(Homini:))
Shopping at her local Publix supermarket, Kathleen took some of her wholesome, perishable groceries–dairy and fruit–and put them on the conveyor belt before the rest of her items. This prompted the cashier to assume that since she had put the dairy items first, that she would be paying for those with a WIC check. She could have shrugged, said “no,” and forgotten about the incident. But the false assumption, the volume of the cashier’s voice and the attention that the question drew to her really embarrassed and upset Kathleen. She complained to store management and wants an apology from corporate that is not forthcoming.
WIC, if you’re not familiar, stands for Women, Infants, and Children, a federally-funded, state-administered program that provides nutritious food to pregnant or breastfeeding women, and to low-income families with small children. The vouchers they issue cover only specific brands and sizes of a limited list of items. They need to be processed in a specific way at stores, and experienced WIC shoppers know to separate those items out. Kathleen didn’t know this.
Here is part of the letter that she wrote to Publix about the incident and how store management treated her.
When shopping at Publix Supermarkets, one expects to hear, “Paper, plastic, or do you have your own bag?
One NEVER expects to hear “YOU GOT A WIC CHECK MA’AM”? Oh, and not just once but twice and so loud that everyone around you is staring. Well that is exactly what happened to me on Wednesday, May 2, 2012 – 8:15PM.
Publix cashier, [redacted], caused me extreme embarrassment and humiliation. I was mortified!
You see, as I put my milk, cheese, grapes, etc… on the conveyor belt, [the cashier] screams out “You got a WIC check ma’am?” My eyes got wide, my head popped up and I looked around wondering if she was talking to me ~~ well, yes, yes she was. When I said “excuse me?”, she screamed it out again – Now, people were staring, not just the ones from the first time she screamed it out loud but now, even more.
As I walked up to the register, I asked her why would she scream out something like that? She didn’t apologize, just states, “What!, lots of people have it!” “So”, I said, “you assume that I do?” “You have embarrassed and humiliated me.” And as I left, I realized just how mortified I was.
I have spoken to various management personnel associated with this store and I have been “well-educated” on the workings of the WIC program and how I should understand because WIC checks must be entered a certain way. How about Publix being “understanding” because their employee humiliated me? What do Publix employees ASSUME about other customers? Does this make what happened to me OK? NO, it does not. Does it make stereo-typing appropriate – NO, it does not.
.
The manager of the [redacted] Publix store advised me that the cashier did not judge me by my appearances but by the way I placed my groceries. REALLY???Wednesday, May 23, 2012, [redacted] from your risk management department called me. He advised me that there was no stereo-typing or discrimination, that the cashier just assumed, and that yes, it was wrong for her to assume.
The question is why she assumed. Kathleen presumes the worst (whatever that might be) but it could be that someone who spends all day handling grocery transactions notices that customers receiving WIC tend to put those items first on the conveyor belt, and that’s all.
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So you know the funny thing? Before this message to the Consumerist, perhaps a handful of total strangers were in a position to form an opinion about Kathleen, how she might poor and on food stamps. Now, after this post, a whole FUCKTON of total strangers have formed an opinion how she *IS* a stuck up, arrogant bitch.
Funny how that works.
THIS x 1000. The sad thing is, with the way that she whines, Kathleen probably doesn’t care that you now know she’s a stuck up, arrogant bitch. . .just as long as you don’t insinuate, even in the slightest way possible, that she might be poor. How embarrassing! Where’s the manager???
Kathleen is a loser. That is all.
Kathleen is a loser. That is all.
So now we are getting embarrassed by cashiers asking valid questions regarding their check out processes?
Seriously, this world needs to DIAF.
I think Kathleen should get an apology from corporate and an assurance that cashiers will get more training on how to handle customers (i.e., don’t ask for WIC). It seems like she’s one of the few people left who realize that taking handouts from the government is shameful. Applause to Kathleen.
There is nothing shameful about receiving -temporary- assistance.
I’ve known a number of families that received food stamps or WIC. They all went on to find employment and contribute.
