supermarket lines

[TomAtAlki]

Always carry a book, it makes waiting much more tolerable.
Nancy

 

[arty]

The Coto on Cabildo in Belgrano is hell. What about conveyors that run?! Ever been to an ALDI in Australia or Europe? Quick as! Pack it yourself (not a plastic bag for every fricking item either), but move the trolley so we can serve the next customer. Customer service. Como???

I've been to the Aldi in the USA and it was fast. When i was in Prague, the Tescos were fast and the local markets had 2 shoots for the food at the register so when 1 person was all rung up, they would slide a little bar across and the food would slide down the other shoot so they could get people out of there faster and have less back up. once again, efficiency and common sense are not a part of Argentine culture.

 

[Gringoboy]

Start shopping locally as others have said, before all those hard working corner shops disappear forever!
Furthermore, the prices are are on a par and you get eyeball to eyeball attention which in this day and age counts for a lot.
I live out in the sticks like others do and the thought of walking into a Disco or Carrefour is my idea of hell.
Having a friendly chat with a real shopkeeper in a real shop fills your heart with hope.

 

[Davidglen77]

People here aren't aware of the labor laws here. Supermarket cashiers, (the ones who work lin large chains, that is) belong to the "empleados de comercio" employees union.......so their MINIMUM wage is approximately $3,000 pesos per month AND on top of that the employer pays social security taxes of about $2,000 pesos per month, SO each cashier costs about $5,000 per month. Plus they all get a seat as required by labor laws here, all employees must have a chair.......as well as, 14 days vacation beginning the 1st year, 2 days off for moving house, study days if you are a student, required medical and dental insurance, plus a myriad of other REQUIRED benefits per Argentina's strict labor laws. Any employer that does not comply faces huge fines and lawsuits which the employee ALWAYS wins. On top of all that, if you happen to have to fire an employee for any reason, even if they aren't performing or you can't afford them anymore, the employer has to pay them severance pay of 1 month salary per year worked (or fraction of 3 months) plus a whole slew of other fees. So don't think that employers aren't hiring additional employees because they are being cheap.......it's happens to be a huge risk and expense for them.

 

[ghost]

Dear Lee:
The class, the enchatment, the good life in general terms its that who makes you still be here when you said months ago that you'll get out (how I can remember) don't you?. So, the only who sucks here its you!. You should not never get impresed by the people complaints, that happen everywhere even in the states, I can tell you cuz I had lived it when I was in NY. You are forgetting have to consider that americans (mainly) are accustomed to share his experiences if they are bad! (hu...tipical). Its like if I live in a country for a while and listening the news (they allwhise report the bad things in 80% of the cases, at least here) or having a bad experience somewhere by myself, and make my mind on that basis: "This country sucks...the service its a shit... etc... etc". That whould be very dump for my part. So try to open your mind and see the whole picture. Take it as an advisement, as an constructive criticism not only for you, but also for all that kind of people who thinks in that way.

You have to be kidding. On the topic of "Good Service" argentina is famously BAD. Everywhere and in every case. The only good service I have recieved here is from DirecTV. They are on time and on the phone when you need them. Banks, Markets , Restos, and cafes all suck! It's not Argentinas fault. It's the friggin CIA, they did it.

 

[PhilipDT]

had 2 shoots for the food at the register so when 1 person was all rung up, they would slide a little bar across and the food would slide down the other shoot

Thats how my local coto is. It does seem to help a lot.

 

[ghost]

People here aren't aware of the labor laws here. Supermarket cashiers, (the ones who work lin large chains, that is) belong to the "empleados de comercio" employees union.......so their MINIMUM wage is approximately $3,000 pesos per month AND on top of that the employer pays social security taxes of about $2,000 pesos per month, SO each cashier costs about $5,000 per month. Plus they all get a seat as required by labor laws here, all employees must have a chair.......as well as, 14 days vacation beginning the 1st year, 2 days off for moving house, study days if you are a student, required medical and dental insurance, plus a myriad of other REQUIRED benefits per Argentina's strict labor laws. Any employer that does not comply faces huge fines and lawsuits which the employee ALWAYS wins. On top of all that, if you happen to have to fire an employee for any reason, even if they aren't performing or you can't afford them anymore, the employer has to pay them severance pay of 1 month salary per year worked (or fraction of 3 months) plus a whole slew of other fees. So don't think that employers aren't hiring additional employees because they are being cheap.......it's happens to be a huge risk and expense for them.

These labor laws, in no way, help or promote any form of efficiency or effectiveness. Nor do they prduce happy employees. Because they place the employee in a constant conflict with the evil employer. It's simply stupid.

 

[SaraSara]

You have to be kidding. On the topic of "Good Service" argentina is famously BAD. Everywhere and in every case. The only good service I have recieved here is from DirecTV. They are on time and on the phone when you need them. Banks, Markets , Restos, and cafes all suck! It's not Argentinas fault. It's the friggin CIA, they did it.

I disagree. Since returning to Argentina I've had the best and the worst service, in different areas.
-- Good service when the attendant fills up my car with gas and cleans all windows, unasked and without waiting for a tip.
-- Good service when the local bakery delivers half a dozen medialunas in a rainstorm, so I can have a good breakfast.
-- Good service when the gardeners volunteer to unload my car, unasked.
-- Good service when the waiter at a neighborhood restaurant remembers exactly how I like my steak, and brings me the book I left there on my last visit.
-- Good service when they bring a bowl of water for my dog when I'm at a sidewalk cafe, again unasked.
-- Good service when the three owners of the hardware store spend half an hour trying to find the exact bolt I need to put up a shelf, and consult with each other, and argue about the relative merits of different kinds of bolts.
(And much good will from the other customers, who pitch in with their own suggestions).
-- Good service when my car mechanic brings me back home, and picks me up every time I take my car to be fixed, and good service when he doesn't charge me for small things that take him fifteen minutes to fix, because I'm an old client.

-- Bad service when the house painter fails to show up as arranged, and doesn't even bother to come.
-- Bad service at the bank's ATMs, who all seem to go offline at the same time.
-- Bad service when you have to wait six months to get a car after putting down a deposit, and the dealer doesn't give you the car's final price until it actually arrives. So you are buying something without knowing how much it will cost.

Some expats' assumption that THEIR way of doing things is the right way and that everything in Argentina "sucks", as they so elegantly put it, can be very offensive. They love to point out how much better everything is in their home countries. If they go around with that kind of attitude, no wonder they don't get better service from "the locals".

They often expect things to be done exactly the way they are done "back home", which shows a degree of naivete bordering on lunacy. This is a different country, and things are done differently. Less efficiently, certainly, but that's the way it is. Better try getting used to that if you plan to stay.

Finally, if everything is so peachy in other countries, what are we all doing here? I moved here from Washington, D.C., and there are many things I miss. But there are many things that I enjoy, too. Why not look at those instead of kvetching?

 

[fifs2]

-- Good service when the three owners of the hardware store spend half an hour trying to find the exact bolt I need to put up a shelf, and consult with each other, and argue about the relative merits of different kinds of bolts.

So true and so nice....and when I try to explain grub screws in Spanish (I tried worm screws!!)they look kindly at me , get me what I need (somehow) and dont baulk at me paying for a 40 centavo screw with a 10peso note.

Thanks for reminding us to see the good side SaraSara..we surely know its not better at "home", we just want Argentina to be a bigger version of this hardware store all the time!