I should point out that the people in the local Walmart (Palatka, Fl) are usually polite and helpful. I lived in Knoxville for about 10 years and found the same thing there. However, when I have been up North I have found rudeness to be more common, so it may be a regional thing. I lived in Miami for a while, and some of the people there are rude.
I think it's a pretty common occurrence at Wal-Mart. I've had some pretty bad experiences there in terms of the customer service I've received. I think it happens all across the country. They just aren't doing enough customer service training, apparently. I've had multiple occasions where I've seemed to know more about certain products and services that they offer than the employees did. That's unacceptable.
Wow, I've never had this type of experience at Walmart. I probably would have surreptitiously tried to take her picture . There's actually a cashier at my Walmart that goes out of his way to make people smile and/or laugh. I think he should get a bonus just for being so upbeat. There are a few who appear to be somewhat grumpy, or not as upbeat, but they're dealing with the public all day, which can be very trying, so I understand. Those type are the minority, though, and the cashiers, in particular, try to be pleasant.
I don't think it's just your area. I have never had a good experience at Walmart either. One issue is that they treat their employees really badly, so no one really wants to be there, they just don't have another job option right now so they are still there putting up with it. I knew someone who worked at a local Walmart and they said the vast majority of employees were scheduled to work 19hours and 45 minutes a week, so that they did not qualify for any benefits at all. You can imagine how happy these people are working there. Not only can't you survive on so few hours unless you are a mom just wanting to bring in a little extra to help our the family, but not the main breadwinner, but they don't treat you well on top of it.
Okay, so yesterday I went to the Walmart near me and they were having a yarn clearance. They had them in ziplocks so I wasn't sure if it meant each skein or each bag so we asked the employee there if it was each or the bag and she sais it was the bag. After five minutes looking through the bin for a yarn that I liked, I went to the cashier and she told us it was per skein not per bag. I told her what the craft employee said and she decided to call. And we wait and wait for the phone to get picked up. It was so annoying I got angry and told her to leave it. My partner said we could wait that he wasn't in a hurry and I told him loud enough so the cashier could hear that I was no longer interested because it's ALWAYS a problem there with the craft area employees: either they don't want to help or they have no idea what's going on. If you don't know or if you're not sure, just freaking say so.
now that is just so wrong! wal-mart seems to be becoming more and more unpopular these days. But, like you, everyone ends up having to go there sooner or later. They're like a tumor. And if you have it removed it could screw up the host's entire nervous system.
Checking out at Wal-Mart is always a nightmare - either the customer(s) ahead of you is doing something to tie up the lane, and/or the cashier is just being lethargic as hell, or worse yet, want's to "chit chat" endlessly instead of ringing people up and keeping the line moving. One time I went there on a Friday evening to grab a couple items, and got into the express checkout lane, only to find out the three people in front of me were all Wal-Mart employees themselves and were having the cashier cash their paychecks for them, which apparently they do there. Of course, each of them has to stand there and take all day, asking for a certain number of 1's, 5's, 10's and 20's. Then they have to recount everything several times. Then the register is out of money so they had to wait for another employee to bring over some more money. I ended up being stuck in that line for over 20 minutes.
Sam walton would roll over in his grave if he saw what was going on at his stores. Sure, the follow the business plans, (run all other stores out of the town by charging less, then hike the prices when there aren't other options). But the attitude the employees have, in any wal-mart in the area has become dismal and barely better useless.
@JoanMcWench Wow, this is why I like shopping at Target. I frequently feel like the service and the store environment of Walmart are not worth the hassle of going there. I have not run into problems with Walmart customer service, but I try to avoid shopping there. I do go there on occassion when I am in the area, but it is not my favorite. The whole experience I don;t find enjoyable.
Never happened anything similar to me since I rarely visit Walmart, but it is not the first time I hear such kind of complaints against them. I do hope that this was just a bad day for the manager...
A rudeness and yet stealing episode happening to me at one of the smallest Walmart stores, when I was trying to pay with a debit card that was rejected, and the next and the next and the next, including one of their own banking branch. I knew to have money but something was wrong with their check out terminals, but the cashier went frantic demanding me to pay with cash to avoid making her "wasting her time." From my perception, it was me who was wasting it because I was confident to have money on those cards, just unsure on how much. I was really angry and didn't pay attention to the name of the cashier, just wanted to go away as soon as possible to check what was wrong with my cards. Nothing! They were accepted by a nearby ATM, so the problem was in the store. However while the cards issue was happening, the guy packing my items decided to take on his own a tip by robbing a paper notepad from my bag, I realized this when I was already home, so bringing my shopping ticket up, I managed to get the name and number of the cashier, along with the national toll free customer service number, where I was asked to leave a voice message explaining my incident. I was so angry that I recorded the message but never expecting to get it heard. About 30 minutes later, the manager of such store called me apologizing for the incident and asking me to return to the store for my notepad and a gift from Walmart. When I reached the store there were two managers waiting for me and kindly apologized again, gave me the notepad and a box with a variety of breads from their bakery. Other than this incident, I have never had any other except for the large standing rows at the bigger Walmart stores where there they always seem to have insufficient cashiers and, the most strange, there is always a poster saying they are hiring them, but nobady seems to apply or is not approved for the job.
Don't expect much competence from Walmart employees. They all seem to be very, very dumb. Sorry for the harsh words, but that's the reality. Nobody that's got relatively decent commerce and customer-relation knowledge will work for the ludicrous wages Walmart offers. If you want to buy from there, make sure you're at least savvy about the products you buy. Don't try to chat with those people. They're so... unqualified. But I guess each to their own, haha! Your experience there doesn't surprise me at all. And, no, it's not just in your area. It's everywhere.
I believe it! And I don't think it's certain walmarts, I think it is ALL WALMARTS I have 2 in my area and have had bad experiences with them both! To them selling me expired food, to literally arguing with them when trying to return an item or when I am purchasing something. Seems like no matter what the issue is they want to fight about it! They are very rude and lazy workers if you dare ask for help be prepared to not getting the help you need and a lot of rudeness and attitude. It's like you get paid to do your job yet you get mad when it comes time to get off your butt and do it! So I seriously think it's all walmarts
I know someone who worked in management there. I was complaining about a rude employee once, and he said to file a complaint with their corporate headquarters. He told me that they will go out of their way to make it right. Even if you don't have her name, it shouldn't be too hard to figure out who was on duty at the time (if you remember the time and date, which is why it's usually best to do it right away). You don't have to put up with that. I honestly wish people would speak up more often. None of us have to put up with rude treatment, especially when as you said, we're trying to give them our money.
No, I've had good and bad experiences at my Walmart location. I really hate going there because it's usually too packed, dirty, and not fully stocked throughout the day. The only reason I keep going is because one of the bus lines that passes by my house also stops there, so it's easy for me to get back home when I need to go. There's a good mix of rude, miserable, and nice employees there. Thankfully, I know my way around the store so I keep my interactions very limited, and I always do self-checkout!
