Frankly, I avoid shopping at Walmart at all costs, but my wife, being the frugal teacher she is, will shop there when she knows it’s cheaper than elsewhere. I know, this doesn’t really fit under the general topic guidelines that I’ve set for myself on this blog, but I just have to get it off my chest. I haven’t done one of these for a long time (before I owned this domain, I think), so here’s another one:
Reason #6,539: When employees go on break, lunch, or off the clock in any manner, they are trained and instructed that they are not allowed to help customers on the floor, or they will get disciplined. This has been confirmed by the store manager at my nearest Walmart.
So, while there tonight, we needed one more product that we were purchasing from the shelf. We noticed employees leaving the back room, but they didn’t have their aprons on. I asked if they were employees, and if they could help me. They promptly told me they were one lunch and couldn’t help me, and if they did, they could get in trouble by management. I could hardly believe it too.
Not believing my ears, and after purchasing what I had already grabbed, I asked for the store manager. I told him the situation, and he confirmed what the lady had said: they are not allowed to provide customer service while off the clock. Needless to say, I was surprised, speechless and completely dumbfounded. They just keep giving me reasons to hate them.
I swear they don’t want business.
{ 21 } Comments
They probably have to stop working when on break for legal reasons. (I am not a lawyer)
1. If they are helping customers, then they are not on their labor-law mandated break. Walmart can get in trouble if they break labor laws.
2. Insurance reasons. If an employee is off-the-clock, then are they covered by the insurance policy?
I think Walmart is a great company. If enough people agreed with you then it would go out of business. Instead, their success proves that they meet the needs of the customers better than their competitors. (This does not mean they are perfect.)
Tristan-
I’ll respond here as I did in the email I sent you:
*EVERY* customer service/retail job I have ever had (Lagoon, Hollywood Video, Albertson’s, R.C. Willey, etc., I was *ALWAYS* instructed that, even when off the clock, if a customer asks for help, provide that help. This was given during employee training, and periodically throughout my employment. It’s called customer service. Walmart lacks it considerably.
I have to agree with Tristan. Because Walmart is such a target I can see employee advocacy groups sending in “Tests” to see if Walmart is “making” employees work on their unpaid breaks. By instructiung you to always help the customer they are requiring you to work unpaid time. Walmart is in a damned if you do, damned if you don’t situation.
Walmart can’t *enforce* them to work when off the clock. However, it’s not good business practice to discipline them if they do. *ALL* employees should be encouraged to provide customer service, regardless of whether they are clocked in or not. Required? No. Encouraged? Definitely.
As far as secret shoppers, the “Tests” that you called it, they should be sent in regularly. If the employee is on break, then that is the real sign of their customer service level, isn’t it? In this case, they would’ve failed miserably. Just as you truly don’t know someone until you monitor them when they are alone, you really don’t know a store’s customer service until they are monitored off the clock.
People just don’t get true customer service these days, and that’s the #1 reason I keep shopping at the stores I do. If I’m not treated right, why would I want to continue to provide them business? Price and selection aren’t enough. It’s gotta be good customer service. And Walmart is foreign to that concept.
I think that’s exactly why you and Walmart are incompatible. Walmart cares about only two things: price and selection.
As Pete said in his blog (http://www.shmula.com/324/start-with-the-customer-and-work-backwards), you have to focus on the customer. Customer-centricity is the most important part of a company!
While I don’t like Walmart any more than you do, I have to disagree with your point here.
Everyone already know that Walmart is under scrutiny by every Labor watchdog organization on the planet. They are accused of many things including poor employee treatment.
Imagine the consequences (PR, and legal) if they were caught “encouraging” their employees to work on break, or off the clock w/o pay. The backlash would be horrendous. To combat this possibility, they implemented a policy of forcing their employees *not* to work off the clock.
Also, asking their employees to work off the clock could expose them the risk of lawsuit of violating Overtime Pay federal regulations.
Yes, many companies ask their employess to work off the clock. However, these companies are exposing themselves to risk of lawsuit. This risk isn’t very high most of the time, but Walmart is a very large company with many disgruntled workers. This causes the risk to increase greatly.
Slightly reduced customer service is definitely worth the reduction of risk of lawsuit, and happier employees that don’t work off-the-clock.
Lonnie-
First off, I have never been asked to work of the clock. Every time that I have been asked to work, I have had to clock in. So, maybe encouraged was a bad word here. But, then again, maybe not.
Customers should come first. Plain and simple. So, if you are heading to your break or lunch, and a customer stops you for help, you should provide the service, even if you have to add it to your timecard later. By refusing customer service, because you are off the clock, shows bad training by the company, and shows the customer what you really think of them.
I highly disagree with this. I hate walmart too, but if the employee is on break, leave them alone! They work in a public retail establishment and if one person asks for help, they could spend their entire break (probably all of 15 mins) helping customers. Yes customers should come first, when they are being paid to help them. I have worked in a grocery store when I was a kid, and it was so annoying to just try to go to the bathroom without having 6 people ask you for help. It got to the point where I would have to put a sweatshirt over my uniform just to take a leak. Give these people a break, they deal with “um excuse me, can you help me find….” all day long. If they are on their break, leave them alone and find someone else. I think everyone should have to work retail once in their life to truely appreciate how annoying the general public really is.
