It doesn't give you HIV

ArphaRima

Isnt this thread just about people with crap jobs hating their crap jobs?

See it as motivation in college. If you fail you stay in that hell forever. Pass and you will eventually get a better job. Until you realise that most jobs are like that anyway. And being an asshole in your crap job is just being an asshole.

ZENER

You do not pay a service charge. I am paid by my employer.

You still haven't quite grasped the whole customer thing have you ? Let me explain in simple terms for you :

* Businessman opens shop/pub/petrol station.

* Businessman hires staff to represent the business and serve the customers he hopes his business will attract.

* Customer avails of service provided by businessman via the staff members.

* Customer pays money for the privilege of availing of said service.

* Business man uses money handed over by customer (for services/goods provided) to pay staff.

* Put simply >>>> NO CUSTOMER - NO BUSINESS - NO JOB.

It's amazing how attitudes have changed through the years - I put it down to the outlawing of capital punishment in schools and the easy availability of acne cream !!

I'm not sure what industry you work in but what is the attitude of the owner to his/her clientele - I'll wager he understands the concept of the customer as outlined above. Why not do everyone a favour and quit the job you so obviously hate and give up drink !

ZEN

impr0v

Lump wrote:

I serve around 1000 people in one day, only a couple of them irritate me, hence I wouldn't quit my good paying job...

Lump wrote:

...incidentally I am quitting my job because it's startign to piss me off so much

Did you just make that decision on the spot? :rolleyes:

Lump wrote:

Impr0v....I'm going to work in the BBC where hopefully I won't have to deal with arrogant pricks like you.

Well best of luck with it and I hope you won't have to either, though I'll think you'll eventually find that you are a magnet for them, and not by coincidence or due to their pervasiveness.

Victor

Karl Hungus wrote:

Still though, there was many great times to be had! Like when we'd catch someone trying to steal videos from the drop box, a grab of the arm and a sharp pull would seriously make 'em think twice before trying that again!

Ooooh. The monkey puzzle of pain!

Jamesobrady

Just to lighten the mood.......
All you people's who pay tax, pay my wages cos I'm technically paid by a government department the company i work for is contracted to. Therefore.....no matter how much you hate your job, are rude to people, are receiving rudeness from people, are witnessing rudeness exchanged between 2 people.....you still allow me to work an extremely stress free job with extremely professional people. I have no dealings with the general public except for the occasional tour of the base, and there's a room full of bunk beds at work where i can sleep during work hours if im feeling fatigued in the slightest. Also i must point out that i also pay tax...therefore to the same degree as a customer indirectly supports the wages of the staff...i too contribute to my own wages.

Ha ha-ha haha.

Anyway......thats just to lighten up this thread where it seems to have gone from a harmless venting session about faceless ignorance to a personally directed assault on each other due to differing views.

I do agree if you don't like your job you should leave it. I also understand how difficult leaving a job is.......but staying in a situation where you are unhappy affects every aspect of your life.

If i was in a hurry/late for work/late for meeting friends etc....I would walk to the top of the queue,apologise to the next person and the cashier and pay for petrol with exact change. I don't consider it rude if the line is huge.Nor did that type of thing bother me when i was the cashier. If its only 2/3 people then i'd wait.

Usually i find people in call centers very polite and good at their job although sometimes undertrained....which of course is not their fault. I've been having an ongoing problem with eircom over the last 12 months that still hasn't been dealt with by their Final Accounts department. I've spoken to about 20 different customer reps and one final accounts rep and all bar 2 have been polite. Also im fairly sure the 2 rude ones are actually the same girl in the cork call centre...but i can't be sure. This person demanded to know of me when i would be making my outstanding payment and actually attempted to get a credit card number from me. I was shocked at her rudeness and pushyness.
She repeatedly implied it was not her fault i was stupid and couldn't understand the words she was using(!)..............I remained polite with an effort i don't know how i kept......

The simple point i'd like to make is that politeness is not difficult but like anything people have a choice with, they can choose not to.
Nobody is going to change the social habits of people any more then employers are going to pay top wages to shop floor staff. Any job involving interacting with other people is going to bring with it ample opportunity to see and recieve both unexplainable and unbearable rudeness and ignorance, and also an amount of friendlyness, respect and politeness.

