Korean Job Discussion Forums

bassexpander · Joined: 13 Sep 2007 Location: Someplace you'd rather be.

I'm back home in the USA for vacation, and one thing I've noticed is that stores now seem to try to run without people. I guess that this is how they're keeping up with competition. The K-mart store leaves several stations unmanned. I don't know how they keep shoplifters at bay.

I have been trying to find the best "card-phone" type cell phone plan here, and the cell stores are barely staffed. Phone numbers to the stores are routed to a voice mail that doesn't get you to a live body. I'll be damned if I'm going to wait in line for 30 minutes to ask a question about buying a phone, which is what Altell seems to be doing. That store had 2 people working in it, and a line-up of customers waiting to be serviced. And I'm just trying to get a phone. I can't imagine what getting service for it would be like.

No thanks.

Surely someone wants my business.

djsmnc · Joined: 20 Jan 2003 Location: Dave's ESL Cafe

The store does run with people. They are all in the break room on their lard butts eating snacks and yapping with Lawanda on their prepaid cellies. A baggy panted straggler will come out to man the stations when things get hectic. It's Kmart, though, which has been that way since at least 1987.

sojourner1 · Posted: Mon Jun 30, 2008 3:38 pm Post subject:

Yes, the stores are understaffed now due to cut backs as a result of the economic downturn taking place right now. I hated having to wait 15 to 30 minutes in line at my local Wal-Mart super center. They had self checkout and then took those out 2 months ago which really jammed up the ques. Even the mall stores have much fewer sales people and I noticed sales people had much lower morale today. In my recent 3 month trip to the states, I noticed I had less customer service and longer wait times on everything than ever before.

There aren't all those retail sales jobs for anyone just needing something for a job like there normally was since companies are cutting back. The idea is that consumers are not spending as much in retail stores due to increasing gas prices eating up their discretionary incomes. I think it's all hogwash as to what's going on over there. We can do better than that.

Fishead soup · Joined: 24 Jun 2007 Location: Korea

Check out the dumpsters. I'm sure they're full of laid off workers looking for a frebbie.

Flash Ipanema · Joined: 29 Sep 2006 Location: Seoul

I noticed that too. When I was home I decided I wanted a PSP and was near a Circuit City so I went in to check things out. There were a few people standing in different departments (behind counters). I was in there for at least 10 minutes looking around for a PSP and couldn't find one, and not one employee came to check on me. I left, figuring if they couldn't be bothered to help a customer then they didn't need my business.