I work in a copy shop. An older lady comes in once or twice a week, usually thirty minutes before close. She repeatedly insults my work and vocally expresses her feelings.
Customer: “I wish the girl who worked here before you was still around. She knew what she was doing!”
Me: “I will try to help as best as I can, ma’am.”
Customer: “I need you to bring out all of my past church flyer designs that the other girl — the one who knew what she was doing — backed up on your computers.”
Me: “Ma’am, backing up your designs is not our responsibility. We offer to back up all the work on a customer’s thumb drive or CD after we make each design. Did my previous coworker offer that to you?”
Customer: “Well, yes, but she always kept them anyway.”
Our computer has recently been reimaged, and we have literally nothing on it other than our software. I tell her this.
Customer: “No! I swear my church flyers are on there somewhere! They always are!”
I do some searches to appease her even though I know it’s gone. I seriously spend a good half-hour showing her it isn’t in ANY folder on the computer.
Customer: *Flipping out* “That other girl must have taken them so that you couldn’t mess them up or steal them!”
It’s past closing, so my manager comes over to see why I am still with a customer. The customer complains to the manager and the manager then turns to me.
Manager: “This is unacceptable, [My Name]. If the customer received a level of service with us before, then she should expect to receive the same level when she comes back.”
Me: “But we’re not responsible for—”
Manager: “Recreate the flyer for the customer so that we can hopefully retain her business.”
Me: “It’s past closing, and that would take an hour if not more. You do it.”
Manager: “Excuse me?”
Me: “I’m going home. Think about how you treat me so that you can hopefully retain my willingness to be employed by you.”
I went home. I got written up. I quit.