It's silly, but I always stand in line instead of going to the self checkout. I just prefer it when someone is checking out instead of me, for some reason I'm always scared that something is going to go wrong and people may think I'm stealing or something like that. Which is crazy, I know! But I just rather someone else do it for me.
It would be better to be in self-checkout line when you have 10 items or less because it will be faster to get your stuff bagged up. I just don't like dealing with cashiers who are unfriendly or bored with their job that they take it out on the customers. Then there are the customers who have a whole cart full of things and you are stuck behind them. That is a nightmare for me.
I would have to say speaking from my experience both are a hassle to me. I have a problem with standing in long lines and even with self checkouts. My problem with long lines is the the other cashiers see that one cashier is busy and they won't help . The you get this one person who wants to talk hold up the line. My thing with self checkout they upset me when it says scan the item after you have done it then sometimes it says unathrize area . I just can't deal with either that why I use online shopping.
I'm a cashier at a retail giant and have been one for 6 years now. I really like what I do. Its the rude customers that come through that makes the day hard and at times, sour. When I shop, if I have 50 or less items, I'll go through self checkout. If I have more then 50, I'll wait in a mile long line and occupy myself in a magazine until its my turn to get checked out. I don't whine because the line is long. I know why they are long. I also know that the cashier that I'm waiting on to check me out is there doing their job. They don't want to hear all the long line complaints because they already know about them! Cashiers have no charge over scheduling nor why there line is 50 miles long.
Some cashiers are good and some are bad. Most I have dealt with have been pretty decent. But honestly I prefer the self checkout. It is a little more work on your part and sometimes I rush if there is a line because you have to bag your own groceries but other then that it is easy and convenient, and no cashier giving you a nasty face if you have a $2 coupon off the detergent. Sometimes finding the barcode on the product is annoying though.
I understand what you mean. I don't like when cashiers won't help each other either. I also don't like when there is one long line, another cashier won't open up another register in order to shorten the lines. Long lines are the worst especially when I am behind someone who has a whole basket full of things and I have a little bit of things. You would think they would let me go in front of them, but they don't. I can definitely see why you would want to do online shopping. it is much faster and way more convenient.
I know rude customers must be the worst. They get on my nerves and I am not even the cashier. I don't whine when I am in long lines either. I talk to the person I am with or do something to occupy my time. I just don't like waiting especially if I am in a hurry. I don't doubt that the cashiers do their jobs. A lot of cashiers do their jobs and are very nice. My problem is with the ones who are rude and act like they don't want to help you.
For the most part I don't have an issue with cashiers but when your picking up a few things it would be nice to just breeze through the self check out line. Although the self check out lines at Kroger can be annoying with freeze ups and I have to chase a cashier down to unfreeze it. When it works without drama then I like it, but when it acts up I find myself wishing for the regular check out line with the cashier.
I'm surprised that others on here would report such neutral or positive experiences. I am a very patient person but if there are employees who are doing nothing in-store, why not use them in the cashier when it gets busy in the front. Just because its Wal-Mart doesn't mean that there should be SOME level of services.
I prefer to stand in line and get checked out mostly because every single time I use the self checkout, something goes wrong. It never, ever fails. The self checkout hates me. It sees me coming and it breaks down. Then I have to stand there and wait for somebody from the store to come help me. And it never fails that when I have trouble at the self checkout, there is no one nearby to help. Also, I've noticed recently that the lines at the self checkouts are sometimes just as long as the lines for the cashiers, so what's the point? Anyway, this thread reminded me of Rod Man's standup routine on Last Comic Standing where he makes his feelings about self checkouts very clear, so I'll share it here: [video=youtube_share;kf56w3jZNOQ]http://youtu.be/kf56w3jZNOQ[/video]
I stand in line. I do not like self checkout. It feels like I am choosing to avoid human interaction and I feel like that's a bad thing for me to do. Also I wonder about the risk of theft going on with self checkout systems and I don't want to be part of something that may be contributing to a theft problem, even though I am honest. I just have a somewhat suspicious view of the whole thing.
All of your responses are really worth reading. I love reading about everybody's experiences in lines or self-checkout lines. It really does depend on the store I'm in if I will stand in the lines with cashiers or go to self-checkout lines. The self-checkout is more convenient, but it can get just as crowded as the other lines. Maybe more people are feeling the same way about the lines and want to do self-checkouts too.