Nobody with any sense of decency expects another person to show subservience to them. I dislike the attitude some people show when they suggest their custom pays the staff's wages. It is not an untrue statement, but it is not a directly accurate one either. What bothers me moreso then the degree to which it is true or not, is the unspoken suggestion that you are paying someone to do a chore you feel above doing for yourself. This is ultimately a sign of disrespect to another person.
OR, at least, this is my interpretation of the statement. I expect some will agree and some will disagree and thats ok. I don't mind anyone disagreeing with my views or interpretations so long as a personal and insulting goading is not used as a response. On boards as in my day to day "real world" interactions i just will ignore anything which seems intentionally rude.

This was a good thread, and i've enjoyed learning about other people's day to day hassles and happinesses.......thank you to all who contributed to both sides of the arguement.....as i said..if everyone tried show respect, whether it be genuine or not is irrelevant, then everyone would have at least one less annoyance per day. If you're polite to someone and they fail to respond in kind then surely it is their loss not yours...you are the more polite person and you win the moral high-round from your perspective.

I never take the top anything.....and i never have exact change.....except for petrol.....i only get a bag if there's more then a handful of items, unless im on the bike..then i need one........ultimately it doesn't bother me who packs the bag...personally i prefer to do it myself but i won't go out of my way to make a point of doing it.......i understand im probably the 200th faceless person you've server/interacted with/spoken to.....but im still a person and when i say"hey how ya doing...just these please" i would expect a common courtesy in return.....conversely if you say hello to me i will respond in kind.

If a person is rude to me without it being actually insulting then i just say "wanker" or somesuch in my head and continue my day unabated.....they're a person too and all people are imperfect.

TheWolf

Very well said, obrady

Victor

Jamesobrady wrote:

and there's a room full of bunk beds at work where i can sleep during work hours if im feeling fatigued in the slightest.

I'm utterly shocked. You mean you don't get a room each?

Kold

ZENER wrote:

It's amazing how attitudes have changed through the years - I put it down to the outlawing of capital punishment in schools and the easy availability of acne cream !!

I'm not sure what industry you work in but what is the attitude of the owner to his/her clientele - I'll wager he understands the concept of the customer as outlined above. Why not do everyone a favour and quit the job you so obviously hate and give up drink !

ZEN

Mate, you're an utter fúckwit. Stop signing your posts aswell, we're quite able to see who is posting. You're problem here is that you refuse to accept that you're actions are wrong. You're so far up your own ar$e that you believe people should treat you well even if you don't treat them well. Do you spend over 20 euros every hour in my shop in order to pay the 2 people working at all times? If not then I believe that my shop is quite comfortable without your business. I value my own dignity over my wages. That said, I get lovely customers who make my job worthwhile and rewarding. These are customers we can't do without. You're just making it all the easier to speak out at people. It was noticeable at work today. However, it seemed that the Z ring was not majorly affected. Wow, a more pleasant workplace at no noticeable loss. I don't hate my job. Luckily you are in a minority. Idiots I mean.

ZENER

Kold wrote:

Mate, you're an utter fúckwit.

Charming !!:eek: - treat all your customers that way do you ??

Stop signing your posts aswell, we're quite able to see who is posting.

Bet you wouldn't tell Dev or Ecksor that !!

You're problem here is that you refuse to accept that you're actions are wrong. You're so far up your own ar$e that you believe people should treat you well even if you don't treat them well.

You don't work in a chipper by any chance do you, only I think one or two may have landed on your shoulders there. Maybe you'd like to tell me where your boss gets the money to pay you ? just curious as he/she obviously doesn't need customers if he/she was willing to hire someone as downright ignorant as you !

ZEN

protos

All service staff in Japan are incredibly polite. The minute you walk in the door every member of staff on the premises roars out 'irrashaimasae' (welcome) and when you're paying they have a set spiel they go through - 'you gave me this money, I'll give you this change, thank you very much - have a nice day' and off you go.
All japanese customers will generally completely ignore all this though and treat the staff pretty much like machines.

ZENER

LOL I've seen this on TV many times but thought it was just Hollywood taking the pi** out of them. The Japanese are a very respectful culture unlike Europe - to be honest I imagine that soet of treatment would probably embarrass most Irish people but the occasional bit of politeness makes us look up at the shop assistant or who ever we're dealing with and return some of the good feeling and face it it does go a long way to brightening up your day.

