When The Register Is Frozen, Let It Go
PHARMACY | WORKING | SEPTEMBER 24, 2015
(This happens on my second trip to the pharmacy in the same day. Note, I have plenty of experience as a cashier and actually own a small shop, but I generally pretend to be ignorant as a customer so as not to offend cashiers who do not know what they are doing.)
Pharmacy Tech: *referring to the Point of Sale machine* “It’s going to tell you to sign before you swipe your card.”
Machine: *displays words* “Please swipe card.”
Me: *swipes card without waiting for the screen I am supposed to sign*
Machine: *flashes rapidly between the screen I was supposed to sign and the total, then says* “Processing, please wait.”
Me: “Oops! I was supposed to sign first.”
Pharmacy Tech: “On my end, it says it is waiting for you.”
Me: *turning POS around so he can read it* “On my end, it says, “Processing, please wait.””
Pharmacy Tech: “Well, these are new. I have no idea what to do about that! Try hitting cancel.”
Me: *hits cancel*
(The pharmacy tech hits cancel about twenty times, which any cashier who has used a POS before should know causes the system to freeze. He calls to another employee behind him.)
Pharmacy Tech: “She swiped her card before signing. It’s frozen. What am I supposed to do now?”
Pharmacy Tech
#2 : “I don’t know. Just shut it down and move to another register.”
(I left wondering how long it would take before they froze all three of their registers.)