View Full Version : "Hiya mate - Cheers" - What's happened to courtesy?
Is this a Yorkshire phenomenon or is it more widespread?
Rather than a shop assistant saying "Hello Sir/Madam" they now seem to say "Hiya Mate"?
After the transaction instead of saying "Thank you Sir/Madam" they say "Cheers" or "Thanks Pal".
I'm not saying I want to be treated like Royalty when buying my bread and cheese but a little more courtesy and respect wouldn't go amiss......
What's happened to courtesy? Is it now old fashioned?
Saaf_laandon_mo
06-12-2005, 16:20
I blame it on the immigrants........ Well i thought I'd get in there before anyone else ;)
I blame it on the immigrants........ Well i thought I'd get in there before anyone else ;)
Bl***y Australians! :p:
At some Tesco store in Cardiff a few months ago, the female members of staff were complaining that their polite and cheerful manner with customers was causing a lot of unwanted attention as some men apparently thought they were coming on to them.
I'm sure incidents like this will play a part in it all.
I prefer the informal way.
Hiya Chris "mate" nice quip "fella"
At some Tesco store in Cardiff a few months ago, the female members of staff were complaining that their polite and cheerful manner with customers was causing a lot of unwanted attention as some men apparently thought they were coming on to them.
I'm sure incidents like this will play a part in it all.
You mean she wasn't? :(
At some Tesco store in Cardiff a few months ago, the female members of staff were complaining that their polite and cheerful manner with customers was causing a lot of unwanted attention as some men apparently thought they were coming on to them.
I'm sure incidents like this will play a part in it all.
Do you mean the "polite and cheerful manner" to be like the "mate, cheers, thanks luv" way or the "polite" way ie courteous?
Do you mean the "polite and cheerful manner" to be like the "mate, cheers, thanks luv" way or the "polite" way ie courteous?
She was encouraged to be cheerful, to smile at customers, make eye contact with them and sound interested in conversations they bring up, that sort of thing.
Graham M
06-12-2005, 16:31
I work in Retail, in a One Stop Convenience Store if you must know. I get treated with no courtesey or respect by MOST customers so see no reason to give it back. There are the odd few that are nice and say please and thankyou but theyre few and far between. Anyway, "Hi Mate, how you doing?" Is something I only tend to do with regular customers who know me and I know them, I wouldn't say it to a random stranger and wouldn't say it was impolite. If I said "Alrite ****er?" then perhaps, yes.
When I say goodbye to a customer I usually say "Take Care" or "Goodbye, have a good evening" or something similar But as before, if the customer isn't polite/doesn't say anything then I'm not going to return the favour, simple as that.
I'm fed up with the kids in school being too familiar.I do not want my personal space invaded and if I'm not allowed to touch them then they are not allowed to touch me.Just because they like to be called Tom instead of Thomas doesn't mean I have to do it either.Teaching 5 classes of 30 + children per day 5 days a week means I meet a lot of Thomas's in a week.I can't remember what every Tom,Dick or Harry wants to be called. :rolleyes:
They aren't going to be calling me by my first name any time soon either. :erm:
I work in Retail, in a One Stop Convenience Store if you must know. I get treated with no courtesey or respect by MOST customers so see no reason to give it back. There are the odd few that are nice and say please and thankyou but theyre few and far between. Anyway, "Hi Mate, how you doing?" Is something I only tend to do with regular customers who know me and I know them, I wouldn't say it to a random stranger and wouldn't say it was impolite. If I said "Alrite ****er?" then perhaps, yes.
When I say goodbye to a customer I usually say "Take Care" or "Goodbye, have a good evening" or something similar But as before, if the customer isn't polite/doesn't say anything then I'm not going to return the favour, simple as that.
You're quite right that it works both ways. I've seen some very rude people in front of me in the queue and I usually try to ensure that the assistant is left feeling a little more self worthy after I have left. A smile or a joke won't hurt will it? If we weren't in so much of a percieved hurry all the time then maybe we would be inclined to stop and think a little more?
