Stop shouting at shop staff, union urges Australians
The union representing retail staff has launched an ad campaign urging customers not to shout at shop workers.
The “No one deserves a serve” campaign from the SDA – Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees Association – union has been launched to coincide with the stressful Christmas shopping season.
The campaign shows the impact on the people who receive the abuse, featuring a mother getting her daughter ready for school, before being reduced to tears after being shouted at by an angry customer.
According to the union, 85% of retail staff have suffered abuse at work.
The campaign is set to run across TV, radio, digital and out-of-home.
Gerard Dwyer, the national secretary of the SDA, said in a statement: “Imagine going to work every day knowing you will probably be abused.
“That’s the reality for thousands of Australian retail and fast food workers and it’s completely unacceptable, not just at Christmas but all year round.
“Retail and fast food workers have told us they routinely have customers swearing and yelling at them, spitting in their faces or threatening them, simply for doing their jobs.
“This Christmas we’re calling on customers to check their behaviour before they get to the checkout,” he said.
Swearing and abusive behavior, this sounds exactly like the behavior that agency staff have to put up with from certain clients.
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The fish rots at the head. Just watch Question Time – what a sewer.
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Well, if they provided better service…
I don’t see people yelling and screaming at retail stores that have more staff and better customer care attitudes.
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Is it the poor employees fault that the business hasn’t hired enough staff?
Noone performs well when being yelled at, rushed or belittled, if you keep your cool and allow the shop assistant time to think you’ll generally get a much better outcome whether you’re simply rushing through your day or resolving an issue.
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How about the SDA worry themselves less about pointless ad campaigns, and more about the workers they’re supposed to support:
http://www.smh.com.au/national.....05t1p.html
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It is the height of arrogance to abuse anyone in the service industry.
It is also bullying. The employee can’t respond as they risk losing their jobs.
I’ve always noticed, that the confident people in the world are well mannered, polite and caring. The arrogant people in the world are rude to cab drivers and service staff, as it gives them a feeling of confidence that they don’t deserve.
The golden rule will set you free people..
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I work in fast food personally and we can only do so much for people. Some customers are genuinelly in such a bad state we cant really fix, were only here to do our job to the best of our abillities. Anything more id consider slavery essentially, I feel really offended because your comment sides with the dehumanisation of retail/ fast food workers. We are people too and have the right to a safe and happy workplace.
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This is an interesting ad campaign in light of young Amy ‘Dolly’ Everett’s ordeal. A lot is spoken about bullying in schools and campaigns to stop it (rightly so). But it looks as though the message needs to go to the adults as well? Perhaps the parents of some of these ‘Bullies’ need to have a good hard look at themselves? anyone who thinks it is OK to yell and scream, and abuse employees because there isn’t enough staff has a problem.
My daughter works for a major store and she is regularly abused. Some are from a low socio-economic environment, but then she will also relate stories of others that are clearly not (so it is not necessarily those from ‘the wrong side of the tracks’). She relates stories of some acting out in front of their own children using language better left for the gutter.
She talks of the frustration she has, where she is abused and she can’t defend herself. Abused due to the customer not happy with the store policy. Or they are always under pressure to work more with less staff and then abused by customers because there isn’t the staff to assist (completely out of her hands).
It’s an interesting debate, but it needs to encompass the whole not just a subset. Hardly effective if only some can see what the definition of a Bully really is.
Even in the responses to this article, the fact that there is less than 10 replies and one of them thinks that being a Bully is warranted? Makes me wonder, shake my head, and think is the message actually getting through?
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