I don't get it.

[tangle tooth]

      Actually, there are many things I don't get but today, it's this.
      I saw a job posting at one of the big name grocery chains around here. They're looking for a self checkout clerk. Why? I do almost no grocery shopping so maybe this is s.o.p. If you're doing self checkout, do you need a clerk? If a clerk helps you, is it self checkout?

[LPS]

I have never done the self checkout but the wife has.  It is the new theft huge crime thing. 

[glenn57]

I work part time at a grocery store. From what I understand they serve 2 purposes. 1 is to make sure people self checking are honest and 2, to assist people should they need help

[roony]

I was very reluctant but I finally started using it because I could check out and be on my way quicker. It took a little help the first time or two but it's really quite easy. I usually just buy a couple items so there is that. If I had a full cart I'd want a regular checkout.

[mike89]

I agree roony...   but as Glenn has said in the past I don't work there so why am I doing their job....  what a world we have!!! 

[tangle tooth]

      I've never used the self checkout thing either. I also never use a debit card or credit card. Pay for everything in cash. Wife just told me some of them self checkout things take cash. I did not know that, either.

[Gunner55]

I've used them almost since day 1, but I too rarely have more than 5-6 items. I don't like to stand in line behind 3-4 people who have a completely full cart because they only shop once a month when they get their Social Security or Food Stamps money, either. About 3/4 of the time that is at a WM for me. It's rare now for me to go in a WM, even Mason City (pop ~ 30K), & find more than 4 checkouts with cashiers actually running them when there's 10-12 others empty. I think they 1st appeared during Covid when everybody was having trouble getting enough help & now the self checkouts are usually the busiest place in the stores.

[markn]

I'm in the same boat as gunner. if the lines are full and I have only a few things I don't mind going through the self check out. A lot faster. 

[tangle tooth]

      My wife and daughter go to Sam's Club often. They tell me they use something called scan and go. They take pictures of the bar code (I think) , then show a clerk their phone. Clerk scans it (the phone) and they're out the door.
      What will they think of next?

[Gunner55]

It's called Scan & Go @ WM too & you can get your receipt on paper or by text. So, the clerk is most likely scanning their receipt that was sent to their phone, TT.

[tangle tooth]

      Thanks, Gunner.

[Steve-o]

True story...  a buddy was standing in line waiting for then next self-checkout.  Two women were ahead of him on either side of the isle working on the scanners.  One would have 'trouble', the self-check clerk would go help her.  When she was getting help, the other woman suddenly put a bunch of items in the bagging are without scanning.  Then the second lady had a 'problem' and the first one passed a bunch of items into the bagging area.  He wasn't going to let that slide and called them out.  They - of course - got all belligerent, denying everything, but when they suggested they could compare the items in the bagging area to the items scanned so far, they both left the store quickly. 

Now a lot of places have scales in the bagging area.  I you don't place something in the bagging area for every item scanned, the machine flags the clerk over for assistance.

[mike89]

wondered about that....   

[tangle tooth]

      Wow. I guess some people will find a way around everything.

      Just my opinion here but, if retailers REALLY want people the use self checkout, offer those customers an incentive. Maybe 2% off your purchase or something like that. But then I suppose customers who require a cashier will cry foul.

[Pulleye16]

One self-check-out attendant can monitor like 8 stations. That said, is anyone seeing the savings? My grocery store has pretty much gone all self-check-out yet the prices keeping increasing.

[roony]

The way commodity prices have been falling the prices on the shelf should follow suit. Should but won't.

[LPS]

I have read that food prices should be going down.  Still waiting.

[mike89]

me too, but egg prices dropped last week....

[Scenic]

Call me old fashioned or whatever but when I GO into a business to spend my money the least they can do is pay someone to take it    Just a few days ago I was in Homedepot (not my favorite store in Bemidji).  There were 5 employees standing around visiting.  There was maybe 10 customers in the store.  I go to the check out and one runs over to watch me use a self checkout...... NOT happening.  I don't work there, I get no discount for working there and if they have that many people who can watch me check out myself they can pay one of them to take my money.   

Do you realize that if you attempt to use a self check out and do the best you can and for whatever reason their system does not ring an item up you can be charged with theft ?  Happens daily.  Then YOU have to pay an attorney to get them to show you and/or the court a copy of their video.  Good luck trying to get your attorney fees back.

They chose to pay someone to put the cart load of stuff back on the shelf.   Menards was happy to take my money. 

[Jerkbiat]

I have read that food prices should be going down.  Still waiting.

Lol. Prices go up and never come down. 

[Scenic]

I have read that food prices should be going down.  Still waiting.

Lol. Prices go up and never come down. 

Thats about right. 

[Gunner55]

Besides scales, every self check out at WM has had a camera above it from the moment they're installed. So, they have video to check to see if you tried to steal it or if it was a scanner malfunction. Never had it happen, but I think the scales would prompt the attendant that something went in your bag that you attempted to scan but it didn't scan right, so they could check it out too.

[tangle tooth]

      Now that I think about it, the only two stores I enjoy going to, Menards and Scheels, don't have self checkout.

[Dotch]

Read an article not long ago saying Wally World was pulling a lot of the self checkout stations out of their stores due to theft. There is no standardization either from place to place. I've used the ones at Wally World on the rare occasion I go there & it's OK as long as you use a CC. Cash Wise is confusing as hell so I only buy booze there & they have live human beans to check you out. Some of them are even kinda cute.  Same as FF. Have never used their self checkout. Too many gift cards, farm use and other assorted potential hassles to encounter. They have severely reduced the number of people running cash registers too. Becoming more like Wally World every time I go there. Same bare shelves & very few people to assist like there used to be.   

[tangle tooth]

      I wonder how much money the retainers are actually saving. Less for payroll but higher inventory loss? I'm sure that information is out there somewhere. I'm not smart enough or patient enough to find it.

[Dotch]

Same here tt. I wonder too if they have any idea how many avoid their stores because of their heavy reliance on auto checkouts, especially in these parts where it's an aging population. And, if they're doing that, how many are just ordering stuff online instead, especially if they don't need it in a hurry?   

[roony]

I think a big reason for the introduction of self checkout is because of the difficulty in finding employees. I don't care much for it but I don't think it's as bad as some make it out to be. If people are stealing they need to be held accountable.

[Jerkbiat]

I think Rooney hit the nail on the head there!

[mike89]

very true

[Coffee118]

It’s all about wages they have to pay, 1 person can watch over 4 or more lines. About 15 to 20 years ago the biggest local grocery store employees went on strike and when the new contract was approved they had agreed to 25% of the 16 checkout lines were to be self checkout. Which in turn meant the low men on seniority were let go. The same happened with the turnpike toll booths, at first just a few ezpass lanes appeared and now there are zero human toll collectors it’s all ezpass/pay by plate.