The Joy of Using the Self Checkout

I use the self-checkout at some stores, but not others. One store has easy machines, just scan, scan, scan, put in your credit card and get a receipt. There is a screen with instructions, but you don't have to read it because the machine just works. Then there are the self checkouts like this one shown above, in which nothing you do is right and the machine is rather hostile about it. It is unreasonably fixated on the bagging area, urges you to hurry up, and will give up at the first chance. Ryan George as always plays all the parts, including the self checkout machine itself, to show us what kind of personality it has in human terms. Not a good one. Yes, if the self checkout machine were a person, it would be a bully.

My local grocery store installed six self checkouts, thinking it would save them on labor costs. But when I was there today, there were ten people lined up at the six self checkout machines, with one employee supervising them. Meanwhile, there was one conventional lane open with ten customers waiting and one employee checking out groceries. No bagger, but people are used to packing their own groceries. The ten people at the conventional lane actually got done and out of the store faster.

More Neat Posts

Loading...