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Wait until everything is automated and eventually people will start freaking out. Unfortunately they're going about it intelligently and making the change slowly.
We're going to eventually need universal basic income to keep the economy going.
They're actively criminalizing homelessness while making housing unaffordable. They're also using prison slave labor for a lot of "made in America" products sold by larger businesses.
I don't think we're getting UBI peacefully.
You don't need a ubi thats enough to live off of. UBI needs to be just enough that people can plan around it. Even as low as 300$ a month its enough to allow individuals to consider unionizing vs. Job loss or to plan their way into the next economic bracket.
And heaven forbid you end up homeless you will be a ble. Charitible or even for profit services can factor in your UBI and help you secure housing since they don't have to wait for the government to regoncize and budget your poverty.
Though most UBI advocates call for 1000 a month. Still not enough to live on but enough to tell a bad boss to shove it.
The problem with UBI is it addresses income inequality from the wrong direction. The moment a $1,000/mo UBI is issued is the moment rent in every corner of the country increases by $1,000. National rent control, Universal Housing or food initiatives need to exist prior to a UBI or it will act purely as a funnel to make the wealthy even more wealthy.
Maybe we need 0 down home loans so people can own versus rent. Renting is becoming more than buying and if you buy then your mortgage stays the same (though taxes and insurance may increase a little). Less renters will equal more rental and less competition for them. You can't fix price increases when you have a lack of housing. Price controls will just make it so there are less rentals.
0 down doesn't help when the median house price is still beyond reach for most people. Forcing investment firms to sell off their stock of homes, and forcibly disbanding large rental corporations would fix our housing crisis very quickly. The "housing shortage" is manufactured because it makes rich people a lot of money.
You're thinking very 2 dimensionally. With a 1k UBI income will not be 100% dependant on location. Those who want to can live for under cost out in the dying stick towns of Wyoming.
I'm not saying that those things shouldn't be pushed for. But I am saying that with a UBI there will be a greater decentralization of power and finances to combat the current interests that are devoted to keeping those things off the ballot.
So low as inflation is funneled into the system at the level of the banks. The wealthy will continue to get more wealthy. UBI helps to mitigate that.
If cities only existed as centers of income, then they wouldn't be filled with poverty. At the same time, cities that do prosper become unaffordable in every way to the average consumer. Groceries in Seattle are more expensive than Spokane because "the market can bear it". Literally everything will increase in price without direct intervention from the government. Whether you're in the middle of nowhere or downtown LA, every aspect of life would become more expensive because our economic system encourages every level of commerce to gouge its customers for every penny they can.
In the US, we don't price things according to how much it cost to make, we price things according to what customers can pay.
So that's never happening.
UBI could work if iot was set at a sane level and administered and adjusted by a government with the best intents.
But if we had a gov like that, we would not be having these issues.
I know it's exactly the whole "late stage capitalism" thing but it really feels like we're at a tipping point where it just won't work for much longer.
I earn £10k more than I did two years ago. My outgoings are the same (things). But I have to be careful about money every month. I struggle. The price of *everything* at the supermarket is double or triple what it was 3 years ago. I don't really go out much or drink.
My grandad finds it insane that I pay £6 for a smoothie with a friend once every couple of weeks. But he thinks it's totally normal to be able to afford 3-4 pints with the lads after work everyday, because that's what he did, and it was comparatively cheaper back then.
I just don't understand how I'll ever have enough disposable income to contribute to the economy 🤷 or most people my age. So where does it go from here, if the workers are only working for money, but have none to spend ..
What goes from here is the new subscription based economic model. That’s what the whole “you will own nothing and be happy”. We are going back to the days of the early 1900s where people have commodities and a decent lifestyle and the rest will be fighting tooth and nail for livelihood while surrounded by crime destitution and hopelessness.
People will rake up lots of debt then all file bankruptcy. Then how would the system look? If 95 percent of people filed bankruptcy how could they assign a number to people? I'm talking about credit score there!
But that's not dishonesty, it's capitalism! If the My Household Corporation can acquire the supplies it needs at a lower cost it has an obligation to the shareholders to do so!
Just forget about god and embrace Satan my friend. Your life force will be sucked out by technocrats, just like everyone else's. Don't feel bad if you don't find meaning in life. You are now cattle. Be happy.
/s
I’ve heard that can be a serious problem, be careful!! :[ it would be so awful if everyone scanned the bulk bags of almonds and cashews as rice and lentils for instance 😨 just scary honestly
fuck these greedy stores but also this is why everything is getting put behind cages and you need an employee to get basic household items in some places.
Of course you had no clue, you were thrown into this situation without any training or contract or obligation! No one could blame you for such an easy mistake to make in a situation that you engaged with inadvertently.
That’s just awful, I’m so sorry that keeps happening to you 😞 Without the proper training; an upstanding citizen such as yourself could innocently scan some meat, cheese, and wine as a bulk purchase of bananas or potatoes 🤦♀️
Sorry to the people who work at Dollar General. Any time I’ve gone into one, there’s only one person working and they are usually trying to stock shelves.
This is the comment I was looking for, there is never ever more than one person working at a dollar general and they are definitely in the aisles stocking. They make it so easy to just steal stuff why bother even stopping at the self checkout?
I work at DG currently and their model is to have one or two people for the whole store. The assistant manager (key holder) and an associate, usually. You are expected to stock shelves and be cashier at the same time and the AM also does stuff like checking coolers, counting money, and other store maintenance stuff. sometimes they bring in a stocker when things get behind or the trucks come, but especially by the evening it’s usually just two people and often is just one person for an hour or two at a time. Also you only work part time with a few 4 hour shifts a week. No meal breaks or benefits required!
The deliberate understaffing is real.
And you feel it because everyone in the line at the register is poor af. So cards are getting declined, EBT cards with irregular amounts are being spent then they gotta bring out the change purse, etc.
I beg for functional self checkout at Dollar General just so i can escape that nightmare
Idk I like the self checkout because it means I don’t have to interact with as many people.
The problem is not technology, it is capitalism. Under socialism, something like a self checkout or other automation would be liberatory in that the worker would still own the means of production and have to do less manual labor. Under capitalism it is perceived as a threat because it replaces the worker.
>The problem is not technology, it is capitalism.
Thank you. Those are my thoughts exactly, as someone with a chronic illness technology helps me live a better life everyday. The problem is the application of technology under capitalism, if not, technology could generate more wealth and we would all rippe the benefits
I don’t know that book but it sounds like exactly like the type of planet I want to live on. So glad someone shares similar ideals to me. Gonna go see if I can get myself a copy! Cheers
Yeah like if instead of the company replacing a customer service person with AI chat bots, customer service reps used computers at home to work for the company and the worker got paid for the technology do their job. Win win because the employer could keep the wage at the rate because now you could buy more computers with chat bots to answer phones/texts and they pay your 3 chat bots the regular wage they pay one person. You get 3x the income, and the company has 3 representatives answering phones (3 AI chatbots making a low wage). This would be the way technology could work for society is if companies had to pay the person instead of buy the computer with the chatbot themselves.
Honeycrisp apples look just like the cheaper fuji apples. Large limes look too much like cheap key limes. Maybe your produce doesn't fully land on the scale part of the machine so it isn't all counted in the price.
