You're in Wal-mart, you see an associate rushing somewhere..

Wow, what Wal-mart do you shop at? If we were caught doing something like that or if we were even staffed to talk in groups of three or more, we'd be in the office in a heartbeat.

That is what they say. If a customer calls for a manager they are also supposed to show up within a certain period of time. But they don't. I have waited 3 times for a Wal-Mart manager in 3 different locations and none of them bothered to show up. Needless to say I called the regional manager. When you hear me talk trash on workers in my area it goes for the whole lot of them. About 1 in 100 is worth having. The others just show up on time so they don't get fired.

We sometimes have a problem getting a manager to our department, but it's because we don't have enough right now. It has become a big problem. There's either too many at one location or not enough. As for knowing the products carried and how much a Wal-mart associate is paid. I am paid VERY well considering the fact I work for Wal-mart. Second, we are assigned departments for a reason. If an associate doesn't know what's in their department, then there's a problem, but you can't expect them to know where everything in the store is. It is utterly impossible to know where everything is. Now, it's not too hard to figure out what department something is in, but if the associate helping you is not in their department, they are just as blind as you are when it comes to finding something. I've helped a customer in another department before and the customer has found what they were looking for before I did. I work in Lawn and Garden and someone has even asked me what aisle something is in in the grocery section. I may know the vicinity, but not the exact location. Or if someone asks if we carry a specific product, there's no way of knowing unless you work in that department, so the only thing to do is call or find that person assigned to that department since they work around it all day. Merchandise changes weekly, especially at Wal-mart. One week we may carry it, the next week we don't and only the people who work those departments and handle those things everyday know what's going on with their stuff.

Oh, I know how to handle the situation, but I am speaking of this one particular situation. As stated in previous posts in this discussion, my colleagues were outside receiving in a truck. Working in Lawn and Garden, the largest department in the store, made it impossible to get someone else. I wasn't attending to another customer either, I was running to the bathroom because I was ill. When I am in a situation dealing with another customer, I do call over a co-worker or I tell them it will be just a moment. It's just a matter of them waiting their turn if there is no one else available. Some people don't even like that. I've even had customers butt in and stand between myself and the customer I'm helping because they just can't wait.

LOL. Unfortunately, at that moment there were no other associates close and I tried my best to answer his question considering the situation. Any other time, I find a phone on my way to where I'm going and page for another associate to help that person or get on my walkie talkie and tell someone to go there. That was just a super duper bad moment to be stopped. I work in lawn and garden and everyone was outside too, so that didn't help matters. It's just that I was pretty much green, had difficulty talking, and had broken out in a horrible sweat, so I can't see how that dude couldn't tell I was sick. I'd say he was just one of those "too blind to care" folks.

That's the human race for you. :P

LOL. Isn't that the truth

Oh, I don't mind helping even if I'm not in my department. It's just the store is so big with so much stuff it's hard to tell what's where and what all we have since merchandise changes so much. That's why we all work in specific departments and we're instructed that if we can't help, to find the associate in that department since they work in that specific area and know a lot about it. I have to pass four to five other departments to get to and from the break room and I may be stopped three times trying to get where I'm going. I don't mind it, but I'm just about as blind as the customer is when it comes to finding what they are looking for, but I help them look since two pair of eyes are better than one. If I run into the associate that works that department and I haven't yet found the item, I will ask that person. Because it is literally impossible to know where everything in the store is, especially when that's not your department. It's not the associate's fault for not knowing, so the alternative is to find the associate who works that department and knows. As far as the busy with another customer thing, if an associate starts helping another customer before being finished with the first, that can cause an extremely huge issue. It's similar to waiting in line for your turn. I can be helping one customer and others will literally butt in instead of waiting their turn, which makes the first customer angry. So it's a lose lose battle there. The first gets mad if you help another or even answer a question and the second gets angry because you have someone ahead of them. As far as that dude, unfortunately, the other co-workers were outside and that made me the only one inside other than the cashier on that side. What stinks is my department is very very far from the restroom. LOL