Of course you're more likely to run into people who dont have an ounce of respect for the people who keep them in a job and who have a permenantly pi**ed off look about them and who barely acknowledge your presence - these people tend to be teenage blokes in my experience.

I recall recently where a female customer in a local Spar totally lost the plot and started shouting at the staff because they were all huddled in a group talking to one similarly aged customer about the previous nights exploits while totally ignoring the queue building up at the other register. The rest of the customers - after the initial shock - applauded her, unfortunately the only person to respond to the lady's plight was a very polite coloured man who had been busy stocking the shelves - the rest of the young staff continued yapping and throwing daggers looks at the guy.

I find the day goes much less stressfully if you smile at people and exchange greetings - 9 times out of 10 the gesture is reciprocated and someone else has a better day because of it.

ZEN

mycroft

In the shop this morning.

Middle aged woman in Q ahead of me, thrust her mobile at the shop assistant

"I need some credit"

Assistant

"What kind of credit"

Woman (in incredibly outraged voice)

"Well I don't know"

---

I've never gone from 0 to outright hatred so fast.

echomadman

Although benefit-of-the-doubt only covers so much on a day to day basis...definately doesn't cover the lithuanian girl working in Londis in Maynooth who intentionally put mayonaisse in my roll because she doesn't like my friend ....i was on the motorway Sligo-bound fore i noticed....and by noticed i mean took a bite and got a mouthful of chicken and mayo....i hate mayo...nearly puked

heheheh
hi James, that bit rings so many bells. http://www.echomadman.com/blog/archives/000003.html

is your bike sorted out yet?

wrt to thread topic, i have ceased to be amazed by the amount of rudeness people can show when you work in a job dealing with the public (internet cafe here).
Its give and take, you give me your ****ty attitude, and you can take mine back. Dont be a wanker and i'll be the nicest servetron you ever dealt with.
I'm always courteous when i'm the customer, because i know how annoying customers are.


edit: Zener, as a self employed business owner, who works hard all day and has done innumerable customer service jobs over the years from shops to call centres ,from the tone of your posts i have to agree with Kold, you're the kind of asshole that ruins a servers day, and starts a domino effect of the server being so pissed off at your behaviour that their ability to maintain a friendly attitude to subsequent customers diminishes.
I've told people to get the **** out of my cafe when they step beyond the bounds of whats acceptable in a customer-server relationship.

Also i agree that you should stop signing your posts, it is bad form, and the old "you wouldn't tell ecksor or devore" line is bull****, they wouldnt need to be told, as they wouldn't bother doing it in the first place,
I wouldnt normally make any comment on something like this but i think your response is relevant, i see it as an extension of your over-inflated sense of self importance.

ixoy

ZENER wrote:

I recall recently where a female customer in a local Spar totally lost the plot and started shouting at the staff because they were all huddled in a group talking to one similarly aged customer about the previous nights exploits while totally ignoring the queue building up at the other register. The rest of the customers - after the initial shock - applauded her, unfortunately the only person to respond to the lady's plight was a very polite coloured man who had been busy stocking the shelves - the rest of the young staff continued yapping and throwing daggers looks at the guy.

Don't suppose you want to name and shame the Spar? My local Spar varies a lot in quality of service [IFSC branch - the main one!]. Most of the time they're grand and do their job, but there's one girl there, who served me yesterday, who had a big scowl on her face (and does in general). She didn't look at me, didn't acknowledge my presence despite the fact I was smiling, and saying "please" and "thank you" as I always do. So yes, there's a lot of ignorant members of the public that people have to serve in a shop, but there's also ignorant and rude members of shops who we have to get served by.

ZENER

@ ixoy: The Spar store I mentioned is in Swords Manor on the Brakenstown Road.

@ echomadman:

echomadman wrote:

edit: Zener, as a self employed business owner, who works hard all day and has done innumerable customer service jobs over the years from shops to call centres ,from the tone of your posts i have to agree with Kold, you're the kind of asshole that ruins a servers day, and starts a domino effect of the server being so pissed off at your behaviour that their ability to maintain a friendly attitude to subsequent customers diminishes.

