Was I out of line?

I had to stop at the market tonight on my way home from work to pick up a few things and to get a prescription at the pharmacy. Apparently, I wasn't the only one with this idea because the market was packed. So I grabbed what I needed (2 cans of dog food, a loaf of bread and creamer for hubby's coffee) and went to get my prescription. There was no one else there (waiting or picking up), and the 2 people behind the counter were just standing around talking so I asked if she minded ringing up my other 4 items so I didn't have to stand in line for 10 minutes waiting to be cashed out. She acted like I just asked her to walk to China, and gave me the dirtiest look! She said (rolling her eyes...) "well, I guess so, but I wouldn't be able to if there were people in line behind you." I said "If there were people waiting behind me, I wouldn't ask you to!"

So, with a heavy sigh, she spent another 10 seconds scanning my other 4 items..basically slamming them on the counter as she did it. I wouldn't even have asked but I've had people at the pharmacy actually offer to ring up items with my prescriptions if I only have a few, so I don't think it was a case of keeping pharmacy totals separate from regular market sales. In any case, if it IS against policy she could have just said that and I would have been on my merry way to wait in line with 100 other people. Or she just could have been NICE about it! Sheesh...

I know it's stupid, but her attitude just burned me up! Was I out of line for even asking her to do that?

We do that all the time, and the people who work at the pharmacy are happy to do it. So no - her attitude is out of line! In fact, even if there WERE a line you should be able to check out a few items!

I don't think so. You had a simple request! It's not like you asked her to ring up 40 other things.

It would have made me mad too!

Wow we never had a problem.
The only problem for us is they can not ring up fruits and vegies.

No, you were not out of line to ask. You were reasonable, she was not. Even if the person who did it previously for you shouldn't have, this person only needed to say politely, "Sorry, not allowed to do that". I guess she took her full dose of nasty pills this morning.

She was out of line, not you. In fact I would have asked for her name and reported her for that attitude.

Wow, some people! That wasnt out of line at all, once I was in Walmart buying one or two items (I think it was a mothers day card for my mom) and the lines were miles long and this old man walked up to me and told me to go over to the pharmacy because there isnt a line and they don't mind doing it!

Nope, not out of line at all. I have noticed that clerks/cashiers all over the place are less and less respectful of the customers (who ARE paying their wages) and they are getting sloppy (er) than ever. I made a simple request of a cashier at a grocery to double paper bag frozen stuff and she got all huffy and slammed things around, told me it wasn't her job to listen to customers because she is trained to know what to do, and on and on. When she stopped to take a breath, I asked her if she really liked her job, and got a glare and more things thrown roughly into bags. On the way out, I 'cornered' the cart boy, a good friend of mine, whinged at him for a minute, and he sent me back to the store to talk to the grocery manager. I did. Told him about the attitude of the clierk, and he started looking at her in a rather angry manner. I did mention that I may well be persuaded to take my custom (almost 40 years) elsewhere. She was gone the next week. So, get the name, or at least the checkout number, and if the manager has any balls at all, steps WILL be taken to sort out the problems. This can be anything from customer relations training to out and out sacking of the offending employee, particularly if the employee is a repeat offender. That said, the same store has improved its staff training in the last couple of years - guess there was a huge uproar over the insolent and indolent new staff members.

Darn, I deal with store clerks every day. Do not we all? Blow it off. make no mind of it.

To the OP: She was out of line... I would report her. In a calm fashion. No scathing letter, just calm.

As for sk_pacer's comments. As one of those retail clerks, please keep in mind this is usually not our first choice of jobs, but with the way things are, we take what we get. When I moved here to Portland, I really never expected to stay very long at my current job. I'd find something better and move up in the world. Guess what? I've been there almost three years next month. Do I have my bad days? Yes. But I do my best to not take it out on my customers. Do customers have bad days? Oh dear, all the time. I had a lady today throw a bolt of fabric onto the table, hitting me. She cut in line, and was a huffy rude snip. People like that make our days bad. I go in there with a smile... some of those same days, I leave work hating the world because someone was rude to me.

I can agree, to a point, that general customer service skills are not trained into people as well anymore. I see it a lot. This is why we get compliments at our store that we go above and beyond normal. I still do get folks who seem to think that us retail clerks are not much more than machines, or something similar. We are human beings. We have good days and bad days. We get sick, and then healthy again (and sometimes my coworkers don't recover, as we've lost a few to cancer). We have families and lives, struggles like everyone else, sometimes even moreso, because we're living on minimum wage or a tiny bit more. We're tired, and in pain. I can't walk right now because I just did my eight hour shift there today on a concrete floor. It hurts. And until you walk in our shoes, don't judge us.

