It isn't bad service, but it's definitely Corporate Policies I Don't Like [Janet Miles]

Well, how odd. Which Kroger was this? They don't do that in Texas...

The one in Alcoa, on Hall Road. It's apparently new. I don't know if this particular program comes out of Atlanta or Cincinnati.

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Except, I personally do not much care for the U-scans I've tried. I think it is that the volume is set so loud (probably for hearing impaired, which makes this somewhat ironic) and I don't care for Everyone Around to know how much I am spending.

Though I also am not sure I appreciate the insistent assistant moving items out of my cart. Or at least the concept of it, haven't seen this hereabouts. Then again, no Krogers hereabouts either.

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I don't think the U-Scans here announce the price; it shows up on a screen, same as at a regular register. Huh. Regional variations.

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The specific ones I am referencing are at a local Winn-Dixie (another supermarket chain) and Lowes (building/home improvement supply). To the best of my knowledge Kroger does not extend into Baja Jorja, though I am very familiar with them from growing up in Michigan. I've used some at Home Depot (same as Lowes, different name & company) which did not shout out the prices. Curiously, other than those three I am not recalling U-Scans being particularly common around here.

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There should be a volume control. Look for a speaker icon and keep turning it up until it goes over maximum- then you should have it on mute.

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I will look, though being the curmudgeon I am, I am also quite happy to continue looking for live human service. *G*

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Ick. They start that around here, and yet another grocery store will be on my 'not going' list. The lack of personal space is getting appalling. A checker at a store near me (management level) decided to start reading names off credit cards and using them. First names. For one thing, I was shopping for someone else, and for another, neither of us use our given names in public.

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ICK. That would skeeve me right the fuck out, and I *do* use my given name.

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I have gotten quite adept at saying "I believe you mean 'Mr. Palmer' or 'Sir', yes?"

I never thought I'd do this, but there are so many telemarketers who call and ask in a bright, cheery voice "Hi, is John there?" as if they know me. It's not "friendly" to pretend to an intimacy that does not exist - it's deception and deception is decidedly unfriendly.

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I completely understand. I hate to be helped or assisted or interfered with in any way when I am trying to do something in public.

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It's okay when I expect it (see my comment farther down about checkstands designed for cashier unloading of carts) or ask for it (such as, "I can't reach the top shelf, could someone help get one of those foam coolers").

It's even reasonably okay if the person who wants to help asks first and lets me say yes or no, although that can be a bit embarrassing.

But not when I've already declined the service, thank you.

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I would be saying, loudly and repeatedly, "DO NOT MESS WITH MY CART." If necessary, I would physically remove either the cart or the employee out of reach. NOTE: I'm not suggesting that you do this, because I know it's not your style at all. But someone not responding to a request that they stop doing something is going to stomp pretty hard on my "Yo, asshole, what does it take to get you to hear a woman say NO?" trigger -- and I have never minded "making a scene" in such circumstances.

Also appalled at the idea of being first-named by someone who's looked at my credit card. I don't think this would happen when using a debit card, though, because then the checker never has their hands on it. I'm the one who swipes it thru the machine and enters the PIN code.

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Our stores print the name at the bottom of the receipt and the cashier reads out, "You saved [whatever the total savings], Ms. LastnameofCustomer." That's true of both Safeway AND Target (which now has debit/credit cards that give 5% off all purchases).

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I was using a debit card (my mother's, as it happened). Their machine must be programmed to pull up full name from card now. I heard her do it to a couple of other people on the same trip.

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I didn't pick realize it at the moment, but I think, "I said NO, dammit," is in fact one of the nerves that got hit. Thank you for pointing that out; it explains a lot of what felt like -- but probably wasn't -- over-reaction later.

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Really, it's what it takes to get them to hear ANYONE say No.

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Or shop at a different store.

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Yeah, point. But we get a discount at Kroger, and that adds up.

Dale said when he gets back to work he'll find some way to let management know he "overheard" a customer who was unhappy with the aggressively friendly service.

