rudeness

langerdan79

don't know if its just me but are people working in shops (and people in general) becoming really rude?? i can accept people might be having a bad day but if its a regular occurance then i think there's no excuse. i used to go to a certain cork gym before and used to have a sandwich in the cafe outside it afterwards. a new girl started and the first time she served me i was made feel as if i was totally inconveniencing her although i was the only one there. and after i gave her the money back she basically threw the change on the counter. was taken aback by this carry on but kept quiet. i let this happen once more but the third time i let fly at her and called her an ignorant, mannerless c*nt and gave out mad to her. of course it wasn't her fault at all according to her and that i should go somewhere else if i didn't like her. i told her i was going to but not before i reported her to the manager. this didn't go down to well with her and after speaking to the manager i found out i wasn't the only one to have complained.
however much you give out about the yanks they don't tolerate bad service and aren't afraid to give out or confront bad service and i think its something we as irish really need to start doing.
anyone else ever encounter bad service/rudeness like this???

hopalong85

People in shops seem to be pretty rude alright. I'm always polite to them but it's rarely returned. Meh, maybe if i was stuck in a shop all day i wouldn't be so polite either.

Karl Hungus

There's absolutely awful staff a lot of places, and absolutely awful customers as well. A large amount of people are basically c*nts.

I think this is because our generation of Irish have less personality than ever before.

Giving the girl such a bollicking makes you just as bad. Americans get excellent service because they dangle tips under the nose of people on a very poor minimum wage. Not beause they are assholes.

The best way to handle someone like her is to slag her if your funny or be puke inducing nice, polite and respectful otherwise.

Toto Wolfcastle

Karl Hungus wrote: »

There's absolutely awful staff a lot of places, and absolutely awful customers as well. A large amount of people are basically c*nts.

Agree with this. Awful staff and awful customers exist. Don't see why people can't just put on even a fake smile, especially those who are getting paid to serve customers. I worked in both a restaurant and a department store and even though I had my share of bad days, I rarely (I'm only human!) let the customers see that there was anything wrong. I worked in the department store for about a year on and off and I asked every customer how they were. Once a customer asked me how I was and I just stood staring at her unable to speak because not once had I been asked this in my time working there. When I eventually managed to get over the shock we had a conversation about how rude some customers can be.

My point being, we're all b*stards!

Senna

I notice this a lot, but just go to the shops where you get good service, i'll drive to a shop well out of my way if i prefer the service i get there.

janeybabe

janeybabe wrote: »

My point being, we're all b*stards!

I'm not in shops.......I am going to get the jail for my road rage antics though.:o

Toto Wolfcastle

Moonbaby wrote: »

I'm not in shops.......I am going to get the jail for my road rage antics though.:o

No, I'm not either, I find that being super nice if someone is rude to you works well. It works both ways.

andyl222

I've worked in retail ( Jeans shops etc) for years, and to be honest i've only ever worked with one person who was blatently rude to customers... In my opinion customers are becoming ruder if anything. Its just the way things are, so I have to stand there for 8 hours at a time and be nice to people who, in the majority tend not be nice back.

Terry

Hi. Welcome to the human race. We're all arseholes in our own way and none of us conform to the expectations of anyone else.

langerdan79

true moonbaby, i shouldn't have lost it with her and usually i'd never lose my temper but when she threw my change back across teh counter so that some of it fell on the ground i just lost it. dealing with customers all day is no easy job i know so i always try and give them the benefit of the doubt but i think people are in general becoming ruder.
i agree with you too senna, if there is a place who have good service even if its a bit out of the way i will go there.

andyl222

Actually a good measurement of how customers ar becoming is the evr increasing incidents where I've locked the door of the shop, someone approaches asking me to open it so they can run in and grab a shirt or jeans or whatever, I tell them we're closed and I get called a ****ing prick and a c*nt...

Overheal

the worst for me was working the chinese take out. When people ring in their complaints and dont have to look you in the eye that can be the spawn of satan about shouting abuse at you. I think working there - thats were I got control of my temper to be honest. You make the other person feel like such the **** when youre remaining calm polite and accomodating.

