T-Shirt Sponge: Pre-Black Friday Coupon Hell and Surving the Corporate Machine

Hello and happy The-Apocalypse-Still-Hasn't-Come-and-Killed-us-All-Yet to you all!!
 
I've been working a lot of 3am and 4am shifts lately, doing signage and markdowns, so I generally leave before the customers even get in the store. So not a whole lot of stories to share. Although today I got to change the Supermodelquins :D That was interesting. It was kind of like Wheel of Fortune for me - I enjoyed it, but gratuitous swearing must be involved. I've never called a hunk of plastic BIGGER THAN ME 'whore' so many times. 
 
I did get to tell some custys to suck it a few weeks ago when we had our one day 40% off sale for cardholders. I didn't work the sale, but I worked the day before, and everyone wanted special treatment. One lady surmised the situation nicely.

Idiot: "Can I use this 40% off coupon?"

Me: "No, that's for tomorrow only."

Idiot: "Oh...well can you hold [useless bag of crap] until tomorrow?"

Me: "No, we're not doing any holds until tomorrow, that wouldn't be fair to the other customers.

Idiot: "Oh....well can you check?"  

*This is where I ask my manager over the radio for the customer's sake. Manager says no.*

Idiot: "Oh...well will your manager just give me the 40% off today?"

Me: "WTHAKLFID?!?$^&% - No. The sale is tomorrow."

Idiot: "Oh...well can you call her up here and ask her?"

Me: "No. She's not going to break the rules just for you."

>.> I was so flabbergasted that the only appropriate word was 'flabbergasted'.  

That shit went on all day. Not my goddamn fault you're too stupid to read a coupon.  

We also have a new store manager, and I like the guy, he's nice and pretty damn efficient, but he's just a little too.....corporate for me. Tell me if this makes sense to you folks....

I come in the other day and the head cashier and I are chatting up policies and she tells me "You know about the rule where if a customer is disputing a price within $10, you can just change it for them, right?" Yeah, I know. Not my favorite policy, but saves us time looking for the sign to tell them they're wrong. Lately I've been doing signage, so I KNOW which signs say what and I don't have to resort to that since I can tell them I know they're wrong.

"Well, NewSM is REALLY enforcing that with everyone."

Ok NBD.

"Also, if they bring you a coupon that's expired, they're telling us to just go ahead and put it through..."

Umm....so we're gonna take the hit cuz illiterate dumbfucks dunno what fucking day it is? Alright....

"And, if they don't have a receipt, we're just doing the return for them."

Whaaaa? We have a whole policy on that, store credit in the mail, and we're just chucking it off the balcony??

"And, since we're the only store that does short breaks (a couple minutes for every few hours you work), and they're kind of a priveledge, they're starting to do away with those too."

Exsqueeze me? I know that our extra breaks are just that, extra, they're not mandated by law, and when it comes to the legal ones, our company is good about it, but I like that fact that my company cares enough about its employees to say "Ya know, maybe they need to sit for 10 minutes after being screamed at for 3 hours". It's not a lot, but it's extremely welcome and pretty revitalizing when you've got people roaring in your face, and it's something we're accostomed to.

So I know corporations aren't generally genuine, but I liked my company for the fact that at least it PRETENDED to be genuine. The managers didn't have to always be on top of us about email capture or credit cards because corporate wasn't constantly on their back about upping meaningless numbers. But when everything starts shifting corporate and becoming a number to the people that can't see us, when WE start becoming numbers, I feel uncomfortable. What do you guys think? Who's in the camp of "Suck it up and get used to it, cuz that's how the world works" and who's in the camp of "Don't become a faceless zombie working for the machine!"??
 
I work midnight on Black Friday, and the week before Christmas our stores are open 24/7, so I'll see you guys soon!

<3

--T-Shirt Sponge

 

Comments

[NC Tony]

So it sounds like they're just doing away with the rules that will cost the store money, and don't give a shit about the little people that get stepped on in the process. Unfortunately that's par for the course. I don't wanna say suck it up, but unless you can find another job that actually abides by the rules and gives you breaks, you may have to.

[Kade]

I work for them too. Most things don't make sense. And it seems lately the company has been finding anybody on the street to be thier managers! I feel for you! And I've been doing it for 3 years. -_- I do signage,markdowns, and am a cash handler. It's a bunch of bs. And yes those damn mannequins are crazy heavy. I had them fall in my a couple times and at I ly 5 foot it's hard to avoid incidents with them. Goodluck this holiday season!

[Kade]

* fall on me
* at only 5 foot
Sorry for the crappy spelling.

[Pressganged]

Ugh. It would be easier to list the things about this company that DO make sense.

[Framer-Fatal]

Seeing as I gave my two weeks for the most corporate job I've ever held last Saturday, I'd be a hypocrite to tell you to stay. That said, you will have to suck it up if you can't find another job, so hunt now?

[Hellmart Elf]

Corporate sucks. It doesn't matter if you leave and get another job it's still going to be owned by corporate. Unless you work for a small business but then you have to work in the same building as 'corporate' so unless you start your own business you are going to have bs policies. Then you will be the one to make bs policies.

[Green Grin]

When a new manager came in to an old job and did away with any breaks that weren't legally required, that was the beginning on the end. A slave that gets to sit for 5 minutes and indulge in some caffeine and/or nicotine is a happier, more productive worker. They might even be able to pretend they don't hate their job.

[Logan]

So they're cutting things like breaks, to save money, due to losing money, because they won't back up the return/coupon/price policies they made.

Honestly, no matter what it deals with, whether it be returns, pricing, or any other policy, I don't understand why a place bothers to even have the policies if they don't bother following them. We used to have meetings where the manager would reiterate how important __ policy was and we need to start following it 100%. Then the very next day that same manager would tell us to let it slide.

Usually this was things like, only using the register you are signed in on. Then the next day the manager would tell you to go ahead and use the register because they don't have time to sign you in.

[StockWhore]

WTF people are crazy. Hold onto her shit until she comes back? How about learning to read and come in the day you can use the coupon. Fucking cock bags like this lady are the reason I will never work retail again.

[Ismail]

Great series of areclits, Bob.You made me read all 11. I have never heard of you before today, but you got my attention. Well done.I can honestly say that you appear to be a lone wolf in the anti-Groupon crusade, and just the kind of guy I was looking to hear from.I am also amazed at the financial myopia that Groupon has crushed small businesses with. The toxicity of building a client base on the backs of 50% discounts and 75% reductions in revenue is laughable, and yet rounds of praise fall on the backs of these Groupon-esque sites.Crazy.Thanks again for your insights. You should write the book on this, and blow the whistle. If you don't maybe I will.Someone needs to. And you could sell some books, and pay the mortgage at the same time which as you said, is very important too. Reply