Cashiers Wearing Gloves???

susiestar

Roll With It
On my last trips to Walmart and the grocery I have noticed that some of our cashiers are wearing gloves like doctors etc... wear. A man in front of me in line brought my attention to this by making some rude comments about the cashier being Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) about germs. He was shocked when I told him that studies have shown that money, esp paper money, has more germs than the inside of a public toilet. He had just handed the cashier some bills from his front pocket and stuck his hand into a bag of chips that he was munching on. The look on his face was priceless, lol!

I think it is an excellent idea for people who handle $$ to wear gloves. Do you? Having worked at a convenience store in the summer, where we sold fried chicken and had TONS of construction workers who came in for lunch, I have encountered some truly disgusting money in the past. It really gripes me to have the cashier at a fast food place fix my drink or grab my fries with her hand, but you can only do so much, Know what I mean?? I do avoid certain fast food places where the cashier handle the food more than at others though.

One of the cashiers who was wearing gloves is a lady I have gotten to know a little bit, to say hi to or chat a few mins. She said that her doctor recommended it because she caught everything that went around last year. At first the store tried to tell her she couldn't wear them, that it would send a bad message to the customers, but her dr sent in a letter with some info about how germy money really is and the mgr changed that rule. I don't see a lot of the cashiers wearing gloves, but it seems one or two more each week are wearing them.

Would you avoid a store where the cashiers wore gloves? Or seek it out? If you handle money in your job, would you consider wearing gloves to handle the $$?
 

InsaneCdn

Well-Known Member
If the cashier is only handling the cashier position, then there's more than one way handle it... stores around here have a bottle of sanitizer at every station, and the cashiers can use as much as they want - in practical terms, whenever they take a break, or need to touch their face (blow their nose or whatever). Gloves are a different approach, some plusses, some negatives.

But... I really don't like being in places where the cashier also handles my food... NOPE. No way they have time between every transaction to actually get their hands food-grade clean. That is, unless they change gloves every time... and I don't see that happening.

Cashier can also be receptionist... handling phones, mail, etc. plus money, is no more risk than just handling money. It's not that they can't multi-task. But some things don't go together.

Presence of gloves would not turn me off using a store, though. It just doesn't change much for MY shopping experience or risk level.
 

Hound dog

Nana's are Beautiful
The presence of gloves on a cashier wouldn't turn me off. But...........

(there is always that but)

Gloves, sadly to say, aren't doing her much good if any at all regardless of what her doctor tells her. Yes, money is dirty and germy. Those gloves are only going to give her a false sense of security. Why? Because she's just as likely to catch a virus by someone coming through her line via airborne route, they don't even have to look sick. You're usually contagious as heck several days before the first symptoms appear. The false sense of security lies in, will she do good hand washing techniques regardless of the gloves every chance she gets with plenty of soap and very hot water? (believe it or not, most won't) Does she know how to remove the gloves properly so as not to contaminate herself with everything that has gotten on them while she's been wearing them? (highly doubtful, you don't just pull them off there is a technique) Is she going to forget and touch other parts of her body and face with them on? (most likely)

Hand sanitizer doesn't do a darn thing for any virus. They're antibacterial, period. Even the alcohol ones, you'd have to practically soak your hands in it to rid yourself of viruses and you'd still leave plenty behind. Viruses are notoriously hard to kill. I know, I know, hospitals were eager to jump on the hand sanitizer bandwagon and are backing off fast once they saw cross contamination among patients sky rocket due to medical personnel skipping the hand washing all together for the hand sanitizer. They are once again preaching and enforcing proper hand washing techniques.

A cashiers best defense is to eat right (a well balanced diet) and to wash their hands properly every single chance they get. Also avoiding touching the face without first washing the hands. If she had issues catching everything, she should consider having the flu vaccine.

One of the reasons I caught everything in school was because I rarely had the time to eat the way I should or get plenty of rest. Once I was out of school......well, *knock on wood*, I haven't gotten anything horrible since. I wash my hands often (especially if I've been out), the right way. If I notice someone with symptoms I keep my distance.......but honestly during high risk flu months I keep my distance regardless.

I don't recall catching a darn thing while I was a cashier. For that matter, I never caught anything when I worked in the hospital either. lol

Gloves can be ok, IF you know how to use them right AND you still use proper hand washing along with them. But if you don't do the latter two, you might as well take them off and forget it.
 

DammitJanet

Well-Known Member
I agree with Lisa. Gloves in the hospital arent going to help you unless you are in surgery and the surgeon washed up well before putting them on. I could walk in and put them on and still get sick as all get out just because I was in the ER. I always get sick when I go in the hospital. Its a germ factory.
 

