Wow, I haven't had a bad experience like this in a long time. That could be because I don't have money to shop nearly as much as I used to, though. I do see a lot of stressed out clerks lately. Some make the effort to be polite, others mainly scan the items and ignore the customers, or just give a cursory Hello. I know dealing with the public can be difficult, but if someone is having ongoing problems working with others, s/he should seek another type of work, where customer service is not involved. It's up to management to notice the issues, and make those changes, for the betterment of the business.
I don't think there is one standard answer to this question. It would depend on where I was and the persons involved and how much of an argument was happening. I recently had to tell as cashier at work her behavior was inappropriate. We had a couple more incidents and I asked if we needed a manager so she called one. If I had been a customer witnessing the scene I would definitely have reported the incident.
Arguing employees are in for trouble. They, not only give a company a bad reputation and tarnished name; they also diminish themselves the merit of work ethics and good conduct. If I were to witness this, I will report them to the manager. Or leave the premises. They are a waste of my busy time to hang around near these arguing employees.
That's exactly right. It's not their crappy minimum wage job, and it's not the stress they're under! If you take a job, you know what you're going to be earning upfront. You know early on if the job is stressful, and if the managers are jerks. It's none of those things. It's people who have no courtesy or regard for other people! It's immature and rude and stems from an entitlement mentality. I will acknowledge that sometimes even nice people can "snap," but for the most part, I don't buy it. .
It is not just shops and restaurants where this occurs. I have been an inpatient in hospitals a few times and have observed the shocking way some doctors speak to their staff. I have witnessed nurses being belittled by senior staff and their efficiency questioned in front of patients, where they could have easily taken them to one side. Also doctors who come on their rounds with student doctors in tow, speak quite sharply to the students. It is embarrassing to witness students cringing as they are spoken to as if they are imbeciles. It is almost as if these professionals think you are deaf or invisible when they make comments to their staff.
Yeah, one time I was in ASDA (the UK branch of Walmart for all you Americans) and one of the male members of the security staff was literally harassing a teenage girl (who was also a member of staff) in front of me, he forced her into a hug and then forced her to kiss him on the lips. She actually ran off crying. I thought this was really inappropriate behaviour by itself, but for a security guard who is supposed to be trusted.. Wow :O thats literally insane. Anyways I recently heard from my sister who also works in Asda that the security guard has been fired and given a community service order, so all hope is not lost
To be honest, I would just walk away from them. There are usually plenty of other registers where I can have my stuff put through quickly, without having to listen to other people arguing or swearing. I don't like to be near people who have heated conversations or disputes. It makes me feel very uncomfortable. As for the employees, they'll be facing the music later, as everything they do and say is usually caught on camera.
I wouldn't really care too as long as they do their service without much hassle to the customer. I don't want to stick my nose into a place where it doesn't belong.
That can be a major turn-off, but as a customer, I don't think I'd be kind enough to tolerate it. Even if the issue is between the two employees, both of them should at least have the decency to realize that they're in a workplace and have a job to take care of. If they let their emotions get the better of them, not only will the store's image be tarnished, but they'll also inconvenience the customers who'll have to put up with the drama and sacrifice their purpose for visiting the store. Role model employees don't go about ripping each other off.
It's terrible when people think that they can yell at you while both of you are supposed to be working and being professional. I think you show great restraint, because I would yell back at her just to let her know that I know how to yell too!!
It depends. I think that if two employees were arguing with each other while one of them is supposed to be servicing me, I would get offended, like, "Um, excuse me." Depending on the situation I would take my business elsewhere, or say something like I'm a paying customer and this type of behavior is unacceptable. If there is an argument going on between staff in the store, but has nothing to do with me, I would probably call or write a letter and file a complain with management after I got home.
I've mainly only heard this in restaurants, and it's usually the kitchen crew swearing up a storm - however, having worked in kitchens myself, I'm fully aware that the screaming and fighting and stress comes with the territory. In most cases, the cooks are just blowing off steam, and they aren't really as mad at each other as they may sound. Many of my coworkers and I who were line cooks, would swear at each other like sailors the whole night, then all go out for beers afterwards. It was kind of funny because some of the managers genuinely thought we hated each other, and started scheduling some of us on opposite shifts. That said, the restaurant should keep the kitchen shielded away from customers for this very reason. I've seen some restaurants that have a more open layout where you can see right into the kitchen, and that's really just asking for trouble - especially when the place gets slammed. Sometimes the less you know as a customer, the better.