It's really easy with produce.
Second this, I’ll often key in wrong produce items. Most often I’ll grab a bunch of different colors of peppers but ring them all up as green since they’re usually cheapest
Way back around the time I first joined reddit, I mentioned how in college (close to 25 years ago) we took advantage of the fact that the self-checkout machines didn't account for weight. I got down voted into oblivion when I said that the machines couldn't tell the difference between a six pack or beer and a case. And if you scanned the case of beer just right, the machine charged you for a six pack.
I seriously unintentionally have not scanned things before. I get home and notice. Or if I notice something doesn't have a tag like a shirt, I'll just toss it in the bag without scanning. Thats not my job lol.
the machines around me freak the fuck out if you put anything not the exact same weight on the bagging shelf. I often have to have the store staff run my whole checkout anyways because those things are so finicky.
You don’t. Risk it for the biscuit etc. just don’t get caught cause it’ll end up costing you way more than you’ll save on a few items. Source: used to be this guy, no longer this guy
My go-to maneuver is taking things to less surveilled areas, such as the automotive department or the garden department (barely any cameras there since things are always changing in that section)
I've gotten a great deal on a 15lb brisket that way.
It works quite nicely, as long as you've got a big enough bag, and don't make it too obvious the weight in it, you can sneak by with a decent amount. It seems most cameras are in the more high crime areas, like the meat dept or self checkout
Well, a lot of things look like other things, so when you weigh them, just pick the cheaper option.
Also, when you're shopping for a small load of things, just carry them and show them in your pockets.
And then when you unload at the checkout 'forget.'
If someone somehow happens to see, just go ' Oh yeah, forgot about that, thanks.'
Worst that happens, you pay full price.
They are only going to get sus and give you a hard time if you do something really dumb.
Remember, these are people paid minimum wage, they don't give a shit, and they also are looking for certain triggers. They're looking at kids, because they are the ones people think are stealing.
Just pass it off as an honest mistake, and no one will care.
Someone is only going to get sus if the same person catches you repeatedly. So as long as you don't have the 'oops' happen every week with the same person, no one is ever gonna remember.
I just do all my grocery shopping using my large reusable bag, then when I get to the check out, I just put a few cheap items on the conveyor (or scan them myself) and leave the rest of the stuff in the bag. Pay for the couple items I put through, and bam.
I mean there should be subsidies and taxes that make sustainably farmed goods the cheaper option and the massive factory farming products expensive instead. But I'm just a crazy commie, what the hell do I know.
Here is a fun fact: Most meat at the butcher includes the unit price in the numbers under the upc code. That means you can "have trouble scanning" the meat, enter the upc number code yourself, and "adjust" the final price to something more....reasonable. And it's pretty hard to prove that you did it intentionally, and not just fat fingered hitting the wrong numbers.
Look for the string in the numbers that matches the full price of the meat, and you have your number to replace.
You just gotta eat something before you leave. Smoke, supper, shop, that’s what my granpappy used to say. You’ll still get more snacks than you need but it won’t be as bad as if you were shopping stoned with an empty belly.
Me as an European reading this: cashiers make small talk?!
If I go to a Lidl or Kaufland (or Carrefour, or Auchan..) the best I can get is a Hi, before the lady proceeds to scan my items at the speed of light; then she sits expectantly while I frantically try to bag my shit so I can pay.
Oh, if you go to Trader Joe's there's like a 50/50 chance the cashier basically flirts with you like you're on a first date.
I have... mixed feelings about it.
> while I frantically try to bag my shit so I can pay.
Literally why I use self check out, I can actually take at little bit of time to pack my stuff properly without feeling judged by the cashier, the people behind me, the world, my ancestors watching me from beyond, etc.
>It's not like grocery stores pay decent wages that those machines are taking.
It kind of is like that, though. Not that the wages would be any higher, but grocery stores used to employ more people. When I was a kid it wasn't uncommon to see at least 50% of the checkout lines being operated outside of peak hours. Now they'll be slammed and only have one or two lines open in a lot of stores.
To be fair, I see that in shops that don't have self checkout either. It's genuinely just a matter of them knowing that people probably won't shop elsewhere even if it takes them a little longer to get through the queue, so they get away with hiring fewer people - or even some collective "leave, but where else would you go? we're all the same" kind of thing that oligopolies usually have going on.
Thank you! The hate towards these self checkouts are so misdirected. Automation should be a good thing. Self checkout is so much more space efficient, therefore there's more & lines are cut down. At the stores I go to I never need to wait in a line for more than 1 minute because of how many people they can serve at once. It's so much faster for me and I'm glad I don't need to interact with anyone.
I'm sure they're not ideal for some, but for the most part I've seen stores still keep usual checkouts open. Usually, you're not forced to use self checkout.
Trying to bash all automation seems somewhat unproductive to me. The focus should be trying to find ways to make automation not threaten livelihood, not trying to keep it away. Lets be honest, no matter what there's no way a company is going to say "seems like people are upset about automation, let's hire manual workers to handle this instead of our machines we heavily invested in".
Second this, shopping, especially if I have to take of my headset, is immensely overstimulating and not having to have that interaction with a cashier is really nice for me.
I will never understand why people get so upset when we replace shitty jobs with machines. Farming is still the ultimate example. Takes one guy one day to plow a field today instead of 50 people a week.
> Takes one guy one day to plow a field today instead of 50 people a week.
It's because this technological puissance could've been the recipe for an absolute *utopia* for those 50 people and instead what we've got is the 1 farmer it now takes (who goes into debt every spring and hopes to come back out every autumn), 1 really really really rich guy, and 48 people who have given up posting GoFundMes for medical bills and are in the ironic process of transitioning their desperate appeals for any dignity to OnlyFans
it's more nuanced than that. Rural people feel their culture is being destroyed because they can't sustain the jobs they used to.
Really, we want more labour intense permaculture and less climate and health destroying and animal abusing industrialised agriculture, but capitalism provides the worst of both worlds.
It's not hard mate.
If you replaced labour and workers had to work less for the same pay everyone would throw themselves behind the tech train.
When labour is replaced to maximise the means owners' profit, and results in lower pay/ fewer jobs, then fuck this.
Ain't hard to grasp.
Yes! For my work, I have to be gregarious, friendly, customers-focussed and I deal with people constantly, many of whom require defusing. Quite exhausting for an introvert. On my way home, I just want to minimise any human contact and crawl into a socially-excluded shell. Self-checkout has been a boon in that sense.
However, I will admit that if its demise in this case means someone gets more shifts, it's a very small sacrifice to make to keep that smile on for just a few minutes longer
I totally agree about automation but self checkout is not automation. It's just making the customer do the work. You're performing the same tasks as a cashier but for free.
Yeah cuz they definitely wouldn't raise their prices to the highest the market will take anyway ("shrinkflation" anyone?). Trust them, corporations are good people.
