Is there some rule that employees have to follow that doesn’t allow customers to bag? Or is it just that they’re incentivized to offer? I’d love some input from people who have worked in some of the bigger companies. For reference, I mostly use Publix.
I usually bring my own reusable bags and regardless if a bagger is there or not, I offer to bag my own groceries unless it’s more efficient/faster for me to just ring up my card. I used to be a cashier and I absolutely hated when people would just stand there and watch me bag 3-5 bags of groceries while there’s a line of 4 people behind them. I always appreciated customers who do it themselves. A lot if the time people who bag groceries that aren’t cashiers also clean messes, gather shopping carts, face aisles etc, so if it’s a huge supermarket they’ll probably be happy to skip that job.
> people who bag groceries that aren’t cashiers also clean messes, gather shopping carts, face aisles etc,
I misread this at first as referring to the customers who bag their own groceries, and I was surprised that there were so many other people like me that are happy to bag their own groceries and will also pick up trash on their way into/out of/through the store and tidy up the cart situation when stashing theirs that it is noticed as a trend by employees and also that the others are tidying the shelves too…!!! And then it sunk in that you’re talking about the “cart pusher” job title, not my fellow Tidiness Fairy customers 😂🤦
Hahaha aw I wish! I definitely round up stray shopping carts and put them in their corrals, though. That way I’m helping staff AND other customers by freeing up parking spots!
> A lot if the time people who bag groceries that aren’t cashiers also clean messes, gather shopping carts, face aisles etc, so if it’s a huge supermarket they’ll probably be happy to skip that job.
Actually when i was a courtesy clerk (which included bagging,) bagging was my favorite job. I got to stay indoors, lean on the checkout thingy, chat with the cashier, etc. I don’t know if they still do it, but safeway would schedule you for 30 minute rotating shifts. Some would be bagging, others carts, others still would be “free time” where you walked around and did whatever people asked of you. I always hated when I’d come in and I’d only have two or three bagging shifts.
So if you’ve ever seen a bagger just walk away or randomly appear out of nowhere, that’s because their shift either ended or it just began.
Ah that’s fair, I actually liked bagging groceries when I was an actual courtesy clerk, unless the person was SUPER anal about how things got bagged. Like damnit I know it’s meats separate from veg separate from cleaning products and heavy to light from top to bottom!!! Don’t kill my vibe! Lol. I think it was more bothersome as a cashier to bag groceries, I’m super fast at cashiering so if it’s 3+ bags that will need to be done and the person is done paying and just staring at me the whole time…I just don’t get it. I’m a huge fan of efficiency though so maybe that’s more of a me thing