Imfind myself frequently encountering difficult customers, some of whom display aggressive and rude behavior. Adding to the complexity, my immediate manager who usually has my back with difficult and hostile customers, often leaves hours before my shift ends, leaving me alone to handle these confrontations.
To make matters worse, there's an older gentleman who consistently exhibits hostile and disrespectful behavior towards me, especially when dealing with his payments. Despite expressing my concerns to one of the main managers, the response from him is rather dismissive, suggesting I treat him as if he were my grandpa.
This same manager, I have realized, consistently demonstrates a lack of backbone and is excessively passive when it comes to addressing abusive customers. This manager's approach seems more focused on appeasing the customer than providing me with the support and defense I need.Whenever customers start yelling at me or behaving rudely, this manager rarely intervenes.
And on the rare occasions he does step in, he tends to kiss up to the customer and subtly shift the blame onto me, without defending or supporting me in a way that feels genuine. It's disheartening because I'm not someone who intentionally triggers or escalates issues with customers. I simply want to be treated fairly and have a supportive work environment.
Instances of customers screaming and shouting at me have gone ignored by the unresponsive manager, even causing disruptions throughout the workplace. When I sought to raise my concerns about the abusive behavior about the older gentleman, this manager responded by laughing it off and belittling my concerns because he felt he was too old of a man to be too worried about.
I'm seeking your valuable insights and advice on how to effectively handle abusive customers, cope with spineless management, and improve this challenging work environment. Have you dealt with similar situations and how would you handle it?