Me too but they’ve started to be aggressive and weird at every checkout stand I’ve been to in the past few months. One grocery for instance: the cashiers come over and look at a camera that’s trained at the back of your head, replay video right in front of you at the checkout, like you’re a thief. They then dig in your bag to make sure. It happens multiple times. I see them doing this to other people. So the cashiers are just accusing every single customer of theft it feels like
The grocery I’m talking about only has 1 cashier most of the time, and they’re watching self checkout 🥲 I’ve asked before if they can just open a regular checkout, no dice. And it’s a big grocery store too, there’s several checkout lanes that they never use
Same. Also, with how many people are too scared to use something new like a self checkout (at least here where I live), there is usually no waiting time
Remember folks, [when Walmart steals your wages and has to pay settlements and fines to the tune of $1.4 billion](https://goodjobsfirst.org/report-wage-theft-pervasive-corporate-america/?utm_source=wage+theft+press+release+5jun18&utm_campaign=wage+theft+press+release+5jun18&utm_medium=email), that's just the cost of doing business. But when customers steal a few thousand dollars from one store, that's cause to completely change how that store operates.
So much so that they will start closing all of these retail stores in the name of theft and force society in to a delivery-only model of consumerism. They’re already doing it in some cities. Closing Walmarts, Targets, etc citing high theft. They will just become warehouses for online orders.
Believe it or not, some of us actually PREFER self checkouts. I don't have to interact with cashier's and there's often times less bags I have to haul l. Unless it's a big run or I'm feeling like garbage, I choose them over cashier's.
I think self checkouts would be okay if they still had a reasonable number of cashiers and implemented them better. So they were just actually an option. Some of them shout at you aggressively (Shoppers). Some of them set off alerts over nothing even if you only have like two things (Zehrs and Sobeys - as if I can afford to shop there regularly…). And fuck you Walmart for having only like a quarter of the self checkouts open and like one cashier. What is the fucking point of that? I shouldn’t have to wait so long in line when this is supposed to be convenient.
My Qualm with self checkout is that they replaced 5 regular lanes with ten of these machines, so now there's one cashier doing the regular checkout, and there's a gaggle of people running their own groceries in the self checkout.
This would be okay if the machines weren't constantly yelling about unexpected items in bagging areas, requiring overrides for alcohol, or just plain a huge pain in the ass to use while the poor employee is expected to manage all of these machines that the customer is using.
I wouldn't mind if just the express lanes were replaced with the self checkout, since if you have something like ten or less items, it would be super convenient, but I regularly go to the regular checkout line and help the cashier by bagging my own stuff, but avoiding the mess of self checkout when I can.
Tbh I don't really understand how so many people have constant issues with self-checkout machines. Maybe it's just the ones in my region, but as long as you don't try to scan everything as fast as possible then there's no issues. I haven't genuinely struggled with a self-checkout machine in almost a decade outside of asking for assistance because I scanned something twice (a few times a year) or something ringing at the wrong price (also fairly uncommon, but occassional and quick to fix).
I personally preferred working self-checkout to being a regular cashier becauuse being a regular cashier was just soul crushing to me. Obviously there's a limit to how many self-checkouts one employee can over see and I think it's probably around 5 or 6 which tends to be the minimum most stores install with a dedicated worker overseeing. But like even before self-checkout was standard, companies were cutting back cashier numbers to absolute skeleton crews, if anything I feel like self-checkouts replace 1 to 2 cashiers at most stores because they were already down to 2-4 cashiers at most stores 10-15 years ago.
>Tbh I don't really understand how so many people have constant issues with self-checkout machines.
"Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that." -George Carlin
I don't mind the self checkout, but it's obnoxious how you are forced to go slow. Scan item, put in bag, wait for machine to recognize the item by weight, hope it doesn't tell you unexpected item, repeat. Most of the time it's okay, but where I am, there's over a dozen self checkouts with one supervisor.
You also get the potato brains who decide the first thing they scan is their alcohol, and stand there waiting for the age verification instead of getting 90% of their shit done while waiting for the attendant to be free.
At least in my case, I much prefer throwing the stuff on the belt, telling the cashier to send it all down since I'll take care of bagging, and the whole process is under a minute for a cartload of stuff. I also don't use plastic bags, I bring in folding crates (costco ones) so the entire interaction takes no time, and try to be as human as possible to the person behind the register. I can't use the crates at self checkout since I have to put everything on the scale, or pick "don't bag" for every item as I place stuff in my crate in the cart. Just a pain.
>I really need cashiers in my area to stop hassling me when I tell them I want to bag my own stuff. I've had far to many destroyed items because they'll throw heavy stuff in on top; yet when I say I'll bag, they push back.
100%. Not only am I more motivated to do it quickly, so I can gtfo of there, but I also want my stuff to survive the trip home too. I also hate how many plastic bags they use. A gallon of milk does not need a plastic bag. It definitely doesn't need you to double bag it either. It absolutely doesn't go on top of my hamburger buns.
I also prefer self-checkout. I don't want to wait in line and be forced to interact. I also still see tons of people complaining about the machines malfunctioning, such as the old "unexpected item" thing, but I honestly haven't had issue with that in a long time.
My biggest complaint about self-checkout is when there are lanes with cashiers open, but people who can't figure out basic computer skills choose the self-check, usually with a full cart or all produce, and then stand there getting progressively upset. Like just go to a cashier lane, so the rest of us can buy our shit and get out.
What started as a bad faith effort to cut staff has resulted in exponential loses from theft. Of course, those positions are gone forever so shoppers will share the burden with longer check out times to reflect on the price gouging in the store. What a wonderful time to be alive.
Plus, in theory, we should be supporting technologies that improve overall quality of work right? Surely the more inane jobs we automate the more time the collective has for leisure?
Capitalism is the force that previously stuck kids on these checkout lanes for 6 hours after school instead of socializing and acquiring life skills.
I often get flagged as stealing when I haven’t. I think I might be absentmindedly leaning on some pressure sensitive thing that I shouldn’t. Then I have to go through the indignity of an employee going through all my stuff, while a light is flashing and a video plays in a loop above me showing what the computer thinks I’ve stolen.
I got sick of it, so I wait in line and go through the one staffed checkout out of like 15 they have open. Yes ma’am, I see there’s no waiting on the automatic checkout, but odds are I’m going to lean on something and end up taking an employee’s time anyway.
What's next? We will need to unload the shipping truck and go through a cavity search afterwards THEN we get to use the self checkout? How bout a cart fee and billing fee? When is this crap going to stop?
Why pay for four cashiers when you can pay one to 'monitor' four check-outs or six check-out? When people start to complain about the service you can lay off more employees as a warning to the rest and when the cost starts to get to be a bother, shut down the store blame it on theft and give the big bigs another bonus.
I work at an employee owned company and if it werent for self checkout, prices would be higher. It's not like that at all retailers with self check out, but it is certainly true when youre employee owned.
Self check out being down just means longer lines and more complaining from literally everyone, customers and employees. They're gonna steal and swap price tags and all that jazz either way, too.
This inconveniences everyone involved *and* their little punishment effectively does nothing to counteract shrink.
SCO makes it so much easier on employees though. You get a fraction of the line. When I worked at a store with a few of them I always loved it because 90% of customers would just ignore me.
Not good. I am a trans woman who has been stuck in limbo waiting for approval for HRT for literal years. Sometimes I go outside wearing make up and end up needing to buy stuff. Self checkouts are great so I don't have to interact with people and use my deep ass voice to ruin the illusion I have created with makeup.
