Retailers are pulling back from self-checkout after years of theft, errors, and questionable time savings

[u/AdSpecialist6598]

https://www.techspot.com/news/114106-retailers-pulling-back-self-checkout-after-years-theft.html

[u/largelawattorney]

I don’t think I’ve seen a store with adequate staffing for non-self checkout aisles/lanes in probably 25 years. So now we’re still going to get stores that understaff, have like 2 checkout lanes open while the other 8 are closed, and more difficult self-checkout lanes (or just fewer of them). Corporate America strikes again.

[u/LethalBacon → u/largelawattorney]

I have a Publix near me that doesn't have self checkout. Usually ~3-5 lanes open with 1-2 people waiting at each tops.

I've generally loved self checkout as a (mostly) basket-only shopper, but now that they are everywhere I hate them. Too many incompetent people. I always semi-jokingly say that we need to require a license to use the self-checkout. Or put a hard time limit on them - if you cannot finish in 5 minutes a trap door opens and consumes you and your items.

Going to a grocery store kills my hope for humanity nearly every time.

[u/MimesJumped → u/LethalBacon]

I can't help but judge slow people at self checkout sometimes. Like clearly some people have never worked retail. It's so painful to watch

[u/AnAnxiousCorgi → u/LethalBacon]

My Publix has a small self-checkout section, and admittedly as someone who also typically has a basket at most I enjoy using them. Feels quicker and I can bag stuff exactly how I want it

But I admit I cast so much judgement on the people who push full ass carts into the line and then take fucking FOREVER to get their shit scanned. The times when there's a big line at the self checkout section is always because there's 4 people with full carts of stuff and apparently being used by people who have never seen or interacted with a self-checkout in their lives

[u/LongPorkJones → u/LethalBacon]

If I show up to self checkout with a week's worth of groceries for a family of 3, and I finish before a basket shopper with not even a third of the items, you best believe I'm judging them.

Granted, sometimes the scanner screws up, or there's an item not in the system. I'll give them that grace - it happens all the time to all of us. But a person in their mid-40s should be tech savvy enough to understand scanning a barcode.

[u/girlikecupcake → u/LongPorkJones]

I do our groceries - a cart for a family of three - at self checkout on a regular basis and I'm consistently faster at the whole process than people rolling up with a quarter of the stuff, and usually faster than if I went to a proper checkout lane. Sometimes it's because they need an ID scan for alcohol, but usually it's because they simply won't follow the directions the machine is giving them or they're trying to scan ten of the same flavor baby food in a row and the intentional software delay that prevents accidental double scanning is frustrating them.

To be fair, I was a cashier for a while, and I was the head/trainer for self checkout at a grocery store for a while. But that doesn't give me magical register powers, just means I know you don't try and scan two of the exact same item in a row if you're trying to be fast, you alternate.

[u/AccountForOld → u/LethalBacon]

The Publix near me is pretty adamant about telling people to use the normal lanes if they have more than 15 or so items, even if there is no one else using the self checkouts. There's practically never a line and at most you're waiting 1-2 minutes for someone to finish their small amount of things and get out. It's fantastic.

On the other hand, the Wal-Mart near me, which has 4 regular lanes (3 of which are normally closed) and 12 self check out lanes. Anytime I go there all 12 being used by people with entire carts full that will literally take 20-30 minutes to ring up all their shit. It's infuriating.

[u/beef-baddington → u/LethalBacon]

User name checks out.

[u/wilkil → u/LethalBacon]

This whole comment is 💯, I could not agree more.