Checkstands used to have chains that locks to let customers know the checker is unavailable but they were deemed unprofessional. Now grocery checkouts have lights that tell the customer if the checker is open. If the lights are off then the checker is probably either trying to go on break or home. Its like trick or treating as a kid, if the lights are on it means someone’s home, if not, skip to the next house but there are some optimistic trick or treaters that knock just in case…
It’s 9 PM and time for me to go home. A customer comes and starts to load his groceries onto the conveyor belt…
Me: Uh sir… I’m closed.
Not Bright: Oh you are?
Me: My lights off.
Not Bright: What light?
I point to the light but since he’s loaded his groceries I can’t tell him go to another checkstand.
Not Bright: Thanks! Going home?
Me: [excited] Yes! Going to go a movie!
More customers come and start unloading…
Me: Umm… Sorry, I’m closed.
Not Bright II: Oh you are?
Not Bright: [sarcastically] Yeah. His light is off.
Not Bright II: What light?
Me: …
{ 11 comments… read them below or add one }
What I find annoying as a customer is when the light is on but I don’t know where the checker is. Should I load my groceries and then look around for the checker (who is probably talking to the person in customer service and will be back soon), or should I go stand in line at the other checkstand where the checker is busy ringing up another customer’s groceries?
You can’t tell them no? Seriously?! At some point don’t you have to do so?! That’s insane. Do these people not have jobs that they look forward to leaving at the end of their workday? OMG! I am amazed.
I promise never to get in a line that doesn’t have the light on from here on out! I totally have done that before but I swear if the cashier had told me that they were closed I would have gone to another line.
Thanks for your nice comment on my blog, I love your stories because oddly, grocery shopping is something I find fun to do! I go to my neighborhood store just about everyday because I am totally not a planner I never know what I’m going to be in the mood for, and we are always running out of something. It’s cool to hear the employee side of it.
Oh, this. Ugh. On one particularly memorable occasion, one of my bagger friends physically blocked my line with a garbage can so I could finally go home. Customers don’t seem to care that your light is off.
This must be annoying. When people do not have respect for you or your time, it usually is. I wonder what would happen if you brought a grim reaper costume from Halloween and placed that on the belt when the light is off…
You made me just realize that I always look for the light! LOL, I do!
I feel your pain… I’ve had people not only ignore my light, but also walk right by the little magnetic sign on the end of my register that says “Please Use Next Available Checkout”. Then again, I’ve also had people ask me “Are you open?” when I’m standing at the register with my light on… it’s even funnier when I’m the ONLY register open.
The store we shop at does still have these metal gate thingys they use as well as a little sign that says closed that they put on the belt after the last persons order. When they are closed they mean it!! lol
I truly feel your pain. I can’t believe all the thoughtless and clueless customers you have to bear with and smile at. That takes some strength. But, in the interest of fairness, add this to the ‘ways to annoy your customer file’
I run into situations where you see the checker happily checking away, and the light is off! How?
Normally I assume 1) the light is out. But if the light is out, I would think most stores should have a supply tucked away somewhere and it shouldn’t be too much trouble to change it
2) he is wrapping it up and this is the last customer. Sometimes if the light is off and the checker seems to be open, I’ll ask before unloading. “Are you open?” and they say yes, come on in, as if I was supposed to read minds?
3) He just doesn’t care, maybe he’s trying to avoid checking lol. Hey I can’t blame ya!!
The chains! Oh my gosh, the grocery we used when I was a kid had those chains. Fancy little trip down memory lane there.
I don’t think we had lights yet where I worked. We just had the little plastic sign to set on the end of the belt that said closed. Which people would move and put their stuff behind it and get in line. As if I couldn’t see them. I was lucky enough to have a lot of customers stick up for me and tell those people I was closed and hand their stuff back to them.
The worst is what I call a bait and switch. If I’m closing, and a person with one thing comes, I’ll be nice and take them, but what gets me is her husband coming down the aisle with a full cart, and company policy says if you say yes, you can’t go back and say no. It amazingly only happens at the end of shifts.