Why do some people feel bad when a minimum wage worker doesn't "respect" them?

[TwixVoy]

Just for shits and giggles I was reading comments on a consumer comment web site for the past hour.

I looked up comments from people who had shopped at Macys and Nordstroms in particular.

Half the damn comments were about how angry they were with the customer service people that they didn't "respect" them.

For example, one comment was from a person who apparently was dressed up and wasn't "looked at respectfully" based on how she was dressed. Whatever the hell that means.

Then one comment said "I make over $100,000 and they made me wait at the counter!"

Some of the classic ones were along the lines of "I have XX credit limit on my card and they didn't treat me as respectfully as they should have".

Tons of comments were personal insults about how "stupid" or "lazy" the employees were.

I mean jesus christ. Is this how shallow people who shop at these places are? Who the hell is so insecure that if a CSR (who they no doubt find beneath them) doesn't treat them like a king they feel the need to go complain about it?

I worked at a less "upscale" retailer so I rarely had to deal with jack asses like this.... I remember when I first got promoted in to a management position our store manager told me "Remember you have the title, but you have to earn the respect of the people you supervise"... and that is true in most situations. I wonder how many of these upscale people act in a way that is deserving of respect and yet are pissed when no one respects them because they have a bunch of cash. I suppose it must be hell to compromise your self to get in to the catagory of being "rich" only to find out having cash doesn't make you worthy of respect.

[MUAD_DIB]

1. People are generally morons: customer or MW worker...

[patrice]

2. Odd how few people get "You reap what you sow." And their definition of respect quite possibly

is above and beyond decent manners and an appropriate attitude.

[leftstreet]

3. Because the PRIZE for keeping up a Middle Class appearance is RESPECT!

There's a reason the capitalist zombie culture insists that impoverished people be treated like shit.

These same braindead upscale wannabes would happily bow and genuflect over the uber rich.

It's sick.

[tularetom]

4. Incompetence is rampant but sure as hell not limited to minimum wage workers

I had some work done for me recently by a so called professional, and the work product was the most useless pile of crap I have ever seen. In fact it contains so many errors of fact and mistakes of judgment that it is worse than useless.

I'm in the process of filing a complaint with the state agency that regulates this "profession" but they don't seem to have anymore on the ball than the "professional" did. And they have informed me that I will still have to take the professional to small claims court to recover the fee I paid for this pile of shit.

Not exempting low wage workers from being incompetent either. Recently I went to a fast food restaurant and bought two cheeseburgers. When I got home and unwrapped them they contained no cheese. I said screw it but my wife called the place and complained. They told her to come in and they would give me two cheeseburgers. It's thirty friggin miles so what are the chances of that.

Nobody gives a shit about work quality or customer service.

[alcibiades_mystery]

20. Incompetence by design, mostly

Nobody gives a shit because everybody knows the system rapes them daily. Why should I care about your stupid cheeseburger?

[tularetom]

21. As far as the fast food kids you are probably right. They're kids.

When my wife called they probably thought "you are lucky we didn't pee in the french fries lady".

But I have to be a bit more critical of somebody whose work reflects their education experience and training and who commands a sizeable fee on that basis.

[annabanana]

5. It's that "kiss up, kick down" authoritarian personality..

It's a scourge on the Earth. It is structured on fear, ignorance & jealousy.

[Mojorabbit]

25. I really don't think so

I am old enough to remember when companies had the customer is always right type of policy. When you could actually get polite help when you asked a question at the store. When I was a nurse I was sweet as sugar to some really nasty people, it was part of the job. It was good company policy and is social policy. I loved living in Japan years ago as it is a way of life to be polite and I guess one has to be so in a country with so many people living in close proximity. Nothing wrong with politeness. Nothing wrong with good customer service either.

[juno jones]

6. Respect is earned.

Amazing how little actual class money can buy.

You may come off as demanding respect on account of your money, but in the end, all the busboys are hiding behind the ice machine giggling at your ass.

[Cresent City Kid]

8. Not only earned, but a two-way street

The consumers mentioned confuse respect with deference. They expect their idea of being superior to the worker to be acknowledged by the worker as soon as they walk in. When the workers are apathetic or hostile, their perceived superiority is not reinforced, and they can't handle it.

The only repsect I expect at a place of business is basic human respect, like don't harm me by serving me food with unwashed hands. I couldn't care less that you don't display class-based submisiveness.