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At least you can articulate the problem. A lot of people with social issues may not be able to do that. Maybe look for resources that could be handed or mailed to store supervisors, or higher up the chain, explaining, "Trying to unpack everyone's cart for them may cause problems for customers with these issues, which could be avoided by ..."

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This is a true query, not a criticism: A criticism of what? What you bought, or your unloading pace, or something I haven't thought of?

More regional variants: In Colorado, Kroger is King Sooper. Its self-scans are pretty much mute, but freak out a lot,. but the checkstands are constructed to have carts unpacked by checkers. For whatever reason that doesn't trouble me at all.

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I felt as though I was too slow, getting in the cashier's way rather than doing my part of the job well. (Dale assures me this was not the case, that the baggers are being pressured to provide this "service," but that they're not supposed to push if the customer declines the assistance.)

I think your point about the checkstand construction is valid. I remember shopping at Alfa Beta in Arizona: the end of the cart folded down and the checkstand was recessed in such a way that the cashiers could just sweep items out of the cart and across the counter. That was very efficient, and that didn't bother me at all.

This felt *less* efficient, though, because the bagger was in front of the checkstand unloading my cart instead of at the end packing bags. And because I expect to unload my own cart, and had no warning that someone was going to suddenly be in my space doing my stuff, it was very upsetting. And because I'd already said NO, dammit (echoing

starcat_jewel's point).

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Offering help is one thing, but I don't think this is a situation where it should be forced on you. It would leave a bad taste in my mouth.

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I think it is a great service for a store to offer; but not to mandate. There are plenty of elderly folks I see at my local grocery stores who would benefit from the help.

I have personal space issues and I have specific way I put my groceries on the belt; grouped by location in my house and I really don't like people touching my food. So I agree with you being disquieted by the cashier.

We don't have Krogers around here so I am safe until it catches on.

Edited Date: 2012-12-16 03:36 am (UTC)

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yeah, definitely. it's nice that it's there if you want it, but bloody annoying if you're forced to endure it want it or no.

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We (I work at a grocery although not Kroger) are pressured to offer this service... but we are supposed to keep the customer happy and that includes letting them unload their own cart if they prefer it. It sounds like you should have a word with the management about the baggers getting the message that no means no because I expect you were the victim of an overly enthusiastic bagger rather than a general store policy.

I also get irritated when checkers call out first names- I always use the -last- name and Mr or Ms unless I am told to use the first name or it's customer who is well on their way to being an aquaintance. (I have a couple of regulars in both those catigories). But I'm of the generation that you simply did NOT call strangers by their first name even if you knew it.

Speak to the manager or have someone do it for you. I'm almost certain that even if it is store policy, cutomer happy overrides it.

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*nods* Dale has said when he gets back to work (he got hurt on the job and is out through mid-week at least) he's going to mention it, without calling me out personally, or the specific bagger (although he says he's 99% certain he knows which one it was).

And he says yes, customer preference is supposed to override management fiat.

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For me, it would trip the "are you saying I can't do it?" button. It's one thing for help to be available if it's needed, because sometimes it is. But if it's not needed, or when it's no longer needed, back off.

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FWIW, it hasn't seemed to spread to the couple of Fred Meyer's (our Kroger) that we go to. And if it does, I shall be telling them in no uncertain way to back the fuck off.

I don't use the U-Scans there because I have *never* had a good experience with them. I have been along with someone else who could get them to work properly, but I have never had a transaction with one that didn't eventually require the checker on duty for that area to come unfuck something to do with the machine or process. And no, it's almost never been because I messed up the process - I have a distinct talent for finding one machine that is ready to have a computer glitch at that particular moment or the one machine that is out of change or the barcode scanner that has no idea what the number for chestnuts is or something equally exciting.

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Trader Joes (at least the one I go to) is laid out so that the customer can not unload the cart themselves. Stop and Shop is laid out so the customer must unload themselves.

What sets me off is someone _bagging_ my stuff. I can bag as quickly as most baggers; quicker than a lot of them. I can also put things in the bags I want (milk does _not_ go in the insulated bag; that's for frozen stuff). Unfortunately we have a mentally handicapped bagger at my Stop and Shop, so I find myself in the position of being annoyed at being put in a position of being annoyed at a handicapped person.