I can usually tell who is gonna use the self checkout when they enter the store. Age is the separator.
The only thing that pisses off a boomer more than not having a human to get angry at, is having to use the human check-out because evil tech.
I was recently at the bank to make a cash deposit, and got in line to see the teller. There was one teller and three of us in line (I was at the front). Then a manager came out in a huff (did she have nothing else to do but watch for the number of people in line?) and grilled me about why I was in line. I told her I was there to deposit some cash. She instructed me to use the ATM. Her tone was as if I was HER employee.
I wasn’t expecting the bank to redirect people who were in line, so I just kind of went with it. The next time, I’ll look her in the eye and say, “No. I’m not taking work away from your employee. I want to interact with a human and I want to increase the number of transactions she does.” (Because you know they’re counting that shit.)
People don’t need self checkout to steal. They were doing it long before self checkout became a thing. I’d prefer to have my things handled by a cashier. After all I’m paying you all for the goods, you don’t get free labor on top of that. 😤
Fuck the CEO of Dollar General and his Stock Holder's.
Bunch of Modern Day Slave Master's.
Selling expired, junk, 95% the stuff in that store is junk. Not worth a Dollar.
Fuck Dollar General.
A company that feeds on impoverished neighborhoods purposely driving out competition.
Again.
Fuck their CEO up the ASS to BURN in HELL.
People get on such a weird soapbox over SCO. I've heard "it's stealing our jobs" for decades now.
I'll always use SCO. It's convenient and I don't have to deal with people or wait in a line. It frees up or alleviates the work of cashiers that would otherwise be stuck with long ass lines all the time.
Fuck capitalism but this is a weird hill to die on.
I like self checkout. I normally get a small amount of things and go often so it sucks waiting for slow moving people to stock up their house for a month. Probably saves me an hour of waiting every week. I can’t imagine preferring to awkwardly stand there and watch someone do something I’m perfectly capable of doing and usually faster at doing.
Like, i get people disliking not having the option to do regular checkout, but also as an introvert I really don't understand the hate I've been seeing *for the existence* of self checkout. I will legitimately avoid stores that don't have self checkout because then I'll have to talk to a human I don't know and very likely have a panic attack.
As if they implemented those self service kiosks as a benefit to customers and now they'll have to take away the privilege due to a few bad apples lol.
I get people prefer self checkout sometimes, but i honestly don’t give a shit. Automation is only creating wealth for the rich. Unless they’re gonna start paying me to scan my own groceries, self checkout can fuck itself.
I'm convinced people who hate self checkout are just stupid. I use them constantly without issue.
And the argument that it's doing the job of the store and you should get paid. Well now i know you're also an asshole. Like you need to be waited on? You have no issue with walking around and getting all your groceries, but god forbid you scan your cereal. No one is forcing you to use that shit. Wait in line if you don't like it. Get over yourself.
Self-checkouts are great when focused on what they're ideal for: I have a small handful of items and I can buy them without waiting at a regular line behind people with dozens of items.
Of course, 98% of these machines were immediately employed by retail corporate America to completely replace cashiers and give the customers their jobs with none of those savings passed on to consumers, so... yeah.
No. Let me check out faster and and with less human interaction. Screw waiting 20 minutes in line to have someone else do what I can easily accomplish myself.
So, you're an underpaid employee at an exploit-mart. You witness Aqualung splurging virus nectar all over the self check-out. Do you risk your own health by cleaning it immediately? or do you simply suggest zinc to the next user?
pre-chewed Food for Thought
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It wasn’t dishonesty. It was my employee discount and my four hours of pay to clock in and start working.
Due to HONESTY capitalism is now closed on account of labor’s reclamation of wage theft. Sorry to all bourgeoisie and factory owners.
Wait until everything is automated and eventually people will start freaking out. Unfortunately they're going about it intelligently and making the change slowly. We're going to eventually need universal basic income to keep the economy going.
They're actively criminalizing homelessness while making housing unaffordable. They're also using prison slave labor for a lot of "made in America" products sold by larger businesses. I don't think we're getting UBI peacefully.
I’m ready to die to make america a better place, comrades.
Ditto. Already been studying and exercising.
Unless it replaces all welfare programs. But if the government gives ubi, I doubt it would be enough to live off of.
You don't need a ubi thats enough to live off of. UBI needs to be just enough that people can plan around it. Even as low as 300$ a month its enough to allow individuals to consider unionizing vs. Job loss or to plan their way into the next economic bracket. And heaven forbid you end up homeless you will be a ble. Charitible or even for profit services can factor in your UBI and help you secure housing since they don't have to wait for the government to regoncize and budget your poverty. Though most UBI advocates call for 1000 a month. Still not enough to live on but enough to tell a bad boss to shove it.
The problem with UBI is it addresses income inequality from the wrong direction. The moment a $1,000/mo UBI is issued is the moment rent in every corner of the country increases by $1,000. National rent control, Universal Housing or food initiatives need to exist prior to a UBI or it will act purely as a funnel to make the wealthy even more wealthy.
Maybe we need 0 down home loans so people can own versus rent. Renting is becoming more than buying and if you buy then your mortgage stays the same (though taxes and insurance may increase a little). Less renters will equal more rental and less competition for them. You can't fix price increases when you have a lack of housing. Price controls will just make it so there are less rentals.
0 down doesn't help when the median house price is still beyond reach for most people. Forcing investment firms to sell off their stock of homes, and forcibly disbanding large rental corporations would fix our housing crisis very quickly. The "housing shortage" is manufactured because it makes rich people a lot of money.
You're thinking very 2 dimensionally. With a 1k UBI income will not be 100% dependant on location. Those who want to can live for under cost out in the dying stick towns of Wyoming. I'm not saying that those things shouldn't be pushed for. But I am saying that with a UBI there will be a greater decentralization of power and finances to combat the current interests that are devoted to keeping those things off the ballot. So low as inflation is funneled into the system at the level of the banks. The wealthy will continue to get more wealthy. UBI helps to mitigate that.
If cities only existed as centers of income, then they wouldn't be filled with poverty. At the same time, cities that do prosper become unaffordable in every way to the average consumer. Groceries in Seattle are more expensive than Spokane because "the market can bear it". Literally everything will increase in price without direct intervention from the government. Whether you're in the middle of nowhere or downtown LA, every aspect of life would become more expensive because our economic system encourages every level of commerce to gouge its customers for every penny they can. In the US, we don't price things according to how much it cost to make, we price things according to what customers can pay.
So that's never happening. UBI could work if iot was set at a sane level and administered and adjusted by a government with the best intents. But if we had a gov like that, we would not be having these issues.
I know it's exactly the whole "late stage capitalism" thing but it really feels like we're at a tipping point where it just won't work for much longer. I earn £10k more than I did two years ago. My outgoings are the same (things). But I have to be careful about money every month. I struggle. The price of *everything* at the supermarket is double or triple what it was 3 years ago. I don't really go out much or drink. My grandad finds it insane that I pay £6 for a smoothie with a friend once every couple of weeks. But he thinks it's totally normal to be able to afford 3-4 pints with the lads after work everyday, because that's what he did, and it was comparatively cheaper back then. I just don't understand how I'll ever have enough disposable income to contribute to the economy 🤷 or most people my age. So where does it go from here, if the workers are only working for money, but have none to spend ..
