Customer non-service.

[Bugman]

Yesterday I walked out of a nationally known fried chicken franchise. I was the only one waiting to order, but the manager and young lady working the counter must have thought their personal conversation was more important. By the way, I was standing three feet away from them and I know they saw me.

Today it was a nationally known auto parts store. There was one guy working the counter while at least five other employees wandered in and out of the back of the store. Planned on buying a couple of things but I put them down and left.

Never worked fast food but I have worked some retail. I know its not fun. Had some other jobs I didn't like. But if you are hired to do a job, do it. Maybe I'm just old fashioned but that's the way I was raised.

Mini-rant over.

 

[rdhd]

I hear ya Bugman. I'm with a major retailer (........), but work in "the backroom"; I really can't do much to help on the floor. Come into our store when we open and good luck finding a cashier. It's a wonder we don't have things "walk out" without being paid for (well, I think it is happening). Basically, the hired help don't give a beaver structure.

 

[Bugman]

I hear ya Bugman. I'm with a major retailer (........), but work in "the backroom"; I really can't do much to help on the floor. Come into our store when we open and good luck finding a cashier. It's a wonder we don't have things "walk out" without being paid for (well, I think it is happening). Basically, the hired help don't give a beaver structure.

Well that's a nice way of saying don't give a damn. 😉 What really bothered me was feeling like I was invisible. There's a well known regional BBQ chain in Central Texas. I can walk into one of them and no matter how busy they are I'm greeted with a hello and a smile. The service is always fast and courteous. And the food is top notch. Can't ask for more than that.

 

[Tenebrae]

Basically, the hired help don't give a beaver structure.

I completely, absolutely love this expression! American English never ceases to amaze me.

I can walk into one of them and no matter how busy they are I'm greeted with a hello and a smile. The service is always fast and courteous. And the food is top notch.

I have always felt this strange attraction for the South. Its history, its culture, its people... If I could, I'd really like to try and live in Louisiana, Texas or Arizona for a couple of years. It is not the first time people tell me that southerners are much friendlier than their Yankee counterparts. Yet they don't seem to travel that much: all the Americans I meet here abroad are either from California or the East Coast. There is only this one time in Beijing when I met a great guy from Arizona, but otherwise I guess that life is too good in the South to want to leave it, haha

As of your first post, I could not agree more. The quality of customer service in some places has dropped to abysmal levels. And I indeed think that the new generation's values (or lack thereof) may be to blame here. Actually, it is not just customer service that suffers, but Western society in general has become a colder, unfriendlier place as of late.

 

[rdhd]

Tenebrae-
you point out three areas of the good ol' US. They really aren't "the south", as we see it. Louisiana, well, if you're thinking New Orleans. Arizona - that's what we call the southwest; and, I'd love to live there, that's my kinda land. Texas - that's its own country, by golly! Depends on what part you're in (I've lived in Houston and Midland). An interesting state, to be sure.

 

[milagros317]

Yes, Bugman, retail service has deteriorated greatly in the last generation.
I commend you for walking out and taking your business elsewhere. That is the appropriate response.

 

[tickle gamer]

Hi Bugman! I know that feeling. Same thing happened to me a few months back.

In fact, the exact same thing, at a well known chicken place.

 

[BlasterMaster]

Yes, Bugman, retail service has deteriorated greatly in the last generation.

To be fair it doesn't help that the minimum wage hasn't kept up with cost of living and that most retail stores start employees out on it.

 

[milagros317]

To be fair it doesn't help that the minimum wage hasn't kept up with cost of living and that most retail stores start employees out on it.

They don't add to their minimum wage by goofing off and gossiping instead of dealing with the customers in front of them.

During college, I had a summer job in a supermarket serving customers at the deli department. I earned $1.65 per hour; the minimum wage at the time was $1.60 per hour, so I was not quite at the the minimum wage. I did the job that I was hired to do, that is, I actually waited on the customers in front of me, for the whole time that I was on shift. I said "thank you," to each one when their order was complete, too.

