Whine Culture

In this Saturday’s Globe and Mail, columnist Karen Von Hahn writes about the growing occurrences of people in the service industry complaining to their customers. She relates a story involving a flight attendant quipping to her, the passenger, that he had not sat down for the entire flight and hadn’t even been able to get a drink of water.

Now, I generally smirk when I read Karen Von Hahn’s column, entitled “Noticed”. I smirk because whatever societal trend she “notices,” is something that the rest of the world noticed six months previous (distracted drivers, quotes on Starbucks cups, and Napoleon Dynamite, for goodness sake!). However, I have to agree with her on this one.

Unless you are a close friend about to unload some psychic issues, the only answer to my question, “How are you?” should be: “Fine, thanks!”

I had a rather negative experience at a downtown restaurant recently when a few friends and I had to wait for a table, despite the fact that we had a reservation. When we were finally seated, we actually had to ask for the wine list and then ask to order a bottle. The harried waiter came over and mumbled something about “getting slammed” and being short a server as he took out his notepad, failing to make eye contact. We hadn’t even asked him how he was.

I understand that the food service industry is a high-stress job at busy times (I’ve been a server), and I understand that serving people in a small, metal tube, 35 000 feet in the air is not the most relaxing of activities, but why people think that unloading their problems/excuses/stresses is appropriate employee-customer discourse is beyond me.

What Ms. Von Hahn’s flight attendant should have done, was smiled, topped up her glass of wine and then gone to complain to a fellow staff member. What I might have done, had I been in the columnist’s shoes, was gently remind the flight attendant that it was I who was paying a grand for this experience, and he who was receiving a wage for the experience.

But then I might get “noticed” as one of those bitchy customers who enjoy criticizing underpaid customer service representatives. I’ll stick to being a bitchy blogger.

Karen Von Hahn: Noticed