18. A Blue Shirt Isn’t Always a Uniform
I was at a major electronics store known for their blue polo shirts. I just got off work at a warehouse and had a blue t-shirt on. I was in looking at movies when I heard a woman snapping her fingers right at my face and, in a angry, loud tone, “Excuse me!!”
I slowly turned to see a middle-aged woman standing there in a ticked off pose glaring at me. “You need to go get (whatever item she was looking for) from the back.” It was only then I realized what has happened.
I quietly replied that I didn’t work there, which just set her off in a rage of insults and threats.
Now I usually don’t yell at people, but something about her just rubbed me the wrong way. “Listen here, lady! I don’t work here! Just because I’m wearing a blue shirt doesn’t mean that! I am a customer! Now leave me alone!”
It was at that point that a real employee came over to see what the fuss was about. She saw this employee and demanded to see a manager.
It was less than a minute when the manager came over to talk to her.
“Yes. How may I help you?”
The lady screamed about my incompetence and demanded I apologize to her before I was fired. The manager looked at me in a bewildered state and said to the lady, “Ma’am, he doesn’t work here. Just because he has a blue t-shirt on doesn’t mean he works here. Now, I will get you an employee to help you.”
He turned to lead the lady to lead her away, but I wanted one thing first. I looked directly at the woman in the eye and said, “You owe me an apology.”
The woman looked around in a bewildered state. The manager looked surprised but said nothing.
The woman turned to a sheepish look while she mumbled an “I’m sorry.”