# So you hate dealinf with customers? Don't work retail! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [July 22, 2003, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-you-hate-dealinf-with-customers-dont-work-retail/190193 "2003-07-22T18:11:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Doomtrain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/0ea827/32.png) [@Doomtrain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doomtrain)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2003, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-you-hate-dealinf-with-customers-dont-work-retail/190193/21 "2003-07-22T23:54:12Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Audrey Levins \* > **Here’s the thing: anybody who’s ever worked with the public, in any capacity, is aware that a lot of people are assholes. A lot of people are stupid. A lot of people don’t pay attention to the obvious. A lot of people are just fucking annoying, in a thousand little ways that add up to a big huge total at the end of a long day.** That was always the thing, for me. It was answering 1000 stupid questions–the same stupid questions–over the course of the day. The big morons were good for stories, but it was the little idiots who caused me the most aggravation. The people who don’t pay attention to huge signs, then ask where obvious things are. Like the registers. In most stores, the registers are at the front. But that seems to be a revelation to them. The people who ask what our hours are, then argue with us! “Well, you didn’t USE to close at 10!” “Yes, we’ve closed at 10 as long as I’ve been here.” “Oh! And how long is that?! Hmm?” “Uh, 3 years?” “Oh.” The people who swear up and down that we MUST have this item they want, because they saw it here a COUPLE YEARS AGO (true story!), so it must be here now! The people who want to know if they can just “check out” items, then get horrified when I suggest the library. The people who saw a book in one store 100 miles away and get mad when we don’t have it. The people who want to get one over on us, because we won’t notice them pouring coffee on books to try and get the damaged discount. The people who are trying to return a book we’ve never, ever stocked and are shocked that we won’t take it back and get rude about it. The parents who come in with kids and let the children run wild, destroying the children’s department. I’m talking books and toys thrown all over the floor, and then don’t even try to pick the stuff up. The idiot managers. The idiot coworkers. And let’s not forget the assholes who think working customer service means we should put up with every bit of shit they dish out because “They pay our salary, dammit!” Sorry, there’s some shit they don’t pay us enough to deal with. If you want grovelling, sniveling service, hire a fucking butler. Imagine all the interoffice stress and politics of a “regular job”, mixed with dealing with hundreds of members of the public–who are usually alright, sometimes very nice, and occasionally rude and moronic. You don’t hear our Good Customer stories in the Pit, because that’s not what the Pit is for. And I’ve got tons of em. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2003, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-you-hate-dealinf-with-customers-dont-work-retail/190193/22 "2003-07-22T23:58:19Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Brad the Impaler \* > \*\*Oh, and **bayonete1976** , what ever you do, stay far away from the forums at customerssuck. You think people were being babies here, some of those people post the same petty complaints day after day for months. \*\* Dude, I was a mod at Customer’s Suck for two years, and I guarantee you that the people posting there had legitimate complaints. I love that argument-get another job! Oh sure! I’ll just visit the JOB FAIRY!!! She’ll give me a MUCH better job. Eat me. ---
**Author:** ![Doomtrain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/0ea827/32.png) [@Doomtrain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doomtrain)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2003, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-you-hate-dealinf-with-customers-dont-work-retail/190193/23 "2003-07-23T00:13:37Z")
Oh, wait, I posted something resembling a rant, let me put the Standard Pit Lameass Disclaimer and don my martyr suit. “You can all pile on me and flame me now. I don’t care!” _is assumed into heaven, with the rest of the saints_ ---
**Author:** ![look\_ninjas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b2d939/32.png) [@look\_ninjas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/look_ninjas)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2003, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-you-hate-dealinf-with-customers-dont-work-retail/190193/24 "2003-07-23T02:07:42Z")
“Martyr suit!” I am not worthy. **bayonet1976** - You also have to remember that not all customers are idiots. Most of them are ordinary, nice people, who come in, buy their stuff, and leave. It’s only that we have no need to pit those people. Any job, I don’t care what it is, you’re probably going to have to deal with assholes. You can’t be rude to the assholes, or you’ll get fired. However, you can’t always repress your rage. The whining you’re so pissed off about is what’s keeping us from getting cancer and dying. Do you want us to get cancer and die? Do you really? ---