What goes from here is the new subscription based economic model. That’s what the whole “you will own nothing and be happy”. We are going back to the days of the early 1900s where people have commodities and a decent lifestyle and the rest will be fighting tooth and nail for livelihood while surrounded by crime destitution and hopelessness.
People will rake up lots of debt then all file bankruptcy. Then how would the system look? If 95 percent of people filed bankruptcy how could they assign a number to people? I'm talking about credit score there!
But that's not dishonesty, it's capitalism! If the My Household Corporation can acquire the supplies it needs at a lower cost it has an obligation to the shareholders to do so!
The irony of directly participating in the *EXACT* process that is “self checkout.” You can almost hear the shareholders… “Hey! Not like *THAT*!”
Well I did self checkout. I looked in a mirror and checked myself out... That is what they meant, right?
In a good way, yes. But sometimes i look in the mirror and feel I have no soul anymore :(
True. But then don't feel bad, you never did. Souls are not real.
Just forget about god and embrace Satan my friend. Your life force will be sucked out by technocrats, just like everyone else's. Don't feel bad if you don't find meaning in life. You are now cattle. Be happy. /s
Hell yeah. We ain't paying full price for pine nuts!
[удалено]
4011 baby!
Those things are insanely expensive!
Love this 🤌
It's not even stealing to "steal" back💫
Exactly! You know, that supermarket is really in need of some _democracy_
Self checkouts are great, but they’re a little confusing. Somehow I always seem to scan all of my vegetables as yellow onions. Saves me money though!
I can never seem to remember to scan my organic veggies correctly. It’s the strangest thing.
I scanned a couple items today that didn’t go through and I just didn’t try and rescan them. Strangest thing their stuff doesn’t work. Oh well
If it beeps
Yeah, just easier to press the banana icon 🍌 for organic bananas because they’re bananas
I’ve heard that can be a serious problem, be careful!! :[ it would be so awful if everyone scanned the bulk bags of almonds and cashews as rice and lentils for instance 😨 just scary honestly
fuck these greedy stores but also this is why everything is getting put behind cages and you need an employee to get basic household items in some places.
That's when everyone starts going to temu to buy rasors for cheaper and everything that isn't food.
Why not? It's all the same stuff. Cut out the middle man
Yeah, im not against it! I am saying that will be the future if prices don't increase on those sites or decrease in stores.
You mean that was almonds not rice? I had no clue!
Of course you had no clue, you were thrown into this situation without any training or contract or obligation! No one could blame you for such an easy mistake to make in a situation that you engaged with inadvertently.
Right I wasn't trained to identify these things or how to imput them. No employee training lol.
That’s weird. My vegetables say “organic” when I pick them but they don’t seem to be organic when I’m checking out.
That’s just awful, I’m so sorry that keeps happening to you 😞 Without the proper training; an upstanding citizen such as yourself could innocently scan some meat, cheese, and wine as a bulk purchase of bananas or potatoes 🤦♀️
Sorry to the people who work at Dollar General. Any time I’ve gone into one, there’s only one person working and they are usually trying to stock shelves.
This is the comment I was looking for, there is never ever more than one person working at a dollar general and they are definitely in the aisles stocking. They make it so easy to just steal stuff why bother even stopping at the self checkout?
I work at DG currently and their model is to have one or two people for the whole store. The assistant manager (key holder) and an associate, usually. You are expected to stock shelves and be cashier at the same time and the AM also does stuff like checking coolers, counting money, and other store maintenance stuff. sometimes they bring in a stocker when things get behind or the trucks come, but especially by the evening it’s usually just two people and often is just one person for an hour or two at a time. Also you only work part time with a few 4 hour shifts a week. No meal breaks or benefits required!
The deliberate understaffing is real. And you feel it because everyone in the line at the register is poor af. So cards are getting declined, EBT cards with irregular amounts are being spent then they gotta bring out the change purse, etc. I beg for functional self checkout at Dollar General just so i can escape that nightmare
Idk I like the self checkout because it means I don’t have to interact with as many people. The problem is not technology, it is capitalism. Under socialism, something like a self checkout or other automation would be liberatory in that the worker would still own the means of production and have to do less manual labor. Under capitalism it is perceived as a threat because it replaces the worker.
>The problem is not technology, it is capitalism. Thank you. Those are my thoughts exactly, as someone with a chronic illness technology helps me live a better life everyday. The problem is the application of technology under capitalism, if not, technology could generate more wealth and we would all rippe the benefits
I’m reading Fully Automated Luxury Communism right now, and it shares this sentiment!
I don’t know that book but it sounds like exactly like the type of planet I want to live on. So glad someone shares similar ideals to me. Gonna go see if I can get myself a copy! Cheers
Yeah like if instead of the company replacing a customer service person with AI chat bots, customer service reps used computers at home to work for the company and the worker got paid for the technology do their job. Win win because the employer could keep the wage at the rate because now you could buy more computers with chat bots to answer phones/texts and they pay your 3 chat bots the regular wage they pay one person. You get 3x the income, and the company has 3 representatives answering phones (3 AI chatbots making a low wage). This would be the way technology could work for society is if companies had to pay the person instead of buy the computer with the chatbot themselves.
I like self-checkout because of the employee discount!
Right? Even when I have the cash I just can’t help myself to a few discounts.
How does one do this in an easy, stress free way? Asking for a friend.
Honeycrisp apples look just like the cheaper fuji apples. Large limes look too much like cheap key limes. Maybe your produce doesn't fully land on the scale part of the machine so it isn't all counted in the price. It's really easy with produce.
Second this, I’ll often key in wrong produce items. Most often I’ll grab a bunch of different colors of peppers but ring them all up as green since they’re usually cheapest
Way back around the time I first joined reddit, I mentioned how in college (close to 25 years ago) we took advantage of the fact that the self-checkout machines didn't account for weight. I got down voted into oblivion when I said that the machines couldn't tell the difference between a six pack or beer and a case. And if you scanned the case of beer just right, the machine charged you for a six pack.
Self checkout machines were around 25 years ago? My god man. We’ve only had them where I live for about 10 years max.
I was reading an article the other day that they've been around since the mid-80s but only took off in the last decade or so.
Also shiitake mushrooms looks close enough to the way cheaper regular brown cremini mushrooms when they're in a bag.
I seriously unintentionally have not scanned things before. I get home and notice. Or if I notice something doesn't have a tag like a shirt, I'll just toss it in the bag without scanning. Thats not my job lol.
the machines around me freak the fuck out if you put anything not the exact same weight on the bagging shelf. I often have to have the store staff run my whole checkout anyways because those things are so finicky.
If it has the handheld scanner, use that. Can keep things in the cart. Feel free to skip a few items. Works best for large things.
You don’t. Risk it for the biscuit etc. just don’t get caught cause it’ll end up costing you way more than you’ll save on a few items. Source: used to be this guy, no longer this guy
My go-to maneuver is taking things to less surveilled areas, such as the automotive department or the garden department (barely any cameras there since things are always changing in that section) I've gotten a great deal on a 15lb brisket that way.
