After working in fine dining for two years, I would say I have a pretty good idea of what customer service looks like, and how employees should be treated in the work place.
My very first day was Orientation day, which was held on a Sunday. I was there from 10 am to 6 pm watching videos for my "training." First off, watching videos with fake customers, and fake scenarios, is hardly the way to get Even an inkling of how retail works. Get this: I wasn't allowed a break to sit down and refuel my energy. Standing on your feet for 8 hours straight, with no rest is insanity. As I previously stated, I worked in fine dining, so I know how stand on my feet for long periods of time, but, even then, I was allowed my 30 minute break every five hours.
My official first day, I was out on the sales floor. Greeting customers (who didn't even want me to acknowledge them in the first place.), arranging shelves to make sure they were at the standard height the corporation asked for, and working the register. And of course, learning how to work a register through videos.... It's no wonder I couldn't do anything without assistance. I was slow, and we were very busy. The customers were more understanding than my team was.
Near the end of my shift, they had not gone to the bank yet for change. My husband had dropped me off, so I had no car. Which, I made my team aware of. It was 93 degrees outside, and they asked me to walk to the closest bank I knew of. And the closest bank that pulled up on my phone was 0.3 miles away. By the time I walked there in the blistering heat, they were closed. As I was walking back, ready to pass out from heat exhaustion, my management called and asked where I went, and why it was taking so long for me to WALK BACK to the store. I made her aware that I went to the closest bank my phone found and that they were closed. She proceeded to yell at me because the store was busy, and I should have asked where to go. When she's the one who told me to walk to the closest one in the first place. She didn't even know what bank I could have gone to! When I got back to the store, I handed her the pouch of money, and apologized. She snatched it out of my hand and said "thanks". Then, five minutes later, another employee said "it's 5:31, you were supposed to clock out at 5:30." All the employees were mad at me for something THEY asked me to do. Sufficient to say, I walked out the door very offended.
This happened on my first day, I can't even imagine what would have happened if I went back.
