What would you do if your manager is biased and agrees with an inconsiderate customer? Would you be angry? This boy who worked at a KFC outlet sure is. Here is his full account:
"When Inconsiderate Customer Meets Biased Store Manager – An Account from the Cashier Involved
On 23 December 2018, around 8 pm, at KFC Junction 8 outlet, a family of three visited the store for a takeaway order. The outlet is equipped with a pick-up system; where patrons could place their orders with the cashier and pick them up at the pick-up point.
When the family approached the cashier, their son placed his order of an ultimate box first. The mum, however, was at that point, undecided on her choice of all-chicken-buckets; still deciding on the number of pieces of chicken she wanted. The cashier noticed that there was one other patron waiting in the line, he (the cashier), therefore, reminded her (the patron still deciding on her order) that she could decide on her order first before proceeding to place her order at the ordering counter to be considerate and not waste the time of other patrons, whose time is just as precious as hers, waiting in the line.
The customers, however, was enraged by the reminder and started attacking the service standard of the cashier. She, then, went ahead to complain to the general manager (GM) who was also the duty manager (DM) at that point. Without hearing out the cashier’s perspective, nor verifying the validity of the complaint, the DM demanded an apology from the cashier to the patron. The DM’s demand was politely but firmly turned down by the cashier in his exercise of autonomy and belief that he is not fully responsible for the incident.
While working in the fast food line, I see the responsibility to expedite my service speed as much as possible. One reason is to make sure that my patrons get their food within the shortest time period possible as patrons generally expect fast service speed from FAST food operators. It could also be safely assumed that patrons who visit FAST food restaurants are more likely to be hungrier and/or in a hurry, therefore, it is to the patrons’ interest to ensure that no one’s time is wasted as much as possible. Furthermore, by expediting my service speed, I can also serve more patrons within the fixed operating hours of the outlet thence maximise the outlet’s and the company’s profit.
It is also worth noting that before the start of my shift, I took the initiative to inform the GM/DM that I was not in the right mental frame of mind to necessarily deal with customers and requested to be a packer. The request was heard by indirectly turned down by the GM/DM.
I believe that the GM failed to carry out her responsibility as the manager of the stored and was biased against the cashier and this matter should be looked into by the company."
Who do you think is right and wrong? Should the manager haver helped the employee? What do you think?
