‘They need to hire people to stand there all day’: Shopper questions locked-up shelves after workers don’t unlock them when asked
After waiting for someone to unlock a display shelf so she can purchase an item, this Los Angeles-based shopper has a suggestion for retail staff—one that many people seem to agree with. Shadai’s (@jawnnextdoor) viral video has been viewed over 1.4 million times since it was uploaded on July 19.
The 10-second video begins with Shadai standing in front of a locked display case containing razors. It's unclear where she was shopping, though stores from CVS to Target to Walmart have been criticized for the same emerging practice.
“If y’all gon’ lock [expletive] up, y’all gotta move a little bit faster to come up it when I need you to,” Shadai suggested.
“I came in here a good person, and now I’m having evil thoughts,” she joked.
The video ends with Shadai quickly scanning the area to check if an employee is on the way.
She was preaching to the choir
The comment section didn’t hesitate to agree with Shadai's frustrations about waiting for an employee to unlock shelves in retail stores.
“They need to hire people to stand there all day because [for real],” one comment said.
“Cause I waited 20 [minutes] one time,” someone else added.
“I move the glass so the alarm [goes] off,” another person offered.
Some people with experience working in retail had some insights to add to the conversation.
“I work at Walmart, it’s [Asset Protection that’s] putting the cases in and they don’t ever have anybody in the damn key box… [Trust] us retail employees, we [don't] want them either, especially us stockers,” someone wrote.
“[On] the flip side, as an employee who's paid to stay and wait around to unlock for people, I've had people scream at me for asking if they need something before they're ‘ready’,” a comment read.
@jawnnextdoorr Its been 10 minutes ….
♬ original sound - Shadai
Another commenter who said they worked for Target pushed back. “I understand you guys but sometimes it was only [two] people on the floor with the keys, and even the employees had to bother them for the keys. So that’s honestly on the store,” they wrote.
Shadai's not alone. Customer's have clocked just how much time they've wasted waiting for locked items. They've raised flags about implied racism while calling the era of the Target run "over." They've called out what isn't locked up and why. And they've said that in white neighborhoods, less locking.
Shadai didn’t immediately respond to the Daily Dot’s request for comment via TikTok comments.
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