Self serve check outs

[VanIsle]

Well I'd rather use the self serve than stand in line while some cashier with an iq of her boot size tries to figure out what a artichoke or turnip is. And I won't apologize for using it either...

And you have always known what all these items are! I have people pick out vegetables or fruits that I have either never seen or maybe seen once in my life. I say to them "sorry - I'm not familiar with this - what is it". Then that customer with an iq the size of his boot tells me he doesn't know what it is, it just looked interesting and he was hoping I could tell him how to use it. I can hold it up and ask if anyone near me knows what it is and no one will know. Don't tell me about low IQ cashiers. I do understand that young cashiers might not know common items as everything you have mentioned is common. I know that I was astounded when I purchased a turnip at another store and the young cashier asked me if I had noticed the name of the item. Codes are universal. I told her the code and then told her that to most people it was simply called a turnip but that her screen would list it as a rutabaga. She was shocked that I could supply all that info but I explained that I too was a cashier and that one day soon she would be very familiar with all such items. I truly have a ton of patience for new people. If she had been at the store for even 3 months and did not know - that would be different. Have a little respect.:-(

 

[Scott Free]

I won't even clean up my table at McDonald's I certainly wouldn't use a self serve till.

 

[VanIsle]

Spade, I have never accepted that argument, that is Luddite argument. Experience has shown that automation creates many more jobs, in the long run than it destroys.

Just think of all the jobs that were in existent say 100 or 150 years ago, think how many of them have disappeared, and how many jobs that exist today couldn’t even be conceived of in the old days.

Automation, computerization is has always been a boon to humankind. So it may well be that a supermarket checker is on his/her way out.

SirJoe, maybe you need to think about all the computer tech's that simply cannot find work for a couple of reasons. First, there are too many of them and next, too many people know how to repair their own. Experience has also shown that no contact with humankind makes people lonely and stressed.

 

[VanIsle]

I don't like them. I believe that Retail, is a people business. Yeah, you run into the odd a%&hole sometimes, but machines take away from the "Personal" touch. I'd rather stand in line and wait for a human cashier, than use the self checkouts.

You are a good person. I have so many customers that like the personal touch. One of the nicest compliments of the day is to have a customer tell you they search for your till because they like you and that they find you very efficient. For those of you complaining about slow cashiers - not everyone is. I have had people come to my till fron the express because according to them, my line is moving faster. I expect that once I get back in front of a till, my customers will come back to me. They stop me in the store just to chat even if I am not working. Happened just yesterday. One of "my" customers talked about the self serve and said she does use them. She doesn't say she always comes to me but she is always in my line. I'm waiting to see if she comes to me or uses the self serve.

 

[Francis2004]

Islandpacific, I agree with you that they should have kept the same amount of staffing level at tills with the new machines in place.

I have no problems using them when they work, but I find most people do not use them properly, and they bog down the system for small volume processing..

There is nothing like the personal touch.

But when I have 1 or 2 items I would rather use one of those then line up.

Nothing worse then standing in line with people who have no idea how to use these machines with baskets full and the one cashier not available to help because she was called away while all tills are frozen up from problem shoppers.. I usually sit my food down and walk away..

 

[SirJosephPorter]

Really. You mean that the self serve remembers you and tells you it's nice to see you again. Does the self serve remember your name or that you like your groceries double bagged or not bagged or your 4 litres of milk in a bag or not?

Islandpacific, perhaps not. But then there is also the checker who is cranky for having a bad night (or had a very good late night but is having a bad morning), the one who snaps at you, the one who overcharges you (by punching in mini potatoes instead of baking potatoes and you don’t notice), someone who packs a bag of apples over the egg carton, someone who (unintentionally) shortchanges you and so on. So it works both ways.

I really don't think my store has sex counters available. However, if I am wrong, I'll let you know immediately.

That was just a typo (sex instead of six).

Since you routinely use them, you are dis-respectful of others jobs. That's sad Sirrup.

If I regularly use self check out, how does that imply that I am disrespectful of others?

 

[JLM]

