Customer service jobs: in a retail-saturated society, they're something the majority of us have experienced. Young or old, most lower- and middle-class Americans have at one time worked for a fast food chain, sit-down restaurant, grocery store, clothing store, gas station, supply store, etc. However, the retail environment Generation X'ers and Y'ers are familiar with is different than the one our parents and grandparents grew up in; unions, workers' rights, Sundays and holidays off, and long-time employees have faded into past practices for many American companies. With the coming of a newer, shinier, faster-paced economy, also came came a new era of employer-employee as well as customer-employee relations. In my experience, too many of these relations have been severely negative, emotionally draining, and downright depressing for a number of reasons:
1) Condescending attitudes toward "unskilled" workers.
Because a person is getting paid to be behind a register or serving you food, that's obviously all they're capable of doing, right? Wrong. They can easily be smarter and more talented than you. Lack of funding, not being old enough, or a desire to pursue interests that don't easily make money (like, the arts, for example) could all be reasons they don't have a degree in business that got you that boring office job you hate anyway.
2) The customer is NOT always right.
Just because you are capable of going into a retail/food service environment and whining about something asinine, should NOT mean you can get anything you want. Oh, you mean you want the sale price on something you vaguely remember was on sale last week, but the sale sign is no longer there? Oh, you want a new bowl of soup because you implanted one of your own hairs in it after you ate three-fourths of it? Oh, you need someone to hold your hand and change your diaper? "NO!" is the reasonable answer. "CERTAINLY," is the corporate answer. Otherwise, the customer will go to the place next door, where the management is more easily manipulated.
3) Good customer service = being a doormat for the general public.
Customer: "I can't believe you won't accept my homemade coupons, you imbecilic, dirty, good-for-nothing cashier!"
What the cashier wants to say: "I can't believe you are idiotic enough to make your own coupons, you fat, ugly, detrimental-to-society customer!"
What the cashier actually says: "Sorry for the inconvenience. I'll ask the store manager."
In such situations, not standing up for oneself and keeping quiet is rewarded. It's essentially the prototype of an abusive relationship: the abuser [the customer] continues his/her abuse, and the abused [customer service employee] continue to take such abuse as it becomes the norm, in fear of being reprimanded [in this case, by the management.]
4) Having to tolerate sexist and creepy come-ons by strangers.
Along with tolerating abuse as a doormat, comes tolerating creeps--as a doormat. Older men are the usual culprits of such behavior, but aggressive cougars also have been known to pack a punch. Waitresses generally have it the worst, as people seem to think it's easier to act like a douche bag when there aren't any fellow employees nearby. Comments range anywhere from minorly douchey, ("Sweetie/honey/girlie, please bring me some ketchup," and "hey, what's your sign?") to majorly douchey, (Waitress: "Can I get you any dessert to go?" Douche bag: "Yes, I'd like a slice of YOU to go, baby, with a side of sugar.")
5) Being expected to act happy, no matter what.
Most management employers who have been in the business for more than two days understand that customer service jobs are not fun, but they at least want you to fake it for the sake of business. A surprising amount of customers who apparently have not worked in customer service think an employee should be happy all the time (!) Not long after my grandfather and favorite uncle died within a month of each other, I was constantly hearing from customers, "You look sad. Cheer up! Aren't you having fun?!?!" and "While aren't you smiling? Can't I get a smile from you?" (The latter, usually said by older men, is something I've never heard said to a male customer service employee. Just saying. See point #4.) These unmindful comments made me want to scream and throw things more than I already wanted to, but for the sake of the job, I kept quiet and embraced the art of subtle passive-aggressive behavior.
6) Acting too happy is also unacceptable.
Customers want to seem like they're concerned about your happiness, but only if it is directed towards them, of course. Having fun and laughing loudly with coworkers will often receive a dirty look and the comment, "It looks like you need something to do!" Because the customer service employee gets SO MUCH FULFILLMENT by helping you.
Which leads me to my next point...
7) Every customer becomes the enemy.
Eight hours a day of emotionally-draining pretending-to-be-happy becomes exhausting. It may be different for extroverts, but for introverts, making small talk and fake-smiling all day is as tiring as running a marathon. I wistfully remember a pre-customer service time in my life when I thought people were good and the world was a happy place. Of course there are a fair share of good, kind people who shop in retail stores. However, after dealing with so many shitheads, one comes to expect the worst and approach people cautiously. I might be more neurotic than some, but I've seen the same adjustments occur in so many people just starting a customer service-heavy job: the first few weeks are filled with enthusiasm and optimism. Then, they gradually get beaten down into the pit of jaded, robot-like motions.
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With this in mind, is it really a surprise that a number of retail stores have opted for self-service checkouts? Even with the increased shoplifting that occurs with such technology, many establishments still continue to use these robots. They're everything customer service clerks are trained to be: efficient, reliable, always polite, and they don't require sick days. ("Thanks for shopping with us, and have a nice day!" the screens read after payment.) I'm just waiting for the day when waiters and telemarketers also become replaced by robots. The industry makes people act like robots, so why not just get the real thing?
Footnotes
Pros about customer service jobs:
1) Intense motivation to go back to school, get a better job, get your music career off the ground, or start your own small business that practices Ethical Treatment of Human Beings.
Written by Anna Schmidt.
Photo is from this slideshow.
