Supermarket Self Service Checkouts

IAMAMORON

They really get up my wick. I am not a technophobe and know how to swipe items through a barcode.

But it annoys me that Supermarkets are basically asking customers to do their own job and service. The reality is that by installing these machines they get to employ less staff. Is this the future of retail? When you use these self service checkouts you are indirectly supporting supermarkets who are hoping to employ less people, is this a positive direction for employment growth? I refuse to use them for that reason alone.

All the main street retail providers crying about lack of business, how culpable are they with their own plight? Has the influence of self service creeped into the rag trade also?

hatrickpatrick

Technological solutions which reduce the need for labour should be considered a good thing. It's a prime example of just how badly capitalism has managed to f*ck society up that somehow, innovations and inventions which reduce the need for people to do extraordinarily tedious and boring physical work are heralded as the end of civilisation and an all around disaster.

Princess Calla

They are very handy when you only have a few items though, especially if the shop has a decent number of them.

They also cut out the craic of someone with only a handful of items hinting to skip the queue..... Nope p*ss off in my experience both as a cashier and a shopper, it's the person with a handful of items that arses about the most..... Oh I've the change and wallet gets tipped out onto the counter (pre covid).... Feck off you are not going in front of me

One More Toy

I prefer them as I can pack things myself in my own time without rushing to pack, pay halfway, then resume packing again in a rush for the next person to come through

I don't think they save much manpower, it's just a more streamlined approach. You still need one person manning the self service checkouts.

No self service just means longer queues

Spleodar

The more streamlined approach is what Superquinn introduced over 24 years ago, and is now available in some SuperValu stores and also Tesco. The handheld self-scan as you shop system.

Self checkouts are OK for a few items, but if you've lots they're pretty slow compared to a human check out operator and you miss the chat!

Trigger Happy

I prefer them too. No small talk. No one else handling my goods. Quick and convenient and helps keep prices low.

LessOutragePlz

They are the best thing ever no waiting in long queues anymore behind people with full trolleys of shopping.

As for your claim that it will reduce the amount of people employed by supermarket's have you got any evidence to back up this claim?

Padre_Pio

IAMAMORON wrote: »

But it annoys me that Supermarkets are basically asking customers to do their own job and service. The reality is that by installing these machines they get to employ less staff. Is this the future of retail?

Used to be two people, one scanned and the second bagged your shopping.
Now there's one person overseeing eight checkouts.

Ultimately it's cheaper for you, your money pays these people. Less people and things SHOULD get cheaper. Not saying they do.

Society is heading away from zero skill, minimum wage jobs, which is a good thing in that people are forced into better, skilled work.

The days of someone starting at the bottom rung and working their way up are gone.

Yakult

Sometimes I get more of a human response from those machines than I do from the person at the til.

freshpopcorn

I think we’ve seen this thread before.
Generally somebody pops in and says they are no job loses because they’ve to employ the IT people to service and fix these machines!

Gregor Samsa

I use them occasionally. Get put off by the "unexpected item in bagging area" errors, and the other messages saying that assistance is required, so I only use them if I have a small amount of uncontroversial stuff. Also, they're not suitable at all for a full weekly shop for a family of 5, which is usually what i'm in the supermarket for.

I think the ultimate solution - which has already been implemented in some places - will be every product having an RFID tag, and you just put them all into your bags as you shop, then walk out through a scanner that reads them all in one go. No need for loading your trolly, then unloading to scan each item, then loading it all back up again. There'll have to be solutions for loose items like fruit veg and bakery, but that's not a blocker. There would also probably be spot checks, but there is with Scan as you Shop too.

I'm not sure if the self service checkouts result in less staff. Most supermarkets have one person supervising 6 or so SS machines, but those 6 machines aren't replacing 6 conventional checkouts - they're probably only replacing the traffic that one or two would handle. Also, most of the time (except Christmas), most supermarkets only have between 10 and 40 percent of their checkouts open (my rough estimate). If SS checkouts were to replace regular ones totally, they'll probably need the same amount of staff to supervise them as they do now to work the tills. But that's only conjecture on my part, I'm sure there's solid facts and metrics to determine that one way or the other.

Strumms

If I had about 8 items, grand. Any more it’s just on the way to being messy, space is limited, scanning and packing away mass shopping in a couple of square feet...... no. I want it done firstly, secondly I dislike machines taking all jobs, the cost savings passed onto the customer is next to nil. Yet they have to do all the work.

I used to despise them for the very reason you state, OP.

But then it dawned on me that it's simply capitalism consuming itself.

I welcome that. Long may it continue.


I still don't use them, mind, I always go to a checkout manned by a fellow human.

Smiles35

freshpopcorn wrote: »

I think we’ve seen this thread before.
Generally somebody pops in and says they are no job loses because they’ve to employ the IT people to service and fix these machines!

And that would have been...me!

statesaver

I always try to avoid them when possible.

irish_goat

People give out about these machines taking jobs while buying a loaf of bread which has been made in an automated factory with wheat harvested by a combine harvester. Why is it grand to ignore the "jobs lost" by the local bakers and farmhands but its not ok when there's less checkout staff employed?