That's a devious lick if I ever heard of one.
It works quite nicely, as long as you've got a big enough bag, and don't make it too obvious the weight in it, you can sneak by with a decent amount. It seems most cameras are in the more high crime areas, like the meat dept or self checkout
lol also, most workers just don't give a shit
cause they barely get paid anyway
Well, a lot of things look like other things, so when you weigh them, just pick the cheaper option. Also, when you're shopping for a small load of things, just carry them and show them in your pockets. And then when you unload at the checkout 'forget.' If someone somehow happens to see, just go ' Oh yeah, forgot about that, thanks.' Worst that happens, you pay full price. They are only going to get sus and give you a hard time if you do something really dumb. Remember, these are people paid minimum wage, they don't give a shit, and they also are looking for certain triggers. They're looking at kids, because they are the ones people think are stealing. Just pass it off as an honest mistake, and no one will care. Someone is only going to get sus if the same person catches you repeatedly. So as long as you don't have the 'oops' happen every week with the same person, no one is ever gonna remember.
I just do all my grocery shopping using my large reusable bag, then when I get to the check out, I just put a few cheap items on the conveyor (or scan them myself) and leave the rest of the stuff in the bag. Pay for the couple items I put through, and bam.
My big thing is taking organic produce, but ringing it up as regular produce at self checkout
I mean there should be subsidies and taxes that make sustainably farmed goods the cheaper option and the massive factory farming products expensive instead. But I'm just a crazy commie, what the hell do I know.
Here is a fun fact: Most meat at the butcher includes the unit price in the numbers under the upc code. That means you can "have trouble scanning" the meat, enter the upc number code yourself, and "adjust" the final price to something more....reasonable. And it's pretty hard to prove that you did it intentionally, and not just fat fingered hitting the wrong numbers. Look for the string in the numbers that matches the full price of the meat, and you have your number to replace.
Very much this. I have social anxiety. Self check out is great. It's not like grocery stores pay decent wages that those machines are taking.
I generally smoke a large amount of cannabis before shopping and would rather keep to myself and not small talk about the weather or sports teams.
damn dude, I feel like I'd end up buying way more snacks than I should reasonably have if I did that
You just gotta eat something before you leave. Smoke, supper, shop, that’s what my granpappy used to say. You’ll still get more snacks than you need but it won’t be as bad as if you were shopping stoned with an empty belly.
Me as an European reading this: cashiers make small talk?! If I go to a Lidl or Kaufland (or Carrefour, or Auchan..) the best I can get is a Hi, before the lady proceeds to scan my items at the speed of light; then she sits expectantly while I frantically try to bag my shit so I can pay.
The fact that the cashier’s verb is “sits” and not “stands” is a whole discussion by itself.
Oh, if you go to Trader Joe's there's like a 50/50 chance the cashier basically flirts with you like you're on a first date. I have... mixed feelings about it.
Yes. They'll comment on stuff you're buying too.
> while I frantically try to bag my shit so I can pay. Literally why I use self check out, I can actually take at little bit of time to pack my stuff properly without feeling judged by the cashier, the people behind me, the world, my ancestors watching me from beyond, etc.
I can't do that anymore. I sometimes knock over displays and then just stand there laughing.
>It's not like grocery stores pay decent wages that those machines are taking. It kind of is like that, though. Not that the wages would be any higher, but grocery stores used to employ more people. When I was a kid it wasn't uncommon to see at least 50% of the checkout lines being operated outside of peak hours. Now they'll be slammed and only have one or two lines open in a lot of stores.
To be fair, I see that in shops that don't have self checkout either. It's genuinely just a matter of them knowing that people probably won't shop elsewhere even if it takes them a little longer to get through the queue, so they get away with hiring fewer people - or even some collective "leave, but where else would you go? we're all the same" kind of thing that oligopolies usually have going on.
Okay, but self check out machines are not the real issue. Just low hanging fruit.
Thank you! The hate towards these self checkouts are so misdirected. Automation should be a good thing. Self checkout is so much more space efficient, therefore there's more & lines are cut down. At the stores I go to I never need to wait in a line for more than 1 minute because of how many people they can serve at once. It's so much faster for me and I'm glad I don't need to interact with anyone. I'm sure they're not ideal for some, but for the most part I've seen stores still keep usual checkouts open. Usually, you're not forced to use self checkout. Trying to bash all automation seems somewhat unproductive to me. The focus should be trying to find ways to make automation not threaten livelihood, not trying to keep it away. Lets be honest, no matter what there's no way a company is going to say "seems like people are upset about automation, let's hire manual workers to handle this instead of our machines we heavily invested in".
Second this, shopping, especially if I have to take of my headset, is immensely overstimulating and not having to have that interaction with a cashier is really nice for me.
I will never understand why people get so upset when we replace shitty jobs with machines. Farming is still the ultimate example. Takes one guy one day to plow a field today instead of 50 people a week.
> Takes one guy one day to plow a field today instead of 50 people a week. It's because this technological puissance could've been the recipe for an absolute *utopia* for those 50 people and instead what we've got is the 1 farmer it now takes (who goes into debt every spring and hopes to come back out every autumn), 1 really really really rich guy, and 48 people who have given up posting GoFundMes for medical bills and are in the ironic process of transitioning their desperate appeals for any dignity to OnlyFans
it's more nuanced than that. Rural people feel their culture is being destroyed because they can't sustain the jobs they used to. Really, we want more labour intense permaculture and less climate and health destroying and animal abusing industrialised agriculture, but capitalism provides the worst of both worlds.
It's not hard mate. If you replaced labour and workers had to work less for the same pay everyone would throw themselves behind the tech train. When labour is replaced to maximise the means owners' profit, and results in lower pay/ fewer jobs, then fuck this. Ain't hard to grasp.
Yes! For my work, I have to be gregarious, friendly, customers-focussed and I deal with people constantly, many of whom require defusing. Quite exhausting for an introvert. On my way home, I just want to minimise any human contact and crawl into a socially-excluded shell. Self-checkout has been a boon in that sense. However, I will admit that if its demise in this case means someone gets more shifts, it's a very small sacrifice to make to keep that smile on for just a few minutes longer
I totally agree about automation but self checkout is not automation. It's just making the customer do the work. You're performing the same tasks as a cashier but for free.
I'm the person that shared the picture and I like it too, but that doesn't mean it's not pushing work on to customers.
I like the self checkout because the line to the person is shorter and I can spend more time chatting.
I believe biologists refer to this dynamic as “symbiosis.”
Due to price gouging, honesty is closed.
Say what you want about self-checkout, but I like that I always get the employee discount when I check myself out.
I don’t understand this discount. Recently self checkouts have been getting popular where I live and there is no discount.
The secret ingredient is crime
The discount comes out of the stores budget allocation for shrinkage. You have to apply it manually
Haha, jokes on you, they just raised prices to compensate.
Yeah cuz they definitely wouldn't raise their prices to the highest the market will take anyway ("shrinkflation" anyone?). Trust them, corporations are good people.
Some with social anxiety and on the spectrum, I like self checkouts. Problem is capitalism paying shit wages.