TPD

Corporal punishment should be brought back into the schools. The generation that had it are respectful for the most part, the ones who caught the tail end of it are still fairly respectful, until the kids of today whos parents are afraid to punish their kids atall lest they be labelled child abusers. Rude little bas*ards the lot of em.

andyl222

TPD wrote: »

Corporal punishment should be brought back into the schools. The generation that had it are respectful for the most part, the ones who caught the tail end of it are still fairly respectful, until the kids of today whos parents are afraid to punish their kids atall lest they be labelled child abusers. Rude little bas*ards the lot of em.

hahahah its so very true, political correctness gone mad. bring back the cane... having said that most the people that abuse me like that are D4 heads in their mid 20's...

pebbles21

slightly off topic but has anyone noticed in spar/mace etc when your getting change the asst (usually chinese)drops the change from a certain height into your hand !!or is it just me

TPD

You just wait till the sh*t apples grow into fully fledged sh*t trees, they'll tyrranise the world!

andyl222

TPD wrote: »

Corporal punishment should be brought back into the schools. The generation that had it are respectful for the most part, the ones who caught the tail end of it are still fairly respectful, until the kids of today whos parents are afraid to punish their kids atall lest they be labelled child abusers. Rude little bas*ards the lot of em.

hahahah its so very true, political correctness gone mad. bring back the cane... having said that most the people that abuse me in the shop are D4 heads in their mid 20's...

wandering_star

I've working in retail now for a scary 8 years, part time and full time trying to get through school and uni, in various different types of shops, but always on one or other of Dublin's "premier" high-streets.

If I get one more person who gabbers on about their "rights" and how they "know" the law, and how I'm a c u next tuesday-whilst I maintain a straight face, accomodating manner, polite tone, use of vocabulary and manner I will take Daddy's credit card and use it in a rather unorthodox way and instigate a new corporal punishment technicque

There are other instances where I have maintained my composure, but some are too gruesome to go into...the number 2 being rather appropriate.

andyl222

wandering_star wrote: »

I've working in retail now for a scary 8 years, part time and full time trying to get through school and uni, in various different types of shops, but always on one or other of Dublin's "premier" high-streets.

If I get one more person who gabbers on about their "rights" and how they "know" the law, and how I'm a c u next tuesday-whilst I maintain a straight face, accomodating manner, polite tone, use of vocabulary and manner I will take Daddy's credit card and use it in a rather unorthodox way and instigate a new form of corporal punishment technicque

There are other instances where I have maintained my composure, but some are too gruesome to go into...the number 2 being rather appropriate.

Hahahah I know that particular pain all too well, thats why wherever i work I suggest to the manager we have the full consumer rights in a ring binder under the counter. You would be amazed at the lies that people tell to try scare you into doing what they want. hahahha. I once had a woman tell me she worked for the consumer right's people and that she was going to have the entire chain of our stores shut down if i didnt give her a refund.... alll farcical bull**** at the end of the day.

Doctor DooM

wandering_star wrote: »

I've working in retail now for a scary 8 years, part time and full time trying to get through school and uni, in various different types of shops, but always on one or other of Dublin's "premier" high-streets.

If I get one more person who gabbers on about their "rights" and how they "know" the law, and how I'm a c u next tuesday-whilst I maintain a straight face, accomodating manner, polite tone, use of vocabulary and manner I will take Daddy's credit card and use it in a rather unorthodox way and instigate a new corporal punishment technicque

There are other instances where I have maintained my composure, but some are too gruesome to go into...the number 2 being rather appropriate.

Been there and done that.

Some days the general public make your life hell.

I know my rights! :rolleyes:

wandering_star

You mean I have a life....wow... I thought I was just a lowly shop assistant... :rolleyes:

But OP I have also experienced bad customer service too-generally just be really super extra happy and nice to them, wish them a fabulous day, tell them that they look great...it just pisses them off more...or call their manager.