One More Toy

irish_goat wrote: »

People give out about these machines taking jobs while buying a loaf of bread which has been made in an automated factory with wheat harvested by a combine harvester. Why is it grand to ignore the "jobs lost" by the local bakers and farmhands but its not ok when there's less checkout staff employed?

Plus it has to be the most monotonous work in the world working a checkout. Even working the floor stacking shelves would be better

biko

If there is a human available I will use them solely for the purpose to help them keep their job.

hatrickpatrick

The one thing which infuriates me about the machines is the necessity to weigh all your items after you've scanned them, which means, for instance, you can't scan multiple items in your hand at once because it won't let you scan the next one without putting the previous one down, and if you pick something up to make room for something else the machine objects. That part has never made sense to me and is a massive pain in the hole.

I'll also admit to having a massive crush on one of the checkout staff in my local shop so if she's on duty and there's a big queue, it can often tip the balance in favour of the old fashioned route

topper75

Deleted User wrote: »

I...But then it dawned on me that it's simply capitalism consuming itself.

I welcome that. Long may it continue.

Unless you are willing to consider checkout screens as 'the means of production'TM then I'm afraid its actually in fact capitalism ramping up one level and pushing the lefty dream further and further away.

Sam Quentin

hatrickpatrick wrote: »

The one thing which infuriates me about the machines is the necessity to weigh all your items after you've scanned them, which means, for instance, you can't scan multiple items in your hand at once because it won't let you scan the next one without putting the previous one down, and if you pick something up to make room for something else the machine objects. That part has never made sense to me and is a massive pain in the hole.

I'll also admit to having a massive crush on one of the checkout staff in my local shop so if she's on duty and there's a big queue, it can often tip the balance in favour of the old fashioned route

It makes total sense from a security point of view.... Some scammers would be scanning a hidden barcode through slight of hand,, A barcode from a cheap item.

Outlaw Pete

I like the Tesco ones, you can just pay when you have scanned your last item but they annoy me when you have to start pressing Pay Now, then type of Payment and Lidl make you press Yes or No if you are using the new App. Another annoying thing about Lidl is sometimes the scanned items side is on the right and sometimes on the left and that confuses me and I end up placing items on the wrong side and a girl will have to come and help me like I'm old and I guess I am old now. So I try to stick to Tesco.

Is weighing Grapes as Potatoes against the law?

Gregor Samsa

Sam Quentin wrote: »

It makes total sense from a security point of view.... Some scammers would be scanning a hidden barcode through slight of hand,, A barcode from a cheap item.

The trick is to weigh everything as carrots.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/avocados-carrots-self-service-scam-supermarkets-checkout-stealing-a8370621.html

Doylers

I always use them even if there's a free check out with a person. Faster and less issues, wish everywhere had them.

Gregor Samsa

Mr.S wrote: »

If only people realised you can put a bag down before scanning...

Every time I do that, I get "Unexpected item in bagging area", even though i've hit the "own bag" button. So I've given up. I scan the stuff and put it down without the bag, then bag it up when i've paid. People behind me can wait, because they'd be waiting longer for the assistant to come over and do the little fob swipe/password tap that they have to do to get me scanning again.

Padraig Mor

"Unexpected item in bagging area".

Ehra feck off you bag of bolts!

Strumms

irish_goat wrote: »

People give out about these machines taking jobs while buying a loaf of bread which has been made in an automated factory with wheat harvested by a combine harvester. Why is it grand to ignore the "jobs lost" by the local bakers and farmhands but its not ok when there's less checkout staff employed?

Thing is people don’t stroll through a bakery or farms weekly. Supermarkets they do.

Uncle Pierre

Gregor Samsa wrote: »

The trick is to weigh everything as carrots.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/avocados-carrots-self-service-scam-supermarkets-checkout-stealing-a8370621.html

I was going to say scanning them as onions would work too, because they're always cheap as well, but then I saw at the end of that article that somebody else already thought of it. And got caught for it too.

gmisk

They are grand the problem is some thick people have no idea how to use them

LuasSimon

Another way of getting rid of jobs and making more money for the stores owners or shareholders. The rich get richer and the poor get to scan their own groceries .

Mongfinder General

I think they're great. If somebody has a problem with using one because they believe that they're putting people out of work, good for them. They can use the checkout operated by a staff member. And remember, at the checkout, you're not just dealing with your own shopping, you've got to deal with the person behind the counter and the people in front of you in the queue. Yes, those same people who'll argue over the price of cabbage, wait until their entire shop is scanned before slowly packing it away and quite possibly walk across the shop to pick up something they've forgotten as the checkout operator finishes tallying their bill.

Anything that cuts out human interaction in a situation where it's not necessary is fine with me. I don't have time to dick about.

BraveDonut

They take up less room than a traditional supermarket check-out - meaning that they can install more of them. This way customers with fewer items can get out of there quicker.
Also means you have less chance of getting stuck behind someone who wants to stop and chat with the cashier.

