Customers. More than that, rude customers. We are told when we begin that ‘the customer is always right,’ but most of the time, that is so not true. Cashiers wake up every day with a longing to already be done with work, whether you work retail, fast food, or an actual restaurant. Cashiers are abused. They are constantly being criticized because of prices, cussed out because of quality, flirted with, and have seen more than their share of dirty looks due to wait times. Here’s just a few ways to make your cashier’s life a little easier:
1) If the item doesn’t scan or the coupon doesn’t work, don’t you dare try to pull that crap about, “Oh, it must be free then.” It’s not funny. We aren’t laughing. Just don’t.
2) When cashiers say, “Can I get you anything else,” don’t respond with “your phone number,” or “a million dollars.” We have heard that many, many times. It wasn’t funny then, and it’s not funny now. Especially don’t flirt with us. I once had a 40 year old man ask me out over the store phone. How ‘bout no?
3) Another thing is that when you ask us for our honest opinion of a product, we will tell you to it straight. “Is that what you really think or are you being forced to say that?” No sir, if I didn’t like it, I would be honest with you and say I don’t like it. Don’t just assume that I am lying to you.
4) Don’t come in to eat or shop 5 or 10 minutes before we close. We already have everything basically shut down. If you are really trying to come in this late, then maybe you really don’t need it. And to add on to that, don’t try coming in when we are already closed. No matter how much you pound on the door or yell at the managers, you aren’t coming in. Sorry. Build a bridge and get over it.
5) Please don’t come through drive-thru with over 30 dollars worth of food. It holds the rest of the drive-thru up when you are too lazy to come inside to order your giant meal. ESPECIALLY don’t come to the drive-thru when you have 50 dollars or more. If you do that, then we have to get manager approval, and that takes even more time when you could have just came inside. The point of a drive-thru is so people can get food quickly. If you are hogging it with your $50 order, then a drive-thru is pointless.
6) If the restaurant is extremely busy, don’t complain about the wait time or assume that we are short staffed. Accept the fact that you are going to wait to get your food fresh. Normally, your cashier will tell you what you are waiting for in your order and what takes the longest to cook.
7) Cashiers don’t like repeating the specials 10 million times because you weren’t paying attention. Pay attention to your cashier. Don’t be on your phone talking because that’s just rude. Be courteous. We can spit in your food at any time.
8) If you have already paid for half of your meal, don’t ask your cashier to delete something off of your order. If you ask this, it will end with us having to reboot the entire register system just so you don’t have to pay the entire amount.
9) When you go to a fast food restaurant, don’t be that person that gives the exact change after we have already totaled out your order. We don’t care if you don’t want all that change; when you hand us money, we are using what you gave us. Especially don’t do that when we have already shut the money drawer.
10) If you don’t like the prices, I’m sorry, I can’t do anything about them. Don’t try to threaten us by saying that you can just go to McDonald’s. We don’t care. If you wanna go to McDonald’s rather than Burger King, be our guest. It doesn’t really matter to us anyway.
11) When the customer gets frustrated at you because you aren’t agreeing with them, they demand to speak to a manager about your store policies. It gives you great satisfaction to go grab a manager, and then listen as the manager tells the customer the exact thing you told them. It is even better when you are the manager and get to see the flames rise in their eyes after telling them.
12) Don’t lie about things. If you just called on the phone and said one thing, don’t come inside and say that I told you something else entirely. I am there to prove you wrong, and the manager will take my side rather than yours.
12) Don’t come through drive thru and hand me a religious pamphlet. Yes, that may be your religion, but don’t try to force it on me. And why do you hand it to me of all people? Do you think that just because I work at Burger King I need some salvation from whatever you think I’m doing? The same goes for leaving Bibles on tables and coming up to employees while they are on break, questioning their religious beliefs. I don’t care what religion you are or what ethnicity you come from. I AM ONLY THERE TO PROVIDE YOU FOOD. NOTHING ELSE. Please don’t interrupt us from our jobs. Thank you.
Many people will come through and tell cashiers their life story. Even though we have time limits, we really enjoy interacting with customers and getting to know them, especially our regulars. Many regulars know our names, where we go to school, and other information about us. This means a lot to us. One man I remember most told me of a memory of his from 1991 when he used to date a girl named Sommer (which is my name), spelled exactly the same way. She lived up in Champaign, Illinois and now works for some major corporation there. Seeing my name made him take a trip down memory lane and brought a smile to his face. That is a cashier’s main goal: to touch a customer’s life, whether it is by sharing a memory or just being nice to them.
Cashiers try to give each person the attention they deserve, whether you are at the window or sitting at a table. Don’t abuse that privilege. Be nice to your cashier and they will be nice back to you. I believe that every person in America should have some background working as a cashier, whether it is in retail or in a restaurant. When you have experience being on the other side of the table, you have a deeper understanding of what it takes to do that job. You learn how difficult it is to deal with unruly customers. The motto ‘the customer is always right’ is a lie at times- sometimes, the customer doesn’t think about the cashiers on the other side. So the next time you go somewhere, thank the person behind the counter for their service.