Posted on 07/28/2019 6:10:45 AM PDT by Daffynition
Beneath the bland veneer of supermarket automation lurks an ugly truth: There’s a lot of shoplifting going on in the self-scanning checkout lane. But don’t call it shoplifting. The guys in loss prevention prefer “external shrinkage.”
Self-checkout theft has become so widespread that a whole lingo has sprung up to describe its tactics. Ringing up a T-bone ($13.99/lb) with a code for a cheap ($0.49/lb) variety of produce is “the banana trick.” If a can of Illy espresso leaves the conveyor belt without being scanned, that’s called “the pass around.” “The switcheroo” is more labor-intensive: Peel the sticker off something inexpensive and place it over the bar code of something pricey. Just make sure both items are about the same weight, to avoid triggering that pesky “unexpected item” alert in the bagging area.
(Excerpt) Read more at getpocket.com ...
I am that slow lady in self-checkout! Either I get an obscure fruit or veggie that won’t scan, or a cheap bottle of wine that requires someone checks my ID. Then I need more space to bag since I want to organize...! Sorry to the folks behind me!
“”” After auditing 1 million self-checkout transactions over the course of a year, totaling $21 million in sales, they found that nearly $850,000 worth of goods left the store without being scanned and paid for. “””
One would have to know what the average time for one checkout is and the average cost of a cashier is per checkout.
Would cashier labor for $21,00,000 be greater than $850,000
Then of course there’s the cost of the self checkout machines. The cost of one self checkout overseer per 4-6 self checkout lanes.
Once AI gets involved, they won’t have these theft problems. The machine will say. “That is a banana, not a steak. An attempted theft charge has been added to your global person account Mr Wilson. Your court date is three days from today”
I use he self-checkout only if there are long lines for the regular checkouts. I also refuse to pay for bags. I will walk away from the till, leaving my intended purchase if there is a charge for a bag on the screen.
That includes if I had a custom sandwich made: I’ll leave it there and go to the restaurant across the street for a take-away meal.
Most of the clerks no longer try charging me for a bag.
That barcode has to be aimed at the barcode reader.
Bananas have no such barcode.
Place steak on counter/scanner that also has built in scale. Set something that over barcode to cover if need be. Press button for produce and “mash” the banana button. Pay per lb banana price for steak. 2 lb steak = 98 cents at 49 cents per lb.
Not rocket science and not fiction.
And here, I’ve always been paranoid that I might accidentally screw something up and get in trouble for undercharging myself. Meanwhile people do it on purpose.
I put stuff on the conveyor in order. All cold stuff in one group. Canned goods in another etc
They still manage to screw it up.
Those service station attendants all died of cancer though from breathing gas fumes for decades.
This article sure was not written in California, was it?
Here, theft has been “legalized” up to $950 worth. You don’t need tricks. Fill up your cart and head for the lot. It’s a misdemeanor like jaywalking. Have at it. They won’t even call the cops cause the cops won’t come. Their hands are tied.
That’s the excuse blacks use for not disposing of their trash after eating at places like Burger King. Whites will buss their own table. Blacks leave it behind so as to give the buss boy something to do.
It’s just an excuse for slovenly behavior, IMO.
I hear ya.
Some places up here have started charging for a plastic carry-out bag. 10¢. That’s another thing that irks me. In many cases the bag is so flimsy, it is torn B4 you get it into your car.
Soon we’ll be required to BYO.
So glad each of us are saving the planet.
I guess this is the wave of the future. Glad I now live where you can still leave your doors unlocked, and don't have this kind of rif-raff, except in more populated areas, so I hear.
Because I’m a customer not a machine operator. It offloads labor onto me, and if there’s a price advantage I haven’t seen it.
My thoughts as well. I could see one or two of them set up as a convenience to a single-item buyer when other lanes are busy, but expecting me to do the job of one of their clerks is a No-Go.
Honor-system only works in high IQ, high trust societies. We haven’t been one since 1965.
Figure 5 minutes per transaction = 12 transactions per hour for one station.
1 million transactions / 12 = 83,000 stations needed for all transactions per hour
$850k lost / 83,000 stations = $10 lost per station per hour.
Given a minimum wage of $15/hour and tax and insurance and benefits will double that (typically) to $30/hour it’s no wonder they’ll eat the cost.
Also note the “food desert” stories where stores are bailing out of secrets in neighborhoods - that’s probably where the theft rate is greater than $30/hour.
The UK version: 
LOL! That’s hilarious. Any idea if that is current or old?
It seems that nobody else on the entire world wide web remembers or has written about “U-Pump Ethyl.” The only hits when you google it are my posts on FR.
“I’m a customer not a machine operator”
Very true. I am SO SLOW at using scanners that I must take two or three times longer in checkout than if a clerk were doing it. I am very inefficient. But, based on what I see with other customers, I’m probably one of the more efficient one.
Maybe in two or three more generations we will all be highly qualified check-out clerks.
If there’s one thing walmart knows, it’s big numbers and thinking big numbers on everything.
WM to vendor; We’ll buy 500,000 per year but you have to meet this price.
Vendor: but we can’t do that and keep any sort of quality going
WM: and your point is?
Are you in California?
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