Why do we suffer rude and ignorant waitress and shop assistants

Gingerspice99 · 26-06-2007 09:22PM #1

Arrrrrrrrrghhhhhhh!!!!!!!!

This is driving me mad :mad:

I hate the service you receive when you go into shops like its too much trouble for the shop assistant.

The same goes for cafes or restaurants - you order your meal they take an eternity for them to bring your drinks - they never make eye contact and walk away when you are talking to them.

I am not tarring them all with the same brush but good service is not the norm and I feel it should be. Simple manners and taking time to pay attention to your customers either in a shop or restaurant should be standard.

In the USA the waitresses and shop assistant earn a very small basic wage and the majority of there salary is made up of commission or tips. If the same rules were applied here you can be damn sure the service would improve.

What do you all think

aidan_walsh · 26-06-2007 09:22PM

Complain.

That is all.

Ruu_Old · 26-06-2007 09:26PM

If you get crap service, don't bother returning and go somewhere else with your money. Simple.

26-06-2007 09:36PM

Agreed. Complain, let them know you won't be coming back then stick to your word.

It is disgraceful though. Can't stand the way these franchise shops ALL stock the same crap, and they all shout "NEXT please" before they've even handed you your change.

demanufactured · 26-06-2007 09:36PM

When you do complain they look at you like you have 3 heads :mad:

And this sort of service or should I say lack of it is the norm so you eventually run out of places to go

Next time it happens I am going to be their wooooorst nightmare

The Queen · 26-06-2007 09:37PM

Im a shop assistant! Im nice! Usually. Sometimes you get an absolute cnut of a customer who puts you into a seriously fowl mood... Which sometimes can be taken out on the next customer. Apologies to all I have scorned!

I know what you mean though. I find bar/cafe/resteraunt staff to be the worst. For the most part, they are really rude. The places I've been to anyway!

26-06-2007 09:41PM

I used to work in Dunnes and we used to say the same about the customers.
Why are they so stupid?, why will they not believe me when I tell them somethings out of stock? Why do they come in here and talk down to you like your a three year old. Think about your own crap attitude next time your in a shop. Most people working there will treat the customer the same way the customer treats them.

Gingerspice99 · 26-06-2007 09:43PM

Like I said I'm tarring you all with the same brush

But to get good service is surprising and your right restaurant/bar staff are the worst

Oh and something else that really bugs me is you put your €20 into the hand of the guys serving you and they put your change onto the counter even though you have your hand out :mad: :mad: :mad:

C.D. · 26-06-2007 09:47PM

Deleted User wrote:

I used to work in Dunnes and we used to say the same about the customers.
Why are they so stupid?, why will they not believe me when I tell them somethings out of stock? Why do they come in here and talk down to you like your a three year old. Think about your own crap attitude next time your in a shop. Most people working there will treat the customer the same way the customer treats them.

I've worked part-time (am in uni) for 3 years in different sectors of retail- while some places you will get abusive staff, the staff are merely an extension of the poor conditions and treatment from managers. It just gets passed down the line.

Personally, and in my experience of places that pay commission, you get treated the way you treat the staff. I've held positions just under management, and the second I got attitude or abuse, I switched it on, threw it back and have ended up barring people from stores.

Interestingly enough, I find that it is the wealthier clientele who tend to look down on retail staff and come in with an awful attitude. If somebody treats me like dirt, they can expect the same from me, and trust me the customer isn't always right- the amount of stupid questions/complaints/problems with computers I've received from customers who won't accept that they could be wrong.

The Queen · 26-06-2007 09:50PM

Oh and something else that really bugs me is you put your €20 into the hand of the guys serving you and they put your change onto the counter even though you have your hand out

GAH!!! AH! Customers always just throw their money on the counter, and then complain when you do the same. WTF?! Treat as you'd like to be treated. I hate when they stick out their hand full of change and say count it out there love.. Its €25 in 50cents and 20cents.. grrrr...

Why are they so stupid?, why will they not believe me when I tell them somethings out of stock? Why do they come in here and talk down to you like your a three year old. Think about your own crap attitude next time your in a shop. Most people working there will treat the customer the same way the customer treats them.

They treat you like a servant. It's really annoying - yes Im sure it's out of stock. Why? Because the computer says OUT OF STOCK! LOOK! *hits customer with computer*

Ahhhhh.

Gingerspice99 · 26-06-2007 09:55PM

Deleted User wrote:

I used to work in Dunnes and we used to say the same about the customers.
Why are they so stupid?, why will they not believe me when I tell them somethings out of stock? Why do they come in here and talk down to you like your a three year old. Think about your own crap attitude next time your in a shop. Most people working there will treat the customer the same way the customer treats them.

