Despite the law, the angry drivers behind you and statistics — you are on the phone chatting away. Maybe it is an old friend that you have not talked to in a while, or your Mom or Grandma calling to finally catch up. You pinch phone between your head and your shoulder you pull into the parking lot, park your car and walk inside to do some shopping.
Or maybe you were walking around the store or even in line when your phone rings; your hip ring tone goes off and everyone in the store knows what your favorite song is. You answer, because of course someone needs to get a hold of you at that moment. Once again you pinch your phone between your head and your shoulder and you finish your shopping.
Before you know it you are deep in conversation…. And at the cash register.
“Hey! How are you doing today?,” greets your cashier. You maybe smile and nod, then continue with your conversation.
Your conversation dominates all at this time, your lack of consideration for your cashier is not only disrespectful but could also result in your not leaving the store with everything you want, you not knowing how much money you spent or even being rung out for something you didn’t really want.
Say you are chatting away, and as your cashier is ringing out your purchases the person in line behind you slips their coffee a little closer to you as the cashier is busy bagging your items. The cashier looks up and notices another coffee and charges you for it. While it is awfully generous of you to purchase something for someone else… you usually do it when you are intending to and the receiver is not expecting it, you are not usually tricked into buying things for complete strangers.
If you were to walk into the bank on the phone, or get a phone call in the bank your general reaction would be to say something along 
the lines of, “Hey I am in the bank right now, I will call you back.”
Your bank teller is no different from your cashier; they are simply your bank cashier. So why at the bank can you give the teller/cashier your undivided attention, but when you go out shopping and your phone rings your cashier is lucky to receive any of your attention?
You money is important to you right? That is why you pay attention at the bank and not at the cash register? Because your money is involved in both situations (in case you forgot), your finances, funds, lunch money, bills money, birthday money, all of your money is in someone else’s hands at that moment – so pay attention, before your retirement fund is a mere quarter because too many people tricked you into buying coffee.
Or is it the fact that your bank teller/cashier is dressed in professional attire, while your cashier is wearing their standard work shirt and black pants? Are you judging someone based on their job? Are you making decisions and assumptions that may very well be extremely incorrect?
Just because someone works behind the register does not make them a second class citizen. Cashiers have high school diplomas, bachelor degrees and even masters. That cashier you are blatantly ignoring to talk to your Mom, whose phone call you should have returned last week after she called, may own that establishment and make double your salary. The person scanning your items and bagging your things, the person taking your money and giving you your change maybe your boss one day.
Treat your cashier with the same respect you would like. How would you feel if you stood in line and when you got to the register your cashier got a phone call – and took it? If your cashier was chatting away with their Mom about their week as they scanned your items, took your money and attempted to get your change?
Just because they are behind the counter does not mean that your cashier is an emotionless freak. Keep in mind how you would feel if the role was reversed, or if someone at your job treated you as a second class citizen and could careless that you were there doing your job.
Take that moment when your phone rings to say, “Hey I am in line about to pay, I will call you back in a second.” Or even, “Hey hang on a second I am about to pay,” and place your phone on the counter providing your cashier with your attention and respect. It is the least you could do, because without that cashier, or any cashier, you would not be able to be making that purchase.
Customer Critique 