Sunday, November 19, 2006

Pet Peeve about cashiers

First let me say I've been a cashier at many jobs in my life (Burger King, Opryland, Bradlee's etc) and now I'm the cashier at all my yardsales. The thing that drives me nuts is how some cashiers give you change back - they make a pile of the dollar bills, receipt on top of that, and then pile up all the change and give you the whole mess at once. The cashiers at my local KFC always do that and it drives me nuts (which happened tonight so that's why I am blogging about it). And then to even top that off the whole mess gets put in your left hand at the drive-thru (and since I'm right handed, my left is the lesser coordinated)

When I have a yardsale and let's say the customer's total is $2.75 and they pay with a $20 bill, this what I say when giving back change: quarter makes $3, four, five, five makes ten and ten makes twenty. I give the coin(s) back first - that way they have a second to put the change in a pocket if they want, then the bills.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I used to do that, but the only people who seemed to appreciate it and not get impatient were older folks (over 60)- Now I don't do it at all.

Anonymous said...

AMEN Sister!! I HATE getting the change on top of the bills. (and I am under 60)
Diana

Anonymous said...

I hate that too. It seems like the cashiers want to avoid touching someones hand.
-Tim from Shen (and Myspace)

Anonymous said...

I have the exact same pet peeve, thanks for publishing yours!

Most of the time I pay with plastic when I shop, but sometimes I pay cash. I really hate it when the cashiers balance the coins on top of the paper money when they give you back your change.

Remember when cashiers would count out your change? “.45 makes four dollars, five, ten, and twenty.”

Now, they pile the coins on top of the paper, then give you the whole teetering pile, and more often than not, it falls all over the place!

I am finding this happens most often in the drive-through fast food joints, and when I call them out on it after the change rolls under my car, they act as if _I’m_ crazy!

If the cashier puts the change in your hand first, you can close your hand to grip it (or pocket it, as you rightly suggested), then take the paper money in your fingers.

When the cashier gives you a teetering pile of coins on top of paper money, you have to crush the whole pile in your fist, but it often ends up all over the place because the coins slide around at the slightest motion.

I never had this problem years ago, when cashiers almost exclusively handled cash, but it seems that I encounter this problem more and more. Making change is not rocket science. The cashier does not even have to calculate the change, they just count out what the computer tells them to do. The least they could do is return the change properly.