2007-02-19 06:17:58 · 20 answers · asked by pedropete 2 in Society & Culture ➔ Etiquette
We are trained from earliest school years to put up with such things. As someone else pointed out, it is better than chasing a bunny round a field with a spear!!!
--That Cheeky Lad
2007-02-19 07:59:55 · answer #1 · answered by Charles-CeeJay_UK_ USA/CheekyLad 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I guess it depends upon where you shop. At some stores, if there more than 3 people in line, another register opens up.
Also, keep in mind that management is trying to get by with just enough people. That means the store is saving money by limiting the number of cashiers on duty.
You can bring this up to the manager, or notify the owner of the store. Send a letter to corporate headquarters. Let the "chiefs" know that you will take your business elsewhere.
Does your supermarket have a self check out? The stores where I shop (especially early in the morning) have these "on." If I have just a few things and I want to pay in cash, I use the self-check line. That saves the cashier time and energy. She has enough to worry about.
2007-02-19 07:56:39 · answer #2 · answered by Lizzie 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The under-manning levels of tills in supermarkets is a marketing strategy. If all the tills were manned shoppers would flow through quicker. But all the tills are never fully manned. This means that while you are waiting for your turn you have time to browse the goods on display at the till. Magazines, sweet, chewing gum,films, batteries, etc. Many of these items are targeted at children who pester their parents to purchase them, usually with great success.
This is not cynicism it is fact and is taught in retail management courses. So you think you are just standing there waiting? Well you are not you are being brainwashed by the supermarket's psychiatrist.
2007-02-19 06:30:14 · answer #3 · answered by BARROWMAN 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Since you have already done your shopping and your only choice is to put up with it or leave, there really isn't much of a choice.
It would also be ridiculous to leave the tills manned all day when for a lot of the time it is not neccessary. The supermarket will balance the number of employees at the tills with the demand for them. When the demand goes up, it is not usually possible to instantly place an employee at an empty till.
2007-02-19 06:19:52 · answer #4 · answered by Dharma Nature 7 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Tesco do as much as they can to prevent customers from queueing, they open every till that they can with the staff available. Shop floor staff are also asked to train for tills or bag pack, and at busy times the managers also staff tills.
It isnt practical to man every till all day and night, so sometimes you may have to queue longer than you might wish.
Be patient, the staff work hard.
2007-02-20 08:28:54 · answer #5 · answered by creamfeather 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
We put up with it because we understand that if the supermarket were to have EVERY TILL filled during EVERY OPEN HOUR, then we would be paying a WHOLE LOT MORE for our food since somebody has to pay the wages and the supermarket has to make a profit, otherwise it will close.
The smartest thing is to balance staff cost with customer service. Not to worry though, SELF-CHECKOUT will make life a lot easier in coming years (but then cashiers will be out of a job)
2007-02-19 06:23:36 · answer #6 · answered by David M 3 · 2⤊ 2⤋
What else are you going to do? There obviously isn't enough need to have all the lanes open... you can't handle waiting for three other people to have their groceries rung up? If it is that offensive, go to a place that never has any customers or a place that has self-checkout lanes.
Sort of like when you go to a restaurant and there are empty tables but they tell you you have to wait... hubby gets so steamed over this and no matter how many times I explain to him that they don't have enough waitstaff to handle those tables, he just won't accept it.
2007-02-19 07:08:14 · answer #7 · answered by Goose&Tonic 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Patience is a virtue. Don't expect every moment of your life to be filled to perfection. Take the time to look around while you wait in the queue and strike up a conversation with someone nearby. You seem a little tense. Peace.
2007-02-19 06:23:37 · answer #8 · answered by suziewong 3 · 2⤊ 2⤋
Because we really have no real choices...
we can either
1. Put up with it
2. Steal
3. Bytch to an overworked, underpaid cashier
4. shop elsewhere
For me the most attractive of the choices is to put up with it
2007-02-19 06:21:58 · answer #9 · answered by kissmymiddlefinger 5 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Because the supermarkets tend to frown upon people who leave without paying. =(
2007-02-19 06:20:30 · answer #10 · answered by Vegan 7 · 2⤊ 1⤋