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You Think Your Job Sucks? Then Take A Look At These 40 Employee Conversations With Clients From Hell (New Pics)
Everyone who has worked in retail knows that for every good customer, you get 2 horrible ones pulling up in the parking lot. It's a law. Like gravity.
But some people are so rude, so annoying, and so malicious, it's like they're on a quest to make as many workers miserable as possible. And sometimes they succeed.
When someone like that ruins your day, there's only one thing you can do. Vent online. I mean, you can't punch the jerk or anything—you're still in uniform. Pull off a stunt that damages the reputation of the company you're working for and you're out the door.
Bored Panda has compiled a list of these stories to show you that people in retail really deserve our respect; they go through these situations every day. For more similar experiences, check out our older pieces here and here.
This post may include affiliate links.
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#2
In our piece on some of the most ridiculous customer demands ever, we mentioned one study that's relevant here as well.
Turns out, people treat retail workers worse when they're looking for bargains than if they were less price-conscious. The University of British Columbia (UBC) Sauder School of Business paper, which was published in the Journal of Consumer Psychology in 2017, looked at several factors to determine how customers treated employees.
One variable researchers analyzed was the words customers used when speaking to customer service workers.
"When shoppers focus only on paying the lowest price, they become less attuned to understanding the human needs of others, or even recognizing them," Johannes Boegershausen, a UBC Sauder Ph.D. student who co-authored the study, said in a press release.
#4
Sum Guy 4 years ago
I would use that even if my father didn't die... you got served and I wasn't rude to you... smiling is nice, but you can't expect someone to be smiling the whole day
pusheen buttercup 4 years ago
Unfortunately. I have smiled the whole day. My face literally hurt. Certainly would not expect people to be held to that standard. What's worse is people want you to smile AND be genuine. My feet hurt and I've been here for hours getting yelled at by idiots. And you want a genuine smile? We're all doing our best, don't judge people!
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Truth Monster 4 years ago
If you want the baristas to smile, smile and be kind. Maybe they won't reciprocate the smile, but maybe you will be a small ray of sunshine in their day.
CatWoman312 4 years ago
They get paid $7 an hour why would they want to smile for that? People are so entitled
troufaki13 4 years ago
This is exactly why we should be kind to people regardless whether they're nice to us. You never know the problems they have and maybe our kindness and smile can make a huge difference.
Jade Lynn - Panda's Brat 4 years ago
I have worked at a coffee shop before. People who expect those employees to smile all day are living in some fantasy world. Maybe if you're nice to them they might smile, but if they don't you take your coffee and leave.
Casey McAlister 4 years ago
I don't understand this obsession with smiles in the service sector. Why do you need a stranger who pours you coffee to smile in the process? What the f**k is there to smile about?
Donkey boi 4 years ago
Knowing how hard my wife works (in retail), and knowing what they have to put up with, I would never judge someone for not smiling in any job role!
Oskar vanZandt 4 years ago
Good thing we're all wearing masks in the UK atm: no need for forced smiles. I expect someone serving me to be professional and attentive: they don't owe me a smile.
Fieke Engelen 4 years ago
Hey! I never realised that! Can we keep it going after the whole business is over and done with? I guess not
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Red Ruffensor 4 years ago
The customers who tell you to smile are usually the ones you don't want to smile at.
Christian Bradshaw 4 years ago
Let's hope that keeps her up at night for the next few years =)
Bender Bending Rodríguez 4 years ago
Doubt it. Too much entitlement, guilt won't carry over from one café to another in 5 mins.
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Nadine Bamberger 4 years ago
I guess it's a cultural difference thing, but this fake costume smile gives me the creeps. I often find that when when I'm being polite throughout the interaction and thank with a smile I get an honest smile back.
Jane Alexander 4 years ago
Fake smile is a grimace, a grimace is ugly! A real smile has purpose and value.
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K Witmer 4 years ago
I was bartending on the day 9/11 happened. Men kept telling me to smile. Two in particular got on my nerves so I made their drinks w only the rail liquor and only put it in their straw. It made them order doubles and I charged them for it all and every single thing they asked for. I shamed one when he didn't leave a big enough tip on such a sad day too. He threw 50$ at me and tried to complain to the owner. The owner put his hand up and blocked his face. I smiled at him as he walked out the door.