I don't have any problems with nasty cashiers. I still prefer the self checkout line. I just enjoying doing it for myself. My two favorite stores don't have self checkout, Trader Joe's and Sprouts. I don't think I would use the self checkout at Sprouts even if they had one. I don't know how to weigh my fruits and vegetables.
Self Checkouts are usually faster so I end up waiting in line for it if I have a few items but If i have more stuff I would go to a normal line because I cant be assed to scan everything myself
I used to work for the self check out line for Walmart. The problem most costumers seemed to have was they wouldn't put the item on the bag fast enough. The bag area has a scale in it to wright the items as a security measure so the security thing would come up and I would have to clear it which made some people mad. Also if something is on sale and not in the system it will ring it up the wrong price, but the person working there can always fix that for you if you know. Self check out is faster and I use it unless I'm price matching then I go to a regular check out line.
I hate when you see people with a big order using Self Checkout. In my opinion, those should be viewed as an express line. If I've got a couple of things, I'll go to the self checkout to quickly get in and out of the store. If I've got a cart full, there's no way I'm faster than the cashier who rings people through for a living. I'll leave that up to the professional and I wish more people would too.
I am always torn between waiting in line and doing a self check out. Most of the stores I go to have super long lines and I hate to wait! I'm usually in a hurry of have limited time during the day to complete all the tasks I need to get done. It seems as though the stores never have enough cashiers working so I sometimes will go to self check out. The problem with that is it NEVER seems to be as easy as it should be. The products don't scan and I have to do it over and over which is time consuming. The other issue is when putting the items in the bag they are always saying to remove it or do something different than what I'm doing. Eventually the light goes on in the self check out I'm using and it says to wait for a cashier. Not a fun experience for the most part. I think it is really hit or miss. I just take my chances and hope it works out for the best. If the lines are too long and I've been waiting a crazy amount of time, I will usually locate a manager and bring his attention to the issue and hope he resolves it quickly.
These days, it seems like there are still a percentage of people who would rather have an actual cashier check them out, so there are often self checkout lanes open and I will run over to one of them, ring my stuff up and get out of there. Self checkouts still have some issues they need to iron out as well, since they sometimes go overboard in thinking you might be stealing something and clam up on you until a cashier comes over and checks everything. But other than that I prefer them. I'm hearing some comments on this thread though that bother me honestly. I think some of us look for these automated checkout lines as a means of speeding up the checkout process, not slowing it down. If more people start seeing these self checkout lines as a reason to take their good old time ringing their stuff up at a leisurely pace, while there is a line of 15 people waiting to checkout behind them, this could become a bigger problem. There are some people who, when they know there is a long line behind them, for whatever reason instead of being considerate of the long waits everyone behind them is facing, become really selfish and purposefully slow down. I'm thinking they should make some lanes have a strict 5 or 10 item limit - where the machine will not allow any more items to be rang up in a single order and will not allow multiple payments from same person in succession. Perhaps warn customers if a cashier has to intervene, they will have to get back in line in a lane for people larger quantities of items to check out. Actually, I heard that WalMart is testing out an even better solution, placing kiosks throughout the store with shopping bags and payment centers on them, and they can automatically detect all the items you have and total them up for you on your smart phone, from which you can pay instantly, then just toss the items into bags and walk out. If you don't pay for some items, alarms will go off when you try to exit the store.
We don't have self checkout here, but even if we did, I think I'd still prefer cashiers because I'd rather not have to do any of the work. Plus, the cashiers here aren't all that bad anyway. Maybe if the store offered some sort of reward for making me do all the work then I wouldn't mind it, but as it is I don't really mind standing in line all that much unless it is a busy day and there is a long line, which doesn't happen all that often nowadays anymore.
I have never had a bad experience with cashiers except maybe bored or snide attitudes but I understand them completely and I don't care because I only have to deal with them for the 1 minute they cash in my stuff and then I'm off. I would be a bigger inconvenience for me to check all my products by myself, in all honesty if I had to do it by myself I would go somewhere else where I know I can buy my stuff, pay for it and be on my way the next minute. I'm generally a busy person, even when I'm out shopping I'd have to be somewhere else usually and this really wouldn't suit me.