Don't like them - fine - go queue up and wait for a cashier

Church on Tuesday

Deleted User wrote: »

I used to despise them for the very reason you state, OP.

But then it dawned on me that it's simply capitalism consuming itself.

I welcome that. Long may it continue.


I still don't use them, mind, I always go to a checkout manned by a fellow human.

I really hope, for the sake of humanity at large, that never ever happens.

Kylta

If youyou happen to hear somebody fu¢kin the self service from a height thats probably me. Sometimes the stuff scans sometimes it don't especially single items like cakes or rolls.

RayCon

Use them all the time .... I just wish pr!cks with a trolly load of goods wouldn't ...

Gentlemanne

I have pretty much exclusively been using these for years. I go quite frequently to the shop and only buy for myself so I don't have a lot.

My impression is that middle age people and older do not understand how to use them, even though they're fairly intuitive, albeit a bit finnicky sometimes.

It is astonishing watching the exact kind of person I imagine who looks down upon the job of people working the checkout, struggle to use the self service.

Outlaw Pete wrote: »

a girl will have to come and help me like I'm old

Lol this is exactly what I meant.

cj maxx

I got away for years for taking 4 cans of beer ( that had those plastic banding at the top ) but it only scanned the price for one can . I’d even have to call a staff member to ok me buying beer . It was my guilty pleasure getting one over them . Sorry Dunnes

IAMAMORON

sugarman wrote: »

Keep up, self service machines have been around for 2 decades already!

THIS, is the future. No checkouts at all.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrmMk1Myrxc

It just looks like free food to me, I cannot see it working in Ireland for a while. The reality is that this concept will require security guards to police it.

Also this concept has other hidden costs- the environmental one for starters, all that plastic packaging, another crank of mine.

If we had more staff in supermarkets we could do away with more plastic packaging, this would help the environment. I do hate to stoop to " environment shaming" but depending on what you believe about plastic usage, it is another problem.

astrofool

This thread is a bit 5 years ago along with the fuss about eircodes, and soon to be in the realm of asking where the lamp lighters went.

If you're still confused by them, the issue is not with the machine.

They’re ok, better than the old fashioned queue for a check out, but nowhere near as good as scan as you shop or, better still an app on your phone (like Sainsbury). Pick it off the shelf, scan it, put it in the bag, go to the appropriate dedicated check out (or the self service area in Sainsbury), upload the data, pay, go.

Nigel Fairservice

I like to use them if I have lots of small change I'm trying to get rid of. I worked in an off licence for a while in college and a guy up ended a sock full of change on the counter to pay for his stuff. It took an age for me to count it and a long queue of people waiting. I'd feel awkward doing that to someone. It's really handy to just throw the change into the self service machines.

Church on Tuesday

Church on Tuesday wrote: »

I really hope, for the sake of humanity at large, that never ever happens.

Why?

Kylta

astrofool wrote: »

This thread is a bit 5 years ago along with the fuss about eircodes, and soon to be in the realm of asking where the lamp lighters went.

If you're still confused by them, the issue is not with the machine.

So were did the lamp lighters go?

whisky_galore

Kylta wrote: »

So were did the lamp lighters go?

They're coding now.

Church on Tuesday

Deleted User wrote: »

Why?

Capitalism has been generally good for humanity.

bodhrandude

A pain in the ass to buy booze through though you always need ' Approval'.

Rodney Bathgate

My local SuperValu introduced them recently haven’t used them yet though.

Would usually use them in Tesco, M&S or Dealz. I haven’t visited any of them in 6 months though.

Spanish Eyes

Never use them. End of.

Just hate the thought of the checkout people losing their jobs, but I'm an oul softie.

I suppose it is the way of the future, but for now will stick to the person on the tills.

Cherry_Cola

You should try an Amazon Go store. Scan a barcode from your phone to enter. Put whatever you want in your bag, walk right out of there and your Amazon account is charged. It's an amazing system and will turn retail on it's head. Why hire people to do tedious repetitive tasks when technology can solve for it all?

IAMAMORON

Cherry_Cola wrote: »

You should try an Amazon Go store. Scan a barcode from your phone to enter. Put whatever you want in your bag, walk right out of there and your Amazon account is charged. It's an amazing system and will turn retail on it's head. Why hire people to do tedious repetitive tasks when technology can solve for it all?

Do they sell fresh Wexford Strawberries? Slightly smart comment, but what is the quality of their fruit n veg like? Honestly now?

Can I purchase alcohol before midday?

What is stopping me from walking in there willy nilly and robbing the crap out of the place?

Smiles35

IAMAMORON wrote: »

Do they sell fresh Wexford Strawberries? Slightly smart comment, but what is the quality of their fruit n veg like? Honestly now?

Can I purchase alcohol before midday?

What is stopping me from walking in there willy nilly and robbing the crap out of the place?

It's all fair trade food. So people from poor economies actually rely on nobody stealing. Amazon employees run for election, then they apoint judges to mind the shops.