Think kalasnikofs are needed on both fronts

DublinWriter

Young girls behind the counter are the absolute worst.

Most guys behind a till have decent manners.

jenizzle

its true... I blame the customers, cos they just tend to be feckin cnuts to staff.

I'm always really nice to staff, and it seems to cheer them up, cos I know how it feels to have ignorant customers give ye abuse all day long.

Bitter? Moi?!

wandering_star

DublinWriter wrote: »

Young girls behind the counter are the absolute worst.

Most guys behind a till have decent manners.

Must say that I've found it to be the opposite, especially in mobile phone shops.

FlutterinBantam

A lot of the young people working in shops now wouldn't know "customer service" if it bit them in the hole.

Customers can be assholes too,I fully realise this.

Best thing with bad customer service is to stay calm and always complain to the manager.If someone is blatantly unhelpful this will become apparent very soon.

connundrum

I think its rude not to use capital letters or correct punctuation. Your op took me roughly 30 - 40 seconds longer to read because of it.

Oh and we're all bastards, mainly because we expect everything, yesterday, with a smile.

I thought Ireland was supposed to be a laid back, friendly place.

whiskeyman

I go to England regularly (business and pleasure) and always find the level of service there much better, and find service here deteriorating rapidly!
From shops, pubs restaurants and cinemas / theatres, airports... I always get a much more pleasent experience over there.
And it's not a fake 'have a nice day' experience either.

Ireland of a thousand welcomes... my arse. This place is gone to the dogs. You really do notice it when you go abroad and come back.

What the hell went wrong?? And to think we brand ourselves on this 'happy and welcoming' image?

The Queen

DublinWriter wrote: »

Young girls behind the counter are the absolute worst.

Hey now! Don't generalise! I'm 19, and work behind a customer service desk. Out of the 8 hours I'd work on it, the majority of customer are pricks. Money gets thrown at me, no one ever says thanks... I just smile, be nauseatingly pleasant and bitch like hell about them after work.

However, some customers are nice. If a customer is nice, you'd bend over backwards to help them. If they're rude they can go fuck themselves.

DublinWriter

whiskeyman wrote: »

I go to England regularly (business and pleasure) and always find the level of service there much better, and find service here deteriorating rapidly!

I've found this all over the UK too, with the exception of central London.

Maybe it was because I was the token Paddy over there when it was fashionable to be Irish, but I found the British to be friendlier in pubs/shops than back home.

Then again, we've always been hateful to our own, haven't we?

Laslo

whiskeyman wrote: »

I go to England regularly (business and pleasure) and always find the level of service there much better

That must be the rose-tinted glasses you wear when you go over there. I lived in England for a long time and I guarantee you, they invented poor customer service - we just imported it.

The fact of the matter is that Irish people accept bad service and tend not to complain when it counts - i.e. in the restaurant or at the point of sale.

OPENROAD

DublinWriter wrote: »

I've found this all over the UK too, with the exception of central London.

Maybe it was because I was the token Paddy over there when it was fashionable to be Irish, but I found the British to be friendlier in pubs/shops than back home.

Then again, we've always been hateful to our own, haven't we?

I actually find Central London to be excellent in terms of customer service. If I am going to be making a purchase for my house say furniture,I will always go to London to do my research and then just order from Dublin. Find the same in clothes shops ,assistants are generally very helpful and will spend ample time with customers which you don't get here.

OPENROAD

Laslo wrote: »

That must be the rose-tinted glasses you wear when you go over there. I lived in England for a long time and I guarantee you, they invented poor customer service - we just imported it.

The fact of the matter is that Irish people accept bad service and tend not to complain when it counts - i.e. in the restaurant or at the point of sale.

Having lived in London, can't agree with you.

RAFC

With regards to customer service - if you approach the assistant with a smile , they know that you are a pleasant person and treat you accordingly. The same works in reverse - smile as a customer approaches and you have a nice person in front of you - easy as :):)

Just remember, there is always the exception to the rule, but they are few and far between :) picture these planks in some underwear designed for the opposite sex and they will probably be freaked by your 'smile'

Laslo

OPENROAD wrote: »

Having lived in London, can't agree with you.

