I still carry some cash because sometimes the technology doesn’t work, but I’m mostly paying with plastic, too. And half my job where I work involves handling and processing the cash so I actually have some interest in people continuing to use it.
It’s like the people very insistent that they use staff check out lines to “save jobs” rather than self-serve. That ship has sailed. Those jobs are gone. The reason we still have people involved is that artificial intelligence hasn’t really advanced beyond artificial stupidity.
We’re also getting rid of our inventory robot because it never did live up to the advertising.
I too carry cash. But just 1 large bill for real emergencies. I’d do without before I’d break it for a $3 impulse purchase if cards weren’t accepted for whatever reason
And some of us haven’t been using self checkout for 10-15 years. My two local supermarkets only instituted it after the pandemic, in response to having trouble hiring, i think. I tried it once at home Depot when it was newish, and the machine shorted me, and it was a huge pita to track down an employee and get that straightened out, so i haven’t used it there since. And other than some small specialty shops that are still human-only, most of the rest of my shopping is on-line.
So, i have experience with the old and current self checkout at the farm stand that’s self-checkout only (and those two systems are VERY different, with totally different work flow) and at ATMs and gas stations, i guess, and that’s about it.
So I’m still grateful for the prompts, and for the helpful employee who is watching, not only to reduce theft, but also to help people like me who aren’t familiar with the technology. And yes, i read the prompts.
Cash is still handy for person to person transactions. I went to the farm stand this weekend, and they were out of small baskets of tomatoes, and only had “seconds” and giant boxes of tomatoes. I wanted one or two tomatoes. Another woman in the shop also mentioned the giant box being more than she needed, so she bought the big box, and i paid her cash for two of her tomatoes.
I was glad I’d shoved a couple of small bills in my pocket. I don’t always carry cash these days.
As a person of color, I started noticing that the “lookout” guy at the self-checkout counters paid “more attention” to my checkout process rather than white people checking out.
I asked the store manager if the “lookout guys” have received any training for avoiding racial biases / profiling and the manager would not answer my questions. I have written to Corporate for the major grocery chain stores in my area and am hoping they will change their behavior.
If not, we as a community with our friends and families with children will go and do a Satyagrah like Gandhi - basically a non-violent protest, so that we are treated fairly. Such protests, with attention from media, usually works in convincing businesses.
That sucks and I wish I could be surprised to hear it. You’re right that change is unlikely without activism. Implicit bias training is not only an uncomfortable subject for privileged people, but it costs the corporation money to deliver. They have absolutely no reason to do it without external pressure.
Am I correct in assuming that by “the lookout guy” you mean whoever happens to be on duty, and that this is something that happens regularly, as opposed to one specific person who does this?
This kind of questions makes me feel like a victim again. As if it is not bad enough that I am racially profiled, now I have to prove to you that it is not a lone wolf but a systemic problem.
Well Sir, with due respect to you, I refuse to answer your question. I sincerely believe that that the onus is on the corporate, that installs the checkout machines, to ensure that people of color are treated fairly
The onus is not on colored people to prove that they are treated unfairly.
They have a video system for the self checkout and a Third Party audit will easily reveal if there is any profiling going on
I also think that people of color are more aware of the observation than White people are, who are almost always completely clueless. It’s the White people who wander off without their receipts, not giving a damn if they’ll be asked for one at the exit. Which has occasionally resulted in them returning and frantic digging through the trash. Also, I check EVERY 50 and 100 bill for watermarks and the like, but the White people are often oblivious to this. Meanwhile, I get some nasty blowback from people who assume I’m only doing it because of their skin color but really, no, it’s because of the denomination of the bill. I’ve received additional training in spotting counterfeits because I work in the cash office so not only do I check the bills I get at the register, other people have me double check the money for them. I try to be subtle about it, but I still do it for everyone without exception.
There is one particular customer where I work who is a person of color who erupts any time you so much as glance at her, to the point of shrieking across the checkout out area “I’M NOT STEALING YOU RACIST BITCH!” We’re pretty sure she’s not, because a real thief wouldn’t call attention to herself like that. But we have to observe her, too, just like we have to observe everyone else.
I’d like the world to be free of prejudice but it’s not.
If a particular person is treating you unfairly please let management know - we try to weed out the assholes but sometimes one slips through the cracks. We have fired people for mistreating the customers. If it’s everyone in the store, well, that’s a different case.
