Sir, – Further to Brenda Morgan’s letter (November 27th) on manners and retail personnel, I would suggest training is the issue. My first part-time job was in McDonald’s in 1998. The first day was spent training us on the importance of the customer and how to address them.
For example “Who’s next?” was replaced with “Can I take your order, please?”. This warmth of expression then allowed us to say “Is that a large fries?” when someone would order “fries”.
While no longer a burger impresario, the training has stuck with me to this day. It’s not hard but it needs to be deliberate. – Yours, etc,
SIMON BLAKE,
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Munich,
Germany.
Sir, – Brenda Morgan rightly points out the lack of common courtesy abroad in our society, particularly while shopping. I use a straightforward strategy when in such a situation. When the shop assistant says “Name?” without eye contact, I ask, “Mine or yours?” And if no “Thank you” is forthcoming, I say simply, “No, thank you”. – Yours, etc,
PETER DECLAN O’HALLORAN,
Belturbet,
Co Cavan.