You need a license to marry, why not to have a child?
For the parents out there who are willing to take their children shopping with them:
Please, for the love of [insert diety here]...
keep an eye on your children!!
Now, it’s no secret that I work in retail. I work in thrift store retail, which is a circle of hell reserved for either the really resilient, or those who ticked off the Grand Poobah of Non-Soul-Sucking Jobs in a past life. I haven’t decided which one is me yet. Digressing…
I was at work Monday night, staying an extra hour plus later because a fellow cashier called in sick. Every so often, a family (or a single parent with some kids, or a group of pre-teens) would come in and head in the direction of the books and toys. I didn’t have to work back there, but my co-worker was ready to start stringing people up by their toes.
Before you start your arguments on customer service, and job security…just keep in mind something: more often than not, you would not allow your children to behave this way at home. So why let them run all willy-nilly in a store? Do you let your child get away with taking an object from its “proper” location and leave it strewn in the way in another part of your house?
Despite any opinion, a store is not a playground. You share the space with the people who work there, and with fellow customers. Letting your child drag out toys in the middle of the floor is, at the very least, a safety hazard. Your precious Billy or Susie could find themselves on the wrong side of a cart or a pair of shoes. We are also not a daycare, where you can drop your child off in the toy section so you can spend the next hour or three trying on clothes.
For that matter, the clothing racks are not jungle gyms. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve gone through a section, straightening hangers, re-hanging clothes, and picking things up off the floor just to have someone’s heathen demon spawn run under the rack, knocking clothes and hangers on the floor. I don’t know about you, but I can only pick up a piece of clothing so many times before I feel a sense of deja vu.
I don’t ask for much in this world. Or, at least my job. My job should be me showing up, ringing up customer purchases or organizing the store for five to eight hours, sharing a few laughs and going home. I shouldn’t have to worry about whether I’m going to twist my ankle on a toy that a customer’s child left in the middle of the aisle. I also shouldn’t have to worry about someone’s daring and brave child opening up the handicap door (the kind with the automatic button) and running out into the parking lot. Nothing would ruin my day faster than having to call 911 cause someone didn’t keep an eye on their child.
Shopping at a store is a priviledge. Your child should be taught in a way that they understand and embrace this concept. Because, really, one of these days, you shouldn’t be surprised if we discipline your child for you.