@Broomstick thank you for the nice post. Its understanding people like you that lights up my day.
However, please understand that colored people learn early not to complain to management. Whether it is police or any other organization, management circles the wagons. Its human nature. They will ask me to prove it to them that indeed this person did this - (which from their point of view is fair because the accused should be able to confront the accuser). It will be a bigger humiliation than it already is for everyone. And I would fear for my safety going back there.
It is much simpler and fair to have an independent third party audit the store videos of the checkout lines. The Auditing party will have access to a wide range of data from say over a month, and can then analyze to see if such a bias exists or not.
Me and my family shops there, we eat food from that store - and as Seinfeld will tell you, you never complain at the restaurant where you’ll eat.
I completely understand what you mean. However, the ^^ solution co$t$ money, and will rarely if ever happen just because a corporation feels charitably benevolent.
There has to be significant external pressure applied, before there’s any incentive to pay for a 3rd party audit like you describe.
I will state that I have been called into the boss’s office on several occasions to be told I mistreated a customer (everything from “slapped one of their kids” - untrue, as proven by security camera - to acting in a racist manner). At my particular place of employment at least some of those accusations are treated seriously and investigated. I also realize that not every place of business is like that, not even other stores within our company. Such visits with the boss are uncomfortable, but I understand why they take place and the necessity of them.
In the end, you must use your own best judgement of the situation.
There are some people of color who DO feel free to complain to management, and apparently don’t fear for their safety based on how often they return. That’s them. If you don’t feel comfortable that’s you. I don’t live in your skin or your location so I’m just going to say I’m sad that that is your circumstance and that there is much wrong with the world. I keep hoping for a better world, but apparently my order has still not shipped.
To try it, I’d have to have money in an account somewhere. Right now, I’m leading a hand to mouth existence and running to the bank to put $3.15 in an account for a $3.00 purchase seems pretty ridiculous.
Thank you Broomstick, you sound like a great guy.
It sounds from that sentence that majority of disenfranchised/discriminated people complain and I am the exception. Let me assure you, that this is not true at all. Most disenfranchised men and women, keep quiet, - lots of reasons. One day it could be that my daughter is with me and she will find it very embarrassing from the looks.
Many times, at the instant it happens, it leaves me fuming and feeling violated inside that my thoughts are not clear. I need to disengage to clear my head and get out of that state. I am in no position to make a coherent complaint.
There are statistics that in Office environments, only about 30% complain - and only about 15% even make it official. Do Your Employees Feel Safe Reporting Abuse and Discrimination?.
I think, it is safe to say that at grocery stores, self checkouts, there are similar, if not much higher, percent of disenfranchised people who do not complain !
Your experience is similar to that experienced by women subjected to sexism - being greeted with disbelief, fear of reprisal, concern for safety. I try to use my experience of sexism as an empathic tool for understanding racism. Also my experience of religious discrimination being non-Christian in a predominantly Christian nation. None of those “-isms” are exactly like the others, but there are some parallels that I believe can be used for greater understanding and a better society.
I’m not sure how such could be accomplished. A boycott would be both tired and ineffective (eg. Chick-Fil-A). I’m remembering the lunch counter sit-ins in the early days of the civil rights movement but that would be difficult to pull off in a self-checkout area.
It has become much more common in Canada. I find it slightly annoying. Maybe 20% of the time there is an unexpected item in the bagging area or some other thing requiring slow, unnecessary assistance from a harried cashier. I don’t mind things like produce codes, and I’m sure it saves the store money, but it is not generally quicker or more convenient for me. It lacks a personal touch and probably makes it less fun to work there.
Are they recycling an article from 5 years ago? The “unexpected item” annoyance was true in the past, but in the US stores I go to (Smiths & Albertsons) the self checkout is now almost flawless. I don’t use a cashier now even if one is available without a wait, I prefer to go at my own pace and pack things the way I want them.
The only problem I’ve encountered recently is a scanner that didn’t work well, where you had to hold the item and turn it just so to get it to read the barcode. But I’m pretty sure that was just a defective machine, I gave up and used another one and it was fine.
I thought the convenient version these days were those stores where you just grab whatever you want off the shelves, no need to scan anything or queue up for a checkout terminal (not that glitches are impossible). Just try not to think about the array of sensors trained on you.
