Love Thy Customer...

[Kopeht]

I work in a big company pet store (Prefer not to say which lol) In Morayfield, QLD. won't go too much into some of the the interesting inhabitants of the place but let's just say indicators are optional in some areas. I often get people come in asking what deal I can do them for fish, I was catching a few angel fish for one bloke and he was adamant on getting one fish free because it was slightly smaller than the others.
Ignoring the fact the fish we sell are young and have much growing to do, the fish was perfectly healthy...
Fancy coming int a pet store and wanting free fish lol

 

[Lawra]

I work in a burger cafe where we make everything from scratch incl sauces and cook everything to order.

A guy phones this morning and wanted a burger but then abused me for about 10 mins because we don't do fresh grilled pineapple. We don't do pineapple at all because it goes off too quickly. I mean ugh we have a menu for a reason. If it's not listed as an extra, it doesn't exist in our kitchen.

Must have been the day for it because a lady rang up this afternoon not knowing what she wanted and made me read her the entire menu. We had no customers so I did, even though it was stupid, because it was so irritating especially because at the end if the convo she said "cool I just live around the corner, I'll be there in 5". I made sure to put 5 take away menus in her bag. Ugh.

Not to mention it's the start of school holidays and I have to put up with a dining room full of teeny boppers who buy a bottle of water as an excuse to sit in the store, then proceed to be noisy and whiny.

Ahh end rant.

 

[Varanoidea]

I think working in retail we tend to forget those who are polite and instead take notice of those who aren't.

 

[Lawra]

I think working in retail we tend to forget those who are polite and instead take notice of those who aren't.

I think this thread exists because while we can compliment and go above and beyond for lovely customers, we can't turn around and tell nasty ones to go die in a hole. There are plenty of lovely people out there but we're allowed to tell them what we think of them to their face

 

[longqi]

I think this thread exists because while we can compliment and go above and beyond for lovely customers, we can't turn around and tell nasty ones to go die in a hole. There are plenty of lovely people out there but we're allowed to tell them what we think of them to their face

Die in a hole??
Ive said a whole lot more than that to some

Had one guy from Denpasar
Possibly the nicest modern house Ive seen in Indonesia
Jungle rubbish dump next door
Absolute cobra paradise but also high danger trying to find anything
After 3 hours Ive bagged 4 cobras and a krait
Another hour or so teaching the gardeners about reptiles and best ways to stop them visiting

Lord Muck [expat] wanders over
" I was going to give you some money but your card says free snake removal so I wont bother"
Walks away

5 months later frantic phone call 6am
Cobra same house
Nobody answers the gate
Scale the wall
One dead doberman and another going crazy with a face full of venom
Hook the collar, clamp the mouth and wash it out in the pool for 10 minutes
Lock it in a shed and find the cobra and bag it
Lord Muck pipes up from behind the door
"Thank you so much. Goodbye"

I walk over and bang on the door until he opens it
"listen you bloody mongrel, saved your backside twice now
Snake removal is free
Saving dogs costs big money so donation will be accepted"

Guy actually rang a vet and got a horrible shock at how much it would have cost him
Gave me about 50%
Best donation we ever got

10ft brick wall separates his place from next door now

 

[ingie]

I am a youth worker in residential care, with 9-17 year olds. We do 24-48 hour sleepover shifts, alone with 1-2 kids in a house, or sometimes 1 kid to 2 youth workers, in a house, depending on how extreme the behaviours are. We are the last port of call for kids who have been kicked out of all other available foster homes, and group homes etc.

While I have worked at this place, I have had
A knife held at my throat
Spat on
Punched
Held "hostage" in a corner while police took 2.5 hours to arrive
Had a kid bail me into a corner and try repeatedly to stab me in the neck and sides with a fork, wanting to kill me, and all I had was a small cushion to deflect him until he ran out of breath, and I jumped over the couch arm and took off up the road.
A kid tried to light my hair on fire while I was driving on the highway, and then grabbed 2 hand fulls of my hair and pinned my head to seat and screamed in my ears.
Kid pulled on handbrake while I was driving, made me go across 2 lanes, and then called the cops on me as i wouldn't let her back in the car
A kid stole my car for 4 days (2 weeks ago) and it is getting fixed now, as they put dints and scratches on it, and kicked the crap out of the ceiling
Had a girl try to hang herself with an extension cord and I had to hold her while I caled 000 on speakerphone and then wait for them to arrive.
A kid pulled on the hand brake while I was driving. Then when we finally got home he opened up the bonnet and started doing things to the engine. I went over to see what he was doing, and he opened the coolant thing and flicked it on my face. Same kid reached over and popped the boot, on another occasion, when we just arrived home, and grabbed out the big metal thing you use to undo the wheel nuts with, came to my door as I was getting out and stomped my foot and swung the tool at my head and I ducked as it missed me by a fraction. He then covered me in flour 3 times while I was waiting for the next youth worker to arrive. He had some secret stash of it. I had it all in my eyes and had to drive one hour to my next shift with a 15yo kid who constantly tells me filthy sexual fantasies while touching himself and flashing me. Have had way more things happen, but these are the ones that come to mind right now.

