Hello RHU!
About three months ago I managed to finally escape retail hell. I spent 19 months slaving for the same gas station, and it really was hell. I have so many stories I could share with you about my particular corner of hell, but I’ll start with a short one about an entitled customer.
First a little backstory: I live in a small village in New York, and we have the privilege of have 3, count em 3 prisons. The store I worked in happens to be a 24 hour gas station, so a fair share of our regulars are prison guards. They would come in before and after their shifts for coffee, smokes, and papers.
The crusty in question is a female guard, and I have never met a more entitled biotch. Now this crusty and I have had our fair share of encounters during my stay in hell, but this one really took the cake.
It was going on midnight and I see a familiar phantom pull into the parking lot. In walks the crusty guard, and she shoots me a nasty look as she heads towards our beer cooler. By the time she makes it to my register there is a person in front of her, a couple are directly behind her. As she places her beer on the counter she sneers at me.
Crusty Guard: “Do you need to see my fucking I.D.?” (Her exact words)
Me: “Yes ma’am, our store policy is we have to I.D. everyone who is purchasing beer.”
Crusty Guard: “You are so fucking rude, here see it!” She whips out her guard I.D. which she knows I can’t accept.
Me: “Ma’am I need to see a state issued I.D., such as a driver’s license, permit, non- driver’s I.D. or even a passport.” I’m gritting my teeth so hard I’m sure one is going to break.
Crusty Guard: “ This is a fucking state I.D. you idiot, I work for the God Damned state!”
Me:” Ma’am, as I have mentioned many times I can not accept an employer issued I.D.” The Crusty Guard finally shows me her driver’s license, and I ring out her purchase.
Crusty Guard: “That’s fucking bullshit you’re just fucking jealous because I have a real damn job and you work in a shitty gas station. (I’ll admit I finally lost my patience with this woman.)
Me: “A real job? So the paychecks issued to me are fictional? The taxes I pay don’t go to the state? I work my butt off in this store 35-40 hours a week, I support a family of four on this non-existent job!
Crusty Guard: “It’s not a real fucking job if you only make minimum wage.”
Me: “Everyone in this store makes more than minimum wage.( Which is oddly true, everyone starts out at $7.50) Not that it’s any of your business but I make $9.50 an hour.”
Crusty Guard:” You’re a rude liar, and I don’t have to take this shit from a welfare bitch.”
Me:” You’re right, you can take your purchase and leave the premises, and if you ever talk to me or any other co-worker that way again I will ban you from the store.”
Crusty Guard:” You can’t ban me you’re a fucking cashier!”
Me: “Right now I’m cashiering on this shift because the store needed it covered, but most day I lead this store on the second shift. If I ban you, trust me you’re banned.”
Crusty Guard: ”I’m gonna fucking call your fucking manager you rude bitch, and when she hears about this she’s going to fire your stupid ass!”
Me: ”Ma’am I fully encourage you to call my boss, tell her I did my job and properly I.D.’ed you, and that you caused a big scene, was using obscene and abusive language on one of her employees and did not leave when asked to, that’ll guarantee you a ban from the store.”
Crusty Guard:” Your fucking manager is going to fire you. You fucking stupid bitch.” And she heads for the door.
Me(In the most sickenly sweet voice): Have a wonderful evening and thank you for choosing our store.” I thought her damn eyes were going to pop out of her head.
The next customer in line’s first words were: “What a fucking bitch.”
The next morning when the store manager came in I told her everything that happened, she personally guaranteed me that if the Crusty Guard ever spoke to me again like that not only would she ban her, but she would call over to the prison the Crusty Guard works at and complain to her supervisor.(This was the best of the four managers we had during my stint in retail.)
--Chi

I used to get work IDs when I asked people for an ID along with their credit card. I also had people try to use library cards--which don't even have a picture on them. It's like... really? And when you're buying alcohol? I doubt her work ID has her date of birth on it--which is what you NEED to prove her age for the transaction. Kind of scary that someone that dumb is in charge of convicts.
Posted by: Legal Minion | Friday, February 08, 2013 at 08:43 AM
It's not a stupidity thing, it's a superiority thing. She thinks it makes her superior, so she does it.
Posted by: Blackout | Friday, February 08, 2013 at 09:43 AM
She is a total bitch but likely doesnt know how to turn off guard mode. I am glad to see you standing up for yourself.
If you wanna go a step further talk to your manager and send recordings of her actions to her boss assuming your store has audio.
Posted by: Kel | Friday, February 08, 2013 at 12:34 PM
Sounds to me like somebody thinks that outside of the jail she still has the power to be a mega bitch. She obviously let the power she has as a prison guard go to her empty head.
Posted by: NC Tony | Friday, February 08, 2013 at 01:44 PM
What is it about "It is a law that we have to ID customers who are purchasing alcohol" [which it is -- if a store doesn't ID customers and sells alcohol to someone who is underage, lots of bad things happen] that the idiots we have who invade our stores don't understand?
Posted by: The Last Archimedean | Friday, February 08, 2013 at 03:04 PM
Incidentally, what about federal ID cards? I've got one - a TWIC - and generally federal law overrides state law.
--AT
Posted by: AmigaTech | Friday, February 08, 2013 at 06:53 PM
(Most of the fun stuff on that card is hidden in a microchip. Actually printed on it is my picture (at the time w/o beard), my name (with middle initial) and the expiration date. Nothing else. No address, no serial number, no birthdate...)
--AT
Posted by: AmigaTech | Friday, February 08, 2013 at 06:55 PM
With no Date of Birth, it is insufficient as proof of age regardless of who issued it.
Posted by: Zyffyr | Saturday, February 09, 2013 at 01:40 AM
I like how she keeps using the word 'rude' while being extremely rude.
Posted by: S | Saturday, February 09, 2013 at 11:19 AM
I don't think she's like that because she's a guard, I think she's a guard because she's like that and it gives her a power trip to lord over other people.
Posted by: Chi | Saturday, February 09, 2013 at 07:36 PM
Ah, there's a screw who really deserves to be on the other side of the bars, and probably will be one day... you should have told her to "screw off"! (Thanks folks, I'm here all week...)
Posted by: Dave-ros | Sunday, February 10, 2013 at 02:53 AM
This pisses me off beyond belief! I have a stinkin' degree that means squat in this troubled economy and I work in retail to pay the bills. It's honest, goddamn work. I hate people who use their careers to frown upon hard workin' folk like us to make us feel inferior about it. There is nothing wrong with what we do. It's put food on the table and we pay our taxes. Enough said.
That security guard needs to know for once what it's like to financially struggle and then she has mouth to say something. Other than that, she needs to keep her high falutting' mouth shut or let her ass get shanked by the prisoners!
Posted by: Queer Geek | Sunday, February 10, 2013 at 08:36 AM
Yeah that's sadly not an uncommon attitude in law enforcement people.
Posted by: Skittles | Tuesday, February 12, 2013 at 03:11 AM
Wow, really?
After I got my master's degree, I worked for a year in retail while job-hunting.
It was knowing that, in most cases, I was better educated and heading for a job I would love (which I now have, and I do love) that kept me tickled instead of ticked.
Posted by: delislice | Wednesday, February 13, 2013 at 12:52 PM