Why are baristas/people who work in retail so douchey?

[sexsomniac]

God, I hate rich customers.

I met this rich douchebag that once parked his car at the ambulance bay (other vehicles are prohibited from entering) because "there weren't parking space for his car". At least three incoming ambulances were stalled and someone nearly died. And he still couldn't understand why he can't park there.

And this rich bitch who had a minor toe injury had the nerve to call the police because "our service was not up to her standard".

You have two alternatives. One - slap them into senses. I know it's harsh but that's what they deserved. Two - call tow truck and have it impounded. It would probably not hurt their pocket much unless they are ass stingy of course but at least it will make them inconvenient.

 

[Ram]

You have two alternatives. One - slap them into senses. I know it's harsh but that's what they deserved. Two - call tow truck and have it impounded. It would probably not hurt their pocket much unless they are ass stingy of course but at least it will make them inconvenient.

You know what's the fucked up thing about these incidents? Both were staff of the hospital... doctors to be precise.

Customers who used to be or are staff of another or the same retail/service company are extreme douches. They overtake the rich customers.

 

[sexsomniac]

Customers and Employees can both be jackasses, but after working in a restaurant for the past 4 years it's unreal how some of these customers treat you as though you are so below them.

There really is no excuse for an employee to be rude to a customer unless they treat them like crap. You gotta fake a lot of smiles working in a retail business or the restaurant industry, just the way it is.

One of my favorite quotes.

"A person who is nice to you but rude to the waiter, is not a nice person"

And a great site that has given me tons of laughs.

http://waiterrant.net/

Guy has been running that blog for years. For some good stories go back a few years on his archive. It's unreal some of the people that go out in public acting like that.

Those are the people who get complimentary spit in their meals. aren't they?

 

[JB1986]

In my experience, working with the public can be extremely demanding. Trust me, dealing with people who treat like shit all day is just hard to deal with, and does take its toll. It's still not any excuse to be mean to a nice/normal customer. I'm so thankful whenever I geta nice customer to deal with. Sometimes customers can really get to me if they're just flat-out mean, but I never take that out on other customers. And the "rich" customers sometimes can be total assholes. I hate when they talk tome like I'm stupid and so far beneath them. Ugh. Frustrating yes, but that's just one of the many horror of working retail.

 

[zoltanspawn]

Paying for a service makes people feel entitled, moreso than performing one. This is the root cause of customer doucheism.

More importantly, though, just don't be a dick.

 

[The_Bennu_Bird]

Work Christmas in any store, Valentines day in a candy store,
and Halloween at a party store and see how your attitude will be changed towards retail workers. They put up with a whole lot of crap for not a lot of money. I always ask the person how they are doing and give a smile and it is very rare for me to get bad service.

 

[CorporalAris]

Also, many people in small retail stores or restaurants dislike people getting hired, because, at least at my restaurant, more people means less shifts.

 

[martin6]

It's cuz we have to wait on losers who bitch about us on gay porn forums.

 

[pasacon]

Just to clarify the whole "customers are douches"/"retail workers are douches"...

People in general are douches.

Whether at work (retail), out at the bar, out at a restaurant, out anywhere there are walking talking human vaginal discharges roaming about.

And I'm only rude (minimal amount of courtesy possible without someone being able to call me out as being rude) to ass-hat customers. And when there seems to be an inexplicable surplus of mean bastards... well thank god for zoloft.

 

[youngnihilist]

So much negativity. I very rarely encounter rude people in customer service (and I'm in LA, not South Carolina). It happens once in a blue moon. Maybe because I'm always very polite. If you think everyone's a jerk, they will be one.

 

[Edward Twinkletoes]

Oh please. I've worked in retail/food service somewhat recently, and this is such a fucking cop-out.

There's a distinct difference between customers who are assholes and customers with honest inquiries/concerns. If I had polite customers with extra requests, I had no problem with them as long as they were courteous. I felt like anyone with a fair sense of courtesy and reciprocity was a godsend and treated them like a saint.

Yet there are way too many douchebags out there in these types of jobs who are rude to anyone and everyone. I've encountered plenty of them, and I want to call them a disgrace and punch them.

It's a pretty even street. I'd say about 50-75% of both customers and employees are jackasses.

Although to be fair, the employees have to deal with management, and some of (a lot of, really) the fuckery at these places falls on them.

Bingo!

At least 60% of the time, it's actually the management that is really responsible for poor service and most customers have no idea. Usually, it's a direct result of management/owners cutting corners to save money.

And what is the employee supposed to do? Explain to the customer that it's the manager's fault? Yeah. When the customer goes and chews the manager out and tells them you said it was their fault, that's not gonna end well for the employee. And even the management often gets screwed by higher ups who expect the impossible.

Customers blame the people they can see. Yes. The employees quite often are assholes but they got that way from being constantly screwed over by their managers, their coworkers, yelled at by customers (sometimes for no reason), working long hours for almost nothing and so on. There are some employees who are just no good but the way most of these jobs are, that's about the best you can expect.

 

[Royal Heart]

I once got attitude from someone in retail and someone at a Starbucks. It's people not the environment. Everyone has bad days and some people don't have the emotional maturity to not take it out on strangers. It's unfortunate but it happens.

 

[ChickenGuy]

Maybe someone in this thread will tell me what 'douche' and 'douchebag' means.

I'm not American - I never heard the word in my life before seeing it on JUB.

And I still don't know.

Beacuse no-one will tell me.

 

[ChickenGuy]

^^ Thankyou indeed for the kind compliment Johann I'm glad there's someone who likes it enough to say, and I definitely haven't heard 'beautiful chicken' before - - but I can't help you on what sort of rooster it is, I've no idea

So you're saying that a douchebag is like a moron, a dickhead, someone who's obnoxious, unkind, bad attitude, full of himself, and just turns you right off on first sight.

Have I got that right?


Edit: you've used 'moron' as well Phillyurban8 so it looks like I've got the idea.

 

[Royal Heart]

I work in retail and I'm lovely

You almost had me until I noticed that you live in Silent Hill. I'm on to you.

 

[miketlow]

It's a pretty even street. I'd say about 50-75% of both customers and employees are jackasses.

Although to be fair, the employees have to deal with management, and some of (a lot of, really) the fuckery at these places falls on them.

This is true..I alway say good customer service goes both ways..Working for a major cellular company as well as doing sales was one of the most depressing jobs,mainly because of customers who come in with bad attitudes and management that placed unrealistic expectations on their employees.

 

[Royal Heart]

It's why I had to leave retail. I'm not willing to take verbal abuse from strangers and not get paid for it. It's not in the job description, after all.

 

[Paws]

It just seems like every Starbucks I walk into there's a holier-than-thou douche fixin' the drinks. And people in retail are ten times worse.

They aren't, shut up

 

[Royal Heart]

It should also be pointed out that a lot of the people in retail don't want to be there in the first place. There are always exceptions, of course.

 

[wastingmymind]

I am one of those people, but instead of retail, I'm actually just a cashier. I can't wait until I get a bitchy retail person and outbitch him. Two years of experience, baby!