Detroit CVS Stores Getting "U-Scans"

[Bearinabox]

When I was growing, people were more respectful of things. Forget it today. The LBJ Great Society has dulled down, dumbed down many aspects of our way of life.

Well, somebody's got an agenda to push this afternoon...

[yupislyr]

Sorry, they aren't jobs in my local area. I don't care.

Actually, they are.

Not manufacturing, obviously, as I don't know of any self checkout plants in the area but there's still a small army of people behind that device. Just because they aren't there to hold your hand as you use the machine doesn't mean they don't exist.

[iheartthed]

I feel bad for the people who might lose their jobs... But I spend about a tenth of the time that I used to now at CVS since they installed those at the store near me.

[East Detroit]

Jobas are created with UScan machines, You need engineers, electricians, assembly people, marketing people, managers, etc etc, just to make, install, sell, fix the machines.
See how that job creation thing works? Now it will give the cashiers more time to deal with you and me.

Not doing a very good engineering job if it takes one whole person to design and manufacture one machine per year. One cashier is probably replaced by 1/100th of an engineer.

Technology... making your life easier!

[Meddle]

I spend 0 time at CVS since they implemented the 'discount card' system and jacked all their prices up to pay for it. Haven't been in one in over 5 years.

[East Detroit]

OK, I'll bite...

Make sure that you NEVER get a shopping cart from the parking lot, and only get them from inside the store in the cart area... and when you take your groceries back out to the car in the cart... make sure you leave the cart right next to the car... and not put it into the cart corral... that way you won't accidentally be training to be a bagger working for free, and giving the store manager an even bigger bonus!

And whatever you do... DO NOT bag your own groceries. Just stand there, and wait for the cashier [[or in the rare case when one is available... the bagger) to pack your groceries...

Yes... I know... it sounds silly....

Sounds good. Doesn't sound silly. The eye rolling looks silly and petulant, though.
Like Wall Street more than your neighbors? Tough shit. Stop with the eye rolling.

U-Scan, credit cards.... easy ways to move money from Detroit to New York City. Every time you NEED the convenience of not using cash or check and the peer pressure to be Mr Speedy and use the credit card... means about $5 of $100 goes from here to there. Over and over again for all those transactions. And then people whine about broken down buildings and missing tile in a broken fountain.... because maybe that contractor was too busy and didnt want to waste another 5% because it was convenient for him.... should I roll my eyes now?

We do not live in a vacuum... no matter how much the corporate ads try to convince you that you deserve to be #1.

[Downriviera]

The next time you eat in at McDonald's or Burger King, etc. don't carry your trash from the tables to the trash receptacles. Leave it for the employees to clean up so they can keep their jobs. Also, don't fill up your own drink, ask the counter person to get it for you.

[econ expat]

The next time you eat in at McDonald's or Burger King, etc. don't carry your trash from the tables to the trash receptacles. Leave it for the employees to clean up so they can keep their jobs. .

If at least a wrapper or tray is left on the table, then an employee will probably clean up that table for the next guest. We can take the trash to a receptacle, but then, how do they know that table needs to be washed for the next guest?

[thatguy123]

U-Scan, credit cards.... easy ways to move money from Detroit to New York City. Every time you NEED the convenience of not using cash or check and the peer pressure to be Mr Speedy and use the credit card... means about $5 of $100 goes from here to there. Over and over again for all those transactions. And then people whine about broken down buildings and missing tile in a broken fountain.... because maybe that contractor was too busy and didnt want to waste another 5% because it was convenient for him.... should I roll my eyes now?

This is an extremely ignorant post, considering one of the biggest credit card processing companies is located in Troy and all money run through that processor stays in the area. Typical though for the extreme outer fringe of society that posts things like the quoted post above to not have all the facts

[fanniemae]

Well, somebody's got an agenda to push this afternoon...

I am not pushing any agenda. Responding to how I feel about uscans.