..and you can tell this just from a post in an internet forum. Actually you couldn't be further from the truth, I'm always courtious - I always say please and thanks and always try to make eye contact. I appreciate it when someone takes the time to say hello or pass a comment on the weather BUT .. I get really pissed off when I'm ignored at a counter or when the person behind it is more interested in talking about his/her sexual exploits from the night before with another staff member. Another thing that gets up my nose is when I put my purchases on the counter and the only words spoken by the assistand is the price of what I placed in front of them. They wouldn't dream of asking:

Anything else? - we'll forego the pleasentries in this example - (the bags, cigs, batteries, film, phone credit all have to be asked for at the counter) If I then have to ask for a bag or phone credit I get eyes to heaven !
Do you not think it makes sense in this situation to ask the customer if he/she requires any of these items BEFORE totting the whole lot up and announcing the amount due ?

Also i agree that you should stop signing your posts, it is bad form, and the old "you wouldn't tell ecksor or devore" line is bull****, they wouldnt need to be told, as they wouldn't bother doing it in the first place,

Actually they do as do many boards members - perhaps it's you who have the attitude problem if something that insignificant bothers you so much!

I wouldnt normally make any comment on something like this but i think your response is relevant, i see it as an extension of your over-inflated sense of self importance.

Your opinion and you're entitles to it but in your capacity as an employer what do you think the prospects for your business are if you allow your staff to treat customers as KOLD would ? Manners and courtesy were always the reasons corner shops were successfull, the owner was usually the one serving and understood that it was in their own interest to be pleasent plus it made their day and that of their (returning) customers.

ZEN

Ste.phen

apexaviour wrote:

Haha I don't think you thought that one through.
Wouldn't it be a bit futile?

I do the same job as many of the other paper-putter-outter-people here, and this is something i do, i put the grubby, stained one right at the bottom where it wont ever see the light of day.

The damn customers still try the japanese table cloth trick jsut to avoid the top one. There doesnt need to be anything WRONG with the top one, its just the fact that its on top thats the problem.

And what annoys ME about it is i spend an hour-90 mins laying out a cube-stand of newspapers, and within 5 mins, some gobsheen has taken a paper from halfway through the pile, most likely knocked down the first one or 2 onto the floor, and possibly creased/damaged/torn another one somewhere in the pile.
WHich means the next person sees a messy pile with they get there, and promptly take one from half way through, making it worse.

(and whats with people that open, flick through, crease, etc a paper from the top of the pile, and then buy a DIFFERENT one - AGGGH!)

*ahem*
guess you have to do it every week for 3 years to understand :P

Slutmonkey57b

I think all customers should have to do a personality test before they're allowed to use a premesis. Then all their transactions should be logged and any problems highlighted. If at the end of the month their spend does not outweigh the hassle of serving them they should be barred and have to move to another shop/pub/whatever.

Alternatively, I believe all customers should be put up against a wall and shot.

Here's a fact, I too work in a customer service industry. so :
I am always aware of who my real employer is - the CUSTOMER.
I am always courteous to my employers - the CUSTOMER.
I am always polite to my employers - the CUSTOMER.

Only Americans in fast food training videos believe that.


Woot 500th post

jesus_thats_gre

....








As funny as this sounds after reading Kold's posts....




























HIS FAMILY ACTUALLY OWN THE SHOP HE WORKS IN



EDIT*

HE actually posted this here. I do not know him personally, nor did I divulge any PMs. I done this to highliigh the fact that he is rude to customers in a shop he may soon own!! Ironic

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=184647&page=1&pp=20

Lol my mum overfills the ones in our shop. I don't know how we aren't bankrupt.

elivsvonchiaing

jesus_thats_gre wrote:

....
As funny as this sounds after reading Kold's posts....
HIS FAMILY ACTUALLY OWN THE SHOP HE WORKS IN

Er - isn't this a bit much here? If you want to spill your guts out on PMs fine but having it all revealed to everyone? Jesus_thats_ not so great imho

I'm not accusing you of divulging PMs. I just assume you know they guy. This post is purely an insurance policy for those that know me I'm nearly certain of some - and have suspicions of others. Jaysus people subtelty should prevail here!

jesus_thats_gre

He actually mentioned it publicly in another thread.

