Metropol

I think it's the utmost in rudeness to carry out a transaction in a shop, bank, whatever, when talking on a mobile phone. I've seen this many times and the practice seems to be on the increase. I'm not a shop assistant, but if I was, I think I'd refuse to serve anyone who insists on using their mobile phone during the transaction.

My audition for the next series of Grumpy Old Men is next week

Indeed, I would find it rather rude if I were a shop assistant.

But on the flipside, I find it rude when shop assistants continue chatting to their colleague when they're serving me, and only stop to tell me the total and take my payment.

i think the worst thing with mobiles, and this happend to me once ages ago, is when you take a girl out, she gets a message from her mate about whats happening at the weekend, she says, excuse me a minute and spends the next ten minutes farting about sending a message. very frustrating, and then, when i do it, she wanted to bloody read it. cheeky cow!

I would agree with the principal - politeness costs nothing; but lets face it, shops and supermarkets are different these days.

I worked for years as a lad in a family run ironmongers shop. My uncle taught me to cut keys, sell fishing tackle and fix electromechanical items, while my aunt taught me the finer points of DIY, cookware and gardening. I was expected to be able to answer any question on any subject and really help. We had a 14 foot long oak counter which a lot of stock was behind, meaning communicating with customers was essential, or you didn't sell a thing.

Go into a shop these days and ask where a thing *is*, and you won't always get an answer - much less being given advice on your purchase. It's all *BEEP* *BEEP* BEEP* *£14.90 (no please)* and then it's over.

At least being on a mobile phone means you get to talk to someone...

Gavin Scott wrote:Go into a shop these days and ask where a thing *is*, and you won't always get an answer - much less being given advice on your purchase. It's all *BEEP* *BEEP* BEEP* *£14.90 (no please)* and then it's over.

At least being on a mobile phone means you get to talk to someone...

yes alot of supermarket workers are rude, no i don't like it when they're rude to me - but ...

i do like the cheap prices i pay owing to the workforce being composed of low paid students, people who are there for a little extra cash in the evening, and generally people who wouldn't be half arsed if they were sacked.

i have worked in a shop, and i have been instructed to tell my staff they're not smiling enough, not being helpful enough or generally just "crap". but to be honest, they looked how everyone else felt, it is depressing, you are there for the money, and you are just willing that clock to reach 8o'clock.

pay peanuts and you will get monkeys... unless of course you'd all like to add a couple more pennys onto your shopping bill.

i'd be lying if i said i have never spoken on the phone when buying something - but then waiting in a queue is really lost time, and the small talk you and the checkout op would have to scrape together isn't half as important as renewing car insurance, or having a good gossip about someone.

I get this a lot at my work. People driving through in their cars speaking away while ordering and not even paying attention. One guy I remember shouted at me for not paying enough attention when I handed him his order and it fell on the ground when I let go.

Frankly if the guy had bothered to pay attention himself he would have seen he wasn't grabbing the damn bag and sadly I cannot alter the laws of gravity.

The ones I don't like in shops are the one's that when you ask for help is that they tut, look at you as though your a twat (not literaley of course & just grunt "I don't know ask them"

The off licence round the corner from me also always talks on his mobile while serving

Just to turn it around - people who do something else at the same time as ringing me up to find a telephone number annoys me because they never listen properly.

I remember being in a lottery queue once and the lad on the till said to each person in turn... "One quid please" (or whatever the amount was)
I mean "One quid!?" Does the word 'pound' not exist in his vocabulary?

freddy wrote:I think it's the utmost in rudeness to carry out a transaction in a shop, bank, whatever, when talking on a mobile phone. I've seen this many times and the practice seems to be on the increase. I'm not a shop assistant, but if I was, I think I'd refuse to serve anyone who insists on using their mobile phone during the transaction.

My audition for the next series of Grumpy Old Men is next week

Hehe, I am a shop assistant, and if people a) Don't reply when I say hello. I'll force them to say something by asking a series of questions you can't shake your head at or b) If they're on the phone, not notice them, or just tidy up, or if I have to serve them, do it very slowly and struggle to get things in a bag. It's sooooo rude.

One thing people don't realize is that the people using the till are people too. We're paid to sell things, we don't HAVE to be nice to you.

However, if you're nice to me, I'll do the same back. I pride myself on being the best when I can, if someone's after something I'll do my dammed best to find it, or show them were to find it. I always pronounce my pounds and pence’s as well as Hello, Thank You, Please, Goodbye.

It's so simple to do and I know I certainly notice when I'm being served if people do/don't do it to me.

Uses for a mobile phone when in a shop, number seventy-two.

When the two assistants are standing behind the till, talking to each other and not getting round to serving you, ring up the store, ask to be put through to the till area and then ask them when they intend to stop nattering and get round to serving you.

When they look up and realise who the call was from they tend to become somewhat embarrassed.