Has customer service gone straight to hell? Why do cashiers just hand you the receipt and say NOTHING?

Question

Today I spent over $300 at 2 different Kohls stores and NOT ONE cashier acknowledged me or told me thank you for my business. I was also at a Ross Department store today and spent $60 and the cashier just handed me the receipt without saying one word and practically ignored me. Also I greet the cashier FIRST. Everytime I say hi to them they just stare into space and make no eye contact with me. Also it's a pet peeve when I say "thank you" to them (which is their job) and they say NOTHING. The cashiers just hand you the receipt and say NOTHING, not even have a nice day. I used to work in retail in college and I always greeted and told each customer thank you! What is wrong with these people?

Answer 1

working retail is the pits. rude customers, minimum wage, long hours on your feet in one spot and a laughable 15 minute break for lunch each day. that doesn't make it right, but when you hold one of the most underappreciated positions in the workforce (next to waitressing) many can quickly lose their steam

you sound like a very pleasant customer to have come to the checkout, but most patrons are not so polite. especially, during this holiday season, even the most friendly cashiers may rush a bit and be less chatty so they dont hold up the line and anger the next customer.

service varies from place to place, so the most powerful thing you can do is take your business somewhere that you are greeted in the manner you feel you deserve

i'm happy to be out of retail now, but whenever i go out to run errands i remember my cashiering days back in highschool and i always try to be friendly. if my cashier is friendly back, great. if not, big deal, they did their job by punching in the numbers so i don't get detained for shoplifting when i leave the store with my things.

Answer 2

I am taking it that you have had a rough day! You have already gotten some extra good answers to this question. In my younger days I worked as a waitress and as a telemarketer so I do understand your frustration. A friend of mine works for an upscale women's clothing distribution center. When you enter one of their stores you are supposed to be greeted by a salesperson within 30 seconds. Several weeks ago I was in a state where there was a store. I walked into the store and around the store for 26 minutes. It wasn't that big of a store (about the size of a Bath and Body Works store). I even walked past the customer service desk where 2 women were in front of registers twice. Never was I approached. Granted, this was a very elegant mall that the store was in and I was wearing a pair of sweat pants and a long sleeved Susan G. Koman t-shirt. But....26 minutes! Finally, I approached the desk again and asked one of the women if they had a customer service card. She said they used to have them but they didn't have them any more. She then asked why. I explained that I was from the distribution center area and how long I had been in the store. They immediately went into action. I was in tears when I told them how horrid it felt to think it was because of the way that I looked that I had been snubbed for so long. I got a huge discount plus a free item. The best part was that I got an apology. I was told that it was "change of shift" and they were just really busy. They thanked me over and over for coming to them and for not making a scene and then going to the company to complain. Sometimes the customer is just in a downright rotten mood and wants to pick a fight. When this happens there are appropriate actions you can take if your company provides these avenues. -Apologize for the inconvenience (bad service, bad product, etc.), and ask them to please wait while you go and get the manager on duty -Express your concern and offer them a "freebie" or a discount card -Express your concern and give them a customer comment card If you do either of the last two things, make a note of it and be sure to discuss the incident with your manager/supervisor in full. You will want documentation of what happened and the backing of your boss when the "ugly hits the fan" and the comment comes in.

Answer 3

I am a cashier also...these cashiers are probably only temporary workers for the holidays. I always greet customers and tell them to have a great night, morning or whatever. I even make small talk. Makes my day go faster and is more interesting. Maybe you should give them a break and just keep doing what you do. Maybe it will wear off on some of them.

Answer 4

How sucky... I always make it a point to come up with a smile to the cashiers and say hi how are you, how is you day going, love all the sales, or whatever else is on my mind... and I always get friendly cashiers. I can tell sometimes they are not very friendly but after i approach them, they are okay with me. Sometimes I feel like I am making an extra effort, but I know how stressful it can get.. especially around the holidays and in retail. So I want to let them know in advance that I am not going to be an annoying customer. It may just be the area you are in too..

But I think if you work in customer service you should just be friendly in general.. Like the way I approach the cashiers is how they should be approaching all their customers.. I have worked in customer service for 8 years so it is embedded in me..

Answer 5

I totally understand. I'm a college student and work retail to support myself. I always try to be upbeat and cheerful.

Well, it is the holiday season and many people are hired for a short amount of time. They don't have a good connection with other employees and don't have pride in their work. They don't invest their emotions into their job because they don't think it's worth it. But holidays are SO stressful. I may not be in the best of moods if the person in front of you chewed me out.

On top of that, people aren't trained well. Sure, they're taught to use the cash register, but they aren't taught good communication skills. Managers may tell them to smile and say, "Have a nice day!" but that doesn't mean they'll continue to do it at a job they don't like.

Yeah, it bothers me too sometimes. You're basically giving them their salary. But they don't mean to be rude. They just don't know how to act! Write a letter to the company. If you get enough complaints about the bland service, the company may put more emphasis on professionalism.

Answer 6

THANK YOU!!!
this is a huge pet peeve of mine!!.....it is so incredibly rude to ignore some-one....i don't expect a cashier to kiss my butt, but i do expect basic manners-like not ignoring me when i say "hello".....i've really started to notice this trend over the last year, so i know it's not just a "cashiers are overworked and grumpy cuz it's xmas"........a couple weeks ago i was at a store i shop at regularly and the cashier said "hello, how are you" to me...it's really sad that my first thought was "she must be new, cuz she's not totally rude yet"....

Answer 7

Cashiers hand you the receipt and say nothing, because they don't care whether you spend $2 or $200. They will still get the same salary one way or another.

Answer 8

Customer service is supposed to be friendly but I can imagine over a thousand people expecting a thank you and a smile! It gets to be tedious and tiresome after 4 or 5 hours. I'd have a bit more sympathy for them instead of being critical. It's hard enough working in retail. I greet them kindly and I tell them thank you whether they respond or not. It's not about how they feel towards me as a customer it's how I feel about myself. I don't let petty things stress me out. Do what you gotta do and move on.

Answer 9

Not all cashiers are like that. I'm one and I'm always cheery. Customer retention, you know. Well, I guess those people just don't like their jobs or maybe the company's not taking good care of them or the management is not to their liking.

What you could do is tell them. Give them some feedback. Goodluck on your future purchases.

Answer 10

Take it someone who worked retail. It sucks! That's why. Most times they are given schedules they don't want to work, being paid hardly anything, and putting up with peoples crap. People now days think if they b*tch and complain they'll get something for free or at a discount, and a lot of retail companies let them get away with it and degrade their employees in the process. You can be as nice as you want but if someone just yelled at them they won't care how nice you are. And just cause you spent a bunch of money doesn't mean you're gonna get a medal. Sorry. Does this answer your question? :)