Sure, some clerks really aren't cut out for working with the public. I had one at a shoe shop on Monday. I walked out, and that store has lost whatever business I was willing to give it. But most of us aren't that way. I may gripe about how cruddy my pay is, and the pain, but there are parts of my job I love. I tell people: if you want my respect, you gotta earn it. Don't walk into stores and be demanding, and expect to be respected. You'll get talked about in the break room. And it won't be nice. Raising a fuss, in an angry way, may get the person fired. You don't know how that person's day was going. Maybe her boyfriend left her the day before? Maybe she'd just had a rude, nasty customer and didn't have a chance to calm down before getting you. We come into people's lives for brief moments and we don't know their past or their future. But you did just cost that girl her job. Maybe she'd had other incidents, who knows. But calmly talking with a manager, not showing anger, but calmly talking to them, gets better results.

I know this is going on long, but I'm very chatty on this subject.

I had a lady at my register once who had "See ID" on the back of her credit card. it is our policy to always check, if it is requested (or unsigned, etc). She thanked me for checking. She then told me about when she goes into other stores. If the clerk looks on the back of the card and doesn't ask, she calmly finishes the transaction, and walks up to a manager. She calmly explains to them that this clerk didn't ask for her ID, which is a security risk for both the customers AND the store. That maybe the clerk needs to be reminded of what he/she needs to do. Not every store trains thoroughly anymore, which is sad.

I'm sorry... I just feel very strongly for the other side of the counter. I work on that side!

RubSluts'Mommy - I was in retail, at various times, and probably in one of the worst places possible....Kiddie and Thug Hangout INternatio........er 7-11. I have been robbed, verbally assaulted, had kids throw things at me, you name it. I gave it up and went to work in a car wash where my most agressive customer would blow stinky cigar smoke around and blow hot air. The worst I had to deal with there, cigar smoke aside, were people opening air freshners and making me sneeze. Have also worked in bars, and around here, with cowboys and oil riggers, it is pretty rough. So I DO know how it is dealing with people all day, but it is no excuse for some teenager to snark and snipe at every single customer all day long, nor is it right to have to put up with the abuse as a customer. Of the lot hired that year, only ONE is left, and she is good - at least she is pleasant, her worst fault is she went to grocery packing school where they teach them to put 3 pounds of margarine and 2 litres of milk on top of the bread or other fragile items . I got smart and bring my own bags and pack them myself. At any rate, I also know both sides of the counter

Originally Posted by sk_pacer

RubSluts'Mommy - I was in retail, at various times, and probably in one of the worst places possible....Kiddie and Thug Hangout INternatio........er 7-11. I have been robbed, verbally assaulted, had kids throw things at me, you name it. I gave it up and went to work in a car wash where my most agressive customer would blow stinky cigar smoke around and blow hot air. The worst I had to deal with there, cigar smoke aside, were people opening air freshners and making me sneeze. Have also worked in bars, and around here, with cowboys and oil riggers, it is pretty rough. So I DO know how it is dealing with people all day, but it is no excuse for some teenager to snark and snipe at every single customer all day long, nor is it right to have to put up with the abuse as a customer. Of the lot hired that year, only ONE is left, and she is good - at least she is pleasant, her worst fault is she went to grocery packing school where they teach them to put 3 pounds of margarine and 2 litres of milk on top of the bread or other fragile items

. I got smart and bring my own bags and pack them myself. At any rate, I also know both sides of the counter

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The person I was dealing with was not a teenager but some more my age (30-40). I really don't understand WHY they learn to pack the bags that way. Is there a reason why all the dog and cat food cans have to be in the same bag while I have 1 bag that has nothing but a thing of shampoo in it?? Can't they even things out??

And, as for dealing with stupid people...well..that has to be another thread.

I only responded the way i did because so many times I get people who've never worked any retail in their lives and they complain about how cruddy CS people are and they have no clue what it's like on this side of the counter. I get people like that in my store all the time. I can tell by how they treat us. It sounded, by part of "sk's" comment, that it was that type of situation. I am sorry for sounding snippy. I had a long day and what with the *witch* throwing a bolt of fabric at me, I wasn't always in the best of moods. Even one of our managers noticed I was a little 'bleh' today.

I will agree that there has been a real downturn in the way retail clerks deal with the public. I see it from both sides of the counter. The teenaged clerk needed an attitude adjustment. The older clerk also mentioned needs to learn to pack the bags the right way. Depending on the stores, they range from little to no training, to uber-training sessions galore. I've had them all. But if you simply thank them, walk away and politely talk to a manager, it accomplishes a lot more, and keeps everyone in a reasonable mood. Anger/bad attitudes/frustration is a lot like a drop of water in a puddle... you are the drop of water and you affect the people you come in contact with, who then also get into a negative mood, who then turn and pass on that bad attitude to everyone else... that ripple effect can turn a lot of people sour in a very short time. You may want to have a clerk fired, but if you try a tiny bit of being polite (to them, to managers, etc), that also has a ripple effect.

Well, pain meds are taking effect... must go sleep now.

Not a problem - I do understand and if I hadn't given up the city life in favour of racing and farming, would still be punching til buttons or tending bar. I try to avoid shopping as much as possible unless shopping is in a tack shop, hardware store or lumber yard; I avoid all other shopping like the plague until I MUST buy groceries.