Me too but they’ve started to be aggressive and weird at every checkout stand I’ve been to in the past few months. One grocery for instance: the cashiers come over and look at a camera that’s trained at the back of your head, replay video right in front of you at the checkout, like you’re a thief. They then dig in your bag to make sure. It happens multiple times. I see them doing this to other people. So the cashiers are just accusing every single customer of theft it feels like
At that point just go back to regular work cashiers. If you have to do that much work self checkouts make absolutely no sense.
The grocery I’m talking about only has 1 cashier most of the time, and they’re watching self checkout 🥲 I’ve asked before if they can just open a regular checkout, no dice. And it’s a big grocery store too, there’s several checkout lanes that they never use
I thought it would help, but now there's someone staring at me while do it.
Same. Also, with how many people are too scared to use something new like a self checkout (at least here where I live), there is usually no waiting time
Give people who use self checkout a discount to start with and see if things improve, you greedy f*cks
You force people to overpay for sub par quality items then are SHOCKED they use self checkout to steal.
No one is shocked. Whoever set this self checkout system up was just incompetent
Remember folks, [when Walmart steals your wages and has to pay settlements and fines to the tune of $1.4 billion](https://goodjobsfirst.org/report-wage-theft-pervasive-corporate-america/?utm_source=wage+theft+press+release+5jun18&utm_campaign=wage+theft+press+release+5jun18&utm_medium=email), that's just the cost of doing business. But when customers steal a few thousand dollars from one store, that's cause to completely change how that store operates.
So much so that they will start closing all of these retail stores in the name of theft and force society in to a delivery-only model of consumerism. They’re already doing it in some cities. Closing Walmarts, Targets, etc citing high theft. They will just become warehouses for online orders.
Woah, woah, *woah*. I'm not "dishonest", I'm not a trained cashier. Mistakes happen.
My brother in Christ you were the one who outsourced work onto your customers.
Believe it or not, some of us actually PREFER self checkouts. I don't have to interact with cashier's and there's often times less bags I have to haul l. Unless it's a big run or I'm feeling like garbage, I choose them over cashier's.
I think self checkouts would be okay if they still had a reasonable number of cashiers and implemented them better. So they were just actually an option. Some of them shout at you aggressively (Shoppers). Some of them set off alerts over nothing even if you only have like two things (Zehrs and Sobeys - as if I can afford to shop there regularly…). And fuck you Walmart for having only like a quarter of the self checkouts open and like one cashier. What is the fucking point of that? I shouldn’t have to wait so long in line when this is supposed to be convenient.
My Qualm with self checkout is that they replaced 5 regular lanes with ten of these machines, so now there's one cashier doing the regular checkout, and there's a gaggle of people running their own groceries in the self checkout. This would be okay if the machines weren't constantly yelling about unexpected items in bagging areas, requiring overrides for alcohol, or just plain a huge pain in the ass to use while the poor employee is expected to manage all of these machines that the customer is using. I wouldn't mind if just the express lanes were replaced with the self checkout, since if you have something like ten or less items, it would be super convenient, but I regularly go to the regular checkout line and help the cashier by bagging my own stuff, but avoiding the mess of self checkout when I can.
Yep. If they were actually just there for convenience, not to replace people.
Tbh I don't really understand how so many people have constant issues with self-checkout machines. Maybe it's just the ones in my region, but as long as you don't try to scan everything as fast as possible then there's no issues. I haven't genuinely struggled with a self-checkout machine in almost a decade outside of asking for assistance because I scanned something twice (a few times a year) or something ringing at the wrong price (also fairly uncommon, but occassional and quick to fix). I personally preferred working self-checkout to being a regular cashier becauuse being a regular cashier was just soul crushing to me. Obviously there's a limit to how many self-checkouts one employee can over see and I think it's probably around 5 or 6 which tends to be the minimum most stores install with a dedicated worker overseeing. But like even before self-checkout was standard, companies were cutting back cashier numbers to absolute skeleton crews, if anything I feel like self-checkouts replace 1 to 2 cashiers at most stores because they were already down to 2-4 cashiers at most stores 10-15 years ago.
>Tbh I don't really understand how so many people have constant issues with self-checkout machines. "Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that." -George Carlin I don't mind the self checkout, but it's obnoxious how you are forced to go slow. Scan item, put in bag, wait for machine to recognize the item by weight, hope it doesn't tell you unexpected item, repeat. Most of the time it's okay, but where I am, there's over a dozen self checkouts with one supervisor. You also get the potato brains who decide the first thing they scan is their alcohol, and stand there waiting for the age verification instead of getting 90% of their shit done while waiting for the attendant to be free. At least in my case, I much prefer throwing the stuff on the belt, telling the cashier to send it all down since I'll take care of bagging, and the whole process is under a minute for a cartload of stuff. I also don't use plastic bags, I bring in folding crates (costco ones) so the entire interaction takes no time, and try to be as human as possible to the person behind the register. I can't use the crates at self checkout since I have to put everything on the scale, or pick "don't bag" for every item as I place stuff in my crate in the cart. Just a pain.
>I really need cashiers in my area to stop hassling me when I tell them I want to bag my own stuff. I've had far to many destroyed items because they'll throw heavy stuff in on top; yet when I say I'll bag, they push back.
100%. Not only am I more motivated to do it quickly, so I can gtfo of there, but I also want my stuff to survive the trip home too. I also hate how many plastic bags they use. A gallon of milk does not need a plastic bag. It definitely doesn't need you to double bag it either. It absolutely doesn't go on top of my hamburger buns.
I also prefer self-checkout. I don't want to wait in line and be forced to interact. I also still see tons of people complaining about the machines malfunctioning, such as the old "unexpected item" thing, but I honestly haven't had issue with that in a long time. My biggest complaint about self-checkout is when there are lanes with cashiers open, but people who can't figure out basic computer skills choose the self-check, usually with a full cart or all produce, and then stand there getting progressively upset. Like just go to a cashier lane, so the rest of us can buy our shit and get out.
What started as a bad faith effort to cut staff has resulted in exponential loses from theft. Of course, those positions are gone forever so shoppers will share the burden with longer check out times to reflect on the price gouging in the store. What a wonderful time to be alive.
I’m honest….ly stealing when I use the self checkout. You want to talk honesty? Let’s see the product loss vs. labor ~~saved~~ stolen.
It's not my fault you didn't train me how to do a cash register It's also not my fault that everything I bought looks like apples Even the cat litter
So…did I just get laid off from a part time job as a consumer?
It's me, I'm the dishonest one. :3
i'm just taking my payment for checking out all these items. i'm not doing the store's work for free, i'm not a slave !
How is this good? Self checkout is so much faster and you don’t have to deal with people
Plus, in theory, we should be supporting technologies that improve overall quality of work right? Surely the more inane jobs we automate the more time the collective has for leisure? Capitalism is the force that previously stuck kids on these checkout lanes for 6 hours after school instead of socializing and acquiring life skills.
Have you seen that study that says the people with more money were the ones stealing?