[Bearinabox]

I am not pushing any agenda. Responding to how I feel about uscans.

By complaining about how America just isn't the same since Lyndon Johnson fucked it up?

[wolverine]

OK, I'll bite...

Make sure that you NEVER get a shopping cart from the parking lot, and only get them from inside the store in the cart area... and when you take your groceries back out to the car in the cart... make sure you leave the cart right next to the car... and not put it into the cart corral... that way you won't accidentally be training to be a bagger working for free, and giving the store manager an even bigger bonus!

And whatever you do... DO NOT bag your own groceries. Just stand there, and wait for the cashier [[or in the rare case when one is available... the bagger) to pack your groceries...

Yes... I know... it sounds silly....

I wouldn't take shopping carts out of the parking lot, but I have to so that someone elses car doesn't get scratched up. Otherwise, I'd ignore the stray carts and let the employees take care of them because it's a job that someone is paid to do.

BTW, already got the trash at tables one covered. Most restaurants [[including fast food) as well as food courts around my office throw away the trash for us. You leave it at your table. I love how some people stand up with their trays and go searching for a trash can only to find none. 4 people are staffed at the nearby food court to pick up the food and dirty trays and send them off to the back, and then clean the table afterword. 1 of the employees will handle drink refills as well. That is called service and cleanliness. I find it ironic you mention this, Downriviera!

I'll top it off. Most highrise buildings I looked into had trash service. Just throw your trash down the shoot and someone will take it out to the alley. Just leave your recyclables in the trash elevator, someone will rinse and sort them for you.

The couple of minutes or seconds it takes to complete the above tasks would be no problem to do myself. But it's nice not having to do them, even if costs me a few cents more. I just think it's great that these tasks employ people.

I know what it was like to not have a job at one time, and also do work that was difficult and dirty, but I was happy to at least get paid, that's all that was important.

[fanniemae]

The next time you eat in at McDonald's or Burger King, etc. don't carry your trash from the tables to the trash receptacles. Leave it for the employees to clean up so they can keep their jobs. Also, don't fill up your own drink, ask the counter person to get it for you.

Sorry, I was raised better.

[wolverine]

Actually, they are.

Not manufacturing, obviously, as I don't know of any self checkout plants in the area but there's still a small army of people behind that device. Just because they aren't there to hold your hand as you use the machine doesn't mean they don't exist.

I did a search for point of sale technicians in my area, and they all returned suburban locations. The store employees live and work in my neighborhood. I choose to support them instead.

[mwilbert]

I find the U-scans convenient if I am only buying one or two things, which is usually true at a CVS. If you have a lot of stuff, the cashier is generally a lot faster, and also makes dealing with bagging easier. If you have lot of items the chance that one of the them will have a scanning problem increases, and that can take any amount of time to resolve.

[fanniemae]

I did a search for point of sale technicians in my area, and they all returned suburban locations. The store employees live and work in my neighborhood. I choose to support them instead.

Fujitsu is one of the manufacturers of self serve units. Fujitsu also makes , designs , distributes, offers tech support for other kinds of computer related equipment. Hospitals use a lot of Fujistu's products. Automation , computers here to stay for a long time. Again, if you don't like the self check outs, just don't use them. There are a lot of peole that do like them. Kids like them, it is like playing store. That is one minor little perk. But of course, I understand stores save labor costs. Not too many companies in retail for charity.

[DetroitDad]

It's everywhere at CVS and Walgreen stores now. I like my job, and I'm sure they want to keep theirs so I try to use the micro-sized counter they have with the cashier. But most of the time now it's no longer staffed because they are assisting impatient customers with the machines.

The customers aren't stupid, it's the fact that many overfill the bagging area with packages of pepsi or milk cartons. As you set them on the ground, the machine is already panicking that the item is not in the bagging area.

