"We pay your wages!"

[bara]

The way I look at it is that SCs generally cost the company more money than they spend. So generally, no they dont pay my wages. In fact they are a cause for concern.

[linguist]

Every dollar adds up, though.

Like I say, I hate when they use it as an excuse to act like an entitled dick, but to say they don't pay your wages is flawed, because technically, they do.

every dollar adds up, but any single customer has next to zero effect on my paycheck. doing the math, my weekly pay comes out to somewhere around .0002% of my store's total weekly sales. so any given customer is contributing only a fraction of a penny to my paycheck, unless they're making an extremely large purchase, which is very rare. then they act as if they are solely responsible for my living, which is entirely untrue.

[Racket_Man]

Actually the customers DO directly pay about half of my wages. I am a pizza deliver driver and yes half of my income (because of a 25% pay cut AND the fact that I am paid well belove minimum wage) does come directly from my customers (not all since a certain percentage will be serial stiffers or lowball tippers)

Think of all of the waitstaff/servers/hair dressers/etc. that do rely HEAVILY on tips (meaning that 80-90% of their income IS tips).

now add in the fact that most of the above workers get NO raises, little benefits (such as insurance or vacation time), parades of SCs and EWs, etc they are getting screwed from both sides.

However this does NOT mean I am going to get ordered around by some random customer.

[Lace Neil Singer]

every dollar adds up, but any single customer has next to zero effect on my paycheck. doing the math, my weekly pay comes out to somewhere around .0002% of my store's total weekly sales. so any given customer is contributing only a fraction of a penny to my paycheck, unless they're making an extremely large purchase, which is very rare. then they act as if they are solely responsible for my living, which is entirely untrue.

It would be more accurate to say that they're paying the wages of the store owner and top brass, than the wages of the cashiers.

[Peppergirl]

Like I said, technically I, thru my taxes, pay the wages of the police, but that doesn't give me the right to act like an arsehole. I've never had a decent customer use that line, it's always been an SC, which why I hate hearing it.

I think you hit the nail on the head with this last sentence. Sure, customers technically do contribute to my wages because without them I'd be out of a job, but I've never, ever heard someone utter these words that wasn't a raging douchenozzle.

Therefore, I'm inclined to say 'YOU actually don't (pay said wages), because you're wasting time, rendering this conversation unprofitable, and further keeping me from helping decent, profitable customers."

We have a certain set of internet customers who we make only $8.00 per ticket on. Most of them are...um....somewhat less-than-intelligent. They also would tend to, if we allowed them, take up the most of our time by asking pointless, mind-numbing questions. Trust me when I tell you that these customers are dispatched in short-order and with the minimum required effort. It simply doesn't make good business sense to dick around with them while our big, money-making customers are sitting on hold. Sure, I'd imagine that sounds cold and heartless, but it's necessary in order for our department to remain profitable.

Coincidentally (NOT), the customers who utter some variation the bullshit term that Lace has spoken of are generally the $8.00 customers...at least 90 percent of the time.

[Boozy]

I think you hit the nail on the head with this last sentence. Sure, customers technically do contribute to my wages because without them I'd be out of a job, but I've never, ever heard someone utter these words that wasn't a raging douchenozzle.

Me neither.

Just the phrase "I pay your wages" gets my back up. No reasonable customer has ever said that. It's always an asshole who thinks they own you.

The money a customer spends at my store buys them the product, and to some extent, quick and friendly service. It does not buy them the right to treat the staff as their personal slaves.

[Lace Neil Singer]

Exactly; if you want someone to be at your beck and call, then hire a servant. However, that servant is not me.

[Peppergirl]

Exactly; if you want someone to be at your beck and call, then hire a servant. However, that servant is not me.

Or hell, even just act like a decent human being.

Of course I'd never be anyone's servant, but customers who treat me well get very, very good service out of me. Too bad the douchebags of the world (like you referred to) don't understand that and never will.

[Lace Neil Singer]

Oh god yes. If a customer is polite and civil towards me, then they will get the very best service I can offer them. However, if a customer acts like a cunt, then they will get minimal. It's like when I hear people moaning that they get poor service whereever they go; they ought to realise that the reason why they do is cuz they treat all retail people like dirt. You get what you give out.