Technology

I like self checkout as an option, almost everywhere.

I DON'T like REQUIRED self checkout.

O green peppers are 99 cents each but red and yellow are 1.29? That's so weird all these peppers I'm buying are green.

Fuck you, I'm the cashier now.

At Costco it's great minus the membership checks. Thanks this was a quick process, now let me stop and take my card out so you can see I'm not stealing deals.

Walmart, fuck you hire more cashier's why am I waiting 10 minutes to checkout at self checkout when you have 50 closed fucking lanes!

I have no sympathy for companies losing money due to theft at self-checkout, it's a cost saving measure that's bitten them in the ass.

They also suck for alcohol, or anything that doesn't have a barcode, as mentioned in the story. I never buy either of those products at self checkout.

Remember kids, if you see someone shoplifting or switching the barcodes at your big-box self-checkout: No you didn't.

No they aren't they are gonna lean in even harder what a dumbass story. One time fixed cost will always win over paying people in perpetuity

unexpected item in the bagging area. place items in the bagging area. unexpected item in the bagging area.

In my experience, self-checkout started with the weight sensors, rather than adding them later. I've noticed some stores have a system now without the weight thing, which probably cuts down on confusing and time-consuming error situations, but it makes it seem chaotic. My parents use them in the most fucked up way - leave everything in the cart, scan stuff, bag it, then put it in the cart, and I'm just WHAT? Aren't they going to accuse you of stealing? Some walmarts aggressively pursue claims of theft from self checkout, like in the case of this lady who was awarded 2.1 million after being accused of stealing, which she said was not true. This article details the story of a lady who said she was arrested after not scanning things by accident, and the article notes "Sixty-two other people were cited and released by police at the same Tucson Walmart between January 2021 and April 2022."

During the civil trial, which lasted about three weeks, the judge criticized Walmart for the “intentional loss” of the security camera footage, according to court records. The judge, James T. Patterson, said that the court would advise the jury that the videotapes “were destroyed by the defendants with the intent” to deprive the plaintiff of the benefit of seeing them “and that the jury therefore is to presume that the content of the missing videos would be adverse” to the defendants.

Walmart also is starting to use 'AI' to detect self checkout theft, which I'm sure will be foolproof and work out great.

And if you're wondering which item causes the most problems, it's milk. O'Herlihy explains, "People find it hard to scan milk ... Sometimes they get frustrated and they just don't scan it."

What?

Anyway, I'm sure they love not paying employees to do this, but it seems like more trouble than it's worth.

At my Walmart the employees don’t stop people from stealing food. They told me as much.

Jokes on them, I shoplift at the staffed checkout too.

Walmarts's self checkout is the only one in my area that doesn't frustrate the hell out of me. I've stopped going to certain other stores simply because I don't like their self checkout systems.

Don’t get it. Sam’s and BJs both have scanning apps on the phone. Most amazing tech ever! Costco… HURRY UP! Also, Sam’s and Bjs don’t check my card because I WOULDNT BE ABLE TO BUY ANYTHING WITHOUT THE CARD ANYWAYS… Costco!!

As long as shrink stays below what they save by removing cashiers they will stay. It may be location specific removals at high shrink stores.

The only reason for Costco to do this would be theft prevention or to make sure members are the only ones using their cards.

Literally the opposite is happening. Look at any busy store: self checkout can handle like 10 people, compared to registers which are significantly less at any given time. Registers account for much less business, and corporations are going to try and get by the minimal amount of employees as possible to function. Handling physical cash also adds more complexity with tills having to be deposited, audited, and withdrawn daily.

Replace them with “no chit chat” lanes. I’m just buying some pasta, I don’t want to talk to you.

I don't use self checkouts because I hate trying to get those fucking bags open.

Also give cashiers chairs.

I avoid self-checkout as often as possible. In my mind, that’s taking a job away from a physical person, it’s a cost-savings for the retailer, but customers never see any benefit from it. I choose the person checkout everytime as my little bit of solidarity with my fellow humans.

yeeeeah. They'll have to hire people to work the checkout lanes in that case... which means paying enough to compete with other employers who offer more. Case in point, here it's like 12/hr here to work in a grocery, vs 16/hr at Amazon. But even if they do this, people will still shoplift. Self checkout didn't create the problem, it rather treats everyone like a suspect.

The grocery I go to never has more than one staffed checkout lane at any time, typically a very long line of people too old, too stubborn, or with too many items to do it themselves. During the day it's 8 or 16 self-checkout lanes (minus broke ones), and they close in the evening, so everyone is forced to use the slow staffed checkout.

I guess there is good and bad with either style. I generally prefer the self checkout because I can bag my own stuff