I know that at the pharmacy at our local Wal-Mart, if there's not a line at the check-out, they're more than happy to check out your other stuff. They even volunteer to do it. Of course, you ARE required to pay for your prescriptions at the pharmacy.

Of course you were not out of line. There was no one behind you and no rule that says they couldn't ring up other sales with your script. My pharmacy also allows us to do that. This person just didn't want to be interrupted cuz she was talking with her co-workers instead of doing her job.

I agree with everyone else. You were not out of line, the clerk was.

I do not know how your pharmacy is run, but here: If the pharmacy isn't busy ( filling prescriptions ) they will check you out if you have a few items... (not if you have a shopping cart full). You don't need to ask, etc.

If the pharmacy is busy, then they will ask you to go up front. One does not have to pay for medications at the pharmacy, you can pay for them up front as when they are prepared the amount owing is on a sticker on the bag

But even if there is people waiting for prescriptions, as long as the pharmacy itself is not busy, they will still check you out

I love the pharmacy I go to.

You were indeed out of line for asking a cashier who works next to a cash register to ring up a few things in the store while they are working a shift and getting paid for it! How dare you, I hope you don't go around treating all people like this.

Originally Posted by RubSluts'Mommy

I had a lady at my register once who had "See ID" on the back of her credit card. it is our policy to always check, if it is requested (or unsigned, etc). She thanked me for checking. She then told me about when she goes into other stores. If the clerk looks on the back of the card and doesn't ask, she calmly finishes the transaction, and walks up to a manager. She calmly explains to them that this clerk didn't ask for her ID, which is a security risk for both the customers AND the store. That maybe the clerk needs to be reminded of what he/she needs to do. Not every store trains thoroughly anymore, which is sad.

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Know what's weird about that? It's against the credit card companies' rules to require I.D (they're allowed to ask, but can't do anything if someone refuses), and a store could lose their credit card privileges for trying to require I.D., same as if they accepted an unsigned card. I just learned that and thought it was interesting. Around here nobody asks for I.D., but when I went to California for vacation, all the stores asked for it.

Here's the official Visa policy: "Although Visa rules do not preclude merchants from asking for cardholder ID, merchants cannot make an ID a condition of acceptance. Therefore, merchants cannot refuse to complete a purchase transaction because a cardholder refuses to provide ID. Visa believes merchants should not ask for ID as part of their regular card acceptance procedures."

I work for the Post Office, and you wouldn't believe how mad some people get when we tell them we can't accept unsigned cards. It's for their own protection, but wow! Especially since this is a small town and we know most of the people. But it's still against the rules to ever accept an unsigned card. Official Visa policy: "An unsigned card is considered invalid and should not be accepted".

Originally Posted by Willowy

Know what's weird about that? It's against the credit card companies' rules to require I.D (they're allowed to ask, but can't do anything if someone refuses), and a store could lose their credit card privileges for trying to require I.D., same as if they accepted an unsigned card. I just learned that and thought it was interesting. Around here nobody asks for I.D., but when I went to California for vacation, all the stores asked for it.

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That's funny... I get Californians up here in our store thanking me for asking, as no one apparently ever does it at home. Our store rules are the following: If a card is unsigned, says See ID, and the signatures don't match (between slip and back of card), we ask for ID. Some of the ladies ask no matter what. If the card is signed, and it matches, then you aren't supposed to ask. You take it as valid.

Here's the official Visa policy: "Although Visa rules do not preclude merchants from asking for cardholder ID, merchants cannot make an ID a condition of acceptance. Therefore, merchants cannot refuse to complete a purchase transaction because a cardholder refuses to provide ID. Visa believes merchants should not ask for ID as part of their regular card acceptance procedures."

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Okay, someone at Visa needs a clue. In this day and age with identity theft running rampant, you'd think they'd be happy someone out there is making sure the person handing them the card really is the actual cardholder. I had a lady once who went bonkers on me when I suggested she needed to put something on the back of her card, either sign it or See ID. I think she had a few screw loose (and really needed some meds), because she told me, 'if I write anything back there, then THEY will know my handwriting and can copy it' Yeah, okay, whatever lady, go back on your meds now. What I never got the chance to tell her was that if it's left blank, and your card is stolen, they can sign whatever they want and it's VALID! She was really rude anyway... I never had her at my register again... thank God.

I work for the Post Office, and you wouldn't believe how mad some people get when we tell them we can't accept unsigned cards. It's for their own protection, but wow! Especially since this is a small town and we know most of the people. But it's still against the rules to ever accept an unsigned card. Official Visa policy: "An unsigned card is considered invalid and should not be accepted".

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I sometimes point that out to the ones who aren't hostile. If they read the printing under the signing area, it says, "Not Valid Unless Signed." I sign all my cards. Period.

Back to the original topic... hijack over... for now.