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How should I respond to getting asked to show a receipt at Wal-Mart?
It happened for the first time in my life today, and I go to Wal-Mart probably more than any other store. I feel offended. Wal-Mart is not like Costco, where workers always check receipts, so I feel like I was discriminated. I was taken aback, I thought the greeter was just going to say "good-bye" like they normally do, but then he asked me to show my receipt for literally $7 worth of items, in bags. I did self-checkout and then walked to the other side of the store, because it was heavily raining and I wanted to be closer to my car. I've done that a lot, actually, and never envisioned that could potentially come across as suspicious. But then the guy says I could have just somehow snuck in items and eluded all of the other Wal-Mart employees that would have seen me from the self-check out area all the way to the other side of the store. If that ever happens to me again, in any store in where receipt showing is not routine, I'll say to only show my receipt to them at the line for returns, and then vow to never again visit their location. Is this a fair response? I was wearing gym clothes, but I didn't look sloppy. I don't see why I would be singled out without any probable cause, but the assumption by the worker that I inherently would think to steal $7 worth of items, based on thin air. I work and have a clean criminal record. Unless that employee asks every single person who walks out that door to show their receipt, how is it not discrimination? Do I have any grounds to complain to a manager? I'd like to know that specific chain's policy. It's one way or the other. Either it makes sense they should ask all people to show their receipts, or they should ask nobody, unless there is actual probable cause other than some kind of random stereotype pulled out of that greeter's ass.
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I wouldn't be too offended or take it as a personal affront to your dignity if I were you. I'd assume that if the greeter asked to see a receipt then they were not steping outside their authority, so making a formal complaint will probably not achieve anything either. And I doubt you'd have any grounds to claim discrimination. All stores have to deal with theft from the shelves (termed 'shoplifting' in the UK) and it costs them a fair bit of money. If a routine stock-check at a particular branch showed a higher than usual number of losses the manager might well tell all the staff to be extra vigilant, keep an eye open. Maybe a directive to check every 10th or 20th shopper for proof of purchase was put out? You might have been 'the one' however you were dressed, and whatever the value of goods you were carrying. If the bigger losses were goods which are mostly bought be shoppers from teens to mid-twenties then they might be told to concentrate the checks in this age-group in partucular? I can see you ARE offended, but try not to take it as a personal insult. Not everyone is as honest as yourself. Anyone can walk into a store. The fairly recent popularity of 'self-checkout'. It's quick and means the store has to pay less cashiers which cuts their fixed-costs. It also relies more on the complete honesty of the shopper as there is more scope and opportunity to be dishonest than having all point-of-sale cashiers. Remember that in shoplifting incidents the store is the 'victim'. Personal victimisation does make us wary, less trusting, more suspicious of everyone. It's the same for the store management. Although it certainly felt 'personal' I sincerely doubt YOU were singled-out as a potential thief here. Grabbing people at random and checking receipts is embarrassing for the innocent party. But it is meant to be a high-visibilty act, to deter people who might be thinking of doing it. If the would-be thief wanders around for a while and observes the greeter never seeming to check ANYONE they'll tend to fancy their chances. A vigilant checker makes them think twice.
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I can definitely understand that guy feeling of the person at the door stopping you for what seems like a stupid reason, but it likely was not even about you. They were probably told there has been more theft at our location then usual and to just check people a little more closely.
So maybe they told anyone that didnt exit the door closest to where the register was at should probably be checked just to make sure that on their way through the store after having bought something that they didnt slip anything else in their bag then they should have.
Its totally understandable but you have to try to not take it personally, if you didnt do anything wrong then theres nothing to fear, nothing to be ashamed of, or embarrassed by and if anything (if they were trying to catch you stealing and they were wrong) then THEY are the ones that would look stupid infront of everyone for trying to act like you did something you didnt do.
Try not to be too ruled by your emotions when it comes to certain things like this. it was momentary and the poor schmuck working the door was just told to do that, and their just trying to earn a paycheck to keep food on their table. ; )
it was nothing really.