InsaneCdn

Well-Known Member
The false sense of security lies in, will she do good hand washing techniques regardless of the gloves every chance she gets with plenty of soap and very hot water? (believe it or not, most won't) Does she know how to remove the gloves properly so as not to contaminate herself with everything that has gotten on them while she's been wearing them? (highly doubtful, you don't just pull them off there is a technique) Is she going to forget and touch other parts of her body and face with them on? (most likely)



Read more: http://www.conductdisorders.com/forum/f10/cashiers-wearing-gloves-50057/#ixzz24RUIHU00
Yes, Lisa. These are the problems with gloves. We have nurses in the family, and were taught the "how to take them off" routine - and I use the same kind of gloves for things like painting, and find that the "right" way to take them off is also very practical. But it assumes... single use. And most people don't want to pay for that many pairs of gloves. If you even want to scratch your nose... you need to properly peel off the whole pair, dispose of, and put on new after you scratched your nose. Who's going to actually DO that?

Now, there are some cases where gloves make a bit more sense. For example, if the cashier has serious exczema on her hands, or other open sore kinds of things, then she will be MUCH more susceptible to every single thing she is exposed to... and gloves worn properly would make a difference. But for most? Just a very false sense of security.
 

witzend

Well-Known Member
Here's my "dirty money" story from my old cashier days 25 years or so ago - pre-Purell. It was a late evening in Fred Meyer - think Kroger or Walmart - and I was working the 1 - 10 items lane. The 1 - 10 items lane never stops. We were in a neighborhood that bordered just on the area of downtown/skid row and million dollar mansions. We saw everyone.

So this one night, it's getting on towards closing time, and I could see a very cute teenage girl about four people back and she's got three quarts of malt liquor on the belt. I've got her pegged to ask her for ID. I mean, she wasn't even close to looking 21 years old. So I'm ready to card her and just about open my mouth to ask for ID when she puts 4 soaking wet dollar bills on the belt and says, "That's pee'd on money, but it's ok." I said, "What?" She says, "That's pee'd on money, but it's ok. You have to take it." I just looked her straight in the eye, disabled the belt, and told her "I have to handle everyone's food and I'm not touching pee'd on money. If you want it back you're going to have to pick it up," So she grabs her money, leaves her beers, and stomps off. I figure that's the end of her and get out the windex and clean up the belt and set the beer aside and have someone put them away for me.

About 5 minutes later, she is at the back of the line again with her beers. She gets up to me and says in a super snotty tone, "I exhanged my money for clean money with your manager. Are you satisfied now?" I said, "Can I see your ID?" She says, "I don't have any ID, this beer's not for me, it's for my Uncle! He's passed out over there on that bench!" Sure enough, I turn around and way over by the entry door on a bench is a homeless guy passed out, and his pants are soaking wet. I told her "I can't sell you any alcohol because you're too young, and I can't sell him any alcohol because he's passed out. Sorry."

She cursed me up one side and down the other and actually had the nerve to complain to my manager that I was rude! My manager was an idiot and figured I could probably have dealt with her better. Seriously? How do you deal with a little girl trying to buy malt liquor who has announced to the entire line of customers that her money is soaking wet with pee for a drunk she's rolled without coming off as a bit elitist?
 

hearts and roses

Mind Reader
Good God, Witz, what a gross thing!! But back in those days, we were allowed to buy beer for our elders, lol. Pee'd on money? Ew.

I did a lot of cashier work over the early part of my life and handled lots of money...it is very dirty. But it's rare to actually catch an illness from it. Most germs are passed through coughs, sneezes and skin contact, not inanimate objects. I do not use anything antibacterial because it hampers your own body's defenses. Yes, it really does, it's a complete waste of money.

Three exceptions: First, when I was a teen working at a 7-11, one of our co-workers actually caught body lice from handling this busdriver's money every day. No one else would wait on this guy because he was so skeevy. But this one older woman would because she felt bad for him...she caught body lice and couldn't figure it out. When a new busdriver came in one day, we asked after the last skeevy busdriver and he said, "Oh, he was canned because he had body lice and apparently some riders caught it." Ewwwwww. Second exception, if you don't have access to a sink with hot water and soap, antibacterial soap will 'do' until you find a sink to wash your hands. Even when I have to use the antibacterial soap, I don't touch my face or anything. Third, wearing gloves when working with any form of bodily fluids will prevent certain diseases and infections. Wearing them as a cashier only protects you from the dirt and grime on coins.
 

DDD

Well-Known Member
OMG, Witz! You managed to get a smile on my face and inspire me to get dressed for work. My husband is absolutely going to love your story. He grew up experiencing alot of poverty/addiction based interactions. Even though there are sad underlying aspects...he'll break into a grin and start sharing old tales with me. Thanks. DDD

Regarding gloves? I can't imagine fighting company policy unless there were allergy issues. So far I haven't seen that. When I think of gloves, lol, I remember wearing short gloves with a single faux pearl at the wrist, full length white gloves with many faux pearls for formal dances and elbow length kid gloves for traveling. The 40's and 50's were really something!
 

Mom2oddson

Active Member
(applies hand sanitizer while reading this post.....) Yuck...

I heard that the flu germs can live for up to two days on dollar bills.