 

[Bugman]

Tenebrae-
you point out three areas of the good ol' US. They really aren't "the south", as we see it. Louisiana, well, if you're thinking New Orleans. Arizona - that's what we call the southwest; and, I'd love to live there, that's my kinda land. Texas - that's its own country, by golly! Depends on what part you're in (I've lived in Houston and Midland). An interesting state, to be sure.

Have to disagree with you on Louisiana, rdhd. There's nothing in the culture there that says Southwest. New Orleans and Santa Fe New Mexico, for example, might as well be on different planets. And everyone I've met from Louisiana certainly think of themselves as Southerners.

I completely, absolutely love this expression! American English never ceases to amaze me.


I have always felt this strange attraction for the South. Its history, its culture, its people... If I could, I'd really like to try and live in Louisiana, Texas or Arizona for a couple of years. It is not the first time people tell me that southerners are much friendlier than their Yankee counterparts. Yet they don't seem to travel that much: all the Americans I meet here abroad are either from California or the East Coast. There is only this one time in Beijing when I met a great guy from Arizona, but otherwise I guess that life is too good in the South to want to leave it, haha

As of your first post, I could not agree more. The quality of customer service in some places has dropped to abysmal levels. And I indeed think that the new generation's values (or lack thereof) may be to blame here. Actually, it is not just customer service that suffers, but Western society in general has become a colder, unfriendlier place as of late.

As rdhd rightly pointed out, Texas is something of a special case. East Texas, for example, is very much Old American South in its culture and mores.

The Texas Hill Country, west of Austin, was settled in large part by immigrants from Germany and Eastern Europe. It was not all that long ago that those languages were more common than English in many small towns there, and you can still see that heritage in the architecture of the churches, the food and the music.

In the Rio Grande Valley and deep South Texas one might as well be in Mexico. In many of those small communities the patron system is alive and well.

Out in West Texas you find what remains of many legendary Texas ranches with names like King, Waggoner, and the 6666. Folklore holds that founder Burk Burnett won the ranch with a poker hand of four sixes. The true story is more mundane. Burkett was already an established cattleman and was already using the 6666 brand. In any case the cowboy spirit colors the culture of the region.

Probably more than you wanted to know. 🙂

 

[Bugman]

Yes, Bugman, retail service has deteriorated greatly in the last generation.
I commend you for walking out and taking your business elsewhere. That is the appropriate response.

I don't know what else to do these days. And yes, if I can go to another store and find what I need, that's what I will do. Voting with my dollar you might say.

 

[Bugman]

Hi Bugman! I know that feeling. Same thing happened to me a few months back.

In fact, the exact same thing, at a well known chicken place.

I hope you too walked out. If enough people do that, maybe things will change.

To be fair it doesn't help that the minimum wage hasn't kept up with cost of living and that most retail stores start employees out on it.

They don't add to their minimum wage by goofing off and gossiping instead of dealing with the customers in front of them.

During college, I had a summer job in a supermarket serving customers at the deli department. I earned $1.65 per hour; the minimum wage at the time was $1.60 per hour, so I was not quite at the the minimum wage. I did the job that I was hired to do, that is, I actually waited on the customers in front of me, for the whole time that I was on shift. I said "thank you," to each one when their order was complete, too.

I have to side with Milagros here. By the time I started working the minimum wage had increased to a whopping $1.80 per hour. I never saw that as a reason not to do the job I was hired for, and do it to the best of my ability.

 

[rdhd]

Bugman - I meant to imply that Louisiana, specifically New Orleans, was closest to "the South". Definitely not the southwest....guess my bad for not being clear.

 

[Bugman]

Bugman - I meant to imply that Louisiana, specifically New Orleans, was closest to "the South". Definitely not the southwest....guess my bad for not being clear.

Ah, ok. Or it could be I simply read something into your post that isn't there. Wouldn't be the first time that's happened. 😉

 

[Sandisk444]

That reminds me of the Seinfeld episode where Elaine goes to Cinco de Mayo. I can't believe I can't find a clip of it on youtube but you'll know what I mean if you've seen the show.