Shortly after marrying I was laid off and received food stamps for 1 month, I got aother job and had no further need for help, but the help was critical in getting back on my feet. That was nearly 40 years ago.
Those that abuse the systems have no shame, they are criminals.
The shame here is on YOU.
Personnel should be trained to simply ask “How will you be paying for these?” The customer will then chose their payment method discreetly if they are sensitive to their perceived status.
I kinda want the cashier fired, but it probably isn’t her fault that she was poorly trained.
When you assume, you make an ass of you and me.
Wow, reading the comments, I bet this is NOT how Kathleen thought this was gonna go down. On the upside, A+ for my fellow consumerists for calling out her BS.
I once used a brand new debit (i know, I know..) card at a store and mis-keyed the pin. Before I could try again, a cashier (not even my cashier, just one walking by), yanked it out of my hand and said very loudly “No! It’s declined! Don’t even bother!”. I called corporate and lodged a complaint because it was crap customer service and sent me into a tizzy fearing that my bank account had been frozen or drained by a thief.
Reasons that never factored into my complaint: personal hubris, snobbery, or being mistaken for a poor.
Kathleen needs to get over herself. What if the person behind them DID use that plan and had to hear her throw that tantrum? How would someone on WIC have felt if they were next on line and heard that tantrum? So what if a member of the proletariat didn’t immediately identify a member of the bourgeoisie, just pay for your groceries and get out.
So, the idea here is that being poor (or being thought of as poor) is ‘humiliating’.
Get a clue, Kathleen. You’re no better than anyone else, WIC or no WIC.
Affluence. Arrogance. Coincidence that they look and sound similar?
I’m such a bitch, I would have embarrassed too, but my response would have either been: (if I was in a good mood/feeling charitable), No.
If I was my normal sarcastic self: (shouting) NO, I DON’T, AND I DON’T WEAR A HEARING AID. IS YOUR HEARING AID BROKEN? OR DO YOU NEED NEW BATTERIES? OR DID YOU JUST FORGET IT TODAY? I would then continue to shout my conversation, attempting to be heard throughout the store. When finished, I’d say something to the effect of – don’t shout at your customers and they will not shout back.
You see, I know several people who have needed assistance at different times in their lives. And I know they would have been extremely embarrassed to have this pointed out in such a rude manner. The cashier was a tool, and so is the management of the company. It doesn’t matter where the funds to pay for the groceries comes from – your business is making money so STFU and treat your customers politely. Thank you.
I wonder how mortified she will be when she realizes she’s made a fool of herself in such a highly public way.
Way to go fool!
This is a clear case of why so many people blame the OP. The OP here is arrogant. The Consumerist should restrict submissions to those who actually post here who seem to be a lot smarter than your average individual.
Am I missing something here? Why would any rational human being be embarrassed or ashamed that a supermarket cashier assumes one is doing the right thing for one’s child(ren), whatever that may involve?
Once I went to a perfumery.
I asked the owner of the shop to be shown red nail polish.
She looked at me with disdain because I was dressed casual, nothing high-fashion or expensive, then she turned toward a salesgirl and told her with a disgusted tone: “Show her the cheapest ones”.
The girl brought a basket with some mismatched dusty bottles.
I looked at them and replied, before getting out, to never return: “You can keep these”.
I wasn’t pissed at the fact that she assumed I was poor, but at the patronizing tone this assumption warranted.
This is something that happens frequently in some stores and my “revenge” is never returning there.
You could go to an expensive perfumery, buy a lot of stuff, then go back to the first perfumery and show them all the sales they missed.
/YesIStoleIdeaFromJuliaRoberts
I slogged through a few commetns, and, honestly ,Kathleen did over react, vastly, and no apology is needed from the store.
However ,that said, I somewhat understand her reaction to it.
My grandmother, aunt, and young cousin just moved to my area from several states over. My grandmother used the last of some food stamps she had to get my cousin some stuff for their trip, and the one who rung them up gave them a HUGE attitude about it.