**Author:** ![bayonet1976](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/77aa72/32.png) [@bayonet1976](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bayonet1976)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2003, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-you-hate-dealinf-with-customers-dont-work-retail/190193/25 "2003-07-23T12:55:11Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by GMRyujin \* > \*\*Oh, wait, I posted something resembling a rant, let me put the Standard Pit Lameass Disclaimer and don my martyr suit. > > “You can all pile on me and flame me now. I don’t care!” > > _is assumed into heaven, with the rest of the saints_ \*\* Thanks for your kind attention to my posts. ---
**Author:** ![bayonet1976](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/77aa72/32.png) [@bayonet1976](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bayonet1976)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2003, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-you-hate-dealinf-with-customers-dont-work-retail/190193/26 "2003-07-23T13:01:57Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Guinastasia \* > \*\*Dude, I was a mod at Customer’s Suck for two years, and I guarantee you that the people posting there had legitimate complaints. > > I love that argument-get another job! Oh sure! I’ll just visit the JOB FAIRY!!! She’ll give me a MUCH better job. > > Eat me. \*\* What? No jobs washing dishes in your town? And for the record, I’d have no problem eating you. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2003, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-you-hate-dealinf-with-customers-dont-work-retail/190193/27 "2003-07-23T13:06:54Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Fin\_man \* > \*\*I’m not going to pile on you but pile on with you. I agree 100%. Employees are there to help customers and answer questions. If you don’t like it, find a new job. > > Of course, this assume the customer starts the interaction in a civilized way. \*\* This is so pathetic. Piss-stupid and pathetic. Look, dogbrains, this is a fucking capitalist system. People take jobs for the fucking MONEY because they need to EAT and pay RENT etc. They take jobs they fucking HATE because they HAVE TO to SURVIVE. And it’s always the fucking free-marketplace/defenders-of-capitalism/never-met-a-workplace-rule-I-didn’t-like jerk who tells people that if they don’t LIKE it, get a NEW job. Jeebus, morons, if jobs were easy to get and didn’t SUCK for the most part, you might come within a MILE of having a CLUE. As it is, you sound like COMPLETE IDIOTS who are COMPLETELY out of touch with REALITY! ---
**Author:** ![bayonet1976](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/77aa72/32.png) [@bayonet1976](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bayonet1976)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2003, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-you-hate-dealinf-with-customers-dont-work-retail/190193/28 "2003-07-23T13:12:19Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by tdn \* > \*\*Well put, **Audrey**. > > I’d like to point out the irony of someone who starts a Pit thread to whine about whiners who start Pit threads. > > I’d also like to state that people who say “Boo-fucking-hoo” sound like obnoxious jerks. > > Just sayin’. \*\* Hmmm, interesting point. I’d guess you could see this thread as whinning about other’s whinning. Gonna have to get back to you on that. Oh, and the bit about sounding like an obnoxious jerk, your instincts are right on, I am both, thanks for noticing. That said, you’re a rude asshole for pointing it out. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2003, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-you-hate-dealinf-with-customers-dont-work-retail/190193/29 "2003-07-23T13:13:16Z")
Hey, everybody needs to blow off some steam every now and then. ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2003, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-you-hate-dealinf-with-customers-dont-work-retail/190193/30 "2003-07-23T15:29:24Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by bayonet1976 \* > \*\* Oh, and the bit about sounding like an obnoxious jerk, your instincts are right on, I am both, thanks for noticing. That said, you’re a rude asshole for pointing it out. \*\* To quote Henry Kissinger’s shortest Whitehouse memo: “Don’t Mention it, Dick.” ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2003, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-you-hate-dealinf-with-customers-dont-work-retail/190193/31 "2003-07-23T15:36:41Z")
I wonder what sales clerks think about the service they get from sales clerks? Or perhaps they are privy to some mystic hoodoo that allows them the pay money for goods without being treated as tho they are a major imposition on the clerk’s valuable time and energy. Of course this is a gross generalization. Of course the vast majority of my purchases transpire without note. But it is not at all unusual for myself or my wife to be amazed at the rudeness/condescension/indifference of someone whom I HAVE to deal with to complete the transaction. Further, believe it or not, as a customer I may not be intimately familiar with your employer’s policies. Nor does the mere labelling of something as “policy” help much when it strikes the customer (and possibly the salesclerk) as really stupid. Yes, I believe customers should treat sales persons civilly. Hell, so should just about everyone in just about every social interaction. Same goes the other way, tho. I personally have no desire to work retail, tho I have in the far distant past. That is why I took the necessary steps to get the education, training, and certification to work elsewhere. Lacking those, I would (and did in the past) prefer labor not involving regular interaction with the public. Fortunately, I am now a lawyer, so I have a free opportunity to exercise my antisocial tendencies. ---