Fisrt the law is that if you are not on the clock you can’t work period. Would you work for free? HELL NO well why should I or my co-workers. We to have a life and families, kids to pick up at day care on time or pay a late fee. When we go to the new uniforms I plan on bringing a shirt or jacket to cover my shirt when I am off the clock for this very reason. If you had to deal with rude demanding people all day long at the end of your shift you would run like hell out of the store too don’t judge me until you have worked my job with my pay, the best bargin isn’t on the shelf my pay check tells me it’s me.
get over it dude. have you ever worked a thankless customer service job? it’s people like you who make it such a shithole position. you really think we give a flying crap if you need help and we’re finally getting some deserved time to ourselves? go back to your high paid job and leave minimum wagers alone.
crystalfame- Thanks for commenting. You are the prime example of what I am talking about in this post. The never-ending attitude of workers who don’t give a flying crap about their job, or the ones that they are getting paid to serve. Because of your attitude towards your job, and its duties, you will never get a job better than minimum wage, and I will never shop at your place of employment. Thanks for taking the time to be an example of my post. Maybe you were the one who refused to help me?
jane- I don’t know they are on break. Do they wear signs around their neck saying “I am on break- don’t bother me.”? I didn’t think so. If they don’t have the attitude of customer service, then the company they work for is all tho worse off because of it- on break or not.
Carrie- I’m not condoning that the employer force them to work while off the clock. Rather, self empowerment and motivation to serve the customers that they are getting paid for is what I am talking about. If you don’t have the spirit of customer service, then why did you take a customer service job to begin with? Oh, and when on ‘break’, you’re still on the clock, thus, getting paid to help me. When on ‘lunch’, you are off the clock. And, whether or not you are off the clock or on it, if you don’t have what it takes to give good customer service, then get another job, because I certainly don’t want you waiting on me.
I work for barely above min. wage, I work long 9 hour shifts on my feet serving food over a hot food counter while getting told to [censored], being screamed at and being called [censored]. Frustrated people who work long days themselves come in and take out their problems on me. I work there to support my family because I can’t find a job in my neck of the woods with my college education because the job market is so crowded in my field. When I take my break, I get fifteen minutes to have my smoke, sit down and have a drink. When I’m walking without my vest on, I expect people to leave me alone so I may enjoy my time off the clock. plus, it’s illegal for me to help you while i’m punched out, then I wouldn’t be on break and if i hurt my self doing something for you, will you pay for my time off? nope, and neither will walmart. If you need help, walk up to customer service and ask for someone to help you. They will be more than happy to help you! Think about what you’d want for your self. Would you like it if you had someone bothering you when you’re tired and on break? Not really, so, leave the non vested workers alone.
Kristy- You are the exact reason why Wal-mart is such a horrible place to shop. You don’t have the faintest clue about customer service, and apparently, neither do half the people here.
Sad.
I am an employee, and I think it is a shame that we are not allowed to help customers that are in need, the way I get around this is to call an associate that is working to assist the customer, or if it is simple directions to a part of the store, or a product I tell them which way or where they can find it, Vs. actually showing them, which is what I do 9 times out of 10! To me the customer is the boss, they are what is important, not government regulations, or walmart making money, but them enjoying shopping, saving money, and recieving outstanding customer service. employee at walmart #2060 Lexington, KY
I really hate Wal-Mart in general, not because of their customer service but how the company makes a profit and leaves their employees with little money for them to support their families. Wal-Mart is the cheapest place to shop, but think about the employees there? They ain’t making a decent salary, and today… Wal-Mart is blaming their lack of profit because of the House Market.. Thats just sad for such a Corporation as themselves.
I work at Wal Mart and we are told that if we are off the clock to take off our name badges but if a customer does happen to stop and ask for assistance, we CAN help them as long as we fill out a time adjustment later so we can be paid for the time we spent with a customer. It is against company policy to work off the clock without filling out a time adjustment!! but we are told to ALWAYS help the customer and NEVER say “I’m on lunch” or “break”! oh and anthony wal mart wages are well above the average wages for that type of job. Think about it..how hard is it to stock shelves or run a cash register? It’s a non skilled job that almost anyone can do. As far as supervisor or skilled jobs(such as an optician in the vision center or pharmacy tech) the pay is pretty good! That’s like a millionaire hiring someone to mow his lawn and paying him $10,000 just because he is rich! doesn’t make much sense does it?
also I forgot to add if you are simply just on paid break and not lunch, and you help a customer, your break starts over so there is no reason for the associates at walmart not to help you exceopt they are just lazy, I will admit that alot of people that work there are not going anywhere in life and hate their job because of it. I work with these people everyday and am sure they have turned down customers asking for help but overall this does not represent the majority of associates working. Most of us are happy to help regardless of being on lunch or break.
All wal-marts are different but at the one i work for stocking is not easy we are suppose to kill ten pallets per person a night which my not sound like a lot but it is. and we are consistently being threatened that if we don’t will be fired along with a lot of lesser things and i know that its agents the law but they don’t care. there are a lot of other things that my wal-mart does that there not suppose to. Like are store manager will not help customers and is really rude to them we had a lady the day before back to school ask for some supplies and he snapped at her and told her she should not have waited until the last min. and hear i thought that customers came first and we have been told that we are stockers and not to help the customers by are co-manager but like i said all wal-marts are different and i personally have seen it. but one of the reason we are not allowed to help customers when we are off the clock is because wal-mart has been sued so many times. we are suppose to help them on are 15 min. breaks and the start the 15 min. over but each wal-marts different. the thing about time adjustment sheets is true same if you have wait a the time clock to clock in you get to fill one out for the time you had to wait for the manager which is pretty cool.
You have got to be fuckin kidding me? I do work at Wal-Mart and I bust my ass at that place everyday. Whenever a customer asks me for help I always assist them in any way I can. So when I punch out for my break I expect to sit down and relax without having to worry about everything. If a customer whined about me not helping them while im on my break I would just be furious. If a customer complained about an associate not helping them on a break that would be very ignorent and selfish, leave a guy alone when hes on his break! Ask somebody else for help!
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