Like any job involving customer service, fast food comes with its own helping of unpleasant situations. When the job entails friendly interactions and hot food in a matter of minutes, tensions can run high between the customer and employee. There happens to be a number of things fast-food workers wish people would stop doing.
1. Tossing the change on the counter.
Just hand the cashier the money. It takes 10 less seconds to fiddle with gathering the change when it could be in the hand of the employee.
2. Refusing to turn loud trucks off.
If you want your order to be right, turn off those noisy trucks! It's nearly impossible to hear over the speaker.
3. Saying, "Hello?" immediately after arriving at the speaker.
Wait a few seconds! Employees are forced to multitask the whole shift and are probably busy. They don't stand at the screen solely taking orders.
4. Driving to the second window without waiting 10 seconds for the cashier.
Not only does this slow down the drive-thru because the handout person has to run back to the cash window, but it never hurts to be patient.
5. Staring at employees preparing an order and leaving a hand out the window.
It's considered rude to gawk at other people, so why is it OK to do this to fast food employees? While it's understandable to want to peek, there's no need to stare so intensely. It's obvious you are staring.
6. Leaving the windshield wipers on while its raining.
Windshield wipers wick raindrops from the car window, but they also flick people to the side of the car in the face. Turn off the windshield wipers and keep the person serving you nice and dry!
7. Waiting until the window to get the payment ready.
Sitting or standing in line is the perfect opportunity to get our your cash or card and help the flow of service continue. Why would anyone waste that?
8. Being a regular and not knowing the products or procedures.
You come here every day and know the questions that will be asked. Why is every day a struggle?
9. Driving away without the total and then asking, "What's my total?"
You would have known your total and could have had it ready if you waited!
10. Treating the cashier like a bank.
While it's technically acceptable to pay for a dollar item with a $100 bill, it's rude and leaves the cashier with just $10 and $5 bills.
11. Screaming children in the car.
Don't go through the drive-thru and try to order while your children fight obnoxiously in the back seat. All that yelling echoes back into the headset.
12. Having no idea what to order.
If you need time, just ask, but don't sit there and go, "uh, I'll take a, uh..um..."
13. Talking down to employees.
They are people too, trying to make a living just like you, and they deal with rude people all day. Give it a rest.
14. Assuming fast-food employees are lazy and uneducated.
A lot of people working in fast food are parents or have a degree already. In this economy, and as a young person, it's hard to find a job, especially right out of school. There's nothing wrong with people who don't want to get a degree, anyway.
15. Ignoring the employees.
The ultimate offense is blowing off the workers and not responding to them. What's wrong with you? Someone is serving you food for a cheap price with a smile on their face. At least say thank you!
