np Work in Walmart Hell

[Otto]

What It's Like to Work in Walmart Hell

by John Olympic, AlterNet, October 29, 2010
(...)
But one of the worst parts of my job is the one that makes it all
possible: the customers, which brings me back to the Avoid the
Customer game.

I didn't always play this game. When first hired, I followed founder
Sam Walton's 10-foot rule: Whenever a customer wandered near me, I
smiled, greeted them, and asked if there was anything I could do to
help.

But that was before the guy who was looking for blenders in the garden
section. Or the woman who left her half-finished generic soda sitting
in the toy section. Or the guy who shoved another customer's kid out
of the way to pull a pillow off the rack. Or the guy who was pissed --
pissed! -- that the coffee filters were stocked next to the coffee
machines. Or the woman who, after almost plowing me over with her
shopping cart, laughed, "You can't hit the help."

Avoid the Customer mostly involves walking the least-trafficked routes
through the store. When heading out to lunch, I take the path of least
annoyance: through furniture, automotive and sporting goods. (No
surprise on that one; many customers have at least one X on their
clothing tags, due partly to the aisles and aisles of processed,
low-nutrient junk food we gladly sell them.)

Next week, though, I'm adding a new trick: When asked for help, I'll
respond, "No hablo inglés."
(...)

http://www.alternet.org/story/148640/what_it%27s_like_to_work_in_walmart_hell?page=entire


Good article, explains a lot...  ;)