Evan Martin 4 years ago
"When he didn't leave a big enough tip on such a sad day" so people died, families are crushed and changed forever...but self-centered @K Witmer needs a bigger tip. How does an incredibly sad day have anything to do with your tip in the slightest. You my friend are the poster child for entitlement
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Sugar Cargill 4 years ago
I have been told to “smile” so many times. One time someone I loved had just died. I started crying and ran into the bathroom. For some reason I got in trouble with the boss.
Lana Jig-maker 4 years ago
I don't mention not smiling, because my face is naturally ...sad resting face lol. But if I heard that, I would give the barista at least a $20 tip. yo, f**k a smile. And why would they put them on a shift dealing with people? They showed up to work, cool, but at least put them on the duties that don't require too much customer interaction.
deanna woods 4 years ago
I think some people expect too much from service workers. I am selling you coffee, not endless joy. If you want endless joy watch a Disney movie.
Iva Kazalova 4 years ago
No one working in the service industry OWES you a smile! What a douchebag!
third molar 4 years ago
I thought smiling is earned. You smile first and be nice. Its easy to earn a smile.
Lu 4 years ago
Can someone tell me why she’s even working the day after? We should glare at corporate greed as well.
FRC Pilot 4 years ago
Everyone deals with loss differently and maybe she doesn't have the means to stop working.
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Nikki Sevven 4 years ago
Remember that everyone has something difficult going on in life. Be kind.
AzKhaleesi 4 years ago
Why oh why would you be working the day after your dad died. And please spare me the whole "maybe she needs money thing" I get that I do. I even get maybe getting fired if you miss a day, but here's the thing, if / when my dad dies I will NOT be at work the next day and if you fire me for it, well I'll be job hunting with a smile knowing you will be burning in hell for that one day. Family is ALWAYS first. Oh and to anyone saying "maybe she wasn't that close to her dad" well if she wasn't then I doubt she would've started crying then and there. And regardless of the situation..... stay home if your parentals pass away my lord.
Debrina Blackmoon 4 years ago (edited)
Maybe she ACTUALLY NEEDS the money! You know-bills, food, etc. This is not selfish and I can see her family understanding, I hope. Not everyone has it so easy, so get the fuckk over it.
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Researchers also analyzed customers' feelings towards the employees by showing them pictures of a flight attendant in the Ryanair (bargain) uniform, the Lufthansa (luxury) uniform, and a neutral uniform. Customers viewed the Lufthansa and neutral flight attendants as equally human, but they saw the Ryanair flight attendant in a poorer light.
"We simply varied the brand, and found that people ascribed lower capabilities for experiencing emotions and feelings to the Ryanair flight attendant," Boegershausen explained, adding that this subtle dehumanization can take many forms and is not necessarily intentional.
#6
#8
Another experiment had participants communicating in a live chat with a rude customer service representative. They were then offered the chance to punish the employee through a complaint. The researchers found participants were 18 percent more likely to give a rating that would lead to disciplinary actions against the employee when shoppers were adopting a price-conscious mentality than when they were not.
The researchers say the findings could help owners and management of discount stores, as the problem could affect their employee retention—previous research has shown that employees who experience rude and inconsiderate customer behaviors report higher levels of emotional exhaustion, job dissatisfaction, and burnout.
Judging from these posts, retail employees deal with a lot of dumb stuff. At least they're strong enough to laugh from their misery.
#12
pusheen buttercup 4 years ago
Ohhhh I've been there. I really have. There is genetic variation within every race... You can't say "you're not caucasian, because your nose is too big". I don't appreciate idiots who think they know your race better than you
#16
pusheen buttercup 4 years ago
It's so sad... Even if you don't like lgbt, you could at least be civil enough. Surely there is some area between best buddies and worst enemies. I know this because I met people who believe i am going to hell, but they're still my friends :)
#23
Arctic Fox Lover 4 years ago
Wait, I'm confused... She wants this employee to mix two different paint colors so she can paint stripes with the two colors individually, but she asked that they get mixed so she doesn't have to pay for two separate gallons? But she thinks that somehow the two colors will still be individual? Am I getting this right??
