I work at Tesco – there’s a common type of customer we hate & popular items we can’t stand when people bring to the till
A TESCO employee has revealed all on what it’s really like to work for the popular supermarket chain.
From the common type of customer employees hate, to the popular items they can’t stand when people bring to the tills.
Not only this, but the anonymous Tesco worker also revealed the irritating things their team leaders do, as well as the customers they describe as ‘saints’.
Posting on social media, the Tesco employee shared all on working at the supermarket, leaving many open-mouthed.
Writing on Reddit, on the r/tesco thread under the username @YYFiberYY, the user titled their post ‘Y’know What Really Grinds My Gears? (Checkout Operator Edition)’.
The employee then confirmed: “Checkouts are without a doubt the most mind numbing, infuriating and downright worst place to be.
“Sometimes it genuinely feels like being in purgatory, like you’re being punished for something you’ve done.”
Despite this, the employee recognised: “Albeit, I feel like it’s dependent on WHO you’re working alongside, and who your team leader is”.
The Tesco worker then revealed 10 things that “seriously p**s me off to oblivion while working checkouts”.
First things first, the employee claimed that the carrot stick bags, which you can nab as a snack with a meal deal, are highly infuriating for workers.
They explained: “You know which ones I’m talking about, the ones where the barcode is always messed up so you need to type in the product number every time.
“It’s not that bad until you have five people on your belt gradually losing their patience while you fumble over these carrot sticks, getting the code wrong every single time.”
In addition to this, the employee claimed that they can’t stand “rich, entitled middle aged women” as they simply penned: “Enough said.”
Not only this, but they then shared their frustration at team leaders, when they “disappear when you have a problem”.
As a result of this, they shared: “So you need to sit in an awkward silence until they come back and then act like nothing had happened.
“The same yet again goes for when it’s busy and you have a burst bag of Monster Munch that needs replacing and it takes them four minutes to reappear.”
Insider tip from a Tesco employee
A Tesco employee has revealed a surprising secret about the self-scan trolleys.
According to the worker, random checks on customers using these trolleys are not entirely random.
The checks are actually triggered by a specific customer habit.
If you frequently pick up and put down items without scanning them, you’re more likely to be selected for a check.
This is due to the system detecting suspicious behaviour, which could indicate potential theft.
So, to avoid delays, it’s best to scan items immediately after placing them in your trolley.
But if you shop in Tesco, prepare to be attacked, as the employee got candid on “impatient customers” and claimed: “They’re a different breed of people, they cannot stand waiting, and when they need to they kick off.
“I’m pretty fast at scanning, to the extent where I was once called an ‘Aldi Employee’, but there’s not much I can do when The Jetsons have decided to do their annual shop with three trolleys jammed full of stuff.”
In addition to impatient customers, the employee shared their frustration at “people who put all of their multipack boxes of Pepsi or Coke on the belt.”
They continued: “Most of the time I politely tell the customer that they only need to put one up and I can change the denomination on the screen, to which many ignore that and still do it.”
A large majority of my job has me sitting in my chair, face in palms, regretting my life decisions and wishing that I had applied to Subway instead
Tesco employee
And if you’ve ever found yourself searching around a self-checkout looking for shopping bags, don’t worry, you’re not alone, as this employee also can’t stand when this happens.
They penned: “Bags, there’s never any bags. And when I get replacements, somehow I go through them quicker.”
But if that wasn’t annoying enough, the employee also revealed they can’t stand “people who bring in expired coupons/vouchers who’ll ask to see the manager/TL even though I’ve explained that they are expired.”
Not only this, but the employee then revealed the awkwardness when people bring loose vegetables and fruit to the till when they don’t have a barcode.
But although they find this frustrating, they shared an “honourable mention” for “people who bring up loose vegetables/fruits that have already been weighed”, and described such customers as “saints”.
When do supermarkets put out yellow-sticker bargains?
The time supermarkets reduce their products vary across stores.
Here’s a rough supermarket-by-supermarket guide:
Aldi
Aldi uses a red sticker to show reductions on fresh products such as bread, meat, fruit and vegetables.
This is when they have reached the last day of shelf life.
Red stickered items are most commonly found at opening and closing times.
M&S
Reduction times can vary from store to store but is most likely to occur near closing time.
Asda
Asda told Which? that yellow stickers are applied twice a day – in the morning and evening.
Co-op
Co-op told The Sun its reduced-to-clear prices are generally applied about four hours before the store closes.
Lidl
Lidl has a similar procedure to Asda and Aldi with reductions twice a day.
However individual stores may opt to reduce prices throughout the day.
Morrisons
Shoppers online have said that Morrisons does the best bargains first thing in the morning.
However, the store told Which? that there are no specific times for yellow sticker price cuts.
Sainsbury’s
Sainsbury’s told The Sun it’s at the store manager’s discretion whether to offer discounts.
However, shoppers have reported that the best deals are in the evening from 6pm.
Tesco
Tesco has said there is no specific time for reduction, but again most people found that prices were reduced from 6pm.
Waitrose
As with most of the other stores, Waitrose shoppers have said the best reductions are found before closing.
However, the store stated that there is no specific time for yellow stickers to be applied.
If food without labels wasn’t annoying enough, the employee also revealed the common items they can’t stand when people bring to the till – and that’s clothes with tags.
Whilst they recognised that essentially all of the F&F clothes have security tags on, they added: “They’re horrible to find and a pain to get off. If you’ve worked checkouts then you know of a product like this and despise seeing it on your belt.”
Finally, they shared their irritation with their managers, as they simply concluded: “Managers. Why?”
Whilst the Tesco worker claimed that they “weirdly enjoy the tills, to an extent”, they also recognised: “However, a large majority of my job has me sitting in my chair, face in palms, regretting my life decisions and wishing that I had applied to Subway instead.”
TESCO EMPLOYEES RESPOND
Many other Tesco employees could sympathise with the user’s complaints and flocked to the comments to share their thoughts on the things that they too find irritating about working for the chain.
My biggest pet peeve is people who come in with a set amount of cash and no basic tracking of how much they are spending
Reddit user
One person said: “Don’t forget the customers who will shove their Clubcard in your face to scan while you’re still with the previous customer printing their receipt or getting their change.”
Another added: “I’m surprised you mentioned clothing tags but not the autopegs (the yellow ones), those can be a nightmare sometimes.”
A third commented: “My biggest pet peeve is people who come in with a set amount of cash and no basic tracking of how much they are spending…
“Had a lady come in with a trolley with around £200 worth of shopping a lot frozen/chilled, she then asked me when it gets to £50 to stop because that is all she had with her, and has no care for all of the stuff in her trolley that she can’t buy.”
Meanwhile, someone else shared: “The pizza barcodes infuriate me so much.”