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Welcome to Bored Panda, how may I help you? Ah, I see. So, you Pandas work in the food, retail, and services industries and started the week off dealing with some incredibly dense customers. Denser than the core of Planet Earth, you say? Well, don’t worry about it, plenty of us have been there.

In fact, our team has collected a whole bunch of examples of the dumbest things that customers have said and done, to make you feel better. Trust us, you’re not alone in this. Of course, this isn’t to say that all customers are dumb: most are polite and decent. However, a small proportion of them are nightmare material and don’t even know what chicken wings are. And here’s the proof. Grab a soul-healing cup of tea, scroll down, upvote the situations that made you laugh, and share your own retail nightmare scenarios in the comments.

Bored Panda reached out to Save the Student, a British project that advises students on how to make their money go further, about how the pandemic affected the job market and what to do if you feel like you're stuck at a job where you feel demeaned. Jake Butler from Save the Student said: "It does depend on location and other factors, but finding a job during the pandemic, specifically lockdown, has been extremely difficult for students. It's true that some businesses, such as supermarkets and delivery companies, have increased recruitment, but large student employing sectors such as retail and hospitality have really stuttered due to being closed for many months."

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TmKhr
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I too want to lemonade some important papers while I drink some laminate soda

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Jake from Save the Student added that while some retail and hospitality jobs are returning, many students are "shunning them as there are worries about job security and also working conditions." According to Jake, one of the main worries that many have is that the market is weighted towards the employers and not the employees.

"For those that feel demeaned in their current job, I would suggest it's worth studying the rights you have as an employee," Jake told Bored Panda what we can all do if we find ourselves being treated less than humanely at our workplace. "Even during the pandemic, there is no excuse for an employer to break the law at your expense. And if you feel you're being treated especially poorly I would suggest looking to switch jobs, but doing so wisely."

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fallen-gravity Report

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TmKhr
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

A woman in a Finnish Facebook sales group didn't want to tell her clothes' size because she didn't want anyone to know how big she was.

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Otter
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Is "BLT with cheese" going to be the new "See you next Teusday"?

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It’s easy to stay professional when the customers who you deal with are nice, pleasant, and see you as a human being. But the challenges start when you come face to face with someone who demeans you, acts overly entitled, or simply asks incredibly dumb questions. All of which makes you question why the nation’s education system has set the bar so low.

Earlier, I’d spoken about how to deal with difficult customers with Alexander Kjerulf. He’s the founder and Chief Happiness Officer at ‘Woohoo inc.’ and knows a lot about helping keep employees motivated, happy, and using their skills at their best.

Alex put it very simply that if you feel like you’re forgetting that you’re a human being worthy of humane treatment at your job, then you should seriously consider moving on. “Quit, and find a better place to work, where they actually care about their staff. And quit sooner rather than later. The longer you stay, the more they will grind you down until you lose all the energy and optimism you need to move on and find a better job,” he told Bored Panda.

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sarge-m , twitter.com Report

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TmKhr
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

You're right, there's no one here, it means you've broken in and police are on their way to arrest you

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He said that it’s common in restaurants to treat their customers like kings. And some places complement this by treating their employees badly. However, this is far from all right! It shouldn’t be the norm.

“99% of people are nice, but the occasional rude client is unavoidable," Alex noted that you will have to deal with difficult customers sooner or later. It’s not something that you can avoid forever and ever, no matter how good (or lucky) of an employee you are. "You can learn tricks to deal with them, and that's great, but no one should have to put up with mistreatment."

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Mihai Mara
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The rule "an eye for an eye" should have been applied: "here's your HOT latte!" *splash*

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Ancsuri
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Do you have to give a tip in the US? How does it work? Cause by us, you can give a tip if you want to, but you can choose to pay just the price of the food.

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Lily Mae Kitty
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

in the US, waitstaff is paid under $5 an hour and if you don't tip them, they starve and lose their home.

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Maddie Star ⭐
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

wow, in the UK if you asked me for a tip I would tell you where to go. I tip if you have provided a high service. If I don't tip, there's a reason.

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Random Panda
Community Member
2 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Honestly service workers in the US should start demanding their employers pay them a decent wage, instead of getting mad at customers not wanting to tip for mediocre service. If a business can't afford to pay its' workers then it shouldn't exist.

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KatHat
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yes, the system should be better and people should be paid a living wage. It's disgraceful. But until that system changes, you sure as hell tip, and in a pandemic, you tip extra.

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Eslamala
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Tipping should never be mandatory. It's not the customer's fault you're being exploited. Also, ask me for a tip, and I will bore you with many useful tips for your life, the first one being what I said above.

rl_2 avatar
R L
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

As long as customers keep tipping out of guilt because staff are underpaid, the company will not change it's attitude and pay them a decent wage.

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Charlotte A.
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If all customers are expected to pay 12% extra, why not just raise the prices 12% and pay decent wages? The only thing you lose is the issues surrounding tips.

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Evil Little Thing
Community Member
2 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It's 20%, which is easy to calculate in your head. Look at the total, move the decimal once to the left, then double it (rounding up to the nearest dollar).