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Trader Joe's checkout counters are laid out so that I cannot unload my own items (there's no conveyer belt). In that case, I don't mind if the checker unloads, because it is really a one-person job. I'd just end up being anti-helpful.

OTOH, for a store that does have a conveyor belt, I don't want somebody else doing it for me. I'm a fully functional person, thanks.

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I typically bag my own at Trader Joe's. I either end up in a line with a checker but no bagger or as I get up to have my turn, the bagger is sent off on some errand, almost every single time (is it me?). I've never had a problem with bagging my stuff when I bring my own bags, especially a single bag or my backpack. I don't mind them taking the stuff out of my cart though, I guess because it's set up that way. Fred Meyer (our Kroger) isn't currently, so having the checker come around and empty my cart and then having to go back and check it all through would piss me off extraordinarily.

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We have Krogers here in the Carolinas. I haven't run into the "we-do-not-allow-you-to-unload-your-cart" thing yet, because I am almost completely scan-it-myself.

I'm heading out the door soon and may get something at Kroger to see.

BUT what got me yelling into a phone once, and what you'all may want to keep an eye on . . . the food handler was a 19-something guy who apparently had a runny nose. He'd wipe it with his hands, and then grab more of my food and move it. You might want to watch for that, because I was almost sure he was fighting a cold.

A lot of what drives some of these stores is that they want the lines to move faster. (Do you have "Aldis" there?) What I get ticked off at, at Aldis, is I'm still unloading my stuff and the checkout already is flashing them past the bar code. I'm one of those people who has, many many times, said "Hey wait a minute isn't that supposed to be $1.15?" and caught them overcharging.

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To be fair: it's not "we do not allow you to unload your own cart," it's "it is Good Customer Service to assist with unloading the cart."

I know they want the lines to move faster. They have this whole computerized camera system to watch the front end and decide whether to call up more cashiers. So I expect the cashier to start scanning as soon as I put the first item on the belt, and generally to finish about the same time I do. I probably do get mis-charged on occasion, but I figure it balances out between over and under.

As to the cold, well, viruses only last a few minutes outside the body, and regular exposure to things keeps the immune system healthy. (I realize this does not apply to people whose immune system is already compromised.) Places refusing to provide paid sick leave mean employees working when they're sick, and I'm not going to complain to management about someone who needs their whole paycheck. I may complain to corporate about their shameful policies, but that's a whole different issue.

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I take all that into account; that;s why I usually (note, usually) just leave things alone while I try to cook up a response that would be effective.

Bobcat Goldthwaite used to talk about "yelling at Ronald McDonald because you got a bad cheeseburger -- he doesn't run the company". I don't pick on the line level staff, instead I try to understand the work environment that causes these things. So at the "Aldis", where they like to ring things up quickly, I have my wife keep loading while I watch the register.

I wish the mistakes would average out, but they don't for me. It is usually an item on sale that some how has the regular price in the computer, or an item that was mislabeled that I can go back and redo.

With respect for "helpers" with "excessive zeal", my SOP is to tell them I'd rather do it myself and then see what happens. The look on their face is a clue as to whether they're being overzealous or actually trying to hang onto their job. And I don't let my pride overrule their need for a job. Writing letters to top brass, without identifying details, has been a good tool for trying to change storewide policy without crucifying any particular worker.

Edited Date: 2012-12-16 10:59 pm (UTC)

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I used to pack my own bags at Kroger and one cashier called the manager on me. I told him that his people were not trained to pack for weight distribution and I had to walk up a flight of stairs. In other words, putting a carton of milk and all my canned goods in one bag is unproductive even if you double-bag it. He got quite huffy with me, but I didn't back down.

Cue the rickety rocking chair. I was a grocery store cashier in high school, and did my share of bagging. It's not difficult if you use some common sense. And while it's nice to have all your dairy and frozen food together, is anything really going to to thaw out in the fifteen minutes it takes to get home?

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Janet Miles

It isn't bad service, but it's definitely Corporate Policies I Don't Like

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December