Fair enough. I lived there as well. Let's agree to disagree.

OPENROAD

Laslo wrote: »

Fair enough. I lived there as well. Let's agree to disagree.

No worries everything comes down to ones experience anyway.

Corruptedmorals

I work in retail, not in customer service though, I pity them. I'm never rude, if the customer's being rude, I just won't say anything to them unless I have to. If the customer is normal and polite, so will I be, and if they're friendly and strike up a bit of conversation, great, I'll eh reply and stuff. There's wayyyy more rude customers than there is rude assistants. People think nothing of it. You see threads the whole time, '...so I went back in and shouted at the shop assistant' !!! I'd say 40% of customers are rude, but that rises in proportion to sales and Christmas.

Most I've ever encountered from shop assistants would be the looks they give you because you want to buy something and they want to continue talking to their friend and not serve you. Or just sullenness.

Faerie

langerdan79 wrote: »

don't know if its just me but are people working in shops (and people in general) becoming really rude?? i can accept people might be having a bad day but if its a regular occurance then i think there's no excuse. i used to go to a certain cork gym before and used to have a sandwich in the cafe outside it afterwards. a new girl started and the first time she served me i was made feel as if i was totally inconveniencing her although i was the only one there. and after i gave her the money back she basically threw the change on the counter. was taken aback by this carry on but kept quiet. i let this happen once more but the third time i let fly at her and called her an ignorant, mannerless c*nt and gave out mad to her. of course it wasn't her fault at all according to her and that i should go somewhere else if i didn't like her. i told her i was going to but not before i reported her to the manager. this didn't go down to well with her and after speaking to the manager i found out i wasn't the only one to have complained.
however much you give out about the yanks they don't tolerate bad service and aren't afraid to give out or confront bad service and i think its something we as irish really need to start doing.
anyone else ever encounter bad service/rudeness like this???

First of all, I agree that people should make more of an effort to be polite. And Irish people are particularly rude but I think what you did was way out of line. In fact I would go as far as to say that you should be barred from whatever shop it was, if the manager had any principles. You shouted, swore at and intimidated a girl behind the counter and you think you're in the right???? I think you're a bit sick to be honest. The fact that the girl just wasn't polite is irrelevant really, because that sort of behaviour is unacceptable in almost all circumstances.
I used to work in a shop and after a really long shift with rude customers (customers are far worse than staff, and you've certainly proved that) I might not have been particularly friendly but I always said hello (usually to silence or dirty looks) and please and thank you. She perhaps didn't make any effort but get over it and move on. Go elsewhere or maybe ask for a different staff member.

porn_star

I think there's some people that are just plain rude and lack any manners at all.. but then there's some customers who are complete idiots. Generalizing a bit, cos obviously I'm a customer in shops too, but speaking from a point of working in retail, they seem to think they own you or are more superior to you, just cos you're getting paid to deal with them. there's no sense of common courtesy at all. people seem to think it's ok to pull you away when you're clearly dealing with someone else, grab you and touch you to get your attention, cut across you when you're serving someone else at the til so they can ask a question rather then queuing or looking themselves, crack onto you and be sleezy, and i once had someone burp right in my face.
i think i'm pretty polite to customers, but generally speaking if someone comes up to me and seem nice and aren't rude, they'll get a lot more help and attention because of that rather then someone whose being a thick idiot and thinks they deserve my undying attention- not that i'll be rude to them, but they won't get anything more then i have to give.

i like how in game they have signs at their tils saying how customers have to respect their staff or something along those lines.

120_Minutes

Heres are the reasons why most customers are cnuts: Eddie Hobbs, and the rapid dumbing down of society. Irish people, while they were always "cute hoors" now think thanks to the rip off republic that everyone is out to scam them out of their celtic tiger euro. we've become a mean distrusting nation.

Hands up whos never heard or been part of this exchange:

"how much is that?"