Do you like and/or use the self serve check outs available to you in places like Home Depot, Canadian Tire and for those who live in BC - The Overwaitea Food Group. If you do - you are taking away someone's job. These check-outs have been installed in the store I am employed at. I was there yesterday and I too used the check-out as I wanted to see how they work as I do go back to work tomorrow. They are really quite sofisticated tills. They do require cashier assistance but - one or if necessary, two cashiers stand nearby to assist the shopper. Normally I would have entered the store at that time of day to about 6 bustling cashiers. It is obvious the customers are not particularly fond of them. I was taken back when I first drove onto the parking lot. Normally quite full of cars, it was nearly empty. It did begin to fill up as I was nearing the end of my shopping. I was surprized that an older gent wanted to try out the new tills. He only had two items and even though I wasn't working and he did not know I was in the employ of the store, I assisted him with his purchase until the cashier was able to come to his assistance at "pay time" -something I would not have assisted him with simply because I am employed there and was not officially working at the time. I think curiosity will take people with a couple of items through the tills but even young people admit they enjoy the idea of customer service and unless they were in a major hurry with only one or two items they would avoid the self serve. What I want you to know is this important piece of information. I have alreay stated that normally I would walk in and see 6 cashiers working by mid morning. What I saw with the new tills was one cashier at a regular till and one helping at the self serve tills. One senior cashier was returning groceries to the shelves (people change their mind and these things must be returned and it's our job to do it). Now as some of the larger orders started to go through, she was called to cash but only 4 cashiers were working - not 6 as usual. Down 2 people. Hours have been cut which means serving yourself is putting people out of work and possibly, on the street. Two of the stores I have mentioned here are union environments. I am higher in senority then many of the cashiers at the store. My going back to work tomorrow will not impact them because I cannot go on till yet. But - when I do, which probably won't be long, it will have an impact on every person below me. Generally I work 32 hours a week by my choice. If I choose to change that back to 40 it would really impact people simply because of the SELF SERVE CHECK-OUTS. They seem to only require about 4 cashiers which means that while I could end up (and probably will) working later in the day for them to give me my hours, but I will get them leaving those below me with maybe 8 - 12 hours per week. That means they will have to search for more than one place to work because people cannot live on 8 - 12 hours per week. While wages are improving, we do not have a "living wage" now so by using the self serve you are putting people on welfare or EI and when that's all used up and it will be with the economy the way it is right now, you are putting them on the streets. Really think about that everytime you use the selfserve. That includes cleaning up your own table at the fast food chains.

I believe I've used them twice, once in Drumheller and one other time. Like you I've thought about that aspect of them too. I think that stuff will eventually sort itself out. The retail industry operates on such a slim margin of profit and to stay competitive they have to cut corners where ever they can. Now having said that, eventually the other shoe is going to drop. When the unemployment numbers reach staggering proportions these businesses that are laying off employees are going to find their customer base deminishing as well. The other thing is you just can't fight progress and technology. I'm not sure that creating a job just for the sake of creating a job works either. In many cases I think it just leads to more bureaucracy, not to mention higher prices for the consumer.

 

[SirJosephPorter]

I have people pick out vegetables or fruits that I have either never seen or maybe seen once in my life. I say to them "sorry - I'm not familiar with this - what is it".

Islandpacific if I pick up an unfamiliar item, I am careful to notice the name, or at least the price, I want to make sure the checker doesn’t overcharge me. But above all I remember the code. Very likely I would be doing the self check out and I need to know the code, rather than ask the person in charge of the check out to find it for me (she would do it, but that takes time).

Indeed, when I go to a cashier, I watch her like a hawk; make sure she is punching the right item. It has happened quite a few times, that she punched the wrong item, to my disadvantage (if she rings a wrong item to my advantage, of course I keep quiet). I think most shoppers just don’t notice it, they assume that the checker knows what she is doing. Sometimes the code on the item happens to be wrong, you may have bought a basket of peaches, but when she punches in the code, it comes out grapes, and neither of you may notice.

But many times she would punch in wrong potatoes, wrong plums etc. It especially happens with obscure items. I remember last year they had two kinds of persimmons in the store. Hachiya persimmon was $1.79 each, while the fuyu persimmon (Sharon fruit) was 50 cents each. As it happened, I went to the cashier several times in a row. Almost every time she rang up the wrong persimmon, and I had t correct her.

They also routinely confuse between cooking onion and Spanish onion (they look somewhat similar, but one is much cheaper than the other).

When I am checking out with a cashier, I keep my eyes peeled to spot any mistake she makes. It certainly is worth the effort. As I said before, most people probably assume that the cashier knows what she is doing and don’t pay any attention to what she is ringing.

 

[JLM]

I have people pick out vegetables or fruits that I have either never seen or maybe seen once in my life. I say to them "sorry - I'm not familiar with this - what is it".

Islandpacific if I pick up an unfamiliar item, I am careful to notice the name, or at least the price, I want to make sure the checker doesn’t overcharge me. But above all I remember the code. Very likely I would be doing the self check out and I need to know the code, rather than ask the person in charge of the check out to find it for me (she would do it, but that takes time).

Indeed, when I go to a cashier, I watch her like a hawk; make sure she is punching the right item. It has happened quite a few times, that she punched the wrong item, to my disadvantage. I think most shoppers just don’t notice it, they assume that the checker knows what she is doing. Sometimes the code on the item happens to be wrong, you may have bought a basket of peaches, but when she punches in the code, it comes out grapes, and neither of you may notice.

