Attention Whore

A customer approached me asking for help. I was already helping another customer find something so I pointed in the general area where she could find her item and told her that I would come by afterward to help her out. When I arrived in the area, she was nowhere to be found. The next day, a Secret Shop Report arrived complaining about the poor customer service and specifically mentioned my name saying that I was "rude," "ignored her," and "didn't provide her with any customer service." Despite being one of the top workers, I was fired on principle.

This is why I Worked 2 Rant.

Food Poisoning

One night a man came into the sandwich store I work at and said, "I came in here yesterday and your meatball sub gave me and my wife really bad food poisoning. Could I have something else instead?"

So I made him a turkey sub. When I was done I bagged it and laid it on the counter for my co-worker to ring it up. He grabbed it, said, "Thanks," and tried to walk out the door!
My co-worker said to him, "Hey, you have to pay for that!"
Apparently he assumed we would give him free food because he claimed to have been burned by our sandwich previously. We didn't let it fly. He gave the sandwich back and left.

The next night, that same co-worker saw him in at a pizza restaurant located in the same complex claiming to have food poisoning from their pizza.

This is why I Work 2 Rant.

She's Got Her Eye on the Prize

I work in a large retail store that sometimes comes out with designer collaborations. For our most recent collection, we put a "preview" in our display windows. It included several mannequins dressed in the designer garments, posters with the designer's name, signs with the designer's name and the launch date, and lastly large decals across the window with the designer's name and the launch date.

The day before the scheduled launch, a customer approached me about a jacket she saw in our window; she really liked it and wanted to buy it. She asked where she could find it.
I replied, "Was it the [designer] window?"
"I don't know. It was in the window outside."
She described the jacket and it sounded just like the designer showpiece item.
"Was it in the front by the entrance, or on the side of the store?"
"I don't know." She describes the jacket again.
"Were there posters behind the mannequins that said [designer's name] in huge letters?"
"I don't know. I really want that jacket."
It was clear she hadn't been looking at anything but the jacket she wanted. So, I led her around to the escalator, down to the first floor, through the ladies' department and out the front door.
"Can you show me which jacket it is?"
She points to the designer jacket. "It's just beautiful... I need to buy it right away, I'm going back to Australia tomorrow."
I motion to the sign right next to it and say, "Unfortunately the [designer] collection won't be released until tomorrow."

.
.
.

Now, imagine a child whose ice cream cone fell on the floor.

"Aaaawwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwhhhhhhhh...... I really want it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
I've never heard an adult whine so much in my life.

This is why I Work 2 Rant.

American Express

I work in a large retail store that doesn't accept American Express. Sometimes customers get pretty irate about this. Here are some highlights.

"But....this is America."
"Don't you have to accept American Express? Isn't it like, run by the government?"
"What do you have against America?"
"Well, do you accept Russian Express? How about Chinese Express?"
"Well then, what DO you accept?" (To which I answer, "Everything else.")

This is why I Work 2 Rant.

Negligence

My department was neglected for over four hours while I was preoccupied on the cash registers, fitting room, and then on my break. Returning from my break, I was hoping I would be able to devote my attention toward my department however I was pulled from it to hop back on the register.

After quickly walking the floor and peeking my head inside the fitting room, I realized that the sales floor was relatively clean with a small handful of go-backs for each department except for my own. My department had merchandise scattered all along the floor and hanging over fixtures, not to mention the large amount of go-backs that were piling up. I tried to ask my supervisor if another coworker could cover me on the registers while I try and get my department back into shape, but he refused saying that he wouldn't allow more than one person in each department and there was already one person there. My supervisor would rather have the department looking like a tornado had blown through it than have me go and clean it up.

This is why I Work 2 Rant.

Read the Signs

I work in a two-story department-style store with its own lingerie section, complete with three cash registers that we never use. We utilize the counters, but not the registers. It is common for customers to approach the registers and expect to be rung up. Polite customers typically approach with caution and ask "Are you open?" While more brash women will march straight up and throw their bras at me with a blank stare.

