Working at a supermarket is not always easy or pleasant, especially when you have to interact with hundreds of different customers every single day.

One upset deli worker at Woolies has taken to social media to talk about some of the things that customers do that make them feel 'immense rage', saying that these people make their job much harder than it already is.

Sharing in a Facebook group, the employee complained about some of their supermarket pet peeves, which are:

• customers at the deli who aren't clear about what they want
• customers who rarely point to the item they want to buy
• customers who leave handprints all over the display glass

'For my deli people, anyone else feels immense rage welling up when a customer comes up, rubs their greasy hands on your glass window display trying to think what they want?' said the staffer in their Facebook post.

A Woolies deli worker ranted about some of their customer pet peeves. Credit: Facebook/Cranbourne West Shopping Centre (left), Getty Images (right).​

'Only to look at you and say "I'd like that ham" while gesturing and or pointing to an object that isn't even ham.'

The employee didn't give their name, but explained what usually happens next with customers in these situations.

'So you try to coerce a proper answer from them, then have them stare at you with disgust that you are trying to figure out what the mysterious "that ham" could be,' the anonymous employee went on to say.

'All the while still not being helpful only for them to want the deli leg ham that you pointed at mid-way through, asking them exactly what ham they wanted. Asking because I have this happen once every hour.'

The deli worker's online rant caught the attention of many of their fellow supermarket employees, who then commented and added their own customer pet peeves to the list.

'This has summed up my daily frustrations of life in the deli, PERFECTLY', one said, with another adding, 'This happens every 5 minutes!'

Meanwhile, a third user said he's tired of hearing customers say 'that one' because, most of the time, he has no idea which 'one' they are referring to.

A fourth user agreed and said he also experienced a similar situation. 'Even better when they're standing by the bacon asking for leg ham,' he said.

More supermarket workers agreed that they find these situations annoying. Credit: Dallas Kilponen/Woolworths.​

Someone even shared a conversation they previously had with a customer, prompting a few giggles from other users in the discussion.

'How much would you like?' said the employee, to which the customer replied: 'A handful.'

After the employee grabbed a 'handful' worth of the product, the customer then said, 'That's way too much! (Sometimes, they say it's way too little)...'

So what are your thoughts, folks? Are you guilty of some of the 'pet peeves'? Or do you have more to add to their list? Let us know in the comments below!

 

[Ma-to-3]

Well, if Woolworths went back to their deli labels from a few years ago when the product name was actually big enough for the customer to read then that would eliminate one of the pet peeves !!!!

 

[Suzanne rose]

You are getting paid to HELP your customers.
I have asked clearly for an item only for the person get the wrong item, do I get mad... no and I don't get paid to be nice.
I worked in bridal...have you heard the term BRIDZILLA it is a true thing. But I got paid to do what I did so just smiled and did my job.

Poor things needing to clean the glass, what a few minutes to clean !!!!

Suck it up ..do your job which you get paid for and do it will a smile.

 

[Staffordshire Whippet]

Gee! Whatever you do, when you're at the Chicken counter, never EVER compliment the size and presentation of their Breasts....

 

[Baz1960]

Yes, the world and people are just getting more rude. Manners and politeness have all but disappeared. It's all ages. As seniors we have to really suck it up and lead by example. We have the experience... so let's use it. Hopefully, we may influence others with our actions. Let's try not to be grumpy old buggars and show our generation as supreme .

 

[Suzanne rose]

Gee! Whatever you do, when you're at the Chicken counter, never EVER compliment the size and presentation of their Breasts....

 

[Ricci]

Many years ago when I was a student I worked in the deli department to pay my way through school. We had to use any customer free time to practice picking and weighing the variety of foods available. I knew exactly how many slices of whatever it took to make up the customers order and roughly how much a given number of slices would weigh. We also sliced meats to the customers choice of thickness and cut cheese to their required weights. All this was done with a smile on our faces as we realised that without the customers we would be out of work.

 

[cjw1960]

Having worked in a Coles deli I always thoroughly enjoyed my time serving customers. Helping them out when they were undecided on which product to buy was fun and engaging. Loved it

 

[Smelly]

I remember buying some chicken breast from the deli at Woolies and the lady serving me asked if i wanted large or small breasts. We looked at each other and burst out laughing. I said I best behave or you might throw something at me. We parted with a laugh and a smile!

 

[JayKay]

My pet peeve is seeing dumped packages from the deli around the supermarket, when a customer has changed their mind about their meat of choice and gone for something else.

 

[Nina1402]

That is sad to hear. I’ve been on both sides of the counter. But have you taken into consideration that some of the customers are struggling with dementia or alzheimers onset or even social interaction disorder. Those people find it difficult to find the words they want to tell you. Also I would like to point out that when I was working on the other side of the counter I had to remember that I had no idea what the person I was serving may have been going through. So I tried to make their day a little nicer by smiling being patient and sometimes offering a suggestion. Sometimes asking how their day was going was just enough to make them smile.

 

[featherfour]

Customers need to be specific about whether they want a metric handful or an imperial handful.