 

[BlasterMaster]

I have to side with Milagros here. By the time I started working the minimum wage had increased to a whopping $1.80 per hour. I never saw that as a reason not to do the job I was hired for, and do it to the best of my ability.

With all due respect Bugster, if companies want to ensure employee loyalty / performance then it might help to start paying them a livable wage instead of a wage that's so low that they have trouble making ends meet (let alone buying underwear, socks, decent food, and affording other basic amenities). Poverty breeds illwill, a lack of caring, and most importantly of all, it fosters criminal behavior (many people end up discouraged and leave the system to take their chances earning far more money doing illegal stuff).

 

[tickle gamer]

I hope you too walked out. If enough people do that, maybe things will change.

I tell you, if I wasn't hungry, or there were somewhere else close I would have.

But, my sister used to work at a fast food place, and told me about some of the stuff she had to put up with. not saying it was the same, but it did give me a new prospective on things.

 

[Tenebrae]

Have to disagree with you on Louisiana, rdhd. There's nothing in the culture there that says Southwest. New Orleans and Santa Fe New Mexico, for example, might as well be on different planets. And everyone I've met from Louisiana certainly think of themselves as Southerners.



As rdhd rightly pointed out, Texas is something of a special case. East Texas, for example, is very much Old American South in its culture and mores.

The Texas Hill Country, west of Austin, was settled in large part by immigrants from Germany and Eastern Europe. It was not all that long ago that those languages were more common than English in many small towns there, and you can still see that heritage in the architecture of the churches, the food and the music.

In the Rio Grande Valley and deep South Texas one might as well be in Mexico. In many of those small communities the patron system is alive and well.

Out in West Texas you find what remains of many legendary Texas ranches with names like King, Waggoner, and the 6666. Folklore holds that founder Burk Burnett won the ranch with a poker hand of four sixes. The true story is more mundane. Burkett was already an established cattleman and was already using the 6666 brand. In any case the cowboy spirit colors the culture of the region.

Probably more than you wanted to know. 🙂

Au contraire! This was awesome! I was really hoping to read something like that. I am always on the lookout for such cultural posts; if you wanna share more, you should never hesitate~

 

[Tenebrae]

With all due respect Bugster, if companies want to ensure employee loyalty / performance then it might help to start paying them a livable wage instead of a wage that's so low that they have trouble making ends meet (let alone buying underwear, socks, decent food, and affording other basic amenities). Poverty breeds illwill, a lack of caring, and most importantly of all, it fosters criminal behavior (many people end up discouraged and leave the system to take their chances earning far more money doing illegal stuff).

I agree with you that underpaid employees usually feel undervalued. Although what constitutes a right pay is actually debatable. But it is precisely this subjectivity that can lead an employee to think he is not paid enough for what he is doing.

I completely disagree with the idea that poverty generates crime. It is a rich person's view that if people are struggling, they are going to become dangerous. In actuality, most people with low income are law-abiding citizens just like the rest of the population. There was a study recently (2009) in Europe, led by prominent criminologists, that showed no correllation between income and propensity to crime. I mean if it was the case, then McDonalds restaurants would be one of the most dangerous places to be in the country. And I am not talking about obesity here~

 

[BlasterMaster]

I completely disagree with the idea that poverty generates crime. It is a rich person's view that if people are struggling, they are going to become dangerous. In actuality, most people with low income are law-abiding citizens just like the rest of the population. There was a study recently (2009) in Europe, led by prominent criminologists, that showed no correllation between income and propensity to crime. I mean if it was the case, then McDonalds restaurants would be one of the most dangerous places to be in the country. And I am not talking about obesity here~

I never said all poverty stricken people are criminals nor did I say they were responsible for all crime. I said poverty has a direct affect on the amount of crime in any given area. I'm not saying this means we should wage a war on the poor but rather wage a war against POVERTY (aka help to bring people to a state where they can pay their bills and make enough money to live without worrying about being able to afford food every week).