We were closing the store for the night, so I began cleaning a display near the cash register area. Two European tourists marched up and threw their bras on the counter before even checking to see if there was a sales associate present. One of them then looked around, spotted me, and yelled, "Hello? Can I get some service?" I stood up and apologized saying that these registers were not open. She gave her friend an annoyed look, picked her things up angrily and as she stormed off, she remarked over her shoulder, "You need to put up a sign, then."

The display on all three of the registers were facing out and read,"Register closed. Register closed. Register closed."

This is why I Work 2 Rant.

To Argue? Or Not To Argue?

Oftentimes, a customer will swipe their credit card wrong during a transaction. Usually, I correct them and we move on with the transaction. Today, a customer decided to argue with me on the correct way to swipe their credit card. Their card wasn't swiping yet they insisted that they were right. I asked to see the credit card, swiped it, and continued with the transaction while they stood there glaring at me.

This is why I Work 2 Rant.

Guilty Until Proven Innocent

A customer tried to rush out of the fitting room but not before I was able to carry on the following conversation:

Me: Are you done with your room?
Customer: Yes.
M: Did you have more than that one item in your hand?
C: Yes.
M: Could you bring out the rest of your items and your number so that I may count you out?
C: No.
M: Could you show me the room that you used so that I may clear it out?
C: No.
She pauses, looks at me as if offended, and proceeds to add,
C: I didn't steal anything.

Two things:
1. If you didn't steal anything, then there should be no problem with giving me all the garments you decided not to get or at least show me the room you were in, and...
2. How am I supposed to know whether or not you stole anything if you won't let me count you out?

This is why I Work 2 Rant.

Can I Use the Bathroom?

The bathroom at work continuously became clogged. After further investigation, we found out that a fellow coworker had been purposefully clogging the toilet so that we could waste more time going to use the toilet at another store across the street. To foil this coworker's evil plot (and to hopefully catch them), the managers decided it was a good idea to lock the bathroom doors with a key that they would hold onto. Now, not only do you have to frantically run around the entire store in search of the one manager who holds the key to the bathroom, you also have to sign a bathroom log that mimics the hall pass teachers used to make you carry around in Elementary School.

This is why I Work 2 Rant.

Please State the Relevance

The rule is, "Only one person per fitting room." While informing a customer this, she justifies her presence in the room by stating the following, "She doesn't speak English." Last time I checked, it didn't matter what language you spoke, any female teenager knew how to change her own clothes.

This is why I Work 2 Rant.

Misplaced

I was putting out new merchandise from a tote when a customer decided to pile her clothes on top of it because she didn't want to carry it. She then proceeded to turn around and talk to her shopping buddies. Annoyed, I decided I would clean up the mess and started to pick up her pile. I was expecting her to protest. When she didn't, I decided I would at least leave her pile somewhere she could see it but nowhere near my totes of merchandise. Five minutes later, she turned around and panicked.

"Oh my god! Someone stole my clothes!"

I was expecting her to ask me if I had seen her pile of clothes so that I could inform her of where they were and pretend to be sorry about taking it. When she didn't, I decided I would keep quiet.

Her friend had asked her, "Where did you put it?"
Her response, "I don't remember."

I spent the next ten minutes smiling to myself as she searched the store for her items.

This is why I Work 2 Rant.

The Definition of "Reward"

I asked a manager why the company stopped giving raises to employees who changed their employment status from Part-Time to Full-Time. She told me that it was because there was no change in job description and it was just a change in availability and therefore didn't require an income increase. I was recently "promoted" to a position that gave me more responsibilities but no raise. I asked her why there wasn't a raise for that promotion. She told me that the position was a "reward" for doing such a great job. So my "reward" is having to do more stuff for the same amount of pay.

This is why I Work 2 Rant.

Excuse Me

I was making my way through customers by politely saying "Excuse me" as I struggled with a heavy arm-full of clothes. Most customers, after taking a look at the amount of clothes I was carrying, would step aside far enough to let me pass. One customer decided to take one step, only one step aside which wouldn't be enough room to let me pass. I said, "Excuse me" one more time and she just looked at me and continued shopping without letting me pass. So I made room as she glared at me and told her companion of how rude I was and how I should have at least said, "Excuse me."

