December 30, 2014 - WhippingBoy
The Real Issue With Cart Attendant
I’ve now worked as a cart attendant for around 15 months at my local cart attendant, well I continue to take classes at a local community college. I’ve never taken the “trainer” test but I guess I’m the trainer, glorious pic and all.
I’m not going to say that the job asks for too much. With some effort, I give dam good handoffs EVERYTIME and being a cart attendant, the day just FLIES by.
What I will say, is that people who have NEVER worked a day of cart attendant in their life, telling you what you need to take care of, or expecting you to find the time to complete everything asked to perfection is NONSENSICAL.
That’s the main problem with the job. UNREALISTIC EXPECTATIONS.
1.) I can’t keep the bathroom perfectly clean throughout the day. I just can’t. Just because there is a mess in the bathroom, doesn’t mean it did not occur AFTER my last bathroom check. Waiting 20 minutes for a lady to leave the restroom, and having a gathering outside of it glaring at me isn’t exactly the best situation either. They beg me to hurry, or straight up demand. I’m not going to be able to wipe down every sink. If it stands out, I take care of it.
Only way I get my checks done is to group them together at the end of the hour. Especially when they don’t give me a mid on a busy weekend.
2.) “Cart Attendant, can you bring baskets around the store”
“When I get a chance!”
AKA it’s not gonna happen. If I can barely keep enough hand baskets up front, why would I bring them around the store? Especially when every guest complains about wet carts? They use up hand baskets. Yet I can’t go 1 shift without hearing it. I say the same thing every time too. Hand baskets around the store is one of my last priorities. Sorry.
3.) I’m in a highly rated store. Our STL was promoted, and the new one stepped in. Apparently she knows more about being a cart attendant than I do. First thing she ever says to me is that I need to get the garbages out, when I had just taken them out an hour before. Someone had just set a bag on top of them. She then starts ranting about it smelling like Pot, and us having low appearance scores. It’s my fault someone smelled like pot?
She then is so focused on “appearance”, all she’s done is ask me to sweep the sidewalk when I have 2 rows of carts, by myself on a busy Saturday. Ok then. She doesn’t understand what cart attendants need to prioritize.
4.) God forbid Food Ave get a non-lunch break a little late, when I’m constantly taking breaks late, or even straight skipping them to get the job done. Moronic.
5.) Worst experience I’ve had is the day I showed up to pouring rain, with nothing done. The opening cart attendant was normally a cashier, and pulls tons of red cards. So what does the GSTL do? Pull him off carts with 2 hours into his shift and stick him on a lane. WHAT!?!?!? How is this at all fair to me? I show up to NOTHING done, because the heads want red cards??? Bullshit.
Also the time I was asked to cashier well GSTL did interviews. Was told 15-20 minutes, stuck there for 1 1/2 hours. Fell behind on everything. All GSTL says is “Why did you go to lunch with only 3 rows of carts?” Maybe because I spent majority of my morning cashiering, and covering Food Ave.
The job isn’t that bad. The expectations of those above is. No, I don’t deserve more money. You aren’t supposed to make a career out of it.
I’d just love for the higher ups to let me do my job, and quit micro managing. It’s hard enough when EVERY cart attendant I train quits or gets fired within a couple weeks.
Ya dig?
(30)Dislikes
(3)Comments
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
go work at a unionized store like loblaws. There cart attendants don't have to go bathrooms or spills. There's a special guy doing that lol even though it's technically their job as well,