[elocs]

9. Personally, I have to call bullshit on that.

I was taught to respect people and it needn't be earned and it has nothing to do with how much money they have or have not. I have never withheld respect because it was not earned. Respect should be freely given and not demanded. I have found that those I treat me with respect show me respect. For those that don't, that's their problem and I do not feel I need to change what I consider to be the proper behavior. Just because they are small does not mean I need to be.

[imdjh]

13. I'll second that. I worked at Bloomingdales for a short period of time

Rule #1 was : Do not judge the customer's ability to buy. Treat everyone like a Rockefeller, shopping-bag lady to Louis Vuitton bag lady.

[elocs]

16. It costs me nothing to treat others well

and it is a delight to treat others with respect and dignity who may not be used to being treated that way. It's nice to let those who feel little be tall. It does not diminish me in the least.

[imdjh]

24. it feels good, doesn't it?

I don't know if you have ever waited tables, I haven't done it in many years. But when I did, I would occasionally have a customer who was clearly out of his or her element- someone who wasn't used to being served (or spending a lot of money). There were so many ways to make them feel special, to gently help them through an uncomfortable situation and it didn't matter if you got a tip or not.

[elocs]

26. I've worked jobs where I would get tips and would treat people well without expecting a good tip.

Once upon a time I worked delivering flowers and on Mother's Day I delivered some artificial tulips to an old woman. She was so ecstatically happy to get them that she went to get me a tip. Now I could tell that money was probably tight for her and I did not really need a tip from her, but when she came back and gave a dollar to me my gift to her was to accept it because it gave her the opportunity to be generous. That may be the best I've felt about a tip.

[imdjh]

28. Damn, now you've done it. I have tears in my eyes. Really.

[SmileyRose]

11. No it isn't. Repect is the default - DIS repect is earned - at least for me

But I get your point.

I was taught to respect all people simply for the fact they are living beings. If I lose respect for someone they have earned it and then some.

Now that said, we have a funny notion sometimes of what respect really is.

[Obamanaut]

15. I believe you are right. I think there is a difference between respect

and common courtesy, and folks confuse the two.

[SmileyRose]

7. Bad customer service bothers me too

I don't think ill of the customer service representative as much as I think ill of the store who failed to develop their workforce and teach basic customer service skills.

Now that said, the people on that board sound pretty shallow to me too. What they are complaining about is beyond silly.

[Kievan Rus]

10. Materialist-consumerists make me sick

I generally agree with capitalism, but consumerism/materialism is an ugly, ugly offshoot of said system; materialism is to capitalism what al-Qaeda is to Islam.

Personally, I think snobby people like that whom look down upon other people solely because their wallet isn't as big as theirs or they don't have as many frivolous material possessions as they do, are sad and utterly pathetic.

[L0oniX]

12. I find that there are plenty of the same kind of people here on DU.

[lib2DaBone]

14. I always try to be polite to min wage workers...I've been there.

... Just the other day I was trying to find out some information on a foreclosed house. (trying to find out what bank owned a certain house in our neighborhood so we could get the lawn mowed and some of the trash cleaned up... rats were starting to appear around the piles of garbage.)

I had called the Sheriffs Office and City Hall requesting help.. which proved to be a complete waste of time. They were too busy installing red light cameras and running radar traps on every corner around town... all of which is being done for our "Safety"... of course.

Anyway.. I digress. Myself and some neighbors went to the clerks office... and after waiting in line over 30 minutes, had a chance to talk to a few Clerks and ask some questions.

These County Clerks were bar none, the nastiest, most anti-human, most arrogant and lazy public servants I have ever encountered. The post office and the driver's license bureau used to bear the brunt of these complaints.. but their customer service , by comparison, looks exceptional.

One Clerk clucked and complained that I had "interrupted her phone call". (I had the nerve to ask where the property appraisers office was located). She slammed the phone and pointed at a sign on the wall.

The kicker... I learned that starting wages in this office are $12-$14 an hour with full benefits... a generous retirement package and 10 paid holidays a year. Plus sick leave and vacation. Not a fortune by any means.. but in THIS economy... I would love to have such a job.

I sympathize with minimum wage workers. No one wants to stand on their feet for 8 hours a day and perform mundane work for a crappy pay check. But to receive this type of service from our highly paid and highly rewarded government workers... SHAME SHAME on them.

[frebrd]

17. Insecure people need their egos stroked eom

[moez]

18. On the other hand....

If you're going to get paid to do a job - then DO the fucking job.

I'm guessing that someone in customer service should maybe.... uh, SERVE the customer. If they don't like that aspect of it, then maybe they can find another occupation.