According to one of the clerks, 98% of the customers at my local Walgreen stores walk, bike, or take transit. Hardly anyone drives and there is no parking. It doesn't help that our bagging methods are sloppy, and the way the bags are arranged on the self checkouts make double bagging a hassle for heavy items, so they risk breaking on the walk home. It was far easier when there was a clerk. Also, at least you didn't feel rushed to check out when it was the clerk who customers behind you could get mad at. Jeez, I'm sorry if I like to place my items in the bag a particular way.



Savings passed to customers? B.S Like what, 10 cents per $30 spent. That means I save 50 cents a month at Walgreens or CVS. Oh joy!

Time savings, not money savings. I can only guess as to why they would only staff so many cashiers during busy times, but they did not take any away when the u-scans came, or so it seems for now. Instead, they have one of the three cashiers overlooking the five u-scans, meaning that the same employees can now handle seven customers at a time, instead of three. The proof is in the elimination of lines, based only on my initial visits.

What is more, supposedly when it is not peek time, they still have the same amount of cashiers, they just close some of the u-scans.

[DetroitDad]

Wrong.


I could go into a litany of reasons, but I will not use these lanes. Period. At HD, I'll go to the outside garden register, the lumber/contractor counter, or grab a manager to ring it up. If there's an error, it going to be on them, not me.

Same thing at KMart. They always have at least one lane and the service counter available. The U-check lanes were always empty here while people waited in line for a tended lane. Last I saw, they had blocked off the U-check lanes. I don't know if they even still work or not.




Wait for the next generation of these monstrosities. You'll walk through a lane with a full cart of groceries without unloading it. Scanners will pick up the RFID chips in each item and present a total sale amount. Then they'll scan an RFID chip in your credit card while it's still in your wallet and charge the amount. If there's a pricing error, you're screwed trying to get it corrected after the fact. The technology is already available and has been tested and demonstrated. The chips are already in use in many products and charge cards. It's the same general technology in use by some states for truck weigh stations and toll booths where you drive though without slowing down. It's also used by Mobil [[or was) for their passive payment system MobilPass [[if I remember the name right).

I actually agree with you, in that I think we are losing something along with face to face human interaction. Even the idea that these things reduce lines isn't concrete. Meijer probably has the most operating u-scans out of anywhere I have been. They have really taken things to an extreme at Meijer, as the cashier tending to the many u-scans seems to have too many machines to watch, and if you have a problem, you can sometimes end up waiting a very long time.

The biggest issue I see with having u-scans at a retail pharmacy like CVS, is that tobacco, certain party items, alcohol, and many OTC medications now require identification to be checked by a cashier, leading to waits while waiting for the cashier to make rounds to check identification and help out people who are having other problems.

[DetroitDad]

Hey chump, how's that self serve gas station working out for you???

And for God's sake don't use a credit card at the pump... go inside and pay the cashier first before pumping gas... we need to keep them working as well.

If you want to pay 10-15 cents extra for full service gas stations... there's a few in Grosse Pointe and St. Clair Shores I can point out to you....

I hope you're still dialing "0" for the operator to make all your phone calls for you?? We want to keep as many operators employed as possible.

This silly thread keeps reappearing in different variations about every 3 months....

For those who have problems with the U-Serves... here's a tip... only pick up one item at a time to scan, and then place in the bagging area... don't be holding 4 yogurt containers in one hand thinking that you'll speed up the process.... you won't!

While many of you are loathe to use new technology and prefer to stand in line while the people in front of you are sorting thru their coupons to give to the cashier before they ask the cashier for a pen to write their checks.... the rest of us will spend our 2 minutes at the U-Serve... and get on with the rest of our lives....

I too used to work for the food retail workers union 876... doesn't mean I'm not sensitive to their issues.... but really... when I was a cashier, we rang out each item on the register by hand... there weren't any scanners. Does that mean we should avoid stores with scanners as well??

We're not the Amish... so this "selective" use of only "some" technology is rather hypocritical....