Giving how some treat those who receive assistance of any sort, I can somewhat understand her reaction to it, however she does need to calm the hell down.
Could train the cashiers to speak at a lower volume but this is not an issue of discrimination. To be honest I’m amazed that a cashier was paying enough attention to notice the pattern!
Only foods approved for WIC? Check
Probably check issue day? Check
Store gets a lot of WIC? Check
Dressed like you might be homeless? Check
Funny, the you can tell the people around here who receive public assistance for food because they purchase steaks and lobsters at the grocery store with their EBT card.
Grow up, lady. You embarrassed yourself by reacting the way you did.
“The manager of the [redacted] Publix store advised me that the cashier did not judge me by my appearances but by the way I placed my groceries. REALLY??? “
Yes, really.
1) I agree the cashier should not have yelled it out. A simple quiet inquiry would have sufficed.
2) There is NO SHAME, or there should not be, in receiving aid from a program that is designed to keep mothers and children healthy. In this economy, it’s very difficult to make ends meet, especially if you have kids and a shitty job, or no job.
3) What is your hang-up, Kathleen? Why on earth would you be embarrassed, or assume that something about your appearance caused this? It’s such an odd thing to happen. If it were me, I would have looked confused and said, “Nooooooo…” I wouldn’t have gotten all butt-hurt about it, unless the cashier said something offensive to me.
Which she didn’t. She was trying to find out if she needed to ring up your purchases a certain way. In an uncouth manner, yes. So you had a right to complain about her yelling, but it’s silly to be embarrassed. I was on food stamps for a short time years ago, back when they were the coupons. It was really obvious when checking out. But I needed them, they were there, and it wasn’t anybody else’s business why. I had one or two people snort and move to another line when I pulled them out, and I just ignored them. They weren’t worth my time or attention.
So all you had to do was say firmly “No, I don’t.” Then step to the customer service desk and ask for a manager after you checked out. It might be a little embarrassing, but you’re blowing it waaaay out of proportion, IMO.
Perhaps Publix should install First Class checkout lines so that people like Kathleen will never be mistaken for someone on WIC.
What a great idea. Charge $5 extra to not wait in line. I’m patenting the idea and selling it to all the major grocery chains.
The American Express Black line, where you get a pedicure and champagne while the cashier scans your groceries.
It’s usually harmless if somebody asks if you want a breath mint. But it’s embarrassing if you admit to consumerist that you have bad breath.
I’m not sure why asking if she is using WIC embarrased her? It’s a legitimate question, prompted by how she ordered the items on the conveyer. If she’s so self-conscious she thinks other people care whether or not she’s using WIC, she has other issues.
You left out the part where she clutched her pearls.
While the cashier was less than professional, does Kathleen realize that the basis of her embarrassment and humiliation is because she believes that people using WIC are beneath her and how dare someone call her a person in need of public assistance because she would “never be one of THEM!”?
Kathleen you are no better than a woman shopping and using WIC to pay for your groceries. People who use WIC are now “lowlifes” as your reaction seems to reveal YOU think they are.
Calm down Kathleen. Look in the mirror and analyze WHY you really were embarrassed and humiliated. It’s not going to be pretty.
Princess Beech as “Publix Cashier”:
The OP caused me extreme embarrassment and humiliation. You see, the fact that she was so “mortified” by the whole situation my head snapped up and my eyes popped off their sockets and I had to put them back in. I looked around hoping no one would notice and raised my manicured finger at her. “Excuuuusssse me?! Do you know how educated I am?! I do not deserve to be spoken at in the most rude way. You just shattered my dreams of being a fairy princess!” I grabbed my Louis Vuitton purse and stomped out the store as fast as my Jimmy Choos can take me.”
*** This lady is unbelievable. I am SO mortified.
God forbid that people at Publix think you might be low-income. That’s exactly as shameful and embarrassing as being accused of pedophilia or prostitution or murder or being a Republican.
That poor cashier. They are either yelled at for NOT assuming the purchase is WIC, and when they ask, they’re yelled at.
