If you're the type of traveler who frequently has luggage
misdirected, or if you're an individual who constantly has
difficulty with service personnel, it's possible the problem is
looking back at you in the bathroom mirror. While the adage
"You can catch more flies with honey" has been around
for ages, in New York City its import seems to have been lost on
many visitors and residents.
Unless you work in the service industry or for gratuities, you
may not appreciate how rudeness can affect the quality of service
you receive. Having worked in the telephone, hotel, and airline
industries, I have been privy to the mind-set of many co-workers
who've been mistreated or patronized by consumers. Those are the
callers, travelers, shoppers, and others who believe not only
that the customer is always right, but that the customer can get
away with treating others like dirt.
After being stiffed for a tip by a very rude guest at a Midtown
hotel, a hotel bellman remarked: "No wonder some people get
their luggage lost." Aha, I thought when I heard him say
that, it's the revenge of the customer service agent.
Now, my mother always instilled in us the importance of manners
and courtesy, and those lessons were particularly valuable in my
early job experience. My co-workers, however, were older, more
seasoned, and consequently less patient with insufferable
customers who vented venom at them over the telephone lines.
While I never joined in the practice of payback for that
mistreatment, I could understand the frustration of employees
whose efforts to assist unreasonable customers are rewarded with
disdain. I'd watch company agents put the rude callers on hold
and then take off for a break, or else say "Please
hold" and hang up, saying, "Oops!"
I worked briefly for the Better Business Bureau in Miami and
learned the simple rules of effective complaining. Always listen
carefully and, before you begin your complaint, write down the
name of the person answering your call. Always be as courteous as
possible. If, however, this is the second or third call for an
unresolved issue, ask to speak to the supervisor or manager. When
I worked for the telephone company in New York as a business
office representative, we were told that if a customer asked for
the manager, the call was to be referred immediately to the
supervisor. If you're dealing with a utility, threaten to report
the poor service to the appropriate licensing commission.
In every job I've had, I've tried to treat the customer with the
utmost concern, but thankfully, I no longer have to put up meekly
with rude, inconsiderate, and obnoxious individuals. One
deliveryman confided in me that the only way he was able to deal
with those people was to mess up their orders somehow or mistreat
their packages.
My son, who was properly reared and would never stoop to that
behavior, works for a major courier firm, and his area covers the
affluent West Side. He acknowledges that he is likelier to
accommodate courteous, apologetic customers by allowing them
extra time to prepare their packages. Customers who are generally
rude will be treated only to the five minutes his company deems
appropriate to wait. Many Hollywood stars are on his route, but
only a few are well-bred. Michael Douglas is one of them.
What many visitors to the city do not realize is that September
11 led to the imposition of many extra security measures in the
hotel industry. Once, one could leave packages and bags with the
bell desk when attending a function, but now that service is
permitted only for guests of the hotel. Last summer, a
businessman who yelled at the bell staff for refusing to store
his bag left it there in a huff to attend a conference. He came
back to find the contents of the bag strewn over the lobby, with
Police Department bomb-sniffing dogs at work and the bell staff
snickering.
My husband is a generous tipper everywhere he goes, and in
exchange he receives excellent service. Those who can afford much
more seem to take pleasure in being parsimonious. They might
change their mind about dining out if they view that reality TV
special "When Chefs Attack."
You'll forgive me for laughing when I learned from a friend how
his roommate who worked for the Social Security Administration
got his revenge on a particularly abominable woman, who, cursing
and scolding, blamed him for her missing check. With one flick on
his computer keyboard, he killed her.
You have been warned.