Youth work is hard!

 

[Rlpreston]

I am a youth worker in residential care, with 9-17 year olds. We do 24-48 hour sleepover shifts, alone with 1-2 kids in a house, or sometimes 1 kid to 2 youth workers, in a house, depending on how extreme the behaviours are. We are the last port of call for kids who have been kicked out of all other available foster homes, and group homes etc.

While I have worked at this place, I have had
A knife held at my throat
Spat on
Punched
Held "hostage" in a corner while police took 2.5 hours to arrive
Had a kid bail me into a corner and try repeatedly to stab me in the neck and sides with a fork, wanting to kill me, and all I had was a small cushion to deflect him until he ran out of breath, and I jumped over the couch arm and took off up the road.
A kid tried to light my hair on fire while I was driving on the highway, and then grabbed 2 hand fulls of my hair and pinned my head to seat and screamed in my ears.
Kid pulled on handbrake while I was driving, made me go across 2 lanes, and then called the cops on me as i wouldn't let her back in the car
A kid stole my car for 4 days (2 weeks ago) and it is getting fixed now, as they put dints and scratches on it, and kicked the crap out of the ceiling
Had a girl try to hang herself with an extension cord and I had to hold her while I caled 000 on speakerphone and then wait for them to arrive.
A kid pulled on the hand brake while I was driving. Then when we finally got home he opened up the bonnet and started doing things to the engine. I went over to see what he was doing, and he opened the coolant thing and flicked it on my face. Same kid reached over and popped the boot, on another occasion, when we just arrived home, and grabbed out the big metal thing you use to undo the wheel nuts with, came to my door as I was getting out and stomped my foot and swung the tool at my head and I ducked as it missed me by a fraction. He then covered me in flour 3 times while I was waiting for the next youth worker to arrive. He had some secret stash of it. I had it all in my eyes and had to drive one hour to my next shift with a 15yo kid who constantly tells me filthy sexual fantasies while touching himself and flashing me. Have had way more things happen, but these are the ones that come to mind right now.

Youth work is hard!

Wow, this is one of those jobs that is well under appreciated. No way I could handle that (don't have the patience I think) for one day, let alone every day! My hat's off to you!

I have a friend who works with families in crisis here in Vic (I think it must be for youth justice or similar) and she gets called out all hours if the day and night to peoples houses to work with them. I always imagine it must be scary to be in a strangers house while they are in an unstable mood. I think she has been completely worn down and burned out by it all now and is looking for a career change

 

[longqi]

Ingie
hats off to you
not enough money on earth to pay me to do your work

 

[Lawra]

ingie you are amazing to continue working under those conditions. I feel silly for complaining about whiney customers. I have a lot of respect for you.

 

[ingie]

I keep doing the job for selfish reasons Get all my hours done in a condensed time so I have more days off every week, (although only 16 hours of every 24 counts, as I only get 2 hours pay for 10 hours "sleeping time". I do get to choose whenever I can and can't work, in advance though. There are lots of benefits to the job, so long as I can keep myself unharmed

 

[littlemay]

Here's a fun one..

At work the other day a man comes up to the register with his young daughter. They were purchasing crickets, some desert sand and a 2.0 UVB fluro tube. I was a little perplexed by the addition of the 2.0 tube as it seemed like they were buying for a bearded dragon. I started chatting with them and probing for who the 2.0 tube was for, turns out it was indeed for their bearded dragon.

Figuring they were new owners, i explained the necessity of a high output UVB source and the possible consequences of not providing enough UVB. Then the man jumps in, looking at me like i'm some idiot, and tells me that the dragon has had 2.0 UVB for over a year and is perfectly fine. I very carefully explain that this is perhaps not the best situation for the dragon and that a continuation of this sort of environment could lead to health problems down the track.

At this point the young girl is on the verge of tears, saying 'is he going to die daddy?'. The man gives me a look that indicates this is clearly all my fault and begrudgingly asks me to get him a 10 UVB tube; he quite obviously seemed to think i was attempting to upsell him. Sigh. Some people.

 

[hulloosenator]

my daughter works at a jewelry store........ they had a sale on ......... a customer bought a necklace for $200 because it was half price.......
the customer returned the next day for refund because he daughter didnt like it ...... my daughter gave her back the $200 as per receipt...... but customer demanded the full price back ....$400 as was on the original price tag.... but receipt stated she paid $200. The lady didnt understand ..... or was genuinely stupid ..... or a con artist ..... or all of the above.