Dont know him at all!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Kold

Yes my parents own the shop but I don't see what this has got to do with anything... If you read this thread you'll find that it's not a thread defending my rights to treat innocent unsuspecting customers like shít but rather chastising ignorant fúcks out there who treat cashiers like shít. In which case, especially as it soon will be my shop I have the right to retaliate in force. Echomadman has got where I'm coming from spot on. It would appear that Jesus_thats_gre has taken some sort of spin doctor approach on this debate and as a result, seems to lack any sort of point rather than just score a hit on me.

Jamesobrady

ok,ok,ok..as that small guy in Lethal weapon would say....
This is how MY Ideal Shop Workplace would...ermm....work....

*customer walks in.......looks at Irish Times......decides to buy......takes top copy and strolls off.......happy alarms go off and parade band with scantily clad women appear from behind fake wall, balloons drop from above and c-list celebrity shakes startled man's hand in front of camera flashing papparazzi
while informing him he's just won a hooker for the day because he took the top copy without disturbing adjacent copies in the slighest.*

Customer walks up to cashier and states "20 benson and a twix".....
a red dot traces it's way up the customer's chest,stopping quite accurately on his forehead........
cashier;"would you like to rephrase your statement sir? I suggest adding a pleasantry.".......
"hmm,after some brief consideration i don't think i will"......
"Sir, i must inform you that a highly skilled sniper has his silenced rifle trained quite accurately on your forehead...now do you wish to rephrase your statement?"....
"I beg your pardon...how dare you....my custom pays your wages and furthermore I......."
*Pfffft Pfffft.....crumple*....
"NEXT"........


"And can i get a bag too please?" "Get the fcuk out"

"Good morning" "get the fcuk out"

"20 jnplyrblu" "get the fcuk out"

"How much is this?" "the fcuk i look like- a barcode reader?"

"Do you sell phone credit?" "you're barred...now get the fcuk out"

"erm....can i have my change ?" "no"

"Du yoou Guuuys take Dohlarrs here....Dohlaaarrssss?"
*Pfft pfft* "cleanup....till 3 please"

"James im going to have to let you go, on account of your persisting rudeness and reluctance to partake in any transaction with a member of the public which ends with cash in the till...and i've a sneaking suspicion you do know whats happened all those missing americans."

"See you in court- Mr Unfair Dismissal !"



Sign above Deli counter....."We only have butter.....we do not have Mayonaisse.....we do not add bits of tomato hoping you won't notice.....we do not use the same knife we butter your roll with to cut tomatoes......none of our staff like Mayo or tomatoes, those who do are rigorously trained not to.......as of tomorrow we are discontinuing our sales of tomatoes.......should you have any problem whatsoever with traces of mayonaisse on your food item it is entirely legal for you to cross the counter and forceable stuff the roll into whichever one of the assistant's facial orifices you choose.....we will record the event and give you a free copy so that you may laugh at it later with friends and some beers......we value your custom over the lives of our staff and will feed any member of your choosing to our pit of crocodiles out the back for the slightest show of disrespect....again a copy of the event will be forthcoming"

Staff Notice;
Carlsberg don't make shops.....they make beer so fcuk off and get drunk...and then play the"ignore as many customers as possible until one finally cracks and gives out" game.....bonus in your wages if you can then continue to ignore them and scowl like they're being rude.

Ah..in a perfect world everyone would be entirely free to be as lethal as possible for the most ridiculous of reasons....It'd be like one big happy continuous Stephen Seagal movie. Bliss.........

ZENER

Very good !!

Actually - getting back to real life - it would appear the exchange of greetings with customers is to be actively DISCOURAGED by Aer Lingus management !!!

In an effort to speed up check-in and to increase throughput staff are being orderd to avoid eye-contact at all costs and to not get into un-necessary chit-chat ! Management believe staff spend too much time assisting passangers and answering questions which are already answered on the documentation or signage in the area.

I've no doubt that their are those here who will applaud this action and will probably submit a job application in the next post .

In my opinion it's the friendliness of a lot of the Aer Lingus staff and their willingness to assist passangers that has made them a cut above the cattleprod toting RyanAir biddies !!

ign above Deli counter....."We only have butter.....we do not have Mayonaisse.....