 

[Bugman]

With all due respect Bugster, if companies want to ensure employee loyalty / performance then it might help to start paying them a livable wage instead of a wage that's so low that they have trouble making ends meet (let alone buying underwear, socks, decent food, and affording other basic amenities). Poverty breeds illwill, a lack of caring, and most importantly of all, it fosters criminal behavior (many people end up discouraged and leave the system to take their chances earning far more money doing illegal stuff).

I know what its like trying to live on minimum wage. It wasn't any easier in the 70s, when I entered the workforce. Being poor has always been hard. Probably always will be. But I don't think expecting people to do the job they were hired to do is unreasonable. That's really all I'm saying here.

 

[Tenebrae]

I never said all poverty stricken people are criminals nor did I say they were responsible for all crime. I said poverty has a direct affect on the amount of crime in any given area. I'm not saying this means we should wage a war on the poor but rather wage a war against POVERTY (aka help to bring people to a state where they can pay their bills and make enough money to live without worrying about being able to afford food every week).

We agree, then 😉 That was what I had understood from your sentence which said something like "when poor, people turn towards sources of criminal income.". When in a pinch, poor people may turn to borderline measures like cheating the welfare system, but I doubt they will resort to murder/extortion or start dealing drugs. I am a little bit fed up with people trying to find excuses to criminals, whether it is murder ("My client is the real victim here, and the culprit, society..."), drugs ("The only way I could feed my family"), or rape ("I come from a family where I was never taught to respect women"). I am not saying that it is what you were saying; obviously, your standpoint is very clear now, but it sort of sounded like that.

I agree that we should wage a war on poverty as well as a war on crime, but these two are separate objectives. Eradicating poverty will not rid us of crime, and vice-versa.

 

[Bugman]

I tell you, if I wasn't hungry, or there were somewhere else close I would have.

But, my sister used to work at a fast food place, and told me about some of the stuff she had to put up with. not saying it was the same, but it did give me a new prospective on things.

If your options are limited that's understandable. One of my nephews worked for a certain world-wide fast food corporation that built its reputation on burgers and fries, so I've heard many of the same stories.

Au contraire! This was awesome! I was really hoping to read something like that. I am always on the lookout for such cultural posts; if you wanna share more, you should never hesitate~

Glad you enjoyed it. I tend to get carried away with things I'm passionate about, and sometimes worry about boring people. And its not really on topic here, but I couldn't help myself. 🙂

 

[BlasterMaster]

I agree that we should wage a war on poverty as well as a war on crime, but these two are separate objectives. Eradicating poverty will not rid us of crime, and vice-versa.

We apparently agree on the issue of a poor rate of pay affecting an employee's performance but disagree on quite a few other issues. I do not believe "wars on crime" have ever been truly effective. "Tough on crime" measures were introduced through the 60's all the way to the 2000's. Those measures have only contributed to the overall poverty rate as well as to what ended up as the largest prison population of any nation currently on the planet. When a person has a criminal record then the bar is set extraordinarily high against them (which leads to going back to a life of crime and thus prison again).

The revolving door of crime is perpetuated by poverty inflicted on former inmates by tough on crime measures. Perhaps a different approach is in order to help former inmates adjust back to the life of a law-abiding citizen and thus lower the crime rate as a whole. As for eradicating poverty, to do so you would also have to eliminate greed and corruption completely from our society as a whole. I believe the best we can do is continue to fight a never ending battle against poverty by helping the poor to rise up into better economic circumstance through laws designed to be both kind and empathic to those in need.

 

[Tenebrae]

I do not think that tough on crime measures make people poorer, although I guess this is debatable. If anything, it makes the streets safer. Actually, I quite admire the way the US handle criminality; zero tolerance policies and all that. I wish back in Europe we did the same thing you guys did. In my view there is no such thing as "too many people in prison", long as they deserve it. I also quite admire the 2nd Amendment because it empowers normal citizens, just as I admire the extensive powers the police are given to defend said citizens. It is very different where I come from, believe me.

IMO leniency is the worst answer possible in the face of rampant criminality. But that is not to say being tough on criminals should detract us from taking care of other problems. If anything, cleaning the streets of its scum can only be beneficial to the poor, who are often the first victims of violent crimes. But naturally we should not stop at that 🙂