P.S. DetroitDad, I'm not admonishing your initial post... but these threads always seem to go off on illogical tangents...

Neh, it's okay. I must have selective memory for not remembering many of them. Your post above, though, is logical and comedic gold.

[DetroitDad]

I did a search for point of sale technicians in my area, and they all returned suburban locations. The store employees live and work in my neighborhood. I choose to support them instead.

Yes, the heavily exploited tend to live in urban areas, I agree.

[DetroitPole]

Hey chump, how's that self serve gas station working out for you???

And for God's sake don't use a credit card at the pump... go inside and pay the cashier first before pumping gas... we need to keep them working as well.

If you want to pay 10-15 cents extra for full service gas stations... there's a few in Grosse Pointe and St. Clair Shores I can point out to you....

I hope you're still dialing "0" for the operator to make all your phone calls for you?? We want to keep as many operators employed as possible.

This silly thread keeps reappearing in different variations about every 3 months....

For those who have problems with the U-Serves... here's a tip... only pick up one item at a time to scan, and then place in the bagging area... don't be holding 4 yogurt containers in one hand thinking that you'll speed up the process.... you won't!

While many of you are loathe to use new technology and prefer to stand in line while the people in front of you are sorting thru their coupons to give to the cashier before they ask the cashier for a pen to write their checks.... the rest of us will spend our 2 minutes at the U-Serve... and get on with the rest of our lives....

I too used to work for the food retail workers union 876... doesn't mean I'm not sensitive to their issues.... but really... when I was a cashier, we rang out each item on the register by hand... there weren't any scanners. Does that mean we should avoid stores with scanners as well??

We're not the Amish... so this "selective" use of only "some" technology is rather hypocritical....

P.S. DetroitDad, I'm not admonishing your initial post... but these threads always seem to go off on illogical tangents...

Ah, the tide of progress.

Maybe you're right. I mean, who really cares anymore? Why try? As if the consumer has any power to vote with their dollar.

Why should I buy American-made products when children in Asia can make things much cheaper? To do otherwise would be absolutely draconian.

Why go to the neighborhood market? It's overpriced. It's outmoded. I can go to a big box and get my junk much cheaper. These large retailers are vastly more profitable and widespread, therefore they must be the way of the future.

The farmers' market on my corner? What a bunch of hippie bullshit! Why, I can get any type of produce I want from any corner of the globe at the bigbox right up I-94. It doesn't make sense to shop at the farmers' market. It is as if people were longing for a simpler time when people shopped in their neighborhoods and supported outstate farmers. How quaint! How naive!

It is comforting to know that despite the immense flaws of the U-Scan system, you still embrace it wholeheartedly. Even if you take out all the technical problems, you cannot replace human interaction. Would you believe I actually know my bank tellers [[yes, they still exist)? Sorry I can't quantify that for you. I hope you are soothed by the sweet, sweet pillow talk of the U-Scan lady voice. When you're feeling really kinky, do you select the Spanish option?

No, we don't have to be Amish. We can do what we can where we can and when we can. We can be responsible consumers. I don't fault someone for using a U-Scan with one item in a hurry. However to embrace something so flawed and devastating wholeheartedly or unquestioningly is foolhardy.

Your example of ATMs pretty much speaks for itself, though being on the verge of non sequitur. They have definite pro's and con's: They are nice when you're not at a bank. However, when I'm at a bank, I find a teller far preferable. Besides not having a pulse and earning a wage, ATMs have eaten my card, and I have forgotten my card. If not for the security guard, who also has a pulse and a wage, I would have left my card in the beeping machine. Being human, in a rush, and making a huge mistake as humans do, I didn't respond to the incessant beep of the ATM but rather the security guard who called my name. I've encountered ATMs that don't have any money, or deny my transaction for cryptic reasons. Though I know you are not one to stand in the way of progress, I remember when tellers were at EVERY WINDOW. Sentimental stupidity, I know, wanting Americans to have jobs.