. . and that's another thing that pisses me off - they don't use BUTTER . . its a vegatable oil spread and it's usually ****. Why ask me if I want butter when you know f***ing well it's not butter . . grrr!!

ZEN

Hobbes

Show a bit of respect to your customers and you will get it back.

If I was the owner I'd fire you and hire someone else who would be quite happy to be nice to customers, fuk it if your family, I'd just have you do cleaning floors instead.

Stabshauptmann

Jesus you lot have it hard but Im telling you nobody gets more stick than us in CIE.
Nobody is grateful, the service isnt perfect but thats not usually our fault.

The classic ones though is that every IE worker is supposed to know every time table off by heart. We dont.

Ive to walk back and forth checking tickets, I get asked all manner of questions. The best was a woman who wanted to know where she had to change, how long till we arrived there, when was her connection, what platform that was on and when I told her all she wanted to konw, the reply: Thats what I thought, just checking.
It is a common belief amongst us that customers will ask every member of staff they meet along their journey the same question just hoping that someone will give them a different answer so they can start a rant.

The smokers, OMG, they smoke in between carriges and in the toilets and think I dont notice. One man lit up in front of me: I looked at him and he said "You dont mind". When told to put it out he made no reply and just walked into the bathroom!

I just want to do my job and am willing to be helpful but Im not a slave.
Ill help those who need help with their luggage, not those who are lazy.
I will NOT go to the bar for you wether you have a first class ticket or not.

Please remember that I am not perfect. One man came up to me after the train had gotten to its final stop and I was eating my lunch. "Ive lost my wallet, you were the guy checking the tickets, can you remember where I was sitting?"

You would not believe the number of ppl who dont read signs.
Do NOT use toilet when in station. I think ppl actually wait till the train stops to use them.
Press the BIG GLOWING BUTTON to open automatic doors.
Do NOT open a manual door while the train is moving.

God, its interesting if nothing else. Im actually severly tempted to write a book.

impr0v

On reflection, one good thing about this thread and the growing dissent among the ranks of the underappreciated (in their own heads anyway) is that at least now we, the Irish, are noticing ignorance and recognising that it's not acceptable. The people who's actions are under discussion in the thread (EDIT: I MEAN THE IGNORANT CUSTOMERS) came from a climate where ignorance was the norm, and if they have their way, will be, indefinitely.

It is a pity, however, that those who recognise the repugnance of ignorant behaviour, are also those who choose to fight it by reciprocating it....

ZENER

It is a pity, however, that those who recognise the repugnance of ignorant behaviour, are also those who choose to fight it by reciprocating it....

Perhaps it's because we are fed up to the back teeth with having to take the brunt of peoples frustration at a system they believe they can't change. Judging by some of the posts in this thread the situation is only going to get worse.

Where I work I deal with the customers of the likes of Kold who are so angry at how they have been treated that they feel the need to pounce on the first person they see in a uniform - any uniform ! I have been verbally assaulted on many occasions by passengers of a low frills airline who hire people like Kold BECAUSE of the way he is, they are not interested in hearing peoples complaints and what's more want staff who feel the same way.

In my case I'm used to this behavior and I'll attempt to help if I can but sometimes the best thing you can do for the person is just walk away and let them rant - it's not me they want the apology from or want to rant at . . it's the person who mistreated them in the first place !!

If I'm badly treated in a shop I will not go back - simple as ! I let my spending power do the talking for me. Unfortunately because we are all shopping for a bargain nowadays we are willing to let poor service slide to the point that it has become the norm.

Let me point out that not only do I reciprocate bad service but also good service - if I and others don't fight back (I don't mean violently fight back you understand) then it won't get any better.

I teach my children to respect other people and to be polite - one day you may notice them - they'll be the ones who will smile at you and talk to you while doing their job, you'd better be nice to them !!

ZEN

Kold

Wtf are you talking about? Mate, I only pounce on those being rude to me. No innocent customers were badly treated in the making of this thread.

impr0v

Kold wrote:

Wtf are you talking about? Mate, I only pounce on those being rude to me. No innocent customers were badly treated in the making of this thread.

That's cos they were smart enough to avoid the top paper and hence remained healthy and unharmed by all the contagions it contained...

ykt0di9url7bc3

ZENER wrote:

You still haven't quite grasped the whole customer thing have you ? Let me explain in simple terms for you :

* Businessman opens shop/pub/petrol station.