This is why I Work 2 Rant.

Obviously Rude

I had to transport clothes from one fitting room to the next. I piled as many clothes as I could onto my arms and struggled my way to the other fitting room. A customer stopped me to ask me where an item was. I told them that my hands were a bit full at the moment (as if it wasn't obvious) but that I could help them in a moment. They glared at me, scoffed and walked away.

This is why I Work 2 Rant.

Got Water?

Many companies are trying to be more "green." In support of this movement, my company decided to dispose of the giant plastic filtered bottles of water we receive in shipments each week and install a filter. This would have been a great idea if they had decided to do their math homework. The filter they bought is meant for up to twenty-five (25) people. There are well over one-hundred (100) co-workers who are now very thirsty.

This is why I Work 2 Rant.

Dumped

I am required to count the customer's garments before I show them to a fitting room. On many occasions, the following scenario occurs:

Customer: "What's the limit?"
Me: "There is none."
Customer: "Oh, ok."

And then they proceed to dump 20+ garments into my arms instead of allowing me to count and take their garments from them in an organized fashion.

This is why I Work 2 Rant.

You May NOT Pass "Go"

I recently changed my status to become a full-time employee. Hoping to grow with the company, I inquired about management positions. Our new store manager informed me that we are at a hiring freeze and that we're also not promoting anyone at the moment. I also met two people waiting to be interviewed as I was leaving for the day.

This is why I Work 2 Rant.

Deaf?

Whenever I show a customer to a fitting room, I tell them that they need to bring everything out of their fitting room when they're done and the number that hangs outside their door so that I may count them out. Why, then, do customers constantly and consistently leave their clothes in piles on the ground when they rush out of the room?

This is why I Work 2 Rant.

"Blind"

I was in the fitting room garment-caring clothes when my coworker and I noticed a lady rush into one of the rooms without us counting her in. We both stop her and asked her if she needed assistance. She claimed she was already put in the room yet there was no number outside her door indicating the number of items she was trying on and therefore wasn't counted in nor shown to her room. I informed her that she had to be shown to her room and counted in and she claimed there was no one in the fitting room when she arrived. I was standing there the entire time for the past hour garment-caring clothes and there was a giant line of people waiting to be shown a room. There was no possible way there was no one in the fitting room.

This is why I Work 2 Rant.

RUN FOR YOUR LIFE!!!

Because where I work is a small store, it is oftentimes understaffed with barely one person per function (register, fitting room, etc.). I've noticed that the manager has a habit of finding all employees in the store to try and run go-backs while she only grabs a small handful of accessories to run. She likes to hold onto these for awhile to make it appear as if she's actually doing work.

This is why I Work 2 Rant.

Oh, What A Tangled Mess!

Our district manager decided that he wanted bins by the register filled with sandals and flip flops. One of the sandals that were put in the bins were the ones that tie up around the ankles. They have really long ribbons extending from them that became all tangled the first day we put them out. The next day, he told us that it was a horrible idea to put the sandals in the bins because it made them "un-shoppable." I spent over an hour having to untangle all the sandals to place them back in their original spot.

This is why I Work 2 Rant.

E-mail Us!

After much convincing from friends (okay, just one friend and a one-liner of persuasion), Work 2 Rant now has an official e-mail address!!

So if you have your own work-related stories you want everyone to read about, send us an e-mail and we'll post it!

Disclaimer: Submissions are subject to editing. If you would like credit for your story, please indicate so in your e-mail otherwise none will be given.

This is NOT a "Yes or No" Question

Recently, our computer system had been updated to include debit card transactions where the customer is allowed to type in their pin number when before we only took credit card transactions. This means the additional question of "Credit or debit?" must now be asked. On several occasions after asking this specific question, I get the response, "Yes." After repeating the same question again because I don't believe they heard me, they usually look at me as if I'm the moron for not understanding.

This is why I Work 2 Rant.