[DetroitDad]

Tide... there is a nasty rip tide out there, too.

Like the last man or woman on a block of urban prairie. Should such a person be respected for taking a stand, or viewed as an idiot for not getting out of harms way?

Ah, the tide of progress.

Maybe you're right. I mean, who really cares anymore? Why try? As if the consumer has any power to vote with their dollar.

Why should I buy American-made products when children in Asia can make things much cheaper? To do otherwise would be absolutely draconian.

Why go to the neighborhood market? It's overpriced. It's outmoded. I can go to a big box and get my junk much cheaper. These large retailers are vastly more profitable and widespread, therefore they must be the way of the future.

The farmers' market on my corner? What a bunch of hippie bullshit! Why, I can get any type of produce I want from any corner of the globe at the bigbox right up I-94. It doesn't make sense to shop at the farmers' market. It is as if people were longing for a simpler time when people shopped in their neighborhoods and supported outstate farmers. How quaint! How naive!

It is comforting to know that despite the immense flaws of the U-Scan system, you still embrace it wholeheartedly. Even if you take out all the technical problems, you cannot replace human interaction. Would you believe I actually know my bank tellers [[yes, they still exist)? Sorry I can't quantify that for you. I hope you are soothed by the sweet, sweet pillow talk of the U-Scan lady voice. When you're feeling really kinky, do you select the Spanish option?

No, we don't have to be Amish. We can do what we can where we can and when we can. We can be responsible consumers. I don't fault someone for using a U-Scan with one item in a hurry. However to embrace something so flawed and devastating wholeheartedly or unquestioningly is foolhardy.

Your example of ATMs pretty much speaks for itself, though being on the verge of non sequitur. They have definite pro's and con's: They are nice when you're not at a bank. However, when I'm at a bank, I find a teller far preferable. Besides not having a pulse and earning a wage, ATMs have eaten my card, and I have forgotten my card. If not for the security guard, who also has a pulse and a wage, I would have left my card in the beeping machine. Being human, in a rush, and making a huge mistake as humans do, I didn't respond to the incessant beep of the ATM but rather the security guard who called my name. I've encountered ATMs that don't have any money, or deny my transaction for cryptic reasons. Though I know you are not one to stand in the way of progress, I remember when tellers were at EVERY WINDOW. Sentimental stupidity, I know, wanting Americans to have jobs.

[Det_ard]

Thank you to all the anti-U-Scan people who refuse to use the U-Scan machines. I appreciate the fact that you've made the U-Scan line shorter since that's what I normally use. Plus, some of you sound like you're wound a little too tight and I'd hate to get stuck next to you in the slow cashier line when you attempt to strike up some inane conversation about how keyboarding [[like we're all doing on this thread) has taken away so many noble union steno pool jobs.

[CLAUDE G]

Im tied of going in there for a bottle of cough syrup and spending 20 minutes in line ...


Go to the smaller neighborhood stores instead of the mega chains. They'll appreciate your business.

I wish I could, but the big box stores ran all the mom and pop places out of business.

[CLAUDE G]

I spend 0 time at CVS since they implemented the 'discount card' system and jacked all their prices up to pay for it. Haven't been in one in over 5 years.

The discount cards drive me crazy, at first I tried to avoid the stores that forced their customers to use them, but now that everyone has their own stupid discount card program I have no choice.

What I do is when I check out and the cashier asks me for my card, I tell them to use the store card. Then when they ask if I want a card, I tell them no.

Its stupid that these stores jack up their prices and try to force everyone to enroll in their discount card program to give people the same prices they had before the discount card program existed.

I went to Best Buy and they wanted to sign me up for their reward zone crap, went to Radio Shack last week to buy a fricken battery and the guy at the register wants all my personal information. Finally got pist off and said he doesn't need it if im paying cash.