Agreed!

By way of comparison, I am a UKC living in Washington DC.

I agree that the impression that daily random gun crime is rife here is misleading, it's not half as prevalent as it's made out. But just about everyone I know who lives in the city has been mugged or worse. And we've had one murder per day so far this year. I used to live in Peckham, and even I think that's a bit much.

As far as customer service vs healthcare... again, you're right.
But being kept waiting at the till while the girls behind the counter finish their conversation vs being left destitute or dead because you can't afford your medical bills... well, I know which one I find easier to put up with.

Thank you!

It drives me nuts when people use "depreciating" instead of "deprecating" in that particular context.

I certainly was not saying just US customer service makes up for the nation's healthcare issues, I was just listing random pros and cons, as I feel that both countries are pretty equally matched as a place to live

Wow, you are going to love it on this site, then - there are typos, spelling mistakes and grammatical faux pas everywhere. You might need to book a session with your shrink.

Yep you're right there is just no excuse for bad customer service.

Depends how hungry the place is and how badly they want to keep their customers...... you are correct there is NO excuse for bad customer service.....especially when you are a woman......and dealing with a man driven occupation......

One thing I don't get, perhaps people know the answer, but why is there such a bad stigma about check out folks etc not being allowed to sit in the US?

I mean, if you're stuck behind the till, what's so wrong with being able to sit? Able to serve the customer just as well, but being made to stand is kind of discriminatory to pregnant women, people who can't stand for very long etc.

Yes I don't understand that.

It's a genuine question, any ideas?

As for quality of customer service...I've found it to be both, equally great, and as equally as shit in both countries...minimum wage folks either care, or don't and no sparkly veneer really changes that.

With you there Bob. I dont think the customer service here is anything special - have had good and bad here, good and bad in the UK. The only difference I see between the 2 is the (in my view) unwarranted self-congratulatory back-patting over customer service in one of the countries....not saying which one

As for the standing - maybe the payouts on lawsuits for piles and fat arses are higher than the payouts for varicose veins and sore feet ? Although I noticed last time back in the UK that our local Sainsbury's had done away with their checkout seats as well.

One of the things that really impressed me when I first came to the US was the great customer service. Oh - how things have changed!!!! Customer service (or the lack of it) has gone to the dogs in the past decade.

It's the whole "slippery slope" concept.


It would certainly be discriminatory if the rules suddenly chaged mid-stream. They knew the situation when they were hired... they chose to work there.

Ian