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that one Harry Potter girl
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That may be true in most places but in America the tips are basically what waiters live on so if you serve them and don't give a tip, they have basically volunteered

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MagicalUnicorn
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

since tipping is not obligatory in most places in Europe, if forced to give tip for mediocre service i'd probably switch to my native tongue

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Casey Anne Logan
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

K here's the thing though, you shouldn't try and guilt people into tipping. You really never know there story. I get it some people are just jerks and you all deserve to be paid MUCH more than you do, but it's not right to take it out on the people who are not at fault.

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Yugan Talovich
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

When I go to the States I often forget about tipping. Some of the wait staff get pretty aggressive. It's not "asking" for a tip, it's telling you to. Once I calculated wrong and the guy refused to let me pay, saying the tip was too low. It's more a problem on the East Coast.

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Seabeast
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

When I worked on the census in 2016, this happened to one of the other telephone enumerators. A woman kept pretending she didn't speak English and only spoke Russian or something like it. When my coworker told her someone could get back to her and take her details in her own language, she said, without a trace of an accent "You can do that?"

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Tabby_Sohee
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

LOL *insert fake mustache and failed attempt * Français 😎

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Curry on...
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Ok, so it's customary to tip in the US, but I think if wait staff is going to get mad about no tip, they should chew out the corporate heads and make them pay more.

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Lena Flising
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Staff ought to be paid a living wage by the workplace. Tip should just be a bonus for great service. But yeah, it's stupid to try to get out of paying by pretending to speak a language you don't speak.

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Robert Blyth
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The tone of this one bothers me. I tip IF I CHOOSE TO. There is no "getting out of it". If the service I get does not warrant a tip then I don't tip. Simple as that.

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John Baker
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Last I knew, tipping is not mandatory - and this kind of attitude isn't going to earn you one.

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backatya
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Tips aren't mandatory so I don't know what this person is tripping over. If they don't like what their employer is paying then get a different job. Customers aren't obligated to pay their wages.

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Andy Hinds
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

In a civilised society, you shouldn't have to expect a tip because you'd get paid a reasonable wage with a tip as a bonus.

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Caroline Overill
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If everyone in the US stopped giving tips maybe they would have to do something about the wages

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Stephen Foley
Community Member
2 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yes there is no LAW saying you have to Tip in the USA, especially in Diners, Restaurants etc, but staff there are so badly paid that a Tip is really needed to get their earnings to a decent level. I live in France where such staff are paid a reasonable wage and treated with respect by most peope but I still Tip unless I get really bad service which in the 8 years I have lived here I have only once had to endure and left 1 centime to show my annoyance and I have never gone back to the place..

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Nola Dorothy
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

We don't tip in New Zealand. We try to pay our workers decent wages instead. Mostly it works.

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Mumof1
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Surely a tip is optional - as in - it's the customer's C.H.O.I.C.E...

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GoodCatto
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

But he said "I don't speak English" in English which means he does speak English.

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Tanya Palik
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It's not just the US...in Canada too. I put myself through school with my tips not the salary

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Dave Jones
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

There has always been certain cultures and groups in America that are notorious for bad tipping and that group is growing. You can ask a waiter what groups those are...

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Working in the service industry doesn’t mean that you have to be a doormat, however. If you find yourself constantly being walked over, belittled, and demeaned, you have to reach out to your manager for help. They should be willing to step in and help you deal with anyone who isn’t acting like a human being should.

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Catlady6000
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I remember replying something about how if nobody came in to shop, they wouldn't open, and the customer continued to sympathize and wonder why they opened on a holiday

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“You have to remember that in many cases a customer who behaves badly is not necessarily a bad person—it can be a good person having a bad day and that’s why they’re acting out. But the sad truth is that some customers act this way because they’ve learned that it works and will get them discounts or preferential treatment,” Alex said that some customers might be nightmare material by accident while others are very Slytherinish and sneaky.

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Michele Ferretto
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is not the first time I hear a pregnant lady be called fat by other woman. For the love of God, what's in their mind!?!?

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Eslamala
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Real actual cheddar or that laminated orange plastic you get in the U.S??

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Pamela H.
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2 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yes there is no "grass fed" chicken meat at the store, but Chickens do eat grass. Obviously you don't own a chicken.

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Michele Ferretto
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Since you were there you could make him notice the size of the chip, so it could very hardly be injected with any vaccine (I bet he believes that too).

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Mihai Mara
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Make sure you never run out of blinker fluid. It's very important in traffic!!

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KatHat
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The full original phrase is: "The customer is always right in matters of taste". ie, if they want to paint their house screaming purple or buy a gold sequin pantsuit, you say YES that's wonderful. It was never supposed to mean what it's come to mean.

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Mihai Mara
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Now I am curious how you explained it and what the customer finally understood.

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WilvanderHeijden
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It's the entitlement of "I orderded a cheeseburger without cheese and that's what I'm getting and paying for. You do not chance my order without my divine consent, you underpaid wage slave."

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RaroaRaroa
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The guy's an idiot, of course, but who ever cuts anything in quarters at Subway? Sure, if someone asked, but they don't normally do that do they?

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