Mobile phones

Tesco fishmonger ‘was right over mobile caller’
Mar 27 2009

SOLIHULL News readers have voiced their support for a Tesco worker who refused to serve a customer who was using her phone in the store.

Last week we reported on Jenny Morgan, from Lapworth, who had visited the Stratford Road supermarket. While engaged in a phone conversation at the fish counter, she was confronted by a member of staff who said he did not serve people using mobiles.

Jenny argued that it was common to see shoppers phoning people while walking around shops. Tesco were quick to apologise and said that it was not the store’s policy to discriminate against people who use mobile phones.

However, many people have written in to back the employee at the centre of the row. They have slated the ubiquitous mobile and say it is bad manners to use a phone while waiting to be served.

The Solihull News went into the High Street and asked people where they stand on the issue. Customer Services Assistant,Vicky Whitfield from Hartwell Close was with young son Ben when we stopped her in Drury Lane. She said: “I think it’s quite rude. You should have respect when someone is serving you.”

Agreeing with Vicky, Peter Love who is retired said: “It’s gross bad manners.” The Church Hill Close resident added: “It’s absolutely right - you shouldn’t treat people like that. The shop assistant was quite right.”

Bucking the opinion of many shopping on the High Street, Irene Agg was adamant that the customer is always right. “The Tesco shop assistant was there to serve the public. If he wants to make a sale then he should serve the customer . I was brought up in a shop and so many people say ‘hang the customer’. Irene, from Kings Norton added: “The assistant had no right, he is an employee. What if a mother was seeing to her baby who had dropped its dummy, would he have done the same thing?”

Louise Campbell from Shirley was texting on her mobile phone when we asked her opinion. The 21-year-old part-time care assistant agreed it was rude to use a mobile when being served. “I would ask them to call back.”

Shop assistant Kate Melhuish has first hand experience of serving customers using their mobiles. The 21-year-old who works at health store Revital said:”You can’t serve them really.If there is a problem with a transaction then they are not listening to you.”