A letter to the attendant at the Esso gas station in Claresholm…
I am sorry you are alone; it can be daunting to be the lone worker behind the counter of a gas station on a major highway at night. I am certain there are many rules about where you need to be to remain safe, especially as a female. So I thought I would help you out a little by offering some suggestions to the little problem we had last night.
Our problem, you ask? It is shocking when I come and tell you there is no toilet paper to find out you knew all along when you handed me the key to the washroom. It was even more disappointing to find out the next people will suffer the same issue until the following shift comes in because that was when you intended to solve the problem.
1. You might wish to request permission to lock the door with a “back in 5 minutes” note and replace the toilet paper.
2. Perhaps you could hand someone a roll as they walked into the washroom asking them to set it on the back of the toilet until you get to it.
3. Ideally, you might have given me this little tid-bit of information when you handed me the key so I would know there was none, then I could find my own solution.
Stuff happens, toilet paper runs out – I can handle that. What I don’t understand is your attitude and lack of concern or care for the many individuals who will enter your establishment – not to worry, they will only enter it once.
There is a gas station down the street from you; they are always crowded and seem to gain most of the highway traffic going through because line-ups at the pumps are daily occurrences. Whenever I have mentioned something to them, they jump into action. I will be their customer from now on, because your lack of care for my concern just lost me.
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Very well said! God forbid they should have any pride about where they work even if it is a minimum wage job!!!
Thanks Laura! I believe attitude reflects leadership and when the attitude is such as this, the leadership needs to think about some internal training that might begin to turn the light bulb on with regard to an attitude of service.
Legacy is the scent in the air that reminds people of you when you’re gone.
Service stations should be true to their names. What is service without commitment to their customers? They must be taught with important lessons…
Thanks! Web Agent… it is all about service, after all!
‘Service station’ is a misnomer – more accurate is ‘self-service stations’ and in this case ‘no-service’ station. Buyer beware. I was taught that if you want to see a place of business that is better than those around it, look at the parking lot. In this case the line up of autos, as you did Patti.
Dealing with issues of service is an ongoing challenge – I believe that ultimately it is tied to the business culture as defined by their leaders efforts and values. And that said, companies have seriously put employees under their thumbs to the point they dare not risk handing you the roll of t.p. I mean, come on! How would THAT look?
Thank you Bart,
It was definitely a case of ‘no-service’ station. Great point of employees being placed under their thumbs. Being safe is important, and having the power to lock the front door for 5 minutes while the employee attended the washroom needs would not have been the end of the world – however, losing every customer who makes a choice never to return again may just put a struggling service station into an even deeper issue.