The only reason I can think she’d be embarrassed is if she felt the cashier asked her this because the cashier assumed she was poor. So the appropriate response to the cashier would have been (in a loud voice): NO, I PAY FOR MY GROCERIES WITH MY HARD-EARNED CASH, THANK YOU.
Problem solved.
But is she on WIC? It’s not clear.
Someone needs therapy. If being asked if you are on WIC is that humiliating, you have led a very sheltered life. The employee asked because of the way items were placed. Not a big deal. I seriously doubt that everyone was looking at the woman the way she thinks they were. WIC is not embarrassing to have. Lots of people have it when they have babies and small kids. My cousin had it and the income limits were actually not as low as one would think.
She sounds like one of the people who think that there is always someone discriminating against her and looking for reasons to sue.
#Firstworldproblems
Freaking [redacted], with all their poor people. Kathleen ought to be humiliated for the indignity of stooping so low as to shop at a store that accepts WIC! In fact, how dare she even live within a convenient drive of some place that would cater to such poor filth???
Maybe she looked preggars?
Oh, no! Somebody call a wambulance!
Is Wednesday when WIC cards are refilled? I didn’t realize there were still WIC Checks – I thought it was all WIC cards now,
So, is Kathleen on WIC?
That would be the obvious reason for being embarrassed. Perhaps the cashier was right & wanted to be sure before ringing them up.
She sure acted like the ‘C’ in WIC…
Glad to know that I am not the only one thinking that Kathleen is overreacting. Wow…
I can understand being embarrassed if the cashier really was yelling that loud. Yelling is just embarrassing. OP could have yelled NO! in response.
I’ve gotten some weird responses and statements from store clerks over particular purchase ordering, sometimes rude. I am a licensed caregiver with DSHS and part of my job is to go do shopping for the disabled person I may be assigned to. I will use, or help the person’s use a check or card or EBT to complete their shopping, sometimes the person is with me and sometimes not. Either way I have had issues with the occasional clerk with issues even though it may have been pre-arranged with the store.
Some clerks are hostile to poor and/or disabled people, especially if they are disabled. This seems to be truer if they are shopping alone. Not that that applies in this situation, but the clerks often make assumptions.
funniest story on consumerist in a while.
Kathleen should start a boycott. The outrage!
Less embarrassing than….”Price check. Price check needed on on 36 pack Trojan Twisted Pleasure Condoms.”
Well, it just wouldn’t do to have anyone think you’re one of those people, would it Kathleen? You incredible bitch, you.
It really depends on where your market is. Some stores have a really high percentage of people using WIC. If 8 out of 10 customers use WIC, and you have to re-ring everything if they hand over the WIC check after the beginning, a cashier is probably going to just ask after a day or two of re-ringing everything.
Compare it to “Do you have any coupons today?”
Considering a majority of Americans are receiving a government check of one kind or another, I think one would/should be embarrassed if you are NOT on WIC or Food Stamps or the like. Almost everyone else is on some welfare state program, what’s wrong with you if you aren’t?
“The manager of the Publix store advised me that the cashier did not judge me by my appearances but by the way I placed my groceries. REALLY???”
Yes, Kathleen, really. Get over yourself. Nobody waiting in line cared – they were probably staring because you looked like you were having a stroke. Now that you understand the WIC program a little bit, you will know to not put all your produce and dairy first if you don’t want to risk being asked that question. The cashier was just doing her job, and trying to ring up your order as efficiently as possible. The only people who deserve an apology here are the ones using the WIC program, who you just insulted with your petty complaint.
Yes, you should.
But it’s an honest mistake and a FIT shouldn’t be thrown about it.
Consider instead the image you’re conveying… there’s probably a reason they may make that mistake… :-
Dear Kathleen,
Not being on WIC does not make you a better person.
Being on WIC doesn’t make anyone a WORSE person.
Taking extreme offense at the assumption and expecting a apology for something that IS NOT an insult DOES make you a horrible person.
Act like an adult!