#24
Blakkur Sverrir 4 years ago
Wait...they BUY (as in "pay for") books in order to burn them? I see great profit opportunities here
#25
#28
#31
Lunar Bicycle 4 years ago
When I worked in a garden center, a really friendly customer laughed and told me he had just embarrassed himself at another garden center by asking employees there, “Do you have chlamydia?” He said they just stared at him for a moment, so he followed up with, “Do you know where I can find chlamydia?” He then realized that he meant to say “clematis” and immediately turned around and left. I helped him find our clematis, and, as he was leaving, said, “At least you didn’t say you were having trouble finding the clitoris!”
#35
WilvanderHeijden 4 years ago
Ok, we'll rename this fee to education-fee and raise it by 50%. The lesson you've learned is that you don't pretend to be rich when you haven't got a dime to spare.
#41
#43
Steve Barnett 4 years ago
I'll try that with HMRC (UK's equivalent to the IRS). They’re sure to see the funny side.
#46
Darky_Shadows 4 years ago
Surely that’ll pass no way he could go broke Definitely going to pay you back Yep. 9th times the charm!
#49
WilvanderHeijden 4 years ago
Ooooh, so you can't handle things on your own. Need to the help from your solicitor, do you? Well, I have a solicitor too and she's better than yours.... See you in court!!!
#50
littlesaresare 4 years ago
And then the blood clapped. And then the OP gets given a nobel peace prize.
#55
Steve Barnett 4 years ago
Oh, and peacock feathers, but not too many; i don't want them to exceed the number of cherubs.
#56
Not Proud British 4 years ago
To be fair, the customer gets my vote with this one. I am tired of going into a certain stationery shop here in the UK to buy a newspaper, maybe you know, other bits of stationery and have the cashier ask me if I want to buy 2 massive bars of chocolate for a reduced price. I saw the bars, I had to walk past them in order to get to the till. If I had wanted them I would have picked them up. So please do not push us to buy what we did not come in to buy.
#60
Roxy Eastland 4 years ago
Perhaps you need to start stating up front that locked PDFs will be sent straight back as you can't work with them, and start doing that?
#65
Steve Barnett 4 years ago
Sorry, but the initial question by the client seemed like a reasonable request? And the reply comes across as patronizing. Am I missing something?
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What do you think ?
Neale Coleman 4 years ago
Are any of these real? What is the point of this thread? (I've only read the first few so far...)
JessG 4 years ago
Me too, I had to stop because it's difficult to believe these are real, however, when you think about it, people can be pretty stupid, so who knows? (I read about four, and yeah, they just get worse and even more difficult to believe that some people are THAT stupid)
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Noemie Houtekie-N'Da 4 years ago
Customers can suck. My mother received a call from an African American lady, a person she made a cake for. The cake was said to be cut on a Saturday. She received the cake on a Friday. She called again to say the cake was uncooked and that's why they wanted her to keep it in the fridge, now she wants a refund. What actually happened was she ate a slice of the cake. It was totally fine, and then she took a 4 day trip to Vegas without putting it in the fridge as suggested. Since the cake contains butter, when she came back, the cake was collapsing. My mom tried to tell her this, The lady called my mother a fraud and that the "real" restaurant was owned by a white man.
WaterLily Pond 4 years ago
Jeez some people are like Neanderthals when it comes to common sense. I was like 😵🤦♀️ the whole time reading this. 9_9
Ramona Rhein 4 years ago
I can handle naively dumb. I qualify there frequently. But mean, self righteous and stupid? We had a president like that. He’s gone. Let’s keep the likes of him under a large Boulder please.
Shannon Donnelly 4 years ago
I work in customer service - these are not fake. I had a man two days ago demand a refund and repurchase using "mall gift cards" tell me I could do it while he was outside my store during a lockdown. He didn't understand that I can't use my register for any reason. My registers are closed: I am a fulfilment centre only: as his order clearly states.
Rai Grant 4 years ago
I know, I read a few then stopped cos I already read these on their website. And yes, to those saying they're a bit unbelievable, sorry to say customers really can be that entitled, which is why they started this vent site in the first place!