I work in a customer service based job so know what it is like to be on the receiving end of some pretty irrate customers, I am alway polite and make eye contact and treat everyone as I would like to be treated. And dont even get me started on the staff in Dunnes in my area, you would think the older generation would be more respectful oh no they are really the ones who think its more than their jobs worth to be nice and like they are owed a living.

I would love to say something to them but have a bit more respect then they do, no please thank you or kiss me arse

Sad Professor · 26-06-2007 09:57PM

I work in a shop and I do try to be nice to customers but I sometimes, eh, slip up

. Dealing with the public can be an exhausting and frustrating job. Management treat you like a number, and tbh when your serving several hundred customers a day it's hard not treat them like a number as well. Everything just becomes a big blur. Some people are just better at faking it then others.

26-06-2007 10:03PM

Oh yeah, the manager will love that. They will be all nice to you and everything but wont do a thing about it.

Binomate · 26-06-2007 10:10PM

Go and complain to the manager that the till operator didn't say good morning to you. It will humor him. Seriously, some people are assholes. The act of aquiring a job in a shop doesn't change the person in to your super friendly perfect service man.

I work in a shop on the tills I've had to deal with more ignorant customers than I've had to deal with ignorant workers. How about we talk about the people who complain to you about prices, as if you were on comission or something and there was some grand plot to rip them off by a couple of cent, or just how in general customers are absolutly braind dead and retarded.

shane86 · 26-06-2007 10:38PM

Deleted User wrote:

I, why will they not believe me when I tell them somethings out of stock?

Because it usually isnt?

Come on, we all know its easier for a staff member to say out of stock than do the favour of going to the warehouse for it. My local Dunnes never has what i want (Atlantic Homecare takes the biscuit, i went there on three occasions last near, for a bike lock/chain, to get a key cut and to buy a plunger for the bath blockage. They had none of them each time

Miles of floor space and not three of the most common things yid go there for?!!??). And what is it with Dunnes offy and green rizla, they never seem to stock it.

And another thing, how come female shop assistants, even the friendly ones who said hello and smiled, never pack the bag for you if you buy a plastic bag, but a young lad behind the counter nearly always will?

Minor thing but these lazy bitches get my goat

Actually i remember once bringing a frozen Goodfellas back to Dunnes for a "no fuss" refund, or so the receipt claimed. The pizza meat was brownish-red and crusty, as if it had thawed and been re frosted before sale.

Me "Id like to return this please"
Oul cnutface "Why?"
Me "Well, the meat and pineapple doesnt look the best, it doesnt look very fresh"
O.C "Its frozen pizza, its not meant to be fresh"

I wasnt sure what to say to this ignorance. I regret having not either debated the definition of fresh or telling her to shove her pizza and her attitude up her own stinking fishbox. Grr :mad:

Gauge · 26-06-2007 10:40PM

Deleted User wrote:

Why are they so stupid?, why will they not believe me when I tell them somethings out of stock?

But can't you check in the back??? *whinge*

The majority of customers are nice people just going about their day, however I have been working part time in retail for a while and have experienced a worryingly large amount of customers who seem to think the best way to get something is to terrify the sales assistant and make her cry, to curse and rage if something does not go their way, who are incredibly ignorant of their consumer rights (no, you ARE NOT ENTITLED TO A REFUND, I don't care how loudly you scream about your 'rights'), sexist*... I could go on.

People who have clearly never worked a day of retail/service in their lives- I think this would be a much nicer country if everyone had to do a stint in a job dealing with the general public!

I try to keep myself in a good mood when working, but it's very difficult to stay that way when people treat you like sh!t- and it happens at least once a day

*Edit: Aaaand, you can check the post above mine for an example! Lovely!

Faerie · 26-06-2007 10:41PM

I work part-time in a supermarket and customers are generally ruder than shop assistants. Most customers look down on us and think they are buying status with their shopping. As the Queen said they really do treat us like servants and expect us to act like servants!
I'm always polite and helpful and say hello and thank you, but I'm not particularly friendly. That's just my personality! I'm shy and I hate small talk so excuse me if I don't natter away.
I find most shop assistants and restaurant staff polite enough. There are of course plenty of rude ones but customers are much worse. They expect too much anyway. I hear people complaining about staff talking to each other - I don't care if they talk to each other. As long as they're doing their job properly and are polite who cares if they are. I think people need to just relax and realise that the person serving them their lunch or sitting behind the checkout are people too. They are your equals and are providing a service.