I work in Retail, in a One Stop Convenience Store if you must know. I get treated with no courtesey or respect by MOST customers so see no reason to give it back. There are the odd few that are nice and say please and thankyou but theyre few and far between. Anyway, "Hi Mate, how you doing?" Is something I only tend to do with regular customers who know me and I know them, I wouldn't say it to a random stranger and wouldn't say it was impolite. If I said "Alrite ****er?" then perhaps, yes.
When I say goodbye to a customer I usually say "Take Care" or "Goodbye, have a good evening" or something similar But as before, if the customer isn't polite/doesn't say anything then I'm not going to return the favour, simple as that.
I am, without fail, always polite to the staff in whatever shop I'm in - having worked in retail, I know that it's an absolute nightmare as it is.
Having said that, I'll happily have an argument or, in fact, be downright rude to any member of the public who's decided that they rrrrrreeeeeeaaaaallllyyyy need to be in that gap that I happen to be in - weird innit?
You want to move across the Penines Salu, to the land of well courteous shop assistants. Want an ASDA checkout person's life history? Bury's the place, my love :)
You want to move across the Penines Salu, to the land of well courteous shop assistants. Want an ASDA checkout person's life history? Bury's the place, my love :)
You realise you have almost committed sacrilege by suggesting that.....................pal;)
You realise you have almost committed sacrilege by suggesting that.....................pal;)
Hey don't mess. I understand that Lancashire triumphed in the Annual Black Pudding Throwing Championships*. Not sure if anyone from Yorkshire entered mind ;)
* You have to knock Yorkshire puddings off a wall by throwing a black pudding at them. Who says its grim up North eh?:D
I do like it when I am greeted and find it is good talk to the shop keeper / checkout person. Atleast it makes thingsm ore interesting.
I cant stand people who do not say thankyou.
The one thing I would like cut out however is the rehearsed lines employees are told to use. It should be improvised, normal chatter.
Hey don't mess. I understand that Lancashire triumphed in the Annual Black Pudding Throwing Championships*. Not sure if anyone from Yorkshire entered mind ;)
* You have to knock Yorkshire puddings off a wall by throwing a black pudding at them. Who says its grim up North eh?:D
May the best pudding win..........
---------- Post added at 16:57 ---------- Previous post was at 16:51 ----------
I do like it when I am greeted and find it is good talk to the shop keeper / checkout person. Atleast it makes thingsm ore interesting.
I cant stand people who do not say thankyou.
The one thing I would like cut out however is the rehearsed lines employees are told to use. It should be improvised, normal chatter.
Agree with than one. It really sounds sooooo sincere doesn't it......?
Just thought of something else. It very easy to get in to a thank you fight. What I mean is that both the assistant and the customer say not much else other than thank you.
Asst "Next"
Cust places good on till "Thanks"
Asst "thank you"
Till "beep beep"
Asst "That'll be £10.50 please mate"
Cust "Thank you" fumbles round wallet and hands over a £20 note "Thank you"
Asst "Thank you"
Asst "your change, 7,8,9 and 10 make £20, thank you"
Cust "Thank you"
Asst "Thank you, bye"
Cust "Thanks"
Daaan saaarf most shop assistants talk that way. I prefer being called mate/bud/bro/dude/love/sweetheart/flower/chuck anything like that as opposed to sir personally. I am common-as-muck really, nothing stuck up about me.
Actually I don't like being called 'sir' as in my experience it's usually accompanied by "would you kindly leave the store".
As long as I'm not greeted with silence or anything deliberately nasty then I don't mind.
The Chavs are heading north it seems ;)
Personally i find the foreign Johnny`s rather more polite than the locals.
...when they can speak the language.
Try McDonalds just off Magdalen Street in Oxford ;)
Lol i know what you mean. McDonalds is always hard bloody work now days. I guess it`s a ploy to stop us all getting too fat ;)
...when they can speak the language.
Try McDonalds just off Magdalen Street in Oxford ;)
:D That's when you have managed to get to the front past all the foreign students who push in.
Was assigned an Estate Agent who always called me "Mate" like he couldn't be bothered to remember my name :fit:. If it wasn't for the rest of the staff in the branch I would have changed agent (thankfully he didn't last long).
Actually I don't like being called 'sir' as in my experience it's usually accompanied by "would you kindly leave the store".
