The customer is NOT always right

It's not just the US.

In previous jobs, I've been abused, threatened, humiliated, bottled, beaten and thrown around like a ragdoll.

I've been followed home and waited for before my shift started.

I've been attacked by gangs and threatened with needles and personally stolen from.

All in a simple convenience store.

Service work is HARD. People don't seem to get that, because it often pays badly. They think this is a good reason to treat us like crap. The more vulnerable they think you are, the worse they get.

Thankfully, I'm in a job where I no longer deal with that. I have much respect for these people. You must develop a thick skin to maintain those jobs for any substantial period of time.

a reply to: KyoZero

Here in France things are really different. The Americans that come here really do not get it at all. I spent some time with some americans on vacation recently, and they talked about that. Waiters that tell them, "No that is not possible" when they run down a list of strange demands at a restaurant.... incomprehensible to them!

I heard of an american here who once objected to a baker "But the customer is the king!"

He replied, "Not here, madame. We had a revolution, and we cut off the heads of the kings here. "

They have no idea how totally rude and offensive it is, the way they treat people in service positions here.
They are not considered "lower", even being a waiter is a life/career choice and requires schooling... therefore they expect to be treated as a specialist and more knowledgeable in their function.
They also do not worship money in the same way, they are not willing to do anything at all to have it.

It was kinda weird for me when I started to see from the french point of view... that always gives you a different more distanced view of yourself, and I suddenly felt like I had always been an a-hole.

I think I treat everybody good. I get service workers work hard, I do too. I say please and thank you when buying smokes, tip well when eating out, 10% on very poor service, 20 on good and higher if really good or just really cute and friendly.

I recently read an article about IDK must have been cashiers at party stores because reading comments, that seemed to be the most responders. Talking crap about customers putting money on the counter instead of in their hand or giving crumpled up money.

These are things I do often, as far as money on the counter vs. in the hand... I'm kinda germaphobic, I can lay my money on the counter and not risk contact, I feel that as many people they come into contact with daily they should appreciate that. There are some cute cashiers that I would like to take their hand and slowly place my money into it...

Crumpled up bills... I work for a living. If I throw a 20 on the counter on my way to work for smokes and coffee any change I get is going into my front pocket. After work, those bills are trashed. But I do my best to straighten them.

My point is, after reading the comments I realized I do those things and will try to change a little. But I think if you are an A-hole to cashiers or waitress' your an A-hole in general.

a reply to: Bluesma

YES

thank you!

I understand little changes but I don't care for the entitlement of changing everything and getting mad when it's too much to ask for

I've worked service jobs all my life and get the OP.....What is difficult and NOT seen is the fact that the employee is often caught between the customer, what's "right", and who the employee HAS to answer to....egs. I work in an auto parts store, customer comes in to "warranty out" a part (meaning collect a new part within warranty time due to MECHANICAL FAILURE of said part)...as a parts specialist ( yes, we're really trained to know our sh*t-lol!)....you can SEE they hammered the bearing without using the right tool....which negates the warranty...you do what you're trained to do and deny the warranty, customer calls corporate, corporate calls store and tells you, you WILL warranty the product......see how that crap goes? Corporate doesn't always stand behind their employees and will throw an employee under the bus for the thought of losing a customer....doesn't matter what your training video said that you "need to get done" before a certain date..... (I know some of you get THAT LAST statement! LOL!)

Having worked in service fields from mechanic work to call centers, I can safely say that people have no f'n clue what they want.

No, the customer isn't always right

a reply to: rockhndr

Exactly, all about the money.