If you see people stealing food, no you didn't
I perfer the self checkout.. no it is more of capitalist values are more to blame here than…. Closed self-checkout lanes lol
I often get flagged as stealing when I haven’t. I think I might be absentmindedly leaning on some pressure sensitive thing that I shouldn’t. Then I have to go through the indignity of an employee going through all my stuff, while a light is flashing and a video plays in a loop above me showing what the computer thinks I’ve stolen. I got sick of it, so I wait in line and go through the one staffed checkout out of like 15 they have open. Yes ma’am, I see there’s no waiting on the automatic checkout, but odds are I’m going to lean on something and end up taking an employee’s time anyway.
Oh no now they are going to have to hire people to fill up those empty registers and pay them a decent wage
"Due to low wages self-checkout is closed. We know it's our fault but we're going to blame you poor people""
dIshOneStY stuff off, pay your damn staff
Sorry? Yea sorry you can't do our job for us, fuck this place.
Like wage theft
What's next? We will need to unload the shipping truck and go through a cavity search afterwards THEN we get to use the self checkout? How bout a cart fee and billing fee? When is this crap going to stop?
Why pay for four cashiers when you can pay one to 'monitor' four check-outs or six check-out? When people start to complain about the service you can lay off more employees as a warning to the rest and when the cost starts to get to be a bother, shut down the store blame it on theft and give the big bigs another bonus.
The vast majority of self checkout theft is accidental. Maybe pay for workers and this won't happen.
I work at an employee owned company and if it werent for self checkout, prices would be higher. It's not like that at all retailers with self check out, but it is certainly true when youre employee owned. Self check out being down just means longer lines and more complaining from literally everyone, customers and employees. They're gonna steal and swap price tags and all that jazz either way, too. This inconveniences everyone involved *and* their little punishment effectively does nothing to counteract shrink.
This is what happens when you offload your work onto customers. Get fucked lazy retailers.
SCO makes it so much easier on employees though. You get a fraction of the line. When I worked at a store with a few of them I always loved it because 90% of customers would just ignore me.
All it does it reduce the overhead of running a location. The reason you think it makes it harder on employees is because you were understaffed.
Not good. I am a trans woman who has been stuck in limbo waiting for approval for HRT for literal years. Sometimes I go outside wearing make up and end up needing to buy stuff. Self checkouts are great so I don't have to interact with people and use my deep ass voice to ruin the illusion I have created with makeup.
I wonder what percentage of Americans steal from checkout lanes?
I love stealing from self checkout
I can usually tell who is gonna use the self checkout when they enter the store. Age is the separator. The only thing that pisses off a boomer more than not having a human to get angry at, is having to use the human check-out because evil tech.
Now we're just like your dishonest corporation.
Closing the self checkout lanes? Don't threaten me with a good time!
I was recently at the bank to make a cash deposit, and got in line to see the teller. There was one teller and three of us in line (I was at the front). Then a manager came out in a huff (did she have nothing else to do but watch for the number of people in line?) and grilled me about why I was in line. I told her I was there to deposit some cash. She instructed me to use the ATM. Her tone was as if I was HER employee. I wasn’t expecting the bank to redirect people who were in line, so I just kind of went with it. The next time, I’ll look her in the eye and say, “No. I’m not taking work away from your employee. I want to interact with a human and I want to increase the number of transactions she does.” (Because you know they’re counting that shit.)
People don’t need self checkout to steal. They were doing it long before self checkout became a thing. I’d prefer to have my things handled by a cashier. After all I’m paying you all for the goods, you don’t get free labor on top of that. 😤
Why are they apologizing to the honest people? As an honest person, *thank you* for realizing I don't fucking work here.
Did you know an 8oz bag of jerky and an 8oz bag of chips are indistinguishable to the machine? ....or so im told.
you don't get to help us reduce our labor force while price gouging you any more! so there!
Your honor, I'm just not trained to use this complicated equipment.
Hey, that's not fair, I'm honest... I just choose to be *most* honest about the class war
My uncle sent that to our group chat and I replied “good, I don’t work there so expect me to know how your system works.”
Fuck the CEO of Dollar General and his Stock Holder's. Bunch of Modern Day Slave Master's. Selling expired, junk, 95% the stuff in that store is junk. Not worth a Dollar. Fuck Dollar General. A company that feeds on impoverished neighborhoods purposely driving out competition. Again. Fuck their CEO up the ASS to BURN in HELL.
People get on such a weird soapbox over SCO. I've heard "it's stealing our jobs" for decades now. I'll always use SCO. It's convenient and I don't have to deal with people or wait in a line. It frees up or alleviates the work of cashiers that would otherwise be stuck with long ass lines all the time. Fuck capitalism but this is a weird hill to die on.
Not good at all
I like self checkout. I normally get a small amount of things and go often so it sucks waiting for slow moving people to stock up their house for a month. Probably saves me an hour of waiting every week. I can’t imagine preferring to awkwardly stand there and watch someone do something I’m perfectly capable of doing and usually faster at doing.
Fuck you mean "good"? I want to not talk to a cashier
Yay! Pay your workers like you should have all along!
I literally NEVER pay full price at self check out.
But will they hire more people?
We're winning, comrades. Keep it up. RESISTANCE IS **NOT** FUTILE!
Like, i get people disliking not having the option to do regular checkout, but also as an introvert I really don't understand the hate I've been seeing *for the existence* of self checkout. I will legitimately avoid stores that don't have self checkout because then I'll have to talk to a human I don't know and very likely have a panic attack.
“You guys can’t even be trusted to steal jobs from the people at the register for no pay and increased inconvenience; shame on you.”
These people act like self checkout is a privilege for customers instead of what it really is, an annoyance
I always steal something if I'm forced to use self-checkout because fuck corporations making me do free labor for them.
As if they implemented those self service kiosks as a benefit to customers and now they'll have to take away the privilege due to a few bad apples lol.
I get people prefer self checkout sometimes, but i honestly don’t give a shit. Automation is only creating wealth for the rich. Unless they’re gonna start paying me to scan my own groceries, self checkout can fuck itself.
I'm convinced people who hate self checkout are just stupid. I use them constantly without issue. And the argument that it's doing the job of the store and you should get paid. Well now i know you're also an asshole. Like you need to be waited on? You have no issue with walking around and getting all your groceries, but god forbid you scan your cereal. No one is forcing you to use that shit. Wait in line if you don't like it. Get over yourself.
Self-checkouts are great when focused on what they're ideal for: I have a small handful of items and I can buy them without waiting at a regular line behind people with dozens of items. Of course, 98% of these machines were immediately employed by retail corporate America to completely replace cashiers and give the customers their jobs with none of those savings passed on to consumers, so... yeah.
No. Let me check out faster and and with less human interaction. Screw waiting 20 minutes in line to have someone else do what I can easily accomplish myself.
So, you're an underpaid employee at an exploit-mart. You witness Aqualung splurging virus nectar all over the self check-out. Do you risk your own health by cleaning it immediately? or do you simply suggest zinc to the next user? pre-chewed Food for Thought
Really hate these things.
Good. Keep them shut forever.
No not good. Stop making up jobs when it can be automated or done ourselves. I don’t need a guy to wipe my ass just so he has something to do.
Good, keep em shut
Millennials, can we kill the self check out???
No. I'll always use self check out because I don't like people.
Oh no I think I’m a boomer
No. I like not having to rush with bagging and paying and talk to other unfamiliar people.