I don’t know where customers got the idea that they can treat retail workers however they want. A lot of people seem to think they can say and do whatever they want to people who work in the service industry. The world is full of horror stories of retail workers who are degraded by customers.

Sure, businesses strive to make their customers happy. As the old adage goes: “the customer is always right." However, this idea has become increasingly problematic. It results in retail workers putting up with a tremendous amount of verbal abuse. It results in retail workers being treated like they’re subhuman servants. And guess what? That is not okay.

If you’re one of the many people who are rude to retail workers, it’s time for you to change your ways.

No matter what role someone is playing, they are still another human being. People who work in retail consistently get treated like they are not. I don’t know why the basic principle of common decency dissolves when people walk through the door of a Walgreens or Target. It doesn’t matter if someone is helping you check out at a grocery store, or finding you a shoe size at Forever 21; he or she is just as deserving of respect as you are.

Retail workers deserve to be treated the same way as everyone else is treated. You wouldn’t act condescending towards a coworker or casual acquaintance. You wouldn’t stay silent when one of your friends asks you how your day is going. You wouldn’t walk up to a stranger on the street and throw a backpack in their face (yes, it has happened.) You wouldn’t do these things because these are all rude, unfair ways to treat someone else. And yet for some reason, it has become common practice to treat retail workers this way.

A lot of the problems arise when customers blame a worker for a problem they didn’t cause. Customers frequently get irrationally upset over little things and decide to take their frustration out on retail workers. It’s time to take a deep breath and think about the situation before deciding it’s okay to yell at someone.

The person who is checking you out on the cash register isn’t the reason the store is out of water. They aren’t at fault for the store’s coupon policy. It isn’t their fault when something rings up at the wrong price - and yes, they do have to get another employee to verify the correct price of the item. All of the things that customer service representatives, cashiers, and waiters get yelled at for are usually not their fault.

Is it fair to yell at someone for something that isn't their fault? No.

Take a moment and think about how you make retail workers feel when you’re throwing a tantrum or being rude. It is incredibly frustrating to be mistreated every single day when you go to work. It’s really tempting to talk back to you. Sometimes we do, but usually, we don't. You typically won't get what you want by yelling, either. All you're ultimately doing is ruining someone's day and making them feel terrible about themselves.

Next time you go shopping, please be nice to the retail workers. They are doing the best they can.