The thing that gets me is that I can guarantee the team want extra staff on much more than complaining customers. You spent 5 minutes of your day frustrated because you had to wait in line? Cool, I've been here for 8 hours running around doing the job of three people and getting yelled at by people who don't think I'm doing it quickly enough.
This, so much. Although it happened with pretty much any bitch from a customer.
Like sorry Kevin but I promise you whatever problem you have with this store, I have a bigger one
We’re short staffed because what retail store isn’t and we recently got two self check outs. The amount of ‘they’re taking your jobs’ comments is mad when I’m literally stood right there. I’m still on the till and I hop back and forth when the SCOs need something - really annoying - and yet people still tell me this when I’m doing my job. If anything what it’s meant is the person who is back up to the till can mostly crack on with their job rather than constantly being back and forth to the till.
But the people who are cashiers are still very much in that role. Plus the more people who use those tills show how busy we are because it’s 2-3 tills being used often rather than one till and an occasional burst of sales on another till. I told a guy the other day who was using a SCO till while I stood nearby sorting bags out while it was quiet that it actually gave us more hours when he said it will replace me; he said that they were lying and we’re basically idiots for believing that and it’s like I literally had a shift entirely off the till because of those extras hours but sure random customer I’ll believe you more!
I hate those comments so much. The SCO machines don't even work right without someone watching them. They aren't taking jobs if they need constant supervision
our store mainly works with self checkouts. (Love it)
As long as people are too dumb/lazy to read and tap a screen. My job is more than fine.
If no one is there watching it like a hawk for an hour, I guarantee you it will grind down to a complete standstill of idiots looking confused why the card machine won't take their card when the machine is still on the screen of how they want to pay or if they have a customer card.
100%! As though I’m colluding with the company to help the machines replace me, whilst they also hate using them because they require effort on their end. Like people get really angry that they have to press three buttons on the screen when they’re done to get the card machine to work.
Why can’t people understand that the stockholders and corporate executives hoard all the money and run stores on a shoestring. Quit yelling at employees and either boycott, vote to raise the minimum wage or write your congress rep to lobby for a maximum wage cap. Oh yeah, fuck off with your attitude
Yup. Why pay for a proper staff when you can pay one person to do the job of five then blame poor performance for why it's just so hard to pay a living wage?
Yeah the “we are taking applications” response always works. Because it gives them a moment of clarity where they consider what working in that store may actually be like.
Indeed. The bean counters on high in every retail business look at every nickel. Sales down, shrink too high, prices from vendors or rent going up, you name it.
If the projected budgets aren't being met, then short staffing will surely follow. I've read many an email about sending people home early, or been on the business end of an unreasonably tight amount of budgeted hours being doled out.
>(customers don’t know this juicy tidbit, but corporate allocates labor hours to the stores based on that store’s sales and soft foot traffic/Units Per Transaction data means that we’re given less hours to staff the store, which means fewer people to help customers).
This has always been the most shortsighted strategy. A store is dipping in sales so we limit the amount of labor hours, reducing the quality of the service given due to the larger workload on a smaller crew, leading to improper rotation and an overall decline in productivity, quality, and morale and an even greater decrease in foot traffic.
And then they go "why hasn't the margin on this store improved? Better can 1/3 of the staff!"
An amputee could steer the ship better.
The thing that gets me is that I can guarantee the team want extra staff on much more than complaining customers. You spent 5 minutes of your day frustrated because you had to wait in line? Cool, I've been here for 8 hours running around doing the job of three people and getting yelled at by people who don't think I'm doing it quickly enough.
This, so much. Although it happened with pretty much any bitch from a customer. Like sorry Kevin but I promise you whatever problem you have with this store, I have a bigger one
Chatting with the kids and teens helps. I ask the kids “you bored?” *they nod* “Good news, you’ll be outta here sooner than I will.”
We’re short staffed because what retail store isn’t and we recently got two self check outs. The amount of ‘they’re taking your jobs’ comments is mad when I’m literally stood right there. I’m still on the till and I hop back and forth when the SCOs need something - really annoying - and yet people still tell me this when I’m doing my job. If anything what it’s meant is the person who is back up to the till can mostly crack on with their job rather than constantly being back and forth to the till. But the people who are cashiers are still very much in that role. Plus the more people who use those tills show how busy we are because it’s 2-3 tills being used often rather than one till and an occasional burst of sales on another till. I told a guy the other day who was using a SCO till while I stood nearby sorting bags out while it was quiet that it actually gave us more hours when he said it will replace me; he said that they were lying and we’re basically idiots for believing that and it’s like I literally had a shift entirely off the till because of those extras hours but sure random customer I’ll believe you more!
I hate those comments so much. The SCO machines don't even work right without someone watching them. They aren't taking jobs if they need constant supervision
our store mainly works with self checkouts. (Love it) As long as people are too dumb/lazy to read and tap a screen. My job is more than fine. If no one is there watching it like a hawk for an hour, I guarantee you it will grind down to a complete standstill of idiots looking confused why the card machine won't take their card when the machine is still on the screen of how they want to pay or if they have a customer card.
Or when some idiot forgets to disable the weight check on decorative balloons or other items too light to register on the scale.
They gloat about robots taking your jobs but also complain about it...??
100%! As though I’m colluding with the company to help the machines replace me, whilst they also hate using them because they require effort on their end. Like people get really angry that they have to press three buttons on the screen when they’re done to get the card machine to work.
Why can’t people understand that the stockholders and corporate executives hoard all the money and run stores on a shoestring. Quit yelling at employees and either boycott, vote to raise the minimum wage or write your congress rep to lobby for a maximum wage cap. Oh yeah, fuck off with your attitude
Corporations can do no wrong! It has to be the gOvErNmEnT!!!!!11
Your short staffed bc of capitalism. Squeezing every single dollar out of labor and screwing the workers and the customers bc of it.
Yup. Why pay for a proper staff when you can pay one person to do the job of five then blame poor performance for why it's just so hard to pay a living wage?
Everything they have voted for the last 40 some years now...cause and effect!
Yeah the “we are taking applications” response always works. Because it gives them a moment of clarity where they consider what working in that store may actually be like.
WhY wOn'T AnYoNe wORk???!!!!111
Indeed. The bean counters on high in every retail business look at every nickel. Sales down, shrink too high, prices from vendors or rent going up, you name it. If the projected budgets aren't being met, then short staffing will surely follow. I've read many an email about sending people home early, or been on the business end of an unreasonably tight amount of budgeted hours being doled out.
>(customers don’t know this juicy tidbit, but corporate allocates labor hours to the stores based on that store’s sales and soft foot traffic/Units Per Transaction data means that we’re given less hours to staff the store, which means fewer people to help customers). This has always been the most shortsighted strategy. A store is dipping in sales so we limit the amount of labor hours, reducing the quality of the service given due to the larger workload on a smaller crew, leading to improper rotation and an overall decline in productivity, quality, and morale and an even greater decrease in foot traffic. And then they go "why hasn't the margin on this store improved? Better can 1/3 of the staff!" An amputee could steer the ship better.