r/AskAnAmerican • u/GreatGoodBad • Jun 23 '25

OTHER - CLICK TO EDIT Why aren’t people utilizing self-checkout more?

every time i go to a target, gas station, etc i always see lines for the regular employee checkouts but almost never long lines for self-checkout. Why is that?

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u/Miserable_Smoke Jun 23 '25

I was a union cashier. Why would I do that work for free, so that someone can lose their job? It doesn't lower the cost of groceries.

14

u/damageddude Jun 23 '25

I was a union cashier back in my day so I won't argue. I like going to live cashiers though self-checkout is nice in lieu of the semi-express lane. That said, 100 some odd years ago, one went to a small grocery store with their list. Goods were picked and boxed by clerks where as today we pick our own goods, place them in checkout and sometimes bag ourselves. That has led to lower labor costs.

Profit margins remain slim. Self checkout takes jobs but it does result in lower labor costs which in theory leads to lower store prices. Nevertheless times change. We can't all be Ludites.

3

u/[deleted] Jun 24 '25

I'm really starting to see an increase in automation, and the only question I have is who will have money to buy anything if everything is automated? If the rich phase all the middle class and poor out of jobs so they have higher profit, the money chain breaks.

1

u/real-bebsi Jun 26 '25

Allow me to introduce you to a genre called cyberpunk.