No service for shopper on mobile

"And then I was like 'NO! And he was like 'YES!" Picture: Thinkstock. Source: Supplied

MOBILE phones. We use them first thing in the morning, driving, on the toilet, at the dinner table, in bed. We can't get enough of them.

But now, a checkout worker has refused to serve a customer on her phone, sparking furious debate: Is it OK to use your mobile at the check-out?

The incident happened at a London supermarket, when 26-year-old Jo Clarke made a call to her brother while waiting in line at the checkout.

"I was standing at the foot of the (cash register) waiting to bag my shopping up, yet the lady on the checkout was just staring at me," Miss Clarke, who works in corporate real estate, told The Daily Mail.

"When I stopped my conversation and said 'Is everything okay?', she said: 'I will not check your shopping out until you get off your mobile phone.'

"I ended my call swiftly, and said to the lady on the checkout, 'Apologies, I didn't realise that it was Sainsbury's policy that you are unable to use your phone at the checkout', to which the checkout worker replied: 'You learn something new every day'."

Miss Clarke complained to the service desk at Sainsbury's over the incident and was told there was no such policy, as well as being reimbursed with vouchers for the store. However she swears she won't shop there anymore.

The incident has sparked plenty of debate online, with commenters divided on the issue.

"It was plain bad manners, there are self-serve checkouts for a reason. No wonder this country is in turmoil if we forget to use basic manners &reward the use of them" wrote Melissa Mackenna of Glasgow.

While others said "It's not your duty to make small talk with a checkout assistant? I was sure these comments would be pro-phones! Oh well. There's not enough time in the day for small talk. By all means don't be rude to the assistant but there's nothing wrong with being on the phone?!"

The issue also raised the hackles of Australian checkout workers. Karen Ritson, who works at Big W, said people chatting on their phone at the checkout was her pet hate.

"I think it's the height of ignorance. It really is. You're trying to engage with the customer even if it's just 'Hi how are you?' And they're chatting away and they throw the money at you and you think 'oh you pig'."

"I feel like saying 'Get off that phone before I serve you', but I'm not allowed to do that ... I wish we could, but you can't tell people get off the phone."

Ms Ritson said customers use mobiles through the checkout around two or three times per shift, and even more on the weekend.

"I just find it rude as you're doing them a service; it's not rocket science that they should appreciate that service," she said.

"Nothing is so important you can't wait five minutes."

Alayna Cole, 19, who works at Coles said mobile phones are often part of the "tearoom" discussion at her work, although there are plenty of different ways customers can be rude to workers.

"I'm trying to do a job, I'm a person. I'll say 'Hi how are you going?' And they won't say anything back. It might be because they're on the phone or it might be talking to the person next to them or they might just be staring at the wall behind me," she said.

However Ms Cole said it's not always the case, with some customers making an effort to apologise for being distracted.

"I've had a customer come in on the phone and come back five minutes later to apologise."

"If you have a good heart you find a way to make it not rude even though you are on the phone, you still say hello or you apologise," she said.

Australian Retailers Association spokesperson Russell Zimmerman said common courtesy is required from both sides of the equation.

"From a retailer's perspective, in this day and age when business is hard to get hold of, I would be reluctant to not serve a customer on that issue," he said. However he also added that if shoppers do get an urgent call, there is a right way to handle it.

"It's common courtesy to set the ground rules. You've got to judge the situation individually, the consumer has to be mindful of the sales assistant but the assistant has to be mindful that the consumer may need to take a call."

Do you use your mobile phone at the check-out? Tell us your views in the comments below.

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