This article appears in Dec 11-17, 2008.
Am I getting cashiers bitchy?
Not a bitch per se, more looking for bitch-related feedback:I’m a compulsive ‘exact change guy’. You know the one: the guy/girl who is rooting the coin pouch in his wallet in line at the corner store, trying to get out EXACTLY $5.78 to pay for that mag
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I am the same way with giving exact change and frankly people can roll their eyes all they like!! that’s why there is a line-up, so people can wait their turn with the cashier.
At some stores (ones that are “super”) the cashier gets ranked by their items scanned per minute (IPM) and when you take the extra time to fish out exact change it slows our IPMs and we get nagged about it. You have every right to do that, and I know myself I’m not going to be anything but pleasant to you regardless of how you pay me (as long as you pay me), but it is kind of annoying when you take a disgustingly long time to count your pennies, truth be told. I tend to let things roll off my back at work more so than others though, so I’m pretty sure it pisses other cashiers off. But you’re the paying customer so…
Exact changers don’t bother me when I’m in line behind them. sometimes it’s hard if they are old and have terribly arthritic fingers, but I try to be patient.The people who really, really, really piss me off are the lottery ticket gnomes. FUCK I wish there was a separate line for these addicts!
Yes, you are pissing them off- but tough! If those extra seconds it takes for you to count your change is making such a big dent in their day, they need to really reorganize their life and also learn something about patience. As for the cashiers being counted by the items scanned per minute, that’s not the public’s concern. The store should allow for the little things that crop up during the day that delay transactions. It’s inevitable, and customers shouldn’t feel rushed.
It doesn’t piss us off…but it doesn’t really make anything better..or faster..When we are rushed, it is a little annoying….more often than not..I would prefer you not do it.
Hard to say. Sometimes cashiers are low on change and bills and your exact change is the transaction that lets them hold off for a few minutes the inevitable having to tell someone “sorry, we’re out of fives, I’ll have to give you your change in loonies.” Or your counting will give them an opportunity to do something they were hoping to get a small break for, such as putting on a new pot of coffee (if, say, you’re in a cafe). But there can also be negative consequences as others have said. I guess it depends on the situation.
When I was a cashier, I always appreciated exact change since it basically didn’t fool with my till. I went like a bat out of hell on the register anyway, so some loose time here and there wasn’t a biggie.What I HATED were people giving me bills + change to get a round bill(5, 10) back, without telling me they were going to continue to dig for pennies. I’d have the larger bill broken, changed, and the till slammed shut before their fingers got back into the coin purse, which invariably made some people pissy for serving them too fast.
SwampDonkey, I know exactly what you mean about those who give bills and change to get a round bill. Very annoying!I used to work at “they-who-are-toys”. I enjoyed having customers taking the time to find correct change. I felt more of an interaction with the customer in these cases. During the holiday season, i enjoyed it because it gave a me a small break ( i guess it worked for me since i didn’t get ranked by items scanned per minute) that didn’t involve the customer waiting on the store and getting angry at me. So in my opinion, carry on!
Who wants pennies and nickels?! If I get a chance, I try and get rid of them. Not if there are a bunch of people behind me of course, and I always quickly count it out before placing it in the cashier’s hand. I was a cashier once, and I always hated it when a customer threw down a bunch of change across the counter, then held out his/her hand with the expectation I would pass them theirs.
HAHA Swampdonkey, yes, on your last statement. Some people you just can’t please.
We don’t mind taking your change (often times it’s welcome as it saves us from having to get some more) as long as you don’t take FOREVER. So to answer your question: It’s ok to unload change on us, just be speedy about it.
I agree with aaron. I had this one kid (14 maybe?) come to my cash once when I was on speedy and declare that she was paying in small change, had to count it and that it could take a while. Trust me, it did. It was rather annoying, actually.
Lottery ticket gnomes – love it.I guess I’m guilty – I always give enough pennies to ensure I don’t get pennies back as change. I fucking hate pennies. They’re so dirty and gross. I’m quick about it though, I don’t dig in my wallet for hours with an impatient line behind me – I’ve been stuck behind too many little old ladies who hand the cashier a bill, then slowly reach into their purse for their weird change holder pouch thing, and slowly dig through it, handing the cashier a nickel, only to be informed it’s not a quarter, so they slowly take the nickel back, examine it for a full 30 seconds before they realize the difference, and slowly resume their search… grr, little old ladies are the WORST!
I almost never pay with change. Always a bill. Faster, more efficient, easier for everyone. Plus, I have a jar that I throw all my change in at the end of the day. Over the course of a year, that jar paid for my kid’s school trip to montreal.
Am I more annoying to people because I will use my credit card to pay for small purchases? I get PC points with it and use it like a debit card that I don’t get charged for and hardly ever have cash.
Yeah, I don’t mind when people pay me with exact change as long as like others have said, they don’t take forever. Sometimes though, it is a welcome break from a lineup of customers. Also, I don’t give out pennies, I round everything up or down. If the change is 2.22, then I give the person 2.20. If it’s 2.23, they get 2.25. I have no problem with a customer doing the same in fact I encourage it, pennies are a waste of time.
Yeah, I don’t mind when people pay me with exact change as long as like others have said, they don’t take forever. Sometimes though, it is a welcome break from a lineup of customers. Also, I don’t give out pennies, I round everything up or down. If the change is 2.22, then I give the person 2.20. If it’s 2.23, they get 2.25. I have no problem with a customer doing the same in fact I encourage it, pennies are a waste of time.
But if you had a hundred million of them, Nick, you’d be a millionaire!!!!
LOL credit cards for small purchases….those used to kill me until I got my first RBC credit card with HBC points. Until I got rid of all my credit cards, I racked up enough points for A LOT of RBC gift certificates because I used it for everything instead of my debit or cash to get the points, so I totally see why people could use their credit card for small purchases….and unless the cashier is slow as FUCK, a credit card doesn’t take any more time than change-digging old ladies 😛
It’s not the change that’s bugs me it is waiting until the cashier has rung it through before the person decides to start digging for change. If you are buying a mag and you know it’s going to cost $5-$6 then have your change ready so you only have to cobble together the last few cents worth.
i work as a cashier and i dont care if i get change or not. the people behind you can wait thier turn like they are supposed to. if they want to be impatient fucks then let them. what IS nice is when counting the change out, doing is so that we can see it. then i can count it at the same time in my head and its actually sometimes a qucker transaction.dont worry about it. and if some bitch cashier rolls her eyes at you, fuck them.
i work as a cashier and i dont care if i get change or not. the people behind you can wait thier turn like they are supposed to. if they want to be impatient fucks then let them. what IS nice is when counting the change out, doing is so that we can see it. then i can count it at the same time in my head and its actually sometimes a qucker transaction.dont worry about it. and if some bitch cashier rolls her eyes at you, fuck them.