The customer is always right?

Gaygirl2120

OK so my friend and I were having a debate about this and I want to get some other opinions or maybe even people who works in HR could shed some light on this. Let’s say someone worked in customer service oriented job and they have either a regular customer that is a nightmare or a customer who was just awful to them.

Now let’s say outside of work off the clock obviously they see this person. If they were to get into a verbal altercation with them & tell the customer how they felt about them basically LOL . Could they be in trouble with their job? My friend says yes because they are a representative of that company. I say no because they aren’t a representative or spokesperson for the company. They work there but outside of work don’t promote the company nor get paid when they are outside of work. So who is right? Can they be held responsible for this? Obviously I’m just talking about a verbal altercation nothing physical or anything that would land you in jail because that’s a totally different story. So is there a right or wrong answer to this?

caco_ethes

It’s up to the employer. People get fired for how they act outside of work all the time.

4legsRbetterthan2

If you brought up the company or past interactions with them at work then I would say yes. You are representing the company in the scenario.

If the discussion was totally unrelated to work then maybe not, but if they know you as an employee of a place you really should be considering that in your discussions with them. No, you are not on the clock, but you still interact with people in a certain way outside the work place; for example, if I run into my kids teacher outside of school I would still expect to address them like they were a teacher, and if they offered my kid a cigarette or something out of line that would be a big deal.

iMago

*technically*- if you're not under any sort of contract that spells these things out, you wouldn't have done anything wrong by speaking with the customer outside of work.

*realistically*- yeah most employers are still going to see you as a representative of their business beyond work hours, and so if you instigate a verbal argument, they're not going to like it.

even if *that* particular customer is a jerk, they're going to tell every person they know about what happened, and they'll make themselves out to be the victim too...and all the people they tell, well, they may be potentially *good* customers too who could think twice about going to your business afterwards.

so basically don't do it.

on the flip-side of that argument though, a good manager won't let you get berated constantly by one regular nightmarish customer. if they are letting it happen, then its time to find a new job.

urloved33

the customer service agent ONLY knows what they know from work...so reacting in any way to the customer is still an ethics violation regardless if they are outside of work or not.

on the other hand why is this company letting customers be a nightmare to their employees

the customer may need an education and that is the responsibility of the boss ...so give this all to the boss to handle...rude customers continue to be rude and abusive bc companies give them what they want TO SHUT THEM UP...So the bad behavior not only continues it generally escalates.

this is a sign of a poorly run company and weak or absent management.

xFunctionalStrengthx

You're always a representative of your employer. On the clock or off. If you have problems with a client, bring it to your managment. If they do nothing, take it higher and keep pushing until you get action.

Be as professional as you can to anyone you know from work, but in a more casual manner. If there's discussion about work with a client, explain to them that you're off the clock and are trying to enjoy personal time. You'd be happy to help them next time they're in.

If there's an altercation, or even a perceived altercation, let your managment know as soon as possible. it is better to bring it to their attention, instead of them coming to you by way of the customer. You might get into trouble. But, I'm betting they'd rather know what to expect.

cee134

I think any company is going to tell you not to fight with it's customers, if it comes back on them.

The only way to find out the correct answer is to ask the manager what he/she would do in that scenario (which could vary by managers and companies). Which also may not be a good idea depending on where you work.

Ultimately, you would only know that customer from work. That customer would probably complain to your boss and it would come back on you because no boss wants to deal with their employees making more work for them outside of work.

Lounmoun

I'd say it could affect your job if you start a verbal altercation with customers you see while you are not working if you are bringing up things that happened while working.
If the customer starts something with you when you are off the clock that is a little different but you are still probably better off not venting all your feelings to them.

tcunbeliever

I have already been to HR about things that took place outside of work, off the clock. Not related to another person, but related to how I was dressed for my workout on a 98 degree day with a heat index of 105. Apparently someone saw me walking on the sidewalks near the office and complained about my spaghetti straps on my tank top to the company HR. So, I got a lecture about making "good decisions" and whatever petty ridiculous person complained gets to see me ALL THE TIME in my spaghetti straps because now I don't wear anything else.

In theory, there isn't any official disciplinary action that a company can take due to your behavior outside the company and off the clock as long as that behavior does not violate legislation or some kind of contract with the company.

In reality, if a company considers you a "problem" and wants to get rid of you, they will find some stupid excuse to get rid of you, even if it's dumb. Most employees violate company policy in some way at some point - 30 seconds late to work is still late, even if it's a break time or lunch time or traffic was just a mess. Taking home a pen is still theft of company property, even if it was accidentally forgotten in your pocket or hair. Companies are lenient about the little things, but if they want to get rid of you these are the little things that will be their excuse to get rid of you.

The best choice is - don't confront the customer - 99% of the time, they already know they are terrible people and they don't care anyway, so you aren't going to get any real satisfaction from a confrontation because they will still make it all your fault and you are jeopardizing your job for nothing

tbright1965

If you bring up a customer service interaction with a customer after work, you are indeed representing the company.

This is one of those, even if you COULD do this, SHOULD you?

Why ruin your time off by revisiting what was obviously a bad experience?

Seems there is so much downside potential and little to no upside in this course of action.

tcunbeliever

I should probably clarify...I feel comfortable continuing to wear spaghetti straps when working out because it was obvious to me that HR considered the complaint just as asinine as I did...they made it clear there was no official reprimand...and I did not feel that I was being viewed as a "problem" as a result of being out of dress code when I was not working and not in the building...and I've been working here almost 20 years, so the stupid reality is, if I thought HR cared, I would stop wearing them even though it's dumb, it's not worth losing my job over, but since HR seemed to just be checking the box on a complaint and not taking any further action, I can be a bit of a rebel.

Gaygirl2120

tcunbeliever wrote: »

I have already been to HR about things that took place outside of work, off the clock. Not related to another person, but related to how I was dressed for my workout on a 98 degree day with a heat index of 105. Apparently someone saw me walking on the sidewalks near the office and complained about my spaghetti straps on my tank top to the company HR. So, I got a lecture about making "good decisions" and whatever petty ridiculous person complained gets to see me ALL THE TIME in my spaghetti straps because now I don't wear anything else.

In theory, there isn't any official disciplinary action that a company can take due to your behavior outside the company and off the clock as long as that behavior does not violate legislation or some kind of contract with the company.

In reality, if a company considers you a "problem" and wants to get rid of you, they will find some stupid excuse to get rid of you, even if it's dumb. Most employees violate company policy in some way at some point - 30 seconds late to work is still late, even if it's a break time or lunch time or traffic was just a mess. Taking home a pen is still theft of company property, even if it was accidentally forgotten in your pocket or hair. Companies are lenient about the little things, but if they want to get rid of you these are the little things that will be their excuse to get rid of you.

The best choice is - don't confront the customer - 99% of the time, they already know they are terrible people and they don't care anyway, so you aren't going to get any real satisfaction from a confrontation because they will still make it all your fault and you are jeopardizing your job for nothing

I can’t believe someone complained you were wearing spaghetti straps. It’s so utterly ridiculous. But I totally agree with your response about this.

Gaygirl2120

Thank you for all the insightful responses. I’m very lucky I work for myself & only have to answer to myself lol

urloved33

Jax2120 wrote: »

Thank you for all the insightful responses. I’m very lucky I work for myself & only have to answer to myself lol

I worked for myself for thirty years and I was careful about what I did in public...because my reputation was incredibly important to the success of my business. if you think you only answer to yourself...you must have NO customers.

I worked for myself and I had A TON OF BOSSES THAT PAID ME VERY WELL...and I valued them and how my behavior reflected on my business and on my customers was my number 1 priority.