26-06-2007 10:44PM

One of the things that really pissed me off were the people who came into the shop looking for somethin that we didnt ever sell. When you told them that we never stocked it, they wouldnt believe you, then tell you again and then invariably tell you that their friend got whatever item it was here last week.
You know they are wrong and the customer knows they are wrong but they steadfast will not acknowledge it. Then they sometimes demand to know why we dont stock it. As if you could just snaap ypur fingers and a truck full of what they wanted would just appear!
And people wonder why shop staff can be so sullen. Its because we spent all f****** day dealing with retards. It tends to wear people down. That said. if someone came up to me and asked me something poliely I would have gone out of my way to do something for them.

Faerie · 26-06-2007 10:46PM

shane86 wrote:

And another thing, how come female shop assistants, ven the friendly ones who said hello and smiled, never pack the bag for you if you buy a plastic bag, but a young lad behind the counter nearly always will?

Minor thing but these lazy bitches get my goat

Are you incapable of packing your own bag? Are we there to serve you like a servant? I help always and pack for old people but we have to mess about with change and we're tired from packing all day. You however shop just once in the day presumably and it's not much effort to pack your own bag. You're the lazy one.

26-06-2007 10:49PM

In dunnes when the checkout queues were getting a bit long all the floor staff were sent down to checkouts to pack bags and speed up the checkouts. Noody wanted to do it though.

shane86 · 26-06-2007 10:50PM

They always did it back in the day, its only since the intro of the bag levy. If sitting at a till scanning items is "hard" work try most of the other menial jobs out there and see how long you last (was shunted to the fast food trade myself with Dunnes having rejected an application in my youth

)

And yes, while I am grabbing my money it would be good if they at least started packing it, rather than standing with arms folded/waffling to their mate on the other till.

stepbar · 26-06-2007 10:50PM

Funny enough, in Dunnes its the young Irish ones who seem to think "this job is beneath me". Any of the foreign girls behind the cash tills seem to have no problem saying hello. If the same attidute was prevalent in a bank (for arguments sake), the said bank wouldnt have too many customers.

Red Alert · 26-06-2007 10:50PM

I've noticed a real downturn in the standard of service I'm getting in many places. I've had two experiences of working retail - one in a builder's supply where I was security guard followed by customer service guy, and the other as a sales assistant in BT2. In both shops, it was expected that you greeted the customer, were courteous and behaved in a friendly manner. Both stores also required that you were neat and tidy - I'm downright apalled at the standard of personal grooming and hygiene I see many stores. Both also only appointed people who seemed friendly and outgoing when interviewed.

However, apart from about five shops I go to, the standard of service everywhere is just awful. It's even worse when you consider that a lot of shops where you might be buying something big, like a laptop, aren't any friendlier either. In Dundrum only a few weeks ago when I went to the food place at a quiet time my order was slammed down in front of me by a rude and brutish individual who never heard the words "please" or "thank you".

I think also for what it's worth that the Polish staff in places seem much nicer and friendlier than the Irish staff.

Sad Professor · 26-06-2007 11:00PM

shane86 wrote:

Because it usually isnt?

Come on, we all know its easier for a staff member to say out of stock than do the favour of going to the warehouse for it.

I have to admit this is often true. But the problem is a person on the floor or tills probably wouldn't have a clue where in the backstores to look, nevermind how to get it. So you have to ask one the guys out there who are often (where I work anyway) monosyllabic morons who'll simply say "I'm busy" and ignore you. I can't operate a forklift so only other thing I can do is ask a manager who will usually shrug his shoulders and tell me to say we're out of stock.

By this time about 15 minutes have passed and several other customers have asked me to get something or other for them and my supervisor is having a hissy fit calling me over the intercom. So now days I take the easy route, when a customers asks me to check out back I say "no problem", proceed to walk around, have a chat with the checkout girls and go back and say "sorry we don't, etc etc."

Leon11 · 26-06-2007 11:00PM

Because the majority of times in a restaurant/cafe setting they are overworked and have not got the time to be friendly. That sounds like I'm talking crap but when you've got 8 tables to look after that have a 30 min turnaround time a waiter/waitress has to look after up to 16 tables in 60mins.

That's 3mins 45 secs of personal interaction with your table.

That's me

1) taking the order
2) putting it through the system
3) getting drinks
4) bring down starters
5) clear starters and bring mains
6) get more drinks (free refills:mad: )
7) clear mains and may have to make desserts
8) bring bill
9) cash off and reset table

As a waiter it really bugs the crap out of me that I haven't got more time to be more attentive to customers but that's as a result of head offices and restaurant managers setting unrealistic profit forecasts which means front line managers have only X amount of labour hours to work with per night, this means they're also powerless to save customers from crappy service.

