the shopping today instead of tomorrow and this has totally thrown me and made me think today is Thursday when its Wednesday.

OP has not advocated for the staff member to be dismissed, especially in the overdramatic way you have childishly conjured up.

The question was, was she unreasonable to request the other available staff member instead.

You think SWBU and I think she wasn't. That's all that was required here.

We have a tesco delivery every Friday morning.
The money is never in the account until Friday morning, which is when tesco take their payment.

Checking 80 items on a Scan and Shop is ridiculous!

I'm finding it funny that posters (who have clearly never worked in retail!) being like just move her to another department like stocking shelves, yes doing fill and dragging around cages and hefting products up onto shelves is notoriously much easier physically than serving on self service or tills . Realistically, serve is probably the most appropriate place for the woman.

I've worked in a supermarket for 20 years and never seen one this high even on a double trolley Christmas shop I think there is some exaggerating going on in this post