But many times she would punch in wrong potatoes, wrong plums etc. It especially happens with obscure items. I remember last year they had two kinds of persimmons in the store. Hachiya persimmon was $1.79 each, while the fuyu persimmon (Sharon fruit) was 50 cents each. As it happened, I went to the cashier several times in a row. Almost every time she rang up the wrong persimmon, and I had t correct her.

They also routinely confuse between cooking onion and Spanish onion (they look somewhat similar, but one is much cheaper than the other).

When I am checking out with a cashier, I keep my eyes peeled to spot any mistake she makes. It certainly is worth the effort. As I said before, most people probably assume that the cashier knows what she is doing and don’t pay any attention to what she is ringing.

That brings something funny to mind, a couple of years ago I went through the local grocery checkout when a young man was manning the till. When he got to the parsnips I was buying he gave me a puzzled look and said "radish?" I was flabbergasted but was able to contain my composure and said "no, parsnip". But then I got to thinking how many people eat out of tin cans these days and I don't ever recall seeing canned parsnips, so maybe that is the explanation.

 

[SirJosephPorter]

When he got to the parsnips I was buying he gave me a puzzled look and said "radish?" I was flabbergasted but was able to contain my composure and said "no, parsnip".

JLM, which one was cheaper, radish or parsnip? If radish was cheaper, I would have said “I think it is a radish, but I am not sure.”



Incidentally, you can also get a red radish as big as a parsnip (I think they come from Israel).


The retail industry operates on such a slim margin of profit and to stay competitive they have to cut corners where ever they can.

I remember reading somewhere that their profit margin is less than 1%. The big supermarkets make profit through sheer volume. I for one, certainly don't blame them for going the self check out route. There is nothing wrong with any legitimate means to improve the profit margin.

 

[JLM]

"I remember reading somewhere that their profit margin is less than 1%."- I heard that remark in regards to Safeway over 40 years ago and have often thought of it since. The question is 1% of what? If they are talking 1% above wholesale, I say "horsefeathers". I imagine radish would be cheaper than parsnips- radish is more of a garnish whereas parsnip is real food.

 

[Unforgiven]

Sadly, I know a few people who steal for a living, so it is possible. Not at all stores, but most of the grocery stores around here get ripped off big time, often. They get caught here and there but mainly because they are suspicious looking and draw attention to themselves. They use their own bags, too.

Anyway, it would be nice if all stores could be theft proof as we all wind up paying for it in the end. :-(

Hey you know Bambam? heh heh just kidding.
I meant you can't steal any money from the check out or anything like that. If you look above you at the check out you will see a back domed camera. There are a line of them over the check outs.

Groceries have a bar code imprinted on the packaging which has to be scanned to be removed from a list so when it passes through the security field the alarm won't sound. In other stores where there isn't a bar code on the product or if it's attached, there is usually a small plastic chip that works much in the same way. Electronics often have them on the inside of the packaging.

It's not impossible for a pro to steal from these places and often it's just knowing the weakness in the system to exploit. Security costs money and so store owners skimp and hope no one figures it out.

Most often you can walk through a check out, with something under your clothes and purchase a few items, then as you walk out and the alarm goes off, the cashiers just wave you on because of so many false alarms.

When I was younger we used to have a little old lady that would walk around in the store looking as though she was shopping but she was like a hawk picking up on shoplifters. She would point them out and a couple of fellers would take them down and call the police.

There is always a battle between security and profits though you would think they would be hand in hand.

 

[Unforgiven]

There is only so much security in a grocery store. I really cannot see where they would hide a chip in a package of steaks. I am a cashier and I certainly don't have any chips to remove.

They are small and thin like a sticker and are not removed at the check out.

There are a few other types but they all work roughly the same and have simalar characteristics.

There are cameras - that's a given. They only give a general description and they are only looked at if someone believes there is a problem. Do we have security walking around the store - we do. Still doesn't mean they catch it all. We have huge wide open doors as an exit. We all know that many carts of groceries have walked right out those doors.

Yep that's the stuff you know about. Most companies have security to protect against staff theft as well. It changes from store to store and company to company based on needs and the money they have to put into a system.

I don't know what your job is but - I care about it. I care about everyone's job. I respect everyone who has a job as long as they actually do the job they were hired to do from low paying to high paying.

Do you care about blow jobs?

 

[Nuggler]

We don't havem here, yet.:-(.........freakin backwater poohole.

I said I would never use an ATM. Now I say I'll never use another teller. Just because of the line-ups, not the tellers. All the tellers I know are nice. I know two.

So, if they bring the autopilot checkouts here, I'll probably wind up using one, as the store will lay off some cashiers and make it necessary.

