Personal experience: I work as a cashier at Walmart

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I am an employee of a huge corporation with several million employees. It is among the top five US companies. Like Apple, like Microsoft. This is a walmart. I work here in Indiana as a cashier. I work and watch you, buyers.

For those who like to communicate with people or watch people, this is not a bad job at all. Some people attribute strange characteristics to Walmart shoppers, and there's even a popular community, in which they laugh at the customers of this chain. But in reality, people go to Walmart just like any other store. There are well-mannered and educated people, and there are boors; there are friendly people, and there are rude people. I have already noticed that those who start to be rude are those who try not to pay for something or get a discount that is not really due. The main thing that is required of a cashier at work is to be patient and smile. Even when they are rude to you.

Of course, in no case can one comment on what lies in the customer’s cart, so all remarks are made mentally. And in the carts are mountains of very unhealthy foods.

They buy cola in packs, and every second person buys sandwiches the size of a whole loaf. Rarely does a customer approach the checkout without semi-finished products, a mountain of cookies and buns, chips, and instant pasta.

Of the 50 items in the check, there can be only a percentage of 10 healthy and wholesome food. Buyers who, as can be judged by the products, think about proper nutrition, healthy breakfasts for children or better quality dairy products, can be counted on the fingers. For the 2 of the year that I work at Walmart, there have been a few.

People often ask me: why Walmart, can’t I find a better job? I’ll say right away - this is my first job in America. Here they were undemanding about my English, at the interview they asked very simple questions, and then I could walk around with a dictionary. Many people don’t stay in this kind of work for more than six months, tighten up their skills and go elsewhere. But I got involved. Although there are not many bonuses here. But the downsides... Judge for yourself.

It’s impossible to sit down during an 8-hour working day. My legs are buzzing in the evening. Nobody offers to buy products in their own store at a big discount, these are all myths. If you work for 90 days, they give you a card for a 10% discount, but it cannot be used to buy groceries - only for other goods.

No wonder that store employees often and publicly complain about working conditions and minimal pay. And the scanty salary is due to the fact that most of the cashiers are not hired full-time, but only part-time. Under this condition, the law allows not to pay extra for work on weekends or at night, not to supplement the salary with bonuses.

You also don’t have to choose your shift yourself. You won’t guess what shift you’ll be on in a month. If you are not ready to work on weekends, you don’t even have to start, because every employee gets a shift on a day off from time to time. And if you need time off or an unscheduled day off, you need to notify about this 21 days in advance. You can count on your first vacation only after a year of work. It will be 2 weeks. After working for a year, you can already apply for promotion. For those working half a shift (this is 4-5 hours), there is one 15-minute break, and those who work a full shift have two rests. The rest of the time I am on my feet. You've probably noticed that cashiers in stores always work standing. The buyer stands, and you stand. This is the policy and this is a gesture of respect for the buyer.

Of course, you want a respectful attitude in return. I’ll share one observation: many Walmart salespeople are immigrants like me, for whom this is their first temporary and casual job. And among them there are many educated and interesting people.

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