Yes there is rude service staff and retail staff, make a point of complaining if they are unnecessarily rude or abrupt. However, if some clown in front of you has done something to piss them off appreciate that they might be upset, it's not as if they can go run off.

Yes customers are rude but I find if a customer is an absolute bollox the best thing to do is turn the situation on them and be a smart arsed prick to them in a nice way

When this happens other customers actually commend you which is nice.

Example:

Me and another guy are doing a 46 seater section between us on a friday night. The guy had just taken an order from a table, walked to put the order through and proceeded to have an epileptic seizure. I immediately help the guy and protect his head, anyway luckily there's a nurse in the place so he's moved out the back whilst waiting for the ambulance. I go out to the section and go round table to table asking was everything okay, were they waiting for anything etc. Some fool roars across clicking fingers, I went over and immediately he starts shouting about waiting 15mins for his food. I told him to cop on, it was obvious what had just happened. I made a point of showing him up and embarrassing him in front of 40 odd people, he said it didn't matter that what happened, it wasn't good enough etc, so I just took to talking to his gf/wife and took the order and got it put through.

When he went to the toilet I went over and apologised to his partner for showing her up but she was really nice and told me I was right to do so! Every table that left after that commended me and tipped well too:D

So in closing, crap service generally due to being understaffed. It's not acceptable for customers to get this level of service and i wish that instead of moaning at servers they'd get head office or the restaurant managers address and write a letter of complaint about the shortage of staff. I guarantee that the lack of staff would instantly be resolved.

As for staff being rude for no reason complain to the shift manager about the employee and never return. Again a letter of complaint about a rude employee is taken very seriuosly when you threaten not to return with your money.

Fighting Irish · 26-06-2007 11:02PM

Gingerspice99 wrote:

Arrrrrrrrrghhhhhhh!!!!!!!!

This is driving me mad :mad:

I hate the service you receive when you go into shops like its too much trouble for the shop assistant.

The same goes for cafes or restaurants - you order your meal they take an eternity for them to bring your drinks - they never make eye contact and walk away when you are talking to them.

I am not tarring them all with the same brush but good service is not the norm and I feel it should be. Simple manners and taking time to pay attention to your customers either in a shop or restaurant should be standard.

In the USA the waitresses and shop assistant earn a very small basic wage and the majority of there salary is made up of commission or tips. If the same rules were applied here you can be damn sure the service would improve.

What do you all think

No thanks

constitutionus · 26-06-2007 11:04PM

pay ****e you get ****e.

Gingerspice99 · 26-06-2007 11:08PM

I've had my fair share of awkward and ignorant customers but that doesn't mean I am the same way when I am a customer.

I'm not asking for small talk just a plain ole please and thank you would do me

and when you ask a question not to have someone roll their eyes at you and sigh then give you as little help as possible - as I have said already said (twice I think

) its not all the people in the customer service industry but I have come across more than my fair share of bad ones in a large town.

I have come to the conclusion after reading all your responses - all valid of course as they are based on your own personal experiences, that there is a growing minority of people that really dont give a **** how they treat others and its getting worse.

The Queen · 26-06-2007 11:09PM

shane86 wrote:

Because it usually isnt?

Atlantic Homecare takes the biscuit, i went there on three occasions last near, for a bike lock/chain, to get a key cut and to buy a plunger for the bath blockage. They had none of them each time Miles of floor space and not three of the most common things yid go there for?!!?

If they are three of the most common things you go there for, that's maybe why they aren't in stock?!

I work in Atlantic in Galway, I know the majority of our suppliers are useless and we never have the most common of stuff in. Leading to customers giving out to me at the Customer Service Desk. Its not my fault. I didn't deliberatly(sp) stop a delivery of hammers coming in. F**k off to Woodies...

Actually, I always find how funny it is when custumers say oh I guess I'll to go to Woodies.. HA! WE'RE OWNED BY THE SAME COMPANY SO UP YOURS!

Mean customers have turned me bitter....

Binomate · 26-06-2007 11:11PM

I'm appauled by the standards of today. If I go in to a shop and demand they wipe my arse, they look at me funny. The cheek of it all.

ROCKMAN · 26-06-2007 11:21PM

Faerie wrote:

Are you incapable of packing your own bag? Are we there to serve you like a servant? I help always and pack for old people but we have to mess about with change and we're tired from packing all day. You however shop just once in the day presumably and it's not much effort to pack your own bag. You're the lazy one.

crazy thought, maybe it's your f**king job and you get paid for it.............

Why do we suffer rude and ignorant waitress and shop assistants

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