Change is my issue. (gross warning here...) When husband first started working in the shipyard, he was on the cleaning crew. This meant that he and his crew had to clean the waste storage tanks. After 6-8 months at sea, there is a lot of change in the tanks. husband said one of the nasty guys on his crew would find the change and just put it in his pockets...then he'd use it to buy stuff without cleaning it. YUCK!! This guy lives in my community.... I hate change!
 

Calamity Jane

Well-Known Member
I'm pretty sure cashiers exhaled a sigh of relief when they invented the card swipe thing at the store that you can use to swipe your own credit or debit card for payments. I hardly ever see anybody use change or even cash anymore, and I'm embarassed to say I almost never carry money. I wonder if people in department stores skeeve touching credit cards? Are there gross germs on the cards, too? I'm used to touching the poles and hand straps in the NYC subways, though, so anything that doesn't kill you must make you stronger.
 

witzend

Well-Known Member
When I had that job I used to spray my hands with Lysol if I couldn't get out of the check stand to wash them. No lie.
 

AnnieO

Shooting from the Hip
I'm pretty grossed out by this stuff, but I will be honest, I don't go nuts with hand sanitizer, and I will tell the docs if it isn't bacterial don't give me antibiotics. I don't have a HEPA filter air cleaner or vacuum, I have 2 cats and a dog (and kids... need I say more). And... I'm really really healthy.

Now - Jett had allergies to the WORLD. They diminished quite a bit when the kids started living with us - and I haven't given him a Benadryl since last fall. Kid was horribly allergc to cats (but, interestingly, not our cats - ?!)... I will insist on reasonable cleanliness when Bean is born but I'm not going for kid-in-a-bubble.
 

witzend

Well-Known Member
You know, Step, our allergist told us that while some people are allergic to pets, it's really the stuff that the pets bring into the house with them. If your pet has been rolling in the grass where there's a bunch of tree and grass pollen, and you're allergic to tree and grass pollen, you're going to be bothered when you touch the dog or cat. So, it's possible that Jett wasn't as allergic to the cats as was thought, he was more allergic to what those particular cats were around. Are your pets basically inside pets? That could be the difference.
 

Marcie Mac

Just Plain Ole Tired
LOL I can't remember the last time I paid for something with cash, or even had cash in my wallet - everything I do is via my debit card. I do have a few coins on hand for parking meters but thats it. I don't mind food prep workers using gloves but the idea of a cashier with gloves would make me go ewww.

Marcie
 

AnnieO

Shooting from the Hip
The cats are indoor, but the dog is outdoor/indoor... Nah, we were also told Jett was allergic to "dust mics" and to vacuum the entire house every day. No, that didn't happen - and it darned sure didn't happen elsewhere. The biggest difference, really, was the mold/mildew - we have almost NONE (a little bit, the house was built in the 1950s).

Jett's allergies were ALWAYS worst in the basement (which was remodeled 2 years ago into our bedroom suite). The mold/mildew down here, as it turned out, was behind the drywall. When it got nasty the previous owners tossed up another layer. The bathroom (not yet remodeled) has THREE layers of drywall... But, keep in mind that until they started living here, they were with bio-gma, and the trailer she lives in... Well, I'd like to get her in an apartment and she's not even technically related to me!!! She won't budge. Now, the kids don't go there - she comes here. I really think the mold/mildew is the problem.

That said, the kids are also exposed to the outdoors here, so ragweed/tree pollen that is such an issue for me (I was a child in the desert of west Texas) makes no difference to them. I do believe it can be overdone. I also believe that basic hygiene, handwashing, covering one's mouth and nose when sneezing or coughing - is a MUST.
 

bobitussin

New Member
For the record, for me, this has nothing to do with germs. I could care less about that. I have deadly allergies to animal dander. And all you pet owning animals pet your animals and roll around in bed with your animals and then fondle your money with your dirty animal hands. then I have to touch thousands of your dirty bills every day and end up with swollen extremely itchy hands that hive and blister and get bloody and spread over my entire body. So if I want to wear gloves to prevent that, it's not your place to judge me.
 

Nomad

Well-Known Member
Staff member
Witz...that was one terrible story. I think you handled it well. Horrible.
I think gloves are a good idea for cashiers. I think it should be optional....if they want to use gloves, I think they should be able (not required)
Unless, they are also handling food.
Where I go for my smoothie, sometimes they only have one person making the drink and handling the cash register. I THINK what I'm seeing them doing is putting gloves on for food prep. and taking them off for handling money. I think once I saw her put it on to make the food and then put on another to handle the money. It has to be a bit crazy. But, I'm all for cleanliness.
 

GoingNorth

Crazy Cat Lady
My 2nd job was a cashier at K-mart. This was in the mid-70s. At that time, I was allergic to something in the currency in circulation at that time. If I didn't wear gloves, I broke out in a horrible contact dermatitis that left my hands literally looking like raw meat.

Luckily, I wasn't allergic to latex, as, with special permission from management, I wore latex surgical gloves until I was promoted to front end supervisor and no longer had to handle currency constantly. I later had a similar problem, though not so severe, when handling the first carbon-less multi-part computer paper. Back to the gloves.
 
Top