Gentle reminder to not be a scrooge to service workers
Editorial
It’s that time of year! Snow is falling, stockings are being hung, and most importantly, last-minute shoppers are making purchases at stores across the globe.
Customers rush into stores to grab the latest new toy or refresh their website every minute to not miss that Cyber Monday deal. After a long day of shopping, you might find yourself sitting in a drive-thru line for an afternoon snack. Wherever you’re shopping from, it’s important to be considerate of the people working to meet your service and shopping needs.
Ryan Morgan is GM/Franchise Store Manager at Little Caesars located in Bay City, Mich. Morgan shared his experience with what restaurants deal with during the holidays.
“Black Friday is usually the catalyst, you have a lot of customers coming in after shopping all morning that just want to get their food and go home and relax.” Morgan said.
With the increased load of relatives coming to town, dining out or ordering in can be hectic in the numerous food kitchens across the country. Restaurants can end up packed with customers waiting for their food. Because of this, wait times can end up being above average.
“Customers should expect that their waiting time might be extended when we are busy,” Morgan said. “This is where some customers’ impatience kicks in a bit more; I understand their frustration at times, but we are one of the busiest pizza places in town on a Friday night. [In this industry] dealing with difficult customers is just sometimes part of the business.”
When ordering online, the packages you order don’t just magically show up at your doorstep. According to USPS, around 23.5 million packages get processed and delivered each day with 6,600 USPS workers making deliveries entirely on foot.
Ryan Peplinski, a FedEx driver, has been working with the company since August 2023. This is his second time working through the holiday season.
“There is a definite change in business once Black Friday hits. We start working Sundays, and the volume of packages skyrockets up. Our contract likes to have every driver around or below 120 stops, depending on the location,” Peplinski said. “Because of the holiday season, we are going out with 140-160 stops every day. [On Dec. 9th], we had drivers above 200 stops.”
Even with the busy season, Peplinski says people are usually nicer, and may even give out gifts as a thank you. This kindness can go a long way for service and retail workers putting in extra work during the holiday rush.
“Many customers leave snacks and drinks; I have been personally tipped by people. Last year, a family asked me to take a photo for their holiday dinner, and afterward, they gave me a slice of pie,” Peplinski said. “Customers have been great, and I appreciate their patience and graciousness.”
It can be easy to take your frustration out on other people amidst the holiday stress, but these workers are dealing with enough chaos already. During the height of the holiday season, remember the people behind the counter are your neighbors and community members who need empathy too.