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Glenda Pliler 4 years ago
It's natural for us to ridicule and scoff at those who do stupid things. But, friends, those people are still human. The more intelligent we are, the more responsibility we have to understand that those who are less intelligent need help, support, and patience, not ridicule. Just because "everyone" laughs at these, doesn't make it right to do so. Bored Panda, I love you but you make fun of people all too often, and that is not only cruel, it sets poor standards for readers.
Ayia Grace 4 years ago
Not a client but a vivid memory of me and my brother. I asked him to help clean up before our mo got home and he said no. I offered him a piece of gum if he did help clean up he agrees. We clean up and I have music on, I toss a book into the hallway asking him to put it away. No response, I look up. He's not there, he sitting in his room with his laptop. I ask him why he isn't cleaning, he says, "Yeah I did." We go back and forth, I never gave him gum and mom was on my side saying he had to clean up till it was all clean and THEN he would get gum.
Random Anon 4 years ago
It's entertaining yes but I sincerely hope most of these are made-up. I would lose too much faith in humanity otherwise.
Gage Franke 4 years ago (edited)
Fair point. I am glad that these are probably fake.
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birdie asf 4 years ago
Some of these give me headaches, some of these are obviously fake, and some of these make the customer seem like an idiot when in reality they really aren't.
Neale Coleman 4 years ago
Are any of these real? What is the point of this thread? (I've only read the first few so far...)
JessG 4 years ago
Me too, I had to stop because it's difficult to believe these are real, however, when you think about it, people can be pretty stupid, so who knows? (I read about four, and yeah, they just get worse and even more difficult to believe that some people are THAT stupid)
Load More Replies... Noemie Houtekie-N'Da 4 years ago
Customers can suck. My mother received a call from an African American lady, a person she made a cake for. The cake was said to be cut on a Saturday. She received the cake on a Friday. She called again to say the cake was uncooked and that's why they wanted her to keep it in the fridge, now she wants a refund. What actually happened was she ate a slice of the cake. It was totally fine, and then she took a 4 day trip to Vegas without putting it in the fridge as suggested. Since the cake contains butter, when she came back, the cake was collapsing. My mom tried to tell her this, The lady called my mother a fraud and that the "real" restaurant was owned by a white man.
WaterLily Pond 4 years ago
Jeez some people are like Neanderthals when it comes to common sense. I was like 😵🤦♀️ the whole time reading this. 9_9
Ramona Rhein 4 years ago
I can handle naively dumb. I qualify there frequently. But mean, self righteous and stupid? We had a president like that. He’s gone. Let’s keep the likes of him under a large Boulder please.
Shannon Donnelly 4 years ago
I work in customer service - these are not fake. I had a man two days ago demand a refund and repurchase using "mall gift cards" tell me I could do it while he was outside my store during a lockdown. He didn't understand that I can't use my register for any reason. My registers are closed: I am a fulfilment centre only: as his order clearly states.
Rai Grant 4 years ago
I know, I read a few then stopped cos I already read these on their website. And yes, to those saying they're a bit unbelievable, sorry to say customers really can be that entitled, which is why they started this vent site in the first place!
Load More Replies... Glenda Pliler 4 years ago
It's natural for us to ridicule and scoff at those who do stupid things. But, friends, those people are still human. The more intelligent we are, the more responsibility we have to understand that those who are less intelligent need help, support, and patience, not ridicule. Just because "everyone" laughs at these, doesn't make it right to do so. Bored Panda, I love you but you make fun of people all too often, and that is not only cruel, it sets poor standards for readers.
Ayia Grace 4 years ago
Not a client but a vivid memory of me and my brother. I asked him to help clean up before our mo got home and he said no. I offered him a piece of gum if he did help clean up he agrees. We clean up and I have music on, I toss a book into the hallway asking him to put it away. No response, I look up. He's not there, he sitting in his room with his laptop. I ask him why he isn't cleaning, he says, "Yeah I did." We go back and forth, I never gave him gum and mom was on my side saying he had to clean up till it was all clean and THEN he would get gum.
Random Anon 4 years ago
It's entertaining yes but I sincerely hope most of these are made-up. I would lose too much faith in humanity otherwise.
Gage Franke 4 years ago (edited)
Fair point. I am glad that these are probably fake.
Load More Replies... birdie asf 4 years ago
Some of these give me headaches, some of these are obviously fake, and some of these make the customer seem like an idiot when in reality they really aren't.
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