“Wait, this isn’t the drive thru for grocery pickup? Who knew?”
We had a DoorDash order in which someone ordered booze. And the 7Now app made us check the Dasher’s ID. The jokes were flying fast and furious.
Did you have enough smaller bills, as in 10s and 5s?
That reminds me of the regular customer at the grocery store pharmacy who would often come in right after we opened, with a $100 bill, and get annoyed because we couldn’t make change (yet). He had very good insurance with single-digit copays.
I messed up today. I run the register( a food place) and rang someones 45 dollar order up, they swiped their card, they left. Then the register showed it didn’t “take.” She told someone to stand by me to make sure each card would make the payment properly.
As a former trainer, I really hate it when mgmt thinks using a shaming tactic will help you get better. Usually, it makes for resentful employees. You made an error, you know about it, you’ll be more careful. It’s what adults do.
Heh. When I was a kid (1975ish) I worked at a self serve gas station. Back then, credit cards were not swiped, they were used to emboss information from the card, along with info on the merchant using a heavy tool that held the card and slip.
The guy who worked the busy day shift (I worked nights) was an adult, but for his entire shift he only “swiped” the embossing tool in one direction. So all his credit card slips contained the gas station’s information but nothing from the credit card. All those people got free gas!
He was fired, and his story was told to all the employees.
Did he do it on purpose?
No! He wasn’t the best nor brightest.
We had to get some from the safe. Honestly, I think I could have handled it better. I think I made her feel like a heel for breaking a hundred on a $3 transaction.
During my last shift, which was two days ago, my mentor told me that he had a court date the next day for a traffic violation, and he was very worried he’d be going to jail. I texted and called him yesterday, and never received a reply, so I fear the worst. Guess I’ll find out at the same time as everyone else!
It’s usually not policy where I’ve worked to handle large bills especially with such small transactions as having that much ready cash makes the company more at risk for theft. I would ask your manager about dealing with 50s and hundreds.
I also think it’s rude of the customer to use that big of a bill unless they spending half of it. You can’t keep it in the till, and your store just has less in the safe for later customers.
That’s truer now than ever, because we now have an “ATM” that we use exclusively to cover payouts on the gaming machines. Used to be, we paid them out from the register. So now, we have even less of a reason to keep 50s and hundreds, and even twenties, in the register. (In fact, we’re supposed to drop 20s on a regular basis.)
Many convenience stores around here have signs saying “$10 minimum for credit card.” If I want a coffee or a soda & that’s it, I’m not buying $8 of unwanted whatever so I can pay by card which is my preference. Instead the cashier’s stuck breaking the $50 I offer or sending me away. Why a $50? Because I don’t really carry cash and keep one bill tucked in my phone for “emergencies”. Like a sudden need for a 7-11 coffee.
Of course no matter what the clerk does about my purchase, its management’s fault we’re doing it the hard way, so I’m not ragging on the clerk either at the store or here in this post. I recognize a lot of other customers are not as understanding.
She was doing that deliberately, so she could get smaller bills for other transactions. I’ve done it, and felt like a heel about the necessity. I’ve also been turned down and had to buy a larger amount to break the bill. As a customer and former retail worker, I do understand such policies. She probably knows your shop will do this for her. Definitely talk to your manager about how to handle these.
It’s good to know if the company has a policy about it. Quick change artists and sleight of hand artists (aka: criminals) are known to use big dollar mix-ups. It’s part of the reason so many companies started developing and enforcing such policies as “no big bills” along with thieves.
My local 7-Elevens won’t break a $100 for a small purchase. Opening the safe means opening themselves up for a robbery. It’s a common ploy for crooks to attempt. Best to just say, “I’m not able to open the safe, it’s on a time-delay.”
Have they shown you how to check if the bill is counterfeit? My daughter got stuck with a fake $20 bill when she was a waitress a few years ago.
Day 16. 3-11 on a Friday.
Most memorable customer had a bad experience… I went out to see how she was doing and she said she was waiting on her boyfriend, so I went to see how he was doing, and I made her intensely uncomfortable. My mentor suggested that I stop helping customers in the sales floor unless they ask for help.
An older lady came in as she had several times before in my shifts and asked for any gently expired milk we might have, so she can give it to her outdoor cats. This time, we didn’t have any. When we do, we give it to her for free.
We had a Dasher who was practically already in the store when the order came in, ha.
Almost got sideswiped by a tractor trailer on our way home, but Mom slammed on the brakes, so I’m happy to be alive.
I’m scheduled to work on Thanksgiving, but I get time and a half for it, and we’ll have our dinner before I leave for work.
Good plan. You obviously mean well, but a lot of your customers don’t mean well. Or would not recognize well-meaning if it bit them since they see so little of it in their daily lives.
Your job is the store and the register, not counselor and help-mate to all who come under your roof. The downsides to a mistake or trusting the untrustworthy far exceed the upsides your trusting nature hopes to find.
There is a place called and bank and another place called a currency exchange. Those are the places one goes to break $100 bill. The local 7-11 is not the place.
I did have a nice customer experience last night that’s worth mentioning.
This guy, carrying a cane that attached to his arm, and wearing a prosthetic leg, ordered three pizzas. My mentor cooked two and I cooked the third, and then I was called upon to assist the customer in getting the pizzas into his back seat.
During his conversation with my mentor, my mentor had mentioned that he remembers him from a couple of years ago; he used to come in here with his wife and kids a lot. In fact, he was bringing the pizzas home to feed his four kids.
As I set his pizzas down on his back seat, the customer thanked me for my assistance, and I replied, “No problem. You’re a loyal and valued customer.” So hopefully, that brightened his day. He was a nice guy.
I don’t know why I think of all the negative stories to share first, and then remember the positive interactions. Human nature?
When I worked at Toys R Us in the 90s we had those too. Not that they were used often, they were a backup if a swipe didn’t work for whatever reason. I used it a few times as a cashier. Much bigger hassle than doing it electronically.
Yeah, I guess I’m having trouble adjusting to how different it is working at a gas station as opposed to working at Blockbuster. (For that matter, this is my first time working in food service.)