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Advice man is absolutely correct, my sentiments exactly. I am writing to say that i've shopped both costco and walmart. Yes costco asks practically every person. Walmart doesnt seem to ask every person, but over the volume of times I've been exiting Walmart, there is a percentage of times when I am asked to present a receipt, no matter whether I used self check out or not, no matter if I have just one bag or a cart full with some large items, whether I am along or with husband, and no matter how I am dressed. I have noticed them do these random stops and checks as I call it to others too. I have never worked for Walmart so I can't say what they train their greeters or door people to do besides any security people working there. They may be asked to routinely stop every 5th person exiting the door for all I know for their own reasons. But rest assured, no company who relies on the public to be successful and stay afloat is going to do anything to intentionally piss off customers, they will always have what is to them a valid reason, whether it makes sense to you or not.
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I'm sorry you did not like my answer but these are the times we live in.
My wife and I grocer shop at Giant. We use their hand held scanners as we go through the aisles to scan our purchases. At the self check out we and others are randomly selected, for the same reason the security person gave you. To have our purchases checked to insure what is in the bag(s) is what we scanned. They employee picks 7 items to check against the receipt. Frankly it is no big deal.
To say you don't care if people steal; that the store can afford it because they don't pay a living wage is wrong. One has nothing to do with the other. Inventory loss goes directly to pricing. Employee salary is related to sales but not contingent on inventory control. I agree Wal-Mart should pay their employees a living wage. since they do not I do not shop there.
I assure you that you were not discriminated against based for any reason other than you fit a profile they use to catch people who steal from them. You did nothing wrong but the security person could not possibly know that without checking. This is how things are in our times and it will get worse before it gets better.
I wear a device for pain that sets off the alarms store have when you walk out with merchandise that has not been scanned. I know the stores where it happens. I tell the clerks in advance. Still we are stopped and a clerk or guard must walk our purchase through the exit. Should I get upset? No it only takes a few seconds for them to satisfy themselves and we are on are way. Big deal. I need the device in order to function, it my cross to bear.
I cannot answer your question specifically. What I can tell you is that inventory shrinkage, a nice way of saying theft. Is a retail store's biggest problem.
Were you singled out. Probably but your were most likely not discriminated against because of the color of your skin or how you were dressed. The employee who stopped you most likely was a Wal-Mart security person. He most likely spotted you walking across the store rather than exiting at the exit from the cash registers. Regardless of your intentions this fits the profile of someone who may want to, shall we say take a five finger discount now that they have a shopping bag to stuff it into.
While you may not have had any intention of doing so his job is to make sure the store did not lose any merchandise. The only way for him to do so was to stop you and politely ask to see a sales receipt. When you asked why if he explained in a polite and civil manner and then thanked you when you produced the receipt. Then he has done his job and you have nothing to complain about. It would be the same as any police officer stopping you on the street because your car matched the description of one used in a crime.
As long as he was polite, did not detain you any longer than it took to check the items against the receipt, answered questions politely and then thanked you. You really have nothing to complain about. You really should thank him for being on the ball for if he wasn't and someone did make it out of the store with unpaid merchandise. The cost of those thefts are reflected in future purchases made by you, me and anyone else as they get added into pricing of all merchandise as the cost of doing nosiness.
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Let it go.
Seriously. The most likely explanation is that they had theft problems at that store, and the staff were told to be more vigilant. Checking everyone would be unwieldy and perhaps physically impossible, but checking people who walk through the store after making their purchase is an utterly reasonable action, even if they don't manage to stop everyone who does it. Spot-checking is an imperfect system, but that doesn't mean it's never the right way to do a task, and it's doesn't make it inherently discriminatory either.
You are trying to make this personal. You are taking it personally. It probably wasn't. You don't really give any reason for us to believe that it was. You don't describe a pattern of a poor treatment, or any reason to believe it was a discriminatory action. What you described is one incident that inconvenienced you.
Complain if you want, but don't expect to be taken particularly seriously. You may get an apology, but when you leave the room they will shrug their shoulders and saying "You can't win 'em all" because that is the truth. You can choose to shop elsewhere. You can try to complain about the policy. You can complain about the particular person. None of it is likely to account to much.
If you don't want to look suspicious, the best way to do that is to immediately leave a store through the closest doors after completing your purchases. People who face frequent discrimination because of their race, or age, or social status, know that is a way to minimize the problems for themselves in retail stores. They know it's unfair they are actually being discriminated against, repeatedly and subtly. You didn't describe that, you described being inconvenienced by one person for one minutes for reasons that he told you were directly related to the way you behaved after completing your purchase.
Maybe you have faced a lot of discrimination in your life - I can't know that - but the way you told this story here, it's the kind of thing you'd be a happier and healthier person if you can let it go.
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