Just Saying...

The COVID-19 situation has brought out the best and worst in people and while most people are trying to adjust to the new situation, others think it's business as usual. We hear loads of stories and thoughts about the NHS and care workers on the "front line", and rightly so. (I hate that phrase so only using it in context). But what about the retail workers who still have to get up at 4am to go to work to make sure people can get essentials.

People NEED to remember that retail workers are people just like yourself with families, bills to pay, worries and fears about the future just like everyone else.

The next time you are at the shops, just think about this...

• Retail workers are not immune to the virus.
• Retail workers are not trained to counsel you on your psychological well-being.
• Retail workers are not there to be your punching bag because you are frustrated.
• Retail workers don't need your smart comments about how stupid some of the rules are.
• Retail workers know how stupid the rules are but they have to follow them the best that they can to keep everyone safe.

When you're shouting, swearing or being abusive to retail staff, just imagine if that was your son, your daughter, your wife, your husband, or somebody else in your family on the other side of the counter that you are abusing, would you still be doing it?

• Would you like a stranger doing it to them?
• Would like a stranger doing it to you?

The majority of society is safely sitting at home with their families nipping out to the shops for essentials then returning home without a second thought to the person that just served them, which is how it should be. But, some people think the rules don't apply to them, which then causes problems.

Everyone has their own story to tell but here's a small part of mine. I currently work more than 55 hours a week in retail, not because of the virus but because of the cost of living. I now won't be able to see my daughter for at least 3 weeks as she works in the NHS.

BUT at work, I am still expected to be polite and friendly to STRANGERS who abuse me because they can't get a coffee or because of some other trivial issue. They seem to forget that I am being deprived of a normal life as well BUT, if you think abusing me is OK then please don't waste your time complaining to managers or head office when you are met with a less than friendly attitude.

As I work in retail, I can't take the risk that a strangers selfishness might have infected me and I pass it on to my daughter. My daughter can't take the risk to see me in case she gets infected from helping others. We are both putting ourselves at risk for others but isn't it odd that one gets abuse, the other gets respect. It's a strange world we live in.

Retail workers are just normal people. None of us like the situation we are in but BEING AN ASSHOLE WON'T CHANGE A SINGLE THING.

Andy