On March 9th, the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board announced a $173,000 program to train state liquor store employees in what they call "Charm Training". According to the Pittsburg Tribune, over 4,000 employees from 600 states will be trained on how to be kind and courteous to their customers.
There's something wrong if we now have to give classes to salesmen on how to be nice to people. I think the training is a waste of the states money. I can think of a million other ways we can of spend Pennsylvania's tax payer money on other than teaching the local liquor store cashier how to say please and thank you. These workers are anywhere from eighteen years of age and older, and if they haven't learned manners by the age of eighteen, I highly doubt "charm training" is going to cause them to have an epiphany.
If you think about it wherever you shop and have to get checked out by a cashier, nine times out of ten that person is not the first to say "Hi, how are you today[?]" or "have a nice day." I've worked at the YMCA, Cinemark, and currently at Wal-Mart. During the training I received for every one of those jobs I was told customer courtesy is one of the most important things to remember. I've always made it my routine to greet customers and talk to them while I'm bagging their purchases; when working at Cinemark, I always said "enjoy the movie."
Now when I go to Cinemark or Movies 14, I'm the one doing the greeting, and the goodbyes. Most people behind the box office glass stare at you like you have two heads, all because you said "have a nice day!" When I go to Wal-Mart shopping, the cashiers never say "hi," "how you," "goodbye," or attempt to initiate any type of friendly conversation. Most of them are downright rude; in fact one girl went as far as to stop scanning my items so she could answer a text message.
The "Charm Training" of liquor store employees is a nice thought, but it's a waste of good money that could be going to something in more dire need. Why should I be paying for professionals to teach liquor store employees manners, when they could have learned it for free growing up eighteen years ago?
Ruth Whispell17 March 2009
2 comments:
I disagree that the initiative you've highlighted is unneeded.
Firstly, the money that the PLCB spends is earned through revenues at their stores and is not taxpayer money.
You call to attention the fact that, regardless of whether manners should or should not have been learned in youth, they have not been by the people manning the counters in many industries. While you and I have been subjected to lessons on professionality through our experiences in higher education, many of the people engaged in such professions have not been. Interpersonal manners in familial and friendship relationships do not always translate easily to professional situations.
Being told customer courtesy is important is one thing - being taught how to follow through on that courtesy is quite another, and very important. There's something wrong if we don't give salespeople classes on how customers should be dealt with.
To suggest that spending $173,000 on this program is frivolous is also mistaken. We know two things about economic depression.
1. It is important to fall back moral virtues and values to sustain the character of a society throughout such times.
2. With all the stress of such an economy, people need some outlet - so while "creature comfort" revenues decrease, gambling and the sale of liquor tends to remain steady and often increase.
What do these facts say about the decision to spend money on educating liquor store employees in customer service? They highlight that not only is this initiative culturally productive, it will likely prove to be monetarily productive as well, increasing sales in these stores.
Most importantly, increasing sales at liquor stores helps our state economy - because each sale collects an 18% alcohol tax, and all revenue remaining from these stores after operating expenses and other payments are resolved is transferred to the State Treasury.
I understand where your coming from, and I admit I was wrong about tax payers money going towards their courtesy lessons, sorry misunderstood what I read.
I however, do not believe this has anything to do with high education helping along with our manners, in fact I think some college kids are right down rude. I know many people who haven't had a high education and are still kind a courteous to the people they come in contact with from day to day.
I think thier employees should be taught how to handle a customer, but handling a customer and being nice to someone are two different things.
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