* Businessman hires staff to represent the business and serve the customers he hopes his business will attract.

* Customer avails of service provided by businessman via the staff members.

* Customer pays money for the privilege of availing of said service.

* Business man uses money handed over by customer (for services/goods provided) to pay staff.

* Put simply >>>> NO CUSTOMER - NO BUSINESS - NO JOB.

It's amazing how attitudes have changed through the years - I put it down to the outlawing of capital punishment in schools and the easy availability of acne cream !!

I'm not sure what industry you work in but what is the attitude of the owner to his/her clientele - I'll wager he understands the concept of the customer as outlined above. Why not do everyone a favour and quit the job you so obviously hate and give up drink !

ZEN

:rollfcukingears:

having worked as a waiter in 3 different countries, nearly 4 years bar work expiernce and 2 years call center work and various other shop jobs it still surprises me about how some people have have so little idea of what customer service is....

NO CUSTOMER - NO BUSINESS - NO JOB
this is very true

NO RESPECT - NO SERVICE
this is entirely dependant on the employee in question, with regards to myself anyone who shows me no respect for the effort I am making to tend to their needs will result in "work to rule attitude" and tbh you'll be lucky that I'll look at you "get what you came for and get lost"....

<Customer>: I pay your wages!!
In a service Industry situation this is not true (self-employed excluded), there is a distinct difference with regards employee behaivour to the needs and wants of the employer or the customer. Corelations between achieving customer needs and the influence a customer has over an employee must be minimal, In my expiernce I have only ever the above comment where the employee cannot fulfil the needs of the customer where the needs of the customer are not obtainable. (Usually happens when customer loses control and resorts to intimadation to achieve his goals)

It is up to the employer to make sure there are no bonds\links with regards to the customer and the service employee but still offer a high degree of CRM (customer relationship management), the customer should only be given the impression of a friendly face and the ability to meet their needs within the confines of shop\company policy....

The horrible attitudes of a large slice of Irish public to service industy employees still shock me, I can understand that some employees will break policy to ensure a happy\satisfied customer yet this is detrimental to the big picture, the best example is

<customer> the last guy didnt charge for the dash!!!!!
<me> consider yourself lucky on that occasion...€X.XX please

Employers that try to keep their staff happy generally do a better trade (yet there is no concrete evidence that a happy worker is a productive worker), Where a customer becomes abusive or threatening in any manner a manager should be called, not to meet the needs of the customer where usually the needs in question are outside policy, the manager is called because of that little sign "Management reserve the right to refuse service\admission\whatever", where the employee could easily say no its the manager that hammers the "NO" home when the customer escalates the situation...

As a rule bar staff (my current job) should be nice and polite and stick to the rules, if they stick to the rules the staff are never wrong because they are following their job to the letter and even when a customer has been screwed over or what not, its then up to the owner\supervisory staff to resolve the situation and reveiw policy....

Zener you should have a read of the "Your calls maybe monitored" thread where you see peoples emotions\feelings severely escalating the situation when you deal with customers over a phone or over the internet...people tend to act a lot tougher over a phone\web and this can lead to some horrible situations...

I've always tried to be nice and polite (you catch more bees with honey)
I've always tried to stick to policy and help a customer if its a legitamate problem
Now I have never intentionally screwed a customer but..

I have been threatend with physical violence from customers
I have been verbally abused on so many an occasion it doesnt effect me anymore
I have been threatened with legal action from customers
I have recieved racist\ageist comments from customers
I have been pulled over a bar counter and attacked
I have been attacked on my day off by a former customer

So if a customer comes up to me with no respect, she\he'll get served (eventually :P) but he\she wont get nice service

(nicest place to work in a bar\restraunt is England imho but you get more money in the US)
I really like Bar work

echomadman

Let me point out that not only do I reciprocate bad service but also good service - if I and others don't fight back (I don't mean violently fight back you understand) then it won't get any better.

I see....
So its ok for you to return someones bad attitude, but not for people behind the counter?

Lump

I wont even go into tlaking about when I was a bouncer in the UK, now that was customer service


No really I was lovely to all the Carlisle Chav's


John