I used to think self-checkout was stealing jobs, but a trip to the grocery store yesterday changed my mind

I was at the Kroger on Elm Street around 6 PM, and there were only two regular lanes open with lines backed up to the dairy aisle. The self-checkout area had 8 machines and a single attendant helping people. While I waited, I watched an older gentleman struggle with the produce lookup for 5 minutes before a teenager walked over and showed him how to use the scale. It hit me that self-checkout isn't about replacing people, it's about letting us do the quick stuff ourselves so the cashiers can help folks who actually need it. Has anyone else had a moment where watching how people use these machines changed their opinion?

2 comments

2 Comments

angela_carter8d ago

My friend had this exact thing happen at Walmart. She watched three people help a grandma with the barcode scanner and realized the machines freed up employees to actually assist instead of just ringing up bananas. Made her totally rethink the whole setup too.

umac718d ago

My Walmart always has one employee watching six self-checkouts and nobody available to help with anything else.