[XemaSab]

19. You ever been insulted at the department store?

I went in there last year and asked the clerk (who was twice my age) where I could find a pair of jeans.

She gave me a nasty look and said "In your size? Try the shelf over there."

I was pretty pissed. Yes, I wear a larger size, but that's no reason to be rude.

[Marr]

34. There are lots of assholes in the world. Many of them are in customer service, too.

I've seen employees be incredibly disrespectful to customers. I've seen customers do the same to employees. Assholes can be found on both sides of the counter.

[Sparkly]

22. "IHMJ's"

Stinky and I are always respectful to people of all kinds, anywhere, automatically (unless they act like jerks to us -- or have obnoxious bumperstickers as in one case --in which case you can imagine Stinky's reaction).

I am polite, but he is outgoing and starts friendly little conversations which so often seem to make people happy -- in many cases people seem surprised and appreciative to be treated as human beings! However, some people are just grouchy. We say, "IHMJ" meaning "I Hate My Job." (Not that it's an excuse to act that way.)

What's really annoying are people who act as though you've interrupted their phone calls, coworker conversations, etc., and conduct an entire transaction without looking at you or speaking a word to you. Sorry, but I worked as a waitress for many years and no matter how awful the customers, I had to ACT like they were "always right." Sucks, but they paid the bills.

[stray cat]

23. Customer service implies service - ie fee for service and the fee is mandatory

[AllentownJake]

27. Worst thing you can do to a rich person is make them poor

I'd love to send some of these people to Target. They would go crazy at the concept of the line there.

[dmallind]

29. The exact same reason minimum wage workers complain when they don't get respect. NT

jj

[mdmc]

30. I always want to be treated with respect..

:shrug:

[JI7]

31. to be fair, some CSR treat people like shit because they don't look like they have money

that's why people make the comment about how much money they have. they are treated as if they shouldn't be shopping there because they "look" like they don't have the money to spend on those things.

it's different if they are complaining about things like having to wait in long lines.

[Dorian Gray]

32. Those complaints

are ridiculous because the people think that they deserve respect because of the money they have.

Having said that, customer service reps should treat every single person who walks into a store with the utmost respect and courtesy. I get pissed when I don't receive it. Not that I think I deserve anything special... I just think that everybody deserves to be treated well, and if I ran/owned a store or restaurant, I'd place high importance on treating the customers well.

[RB TexLa]

33. Same mentality of those who feel undocumented workers should have to respect

American workers and stay out. You know, that they should respect our laws and respect our standard of living and show us that respect by staying out. The people who suffer from this thinking are pretty easy to find just ask them what their three favorite words are: me, me, me.

[Berry Cool]

35. It's a two-way street. Both customers and clerks should respect each other.

Clerks--When someone comes in your store, smile, greet them, ask how you can help, but don't hover too much, lest it look as if you're suspecting they're going to steal something. Do all you can to serve that customer and help keep the store doing well and paying you. Don't gab with your coworkers and then stare at anyone who asks you for help as if they're interrupting your conversation. Make it a pleasant transaction and the customer will want to visit again. Remember, they're why you are getting a paycheck.

Customers--When you walk into a store, smile when greeted, say hi, and let the clerk know how much help you need, or don't. When you're ready to buy, interact with the clerk without a phone or earbuds glued to your ears. Make that interaction more important than interacting with someone who's not present with you physically or doing you a service. Thank the clerk for the help you received. Remember, they're a person too, no less than you, no matter what your station in life relative to theirs. Treat them like a human being, not an ATM.

And everybody--be a little patient and understanding with the other person. It will help--especially during busy times.

[SoCalDem]

36. If you train your employees to treat EVERYONE as if they were millionaires

your company will never have this "problem"..:)

Of course, if a company cuts corners, and does not HAVE enough staff to serve the customers, there will be issues of people having to wait in long lines..Enough disatisfied customers, and soon there will be no need for any employees :evilgrin:

[Toucano]

37. They don't want respect. They want their asses kissed. n-t

[noamnety]

38. They want a subservient slave class. (nt)

[JonLP24]

39. There is a disconnect

The people complaining are telling their sides but have no way of knowing what the employer went through in all the events leading up to you or them. Of course we can say they have to respect us blah, blah but we don't know how many snotty customers they dealt with, how their boss has made them do anything.

It is similar to a fight when a couple has when they get home, one spouse doesn't see or appreciate what the other spouse went through while he or she was gone and alot of the fights are due to misunderstanding.