**Author:** ![bayonet1976](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/77aa72/32.png) [@bayonet1976](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bayonet1976)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2003, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-you-hate-dealinf-with-customers-dont-work-retail/190193/32 "2003-07-23T16:41:28Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by quietman1920 \* > \*\*To quote Henry Kissinger’s shortest Whitehouse memo: > > “Don’t Mention it, Dick.” \*\* Say, are you tdn’s sock puppet? Or was the setup too sweet to resist? ---
**Author:** ![Fin\_man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@Fin\_man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fin_man)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2003, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-you-hate-dealinf-with-customers-dont-work-retail/190193/33 "2003-07-23T17:02:44Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Evil Captor \* > \*\*This is so pathetic. Piss-stupid and pathetic. Look, dogbrains, this is a fucking capitalist system. People take jobs for the fucking MONEY because they need to EAT and pay RENT etc. They take jobs they fucking HATE because they HAVE TO to SURVIVE. > > And it’s always the fucking free-marketplace/defenders-of-capitalism/never-met-a-workplace-rule-I-didn’t-like jerk who tells people that if they don’t LIKE it, get a NEW job. > > Jeebus, morons, if jobs were easy to get and didn’t SUCK for the most part, you might come within a MILE of having a CLUE. As it is, you sound like COMPLETE IDIOTS who are COMPLETELY out of touch with REALITY! \*\* Look, shit-for-brains. Some people have to take jobs they hate because they have to survive. But they could be pissed at: 1. Themselves for not doing better in school or 2. their parents for their genetic make-up which prevents them from getting a better job or 3. the economy for making jobs scarce or 4. their high school advisor which led them down a bad career path or 5. the “friend” that got them started on drugs or 6. WHOEVER THE FUCK THEY FEEL CAUSED THEM TO WORK AT THE SHITTY JOB **however** , don’t take it out on me. I’m just a customer who wants to make a purchase. Just because they are unhappy/pissed doesn’t give them the right to piss all over me. ---
**Author:** ![Doomtrain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/0ea827/32.png) [@Doomtrain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doomtrain)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2003, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-you-hate-dealinf-with-customers-dont-work-retail/190193/34 "2003-07-23T17:02:51Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Dinsdale \* > \*\*I wonder what sales clerks think about the service they get from sales clerks? Or perhaps they are privy to some mystic hoodoo that allows them the pay money for goods without being treated as tho they are a major imposition on the clerk’s valuable time and energy. \*\* I get the same treatment as everyone else, I assume. I just don’t get personally offended and indignant when a minimum-rage drone doesn’t recognize my superiority. I’m quite willing to cut them some slack and move on with my life. ---
**Author:** ![Doomtrain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/0ea827/32.png) [@Doomtrain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doomtrain)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2003, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-you-hate-dealinf-with-customers-dont-work-retail/190193/35 "2003-07-23T17:04:35Z")
Minimum wage drone, that is. Though minimum-rage drone might work too. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2003, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-you-hate-dealinf-with-customers-dont-work-retail/190193/36 "2003-07-23T17:13:02Z")
No one is taking it out on YOU, **Fin\_man**. On the contrary-we’re talking about customers taking out THEIR anger on US. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2003, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-you-hate-dealinf-with-customers-dont-work-retail/190193/37 "2003-07-23T17:18:20Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by bayonet1976 \* > \*\*Say, are you tdn’s sock puppet? Or was the setup too sweet to resist? \*\* I’m going for b), but that’s just an opinion. **quietman1920** will make his own opinion known as soon as I can get around to it. ---
**Author:** ![Fin\_man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@Fin\_man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fin_man)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2003, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-you-hate-dealinf-with-customers-dont-work-retail/190193/38 "2003-07-23T17:28:43Z")
**Guin** , I thought the OP was complaining on how customer service employees were “whinning and complaining [when]…asked questions by customers.” I agreed that if customer service employees hate their job, they should change jobs. **Evil Captor** then went of on me (with what I read as) saying that the customer service employees have a right to complain since they are forced to work in jobs they don’t like. ---
**Author:** ![bayonet1976](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/77aa72/32.png) [@bayonet1976](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bayonet1976)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2003, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-you-hate-dealinf-with-customers-dont-work-retail/190193/39 "2003-07-23T17:42:05Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by tdn \* > \*\*I’m going for b), but that’s just an opinion. **quietman1920** will make his own opinion known as soon as I can get around to it. \*\* **tdn** that was so funny I retract the name I called you before. Please accept my apologies. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2003, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-you-hate-dealinf-with-customers-dont-work-retail/190193/40 "2003-07-23T17:49:38Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by bayonet1976 \* > \*\ ***tdn** that was so funny I retract the name I called you before. Please accept my apologies. \*\* No worries, mate. 🙂 You don’t live on or near Amelia Island, by any chance? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-you-hate-dealinf-with-customers-dont-work-retail/190193.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-you-hate-dealinf-with-customers-dont-work-retail/190193.md?page=3)