Are customers who use the autopilots allowed to chat with other customers in the next aisle, also using autopilots? Just like the cashiers do? (chat with one another that is. While waiting on you......and me.)

Well, Jeez, that settles it. Goin to get my interpersonal fix. Bring em on!! Cain't hardly wait to talk to some fishin buddies over a bagged steak er two.

8O

 

[SirJosephPorter]

None of the stores where you live have self check outs? Where do you live, Nuggler? I see you have listed your location as backwater, Ontario; it must be really a backwater community.

You are quite right. Self check outs save time, since many people either prefer a live checker or cannot figure out the intricacies of self check out (or are just intimidated by it).

 

[Risus]

And you have always known what all these items are! I have people pick out vegetables or fruits that I have either never seen or maybe seen once in my life. I say to them "sorry - I'm not familiar with this - what is it". Then that customer with an iq the size of his boot tells me he doesn't know what it is, it just looked interesting and he was hoping I could tell him how to use it. I can hold it up and ask if anyone near me knows what it is and no one will know. Don't tell me about low IQ cashiers. I do understand that young cashiers might not know common items as everything you have mentioned is common. I know that I was astounded when I purchased a turnip at another store and the young cashier asked me if I had noticed the name of the item. Codes are universal. I told her the code and then told her that to most people it was simply called a turnip but that her screen would list it as a rutabaga. She was shocked that I could supply all that info but I explained that I too was a cashier and that one day soon she would be very familiar with all such items. I truly have a ton of patience for new people. If she had been at the store for even 3 months and did not know - that would be different. Have a little respect.:-(

Respect has nothing to do with it. Stores should hire people who know what they are doing. As it is, they don't need to know math because the register does it all for them. Some time try chanding the money you give them after they ring it in. I've seen they get a pen and paper to try to figure out what change to give back to the customer. No respect deserved there...

 

[Risus]

Risus

These checkouts take us as a society one more step away with interaction with the company and most importantly with people – Another cog in the machine where we all become used to not dealing with people. Sad.

What difference does that make?? Most people don't talk to people they don't know anyway...

 

[taxslave]

Never use them. This is like bagging your own groceries. Unless there is a significant cost saving to the customer all you are doing is putting some one out of a job to increase profits. Why go to a self serve gas station when the full serve across the street is the same price?I never pay bills on line or at the bank machine for the same reason.

 

[Risus]

Self check outs save time, since many people either prefer a live checker or cannot figure out the intricacies of self check out (or are just intimidated by it).

The self check out certainly isn't rocket science, and the machine tells you what to do step by step....

 

[VanIsle]

The self check out certainly isn't rocket science, and the machine tells you what to do step by step....

No - it isn't rocket science. I will be trained on how to instruct customers to use the till and how to over ride when necessary. These computers should be particularly easy. The writing is big and there is an alphbetical list if you have an item of something like fruit that is missing a code. For example, if you have bananas and do not have or know the code, you can choose the a-b button and a picture will show up of bananas and other things and you touch the bananas on the screen. It's all well and good but by the time you scan your rewards card, then answer whether or not you are using coupons, then put the coupons items through and bag them, then put the rest of your groceries through and maybe have to search for that missing number (it's up to you to remember that your produce must have a number)and at the end, you may have a reward coupon for the number of dollars you spend. (example - spend $35.00 receive 375 pts.)so now you must scan that coupon as it too will have a bar code but most people want their pts. and they will have to learn that they need to scan that particular coupon.
Now - if you come through my till instead - You will get a pleasant greeting. I know the codes - you won't have to care. If there isn't a price on something I can phone a floor clerk and get a price check almost immediately. They carry a phone with them and it shows which till is calling them. They check and call me back. There are even times when I can make an informed decision and just charge you what you and I agree on as a fair price if I am having any difficulty in locating someone to do a price check. I am not chatty while I am busy at the till unless you are my only customer and nothing about you says you are in a rush. Most people tell me much more than I ever want or need to know about them but that's called being friendly and I'm fine with it providing I do not have customers waiting. I will get your groceries through the till in really good time and I will bag them for you and bid you good day. All of your coupons will have been put through without difficulty unless they are expired vendor coupons. I'm sure those will be a joy for people at the self serve. I guarantee you that if you have 5 items and go through the self serve, I can probably put 2 customers with that amount through in the same time. Maybe even 3. I am faster then the computer is. That may sound odd but it's true.
As to people not talking to strangers - as I said - you would be amazed at how glad customers are for a few seconds of chat. There is nothing like having someone care how your day has been and there's no harm in asking and there's no harm in a brief response. Sometimes I get a customer that I can tell by their clothing, has just come from work and is picking up some groceries for dinner and they like to hear "how's your day been". Try people watching sometime. We live in a computer world and people are lonely. What do you think everyone is doing on here? Conversing. Talking to strangers.