"X amount"

"ah you can do it better than that"

"no, i cant"

"ah go on, you can"

then you have your plain idiots. case in point: today in work a woman comes in to return an ipod she bought at xmas, claiming it doesnt work, not playing the songs shes put on it.

Me: whats not working on it?
Her: it wont play the songs
Me: how did you put the songs on it?
Her: on the computer
Me: what software did you use?
Her: software? sure i havent a clue, sure ya know yerself
Me: (to myself, no, i know how to use an ipod) did you download itunes? an ipod will only work with itunes
Her: itunes? is that on the internet? i didnt go on the internet, sure i dont have broadband
Me: download itunes, put your songs on it and you're happy out, see that little step by step guide included with the ipod and in PLAIN ENGLISH? please read it.

My old man has a motto: "assume everyone you meet is a b*ll*x until they prove otherwise" and its served me well.

when i'm the other side of the counter though i'm a brilliant customer, as experience has proved that in this day and age because retailers deal with morons on a daily basis, if a customer shows that they have some cop on, they'll be treated better. If i'm going to buy anything, i'll read up on it so i'm armed with knowledge and i sift through hype and bull**** to see if its actually any good.

the amount of people i had in over xmas asking if the iphone was out yet. i could have sold 100. they dont know if its any good or not, they just know they WANT IT. after telling them that yes, the ipod part is quite fetching but the phone itself was quite crap, they acted all surprised, but went "i'll probably still buy it anyway"

Sometimes i think it would be a good idea to destroy it all and start again.....

Terry

120_Minutes wrote: »

My old man has a motto: "assume everyone you meet is a b*ll*x until they prove otherwise" and its served me well.

I live by that credo.
I don't like anyone I don't know. It's just easier.
I used to be too trusting and had it thrown in my face too many times.
These days, people have to prove themselves to me.
I make some exceptions though.

GLaDOS

Having worked in a shop myself I love the ways all the "customer service is ****e these days" threads always turn into rants about the customers themselves.

EamonnKeane

pebbles21 wrote: »

slightly off topic but has anyone noticed in spar/mace etc when your getting change the asst (usually chinese)drops the change from a certain height into your hand !!or is it just me

other people's hands are icky

wandering_star

120_Minutes wrote: »

Sometimes i think it would be a good idea to destroy it all and start again.....

I think you're on to something there...

porn_star

has anyone noticed those skangers that come in with their hands down their tracksuits pants holding themselves as if someones gonna try and make an attack and then actually try and give you money and expect you to touch anything that they try and give you?!!!
yeah, it's the retail staff that are rude and lack manners :eek:

Senna

porn_star wrote: »

has anyone noticed those skangers that come in with their hands down their tracksuits pants holding themselves as if someones gonna try and make an attack and then actually try and give you money and expect you to touch anything that they try and give you?!!!
yeah, it's the retail staff that are rude and lack manners :eek:

Thats just disgusting, i wouldn't take anything from them and tell them to wash their hands.
or
Have a sign no the door 'NO PLAYING WITH YOURSELF WHILE IN THE SHOP' and point them to it.

RonMexico

I have to deal with the public on a daily basis and it is driving me ****ing insane.

So far I have been threatened on at least ten occasions at work. I have had to press a panic button twice and have received threats twice when on a night out and I ran into customers.

The worst are travellers. 99% try to steal or rip you off some way. There favourite is that they got the wrong change or that they put money into the phone credit machine and got no credit. Thank God for CCTV.

I love when someone tries to intimidate me into handing over cash by saying that they know the owner well. I'm like - "do you now, because I know him well too, after all he is my father! Now **** off!"

I hate it when customers cough in my face, hand me money that they take out of their shoe. Have hands black with dirt, nits in their hair etc etc

Rarely does anyone say please or thank you.

Most annoying is when they argue with you about paying for a plastic bag. **** off you cheap ****.

xzanti

Moonbaby wrote: »

be puke inducing nice, polite and respectful otherwise.

Exactly.. Kill them with kindness