My Take on Retail: Part 2 - WTF

Retailers are facing increased verbal and physical abuse from shoppers who in many cases see no wrong in their behaviour towards staff, a new report suggests.

The study, commissioned by G4S Security Services, found one in 20 Brits believe it is acceptable to abuse a shop worker verbally if they are unhappy with the level of service.

Over the last five years, 1.6 million consumers have verbally abused retail staff for supposed poor service, the survey claims.

Shockingly, it also claims more than 150,000 Britons think physical abuse against retail workers is justifiable if they deem the service insufficient.

G4S sales and marketing director Douglas Greenwell said: "It is wholly unacceptable that retail employees should face the threat of verbal or physical assault.

"While shoppers are increasingly time pressured and expect high levels of service, this should not be allowed to translate into abuse towards store workers."

Shane Brennan, public affairs director at the Association of Convenience Stores, said: "Abuse of people working in stores is completely unacceptable. Communities and police must work together to help retailers. They have to make clear that violence is unacceptable."

John Hannett, general secretary of shopworkers' union Usdaw, said: "This survey confirms what Usdaw has been saying for a number of years. We will continue our work to protect shopworkers from abuse."

A survey by Independent Retail News last year found 26% of independent retailers had suffered verbal abuse, 13% physical assault and 11% had been threatened with a weapon.

The original story appears in Independent Retail News : Friday, 16 January 2009

Britain is certainly not alone when it comes to customers abusing employees. It is becoming more and more frequent for us to be threatened, demeaned, and cursed out. It saddens me how supposedly sane people think that it is okay to treat employees the way that they do...and the worse part is that corporate believes: "The customer is always right."

My Take on Retail: Part 1 - LOL

Want a job where you are disrespected and made to do menial tasks? Do you like thanking random jerks for making your day miserable? Retail may be just the job for you! Why?

I started working retail over six years ago and I love it! The customer service experience is great! Many of them treat me poorly and act like they too superior to even listen to me when I ask them if they need assistance. They litter the stores, ask stupid questions, mess up displays, moan about service, etc. Many of these customers need the staff to fawn over them, apologize for things that are not our fault, and expect a bright cheery smile and "Thank you!" for shopping at the store. It's very fulfilling to be so needed!

And what really makes any retail experience enjoyable is your co-workers. They are very helpful pointing out when I'm not being polite enough to customers or that my sales are inadequate. It's great to have constant reminders that I'm not doing my job well enough!

The money is excellent too! On a retail salary, I can not afford to pay for my bills, rent, or food alone. I feel a sense of pride and accomplishment when I step into Wal-Mart and cash my .04 checks.

And talk about a future! Why would you want to be an office administrative assistant that makes more than a store manager? It's a sound investment to take the best years of your life to fully devote yourself to a company that will throw you away in a heartbeat.

Retail is the place to be! If you haven't already gotten yourself a dead-end job, I say go for it! It's everything I dreamed it would be...and more.