But seriously, if this is causing so much stress to employees (and presumably frustration, also, to the customers) then maybe Woolies/Coles/whoever need to look at the way their delis are set up. Better labelling, as someone has suggested?

I admit to having felt frustrated with pointing at "that one, no, no, the one closer to you". But whenever I ask for a handful, they seem to get it just right

 

[Mr Benson]

I recall years ago I was at a smallgoods store and wanted some bacon. There were clearly two distinct products on display....one was better than the other. I wanted the betterone and he was trying to sell me the other. He said they were both the same....I said if they are both the same I'll have that one! (clearly the better one). This went on for a while and in the end I left without buying any!

 

[Cher]

Having worked in various customer service positions for well over 40+ years it is obvious that there is no such thing as customer service anymore these days. If this is what upsets them in a customer service role then they shouldn't be in the job. Part of their job description is to clean the glass daily if not more during the day if it is dirty. Believe it or not, you have to interact with the customers to find out what they want, sometimes they need a little help. As it was mentioned previously you have no idea what type of day the person is having or if they have a medical illness that is affecting them. It takes no effort on anyone's part to be kind, polite, and patient with customers, they appreciate this and if you're not they have a habit of letting others know.

 

[lozat54]

Working at a supermarket is not always easy or pleasant, especially when you have to interact with hundreds of different customers every single day.

One upset deli worker at Woolies has taken to social media to talk about some of the things that customers do that make them feel 'immense rage', saying that these people make their job much harder than it already is.

Sharing in a Facebook group, the employee complained about some of their supermarket pet peeves, which are:

• customers at the deli who aren't clear about what they want
• customers who rarely point to the item they want to buy
• customers who leave handprints all over the display glass

'For my deli people, anyone else feels immense rage welling up when a customer comes up, rubs their greasy hands on your glass window display trying to think what they want?' said the staffer in their Facebook post.

A Woolies deli worker ranted about some of their customer pet peeves. Credit: Facebook/Cranbourne West Shopping Centre (left), Getty Images (right).​

'Only to look at you and say "I'd like that ham" while gesturing and or pointing to an object that isn't even ham.'

The employee didn't give their name, but explained what usually happens next with customers in these situations.

'So you try to coerce a proper answer from them, then have them stare at you with disgust that you are trying to figure out what the mysterious "that ham" could be,' the anonymous employee went on to say.

'All the while still not being helpful only for them to want the deli leg ham that you pointed at mid-way through, asking them exactly what ham they wanted. Asking because I have this happen once every hour.'

The deli worker's online rant caught the attention of many of their fellow supermarket employees, who then commented and added their own customer pet peeves to the list.

'This has summed up my daily frustrations of life in the deli, PERFECTLY', one said, with another adding, 'This happens every 5 minutes!'

Meanwhile, a third user said he's tired of hearing customers say 'that one' because, most of the time, he has no idea which 'one' they are referring to.

A fourth user agreed and said he also experienced a similar situation. 'Even better when they're standing by the bacon asking for leg ham,' he said.

More supermarket workers agreed that they find these situations annoying. Credit: Dallas Kilponen/Woolworths.​

Someone even shared a conversation they previously had with a customer, prompting a few giggles from other users in the discussion.

'How much would you like?' said the employee, to which the customer replied: 'A handful.'

After the employee grabbed a 'handful' worth of the product, the customer then said, 'That's way too much! (Sometimes, they say it's way too little)...'

So what are your thoughts, folks? Are you guilty of some of the 'pet peeves'? Or do you have more to add to their list? Let us know in the comments below!

 

[thinkbeforedecide]

I bet the majority is female, not sexist but they often are not aware of anything or any inconvenience to other customers or staff. Many times I had to wait while they couldn't make up their mind or kept looking at their phone rather than having a look at the display cabinets or list of meals and decided what did they want so when their turns came they could tell the staff promptly. Very rare that I observed these behaviours in men.

 

[RTS]

I worked at Woolies deli in my school holidays and serving customers was the best part of the job. I used to make potato salad so peeled 20lb spuds every second day. Coleslaw meant thinly slicing six large cabbages on the slicing machine and it wasn't automated. Boning a side of bacon was an acquired skill with a boning knife and a string, as the bones had to be very clean of meat when they were displayed for sale. Chickens were cooked in large roasting dishes which had to be washed up.
The other person in the deli was the manager and she mostly served, leaving the other work to me.
Each customer received freshly cut meat or cheese as nothing was pre-cut.
We spent three hours on Saturday afternoon packing everything away into the cold room and cleaning the display cabinet, so we worked nine hours per day and seven on Saturdays, a fifty two hour week.
No other job since then has been as hard.

 

[WADuck]

My pet peeve is seeing dumped packages from the deli around the supermarket, when a customer has changed their mind about their meat of choice and gone for something else.

same here.

 

[Thecheesequeen]

Well, if Woolworths went back to their deli labels from a few years ago when the product name was actually big enough for the customer to read then that would eliminate one of the pet peeves !!!!

Or maybe it’s your eyesight that’s deteriorated from a few years ago!

 

[millicent haha]

Yeah Baz1960