if a customer doesnt hand me the money, why should i hand it to them?

Question

I've been working as a cashier/floor person for 3 years. The other day i had a customer come in who did not hand me the money (he placed it on the counter) so I did not hand it back to him (i placed it on the counter like he did to me). He started yelling at me and threatening me, saying it was okay that he did not hand me the money but it wasn't ok what I did. I simply told him in a calm but firm voice that he did not hand it to me so why should I? I just hung back and called the manager to avoid conflict. He wound up telling my manager that if I didn't like what he had to say he could take me outside and punch me around (of course he didn't, he just wound up leaving and coming back in to give me a bad look and leave like a coward). Why should I ever hand money to someone like that in the first place? Don't you have to give respect to get it?

Answer 1

The minute he started to yelling and threatening you, you should have WALKED away from him.

You in NO WAY needed to explain yourself to him. HE and HE alone was in the wrong.

Also the minute this man said he could take you outside and punch you around the police should have been called.

Your manager should have told this man to never come in that store again or the police would be called again and he would be arrested for tresspassing.

Sad as it is sometimes when working in customer service you (being all of us) have to just act as if we respect the customer almost no matter what they do or say.

BUT when that customer threatens us and says they are going to hit us, then all bets are off and you may act in what ever way you are comfortable with.

Answer 2

A) Were you still ringing up (ie still busy with your hands) and he maybe dropped a twenty on the counter while you were doing that, or

B) Did you finish, say "your total comes to $xx.xx" and he ignored your outstretched hand and dropped the money on the counter instead.

C) A and B are both pretty much irrelevant, but I'm bored .. he sounds like a psycho or the garden variety high-tension person just having a bad day. You're still thinking about some random weenie on your own time and shouldn't even give him a second thought.

Answer 3

Unfortunately working with the public doesn't mean you give as good as you get, it means you have to give better than you get. I don't agree with the idea that the customer is always right, and it sounds like that jerk was spoiling for a fight. That said, in today's world it pays to be careful (since some nutcases will look for any excuse to harm you). You may not get much satisfaction from it, but take a deep breath and try not to let a jerk or two ruin your day. I hope it will give you some satisfaction to hear (err see?... um read?) a fellow Yahoo-ans say that "What a jerk!" and I am sorry that you had to deal with the likes of him.

Answer 4

Both of you were in the wrong. You were judgemental, and he was alarmingly unreasonable in his reaction. While it may be good manners to hand the money directly to a salesperson, there is no law stating that it must be done this way. Having been both a customer and a cashier myself, I know I have been both the receiver and the guilty party in both situations. It has never occurred to me to be upset, and the other party has never seemed less than happy either. Perhaps people are more uptight or insecure about others possibly disrespecting them where you come from. In any case, if you felt this was disrespectful, there was no reason for you to engage in the same behaviour. Your duties as a cashier do not include trying to reprimand full grown men for being impolite. You are not the customer's parent, and your job is not your personal soapbox from which to comment on others' behaviour. By mimicking his actions, you deliberately tried to provoke him (you wouldn't have done it unless you wanted him to notice that you were unhappy). The fact that the reaction was more severe than you expected does not excuse the provocation.

Answer 5

Yea ,In the 70's I worked in a store and people handed me the money and I handed it back to them. Nowadays I notice that cashiers hand me my change with the receipt under the change like thay don't want to touch my hand with the money. . If this SOB decides that he can drop the money on the counter and have you pick it up and not return the favor of dropping it on the counter for him to pick up tell him you know a big ol' boy in Cinci who drives an Eldorado who is willing to come there and ***** Slap Him for wanting to slap a woman around ! Heck, I will do it just for the fact he came back in the store and gave you a dirty look. YOU ARE RIGHT!! to get R.E.S.P.E.C.T. to get it

Answer 6

I agree with you - I hoped your manager backed you up. Unfortunately, most managers won't. the smart ones will asked pertinent questions as to ascertain all the facts before they start making a decision. but in the end if you were not rude to the person - you simply put or counted out the change onto the counter i think you acted in a very appropriate fashion and you did not feed into his yelling tirade - you simply notified your manager - i think you handled the situation in a very professional manner and yet made a statement of respect that obviously did not go unnoticed. Good Job!!!

Answer 7

I, too, am a cashier and have done exactly as you did. I find it extremely rude when I have my hand out to receive a person's change and instead of them putting it in my hand, they dump their change on the counter. I invariably am VERY slow to pick it up, coin by coin. On occasion, I simply put their change or receipt on the counter where they had originally put their money. I know, however, that I am in the wrong where my employer is concerned. My job is to promote business by acting in a professional manner, no matter how rude the customers are. What each customer says about the business to their friends and family will have an impact on future business. I have to remember that I am being paid to help my employer make money, not to try to educate rude people. I know it can at times, feel as if you are prostituting yourself and not making enough money to be treated that way by anyone. When I start feeling that way, I start considering my options of future employment where I will not be subjecting myself to such rude treatment. When I eventually turn my thoughts to perhaps starting my own business where I would not take such treatment, I then realize that I would be in my employer's shoes and not be able to afford to turn down business or alienate paying customers, whether they are jerks or not. So...I am able to keep myself in check for long periods at a time...and then I just have to place their money on the counter in order to keep my sanity!

Answer 8

I think it is polite and nice to hand money back to the customer. Of course if the person is busy putting things away, or holding other bags, then I would just put it on the counter.
Your customer just sounds like a weirdo, who gets mad about things like this? At least you gave him back his change.

Answer 9

Unfortunately when dealing with the public you discover that not all of them are quite 'all there'! In this case you did nothing wrong... in fact if anything you showed the customer respect by 'mirroring' his actions. You were just as likely to get yelled at if you HAD handed it to him.. he probably would claim he had a phobia about touching people and that's why he put it on the counter!

This was a no-win situation.. the customer is NOT always right, and in this case was obviously wacko!

Answer 10

as a business owner dealing with the public can be a trying job. especially as a cashier. the person who came up with the saying the customer is always right ..has and will be proven wrong everyday the general public walks into a business. if you had been my employee or charge , i would have backed you up, especially when the customer was threatening to harm you , but if you had been the actual cause of the customer getting irate , because of a smart mouth etc. , you would have been dealt with professionally and swiftly after the customer left. in my actual business i try to be as helpful as i can , but if the customer is getting out of hand , it is dealt with quickly and professionally. i have a sign on my wall in my store in large print , that reads, " Our goal is to make every customer happy, BUT , sometimes we can't ". all my customers that walk into my store have read it and even new customers have commented on it because it is the truth. if i can't make them happy , i will reference them to someone who can even if it is my competition.
all in all every business has a goal to profit and it takes good people to do it and stand up to it and deal with it in any given way . surly customers will always be there no matter what...but professional people are not always there. my opinion is you did the right thing even tho it took me long enough to say it.