As long as I'm not greeted with silence or anything deliberately nasty then I don't mind.
OK, it doesn't have to be "Sir", but I don't think that "Mate" or "Pal" is appropriate for a customer. Those terms are surely for people you know well and regard them as so. And what's "Cheers" all about? Where's the Champagne?
I suppose my point is less about the words they use and more about the manner they employ.
Actually I don't like being called 'sir' as in my experience it's usually accompanied by "would you kindly leave the store".
*wonders what Russ gets up to.
I don't mind how I am greeted, as long as it's not with a vague grunt or "What?"
It costs nothing to be polite though. Maybe I should have told that to the girl getting on the train today carrying a large bag and just shoved it into people without saying "Excuse me".
It costs nothing to be polite though. Maybe I should have told that to the girl getting on the train today carrying a large bag and just shoved it into people without saying "Excuse me". Surely in such circumstances it costs nothing to be equally rude :)
What about people who lose their basic numeracy skills when at the 10 items or less express till? My brother has an appealing habit of questioning their intellectual capacity at such times.
And then there are the assistants that refuse to cease their conversation with their colleagues as they are serving you. Only momentarily pausing as they stretch their hand out for the money and say "£4.90 luv".....and then carry on chatting.
And then there are the assistants that refuse to cease their conversation with their colleagues as they are serving you. Only momentarily pausing as they stretch their hand out for the money and say "£4.90 luv".....and then carry on chatting.
What about the ones who carry on casually stocking the shelves while they watch the queue at the till build up to the length you normally find outside a newly-opened NHS dentist.....
What about the ones who carry on casually stocking the shelves while they watch the queue at the till build up to the length you normally find outside a newly-opened NHS dentist.....
Was waiting outside our local inconvenience store the other week for mates and kids and precisely that thing happened... so I opened the door and pointed out the error of the shelf-stacker's ways. She was the duty manager. And did nothing.
Another moan. Bank staff who leave tills closed whilst pottering about and shuffling bits of paper whilst a a gargantuan and irritated queue develops. When I worked in retail we had to stop whatever we were doing if a customer needed serving. And rightly so.
What about the ones who carry on casually stocking the shelves while they watch the queue at the till build up to the length you normally find outside a newly-opened NHS dentist.....
:mad: Stop it, Stop it.....
:afire: :fit:
BP 180/100
Was waiting outside our local inconvenience store the other week for mates and kids and precisely that thing happened... so I opened the door and pointed out the error of the shelf-stacker's ways. She was the duty manager. And did nothing.
Another moan. Bank staff who leave tills closed whilst pottering about and shuffling bits of paper whilst a a gargantuan and irritated queue develops. When I worked in retail we had to stop whatever we were doing if a customer needed serving. And rightly so.
Ooh ooh, while we're on the subject of banks - why do all pensioners / unemployed people decide that they absolutely, positively, have to do all their banking at lunchtime? You know, the only half hour period of the day when you can actually get into the bank or post office :fit:
Ooh ooh, while we're on the subject of banks - why do all pensioners / unemployed people decide that they absolutely, positively, have to do all their banking at lunchtime? You know, the only half hour period of the day when you can actually get into the bank or post office :fit:
It's not deliberate, they have been there since 9:00 :D
It's not deliberate, they have been there since 9:00 :D
Ah - it just took them that long to decide what they wanted, did it :disturbd:
Ooh ooh, while we're on the subject of banks - why do all pensioners / unemployed people decide that they absolutely, positively, have to do all their banking at lunchtime? You know, the only half hour period of the day when you can actually get into the bank or post office :fit:
And why do banks never, ever have all their tills open at lunch despite it clearly being the busiest time of their day?
Andy. general moans do have their own thread..
Andy. general moans do have their own thread..
They haven't yet built a thread big enough to contain all my moans and pet hates :)
ian@huth
07-12-2005, 13:42
Greetings quite often change depending on what part of the country you are in. Around Sheffield I quite often found I was referred to as Luv which I found rather unusual especially as it was a man talking to a man.:Yikes: Most greetings / farewells have little real meaning or sincerity and are just ingrained automatic sayings such as the till operator saying "See ya" when you are leaving even though they have never seen you before and will probably never see you again.
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