We went over there about 08:15 and as you say it was empty. I felt sorry for the girl looking after the self service checkouts as we were forced to use them as the normal checkouts were shut.

We've never used them before so we acted extra stupid in protest (quite an easy task) and she had to do most of the work which wasn't helped by the fact we had quite a full trolley. Those self service jobs are not designed for anything more than a light shop.

We may do the same next weekend if it's going to be quiet again.

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Lets be careful out there !

I know people who find their shopping works out an awful lot cheaper on the self service checkouts.

I hate the self service checkouts and they often just have those open in B & Q in the evening. I find myself answering it

Ah yes self service checkouts........

Automation at the expense of unskilled jobs....

Is it any wonder young people cannot find traditional 'starter jobs' when they leave school not get part time roles to fund themselves through college/Uni?

Its why we have such a huge unemployment problem with young people. Their jobs are being slowly but surely eradicated.

Do not all the large supermarkets own their communities a responsibility and to give something back such as these jobs? Or is it all about maximising the bottom line for the benefit of shareholders?

The first I heard of self scan was Morrissons in Malvern. What they did though was that every n'th customer was told prior to their card or cash being accepted that they were being 'checked' and they had to go through a manned conveyor.

As expected quite a few just left their goods behind as they had shopped and scanned and were now being asked to be scanned again with frozen food thawing, wasted time, etc.

It didn't take long before they abandoned it.

I try to avoid them if I can. B&Q is proving difficult though.

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Lets be careful out there !

I totally agree with you on this one. Tescos (and other retail giants) use the prospect of creating new jobs in 99% of their planning applications. Then what do they do? They offer the vast majority of the jobs as part time and install these horrible machines.

Young people need full time jobs - even then Tesco's pay is rubbish - I know of a young recently married chap who works at an east end Tesco who gets circa £11,500 for a full time warehouseman's job!. Despite his success in getting a full time role, Tesco continue to use huge amounts part timers so they can move staff around to cover gaps in staffing. They cynically argue that they can offer employment to more local people by making the job's part time, but it's all about business resilience and profit and nothing to do with the local community.

Many other large retailers do the same - for instance, there are no full times jobs at New Look in Uxbridge except for management. No wonder young persons unemployment is so high and it's no wonder many choose to stay on benefits when bullies like Tesco don't make it easy to get out and do the right thing.

As for these bloody self service machines, I boycott them and suggest we all do. I was in a Tesco express in Paddington recently where there were no staff on the till so customers were forced to use the machine. One old boy who said he had eyesight problems asked for a checkout to be manned. The staff refused. He approached a security guard on the door who wouldn't (perhaps in fairness, couldn't help). A customer in the Q for the auto machines offered to help, but the old boy had none of it and announced in his broad Caribbean voice. '"I have tried to pay for my shopping and Tesco have refused, so I am now leaving the store with it". The uniformed security man stopped him and chaos reigned as us in the queue protested. The till was then manned!!!

Stop using these robots. If they are a success, like any good sci fi film, they will take over the world!

Good drills by the old boy..... If there were more like him around the communities then this madness might be reversed.....

I will try that next time there are no manned tills! I never use the auto ones anyway and prefer to 'q' and have the checkout person bag my stuff as I like to watch the prices come up for each item on the display. With so many 2 for 1 offers and the like it pays to check....

I will be actively watching now for unmanned checkouts and creating a fuss when they expect me to use the auto machine....

One of the main reasons for these stores and other businesses using part-timers is that they have significantly reduced pension plans, if any, and the company don't have to contribute anywhere near they do for full time staff.

This is another reason why so much work gets shipped overseas, reduced pension rights.

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Lets be careful out there !

I despise the dominance of Tesco in my vicinty.

I would not mind so much if their domination of the market was based on good customer service, but its clearly not in my experience.

I got so disenchanted with Tesco I kicked them into touch, but still with the herd though as its Asda by choice, and Sainsbury for the odds and sods, as as I burn diesel faster than the Arabs pump it out of the ground, I get that there also.

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Its not always the biggest and the bestest, its them that make the least mistakes.