Archived Can I Get Fired for Being Over maybe $20

[sousouli92]

I'm quite new, but today.. I picked up a shift in the Cashier department. I don't often work the registers there, but I rang up this lady's total and it came up to $10.52. I guess she gave me exact change and I didn't pay attention to the bill she had, my mind was quick and I gave her no change back. She told me she was supposed to get $10 back because she gave me $20 and I second guessed myself and gave her $10 back. What if she lied? What happens if I'm off by that much? I'm barely starting.. Also what do the symbols on the cash register mean when they show R Y and G?

 

[TallAPGuy]

I'm quite new, but today.. I picked up a shift in the Cashier department. I don't often work the registers there, but I rang up this lady's total and it came up to $10.52. I guess she gave me exact change and I didn't pay attention to the bill she had, my mind was quick and I gave her no change back. She told me she was supposed to get $10 back because she gave me $20 and I second guessed myself and gave her $10 back. What if she lied? What happens if I'm off by that much? I'm barely starting.. Also what do the symbols on the cash register mean when they show R Y and G?

If you haven't already, report it to your GSTL and AP. It's fairly common that people try scamming stores out of money by claiming that they handed the cashier a larger denomination than they did.
I saw someone hand the cashier a $10 bill, then try claiming he handed him a $100, while I was talking to the GSTL five feet away. He decided that he was OK with leaving behind the "$93 in change we owed him," when I told him that I would go review the cameras to double check.

 

[redeye58]

R(ed) Y(ellow) G(reen) are indicators of register speed. It should also tell you a score (ie: 83 is yellow).
When you get comfortable enough with the register, you'll gradually pick up speed.
Accuracy before speed.
Re: change back. Always pay attention when you are handed cash. We've had quick-changers hand a cashier a $100 bill then, after she's keyed it in & the drawer pops open, they suddenly swap it for a smaller bill. They keep talking all the while in order to confuse you. When you give their change back, they'll point to the receipt & say they gave you a $100.

 

[BlueSide]

@sousouli92 In that specific situation, I would just trust the guest, but notify the manager or security later on. Note the time and register number.

 

[thatcashierdude]

To your first question: they probably won't notice the register being off by that much. I don't think it would hurt to let them know in case it comes up later, as you're still new and learning. Also, you wouldn't be over by $20, you'd be under by $10. Being over means you haven't given enough change back (total is $10, guest gives $20, you give back nothing. The register thinks there is $10 less than what is actually in the drawer, thus your drawer's actual total is $10 over the computer-counted total). Being under means you've given too much change (Guest pays $10.52 in exact change, claims they paid with a $20. Cashier believes them and gives a $10. The register thinks there's $10 more than what's actually in the drawer, thus your drawer's actual total is $10 less than the computer-counted total).

If any situation involving cash comes up you should immediately call over your supervisor (GSA/GSTL). They'll call AP or an ETL to review the video/register logs. If it's a scam they'll probably give up at this point. If it's not then they'll get the guest their correct change. Under NO circumstances (unless you absolutely know you made a mistake - meaning you were paying attention, counting out change, and YOU realized you made a mistake - not the guest pointing it out) should you open a drawer to give a guest more change than you originally thought they should get without supervisor approval.

If you don't work Cashier often you don't really need to worry about the speed scores (that's what R, Y, and G are). Nobody really notices the scores of the cashiers unless they drop really low consistently (like R for a week). It's also very un-important as far as metrics go. If a cashier that gets a lot of redcards is consistently red on speed scores they'll ignore the speed scores because redcards are far more important.

 

[Bosch]

^^^^

This all of it.

 

[signing genie]

Nothing is gonna happen unless it's a absurd amount you will be ok. Ap usually let us know if it was a scammer had one the other day got my cashier for $200 but a.p. is now fully investigating that too suspicious if you catch my drift

 

[redeye58]

Had a scammer try the "I gave you a $100 bill!" after I'd just closed my drawer.
I said I was pretty sure she didn't.
"Oh? And just HOW do you know?"
I popped open my drawer & lifted it up, "Because I have NO $100 bills!"
I was waiting to see if she'd accuse me of stuffing it in my pockets (that I didn't have) but she 'suddenly' found it in her wallet

 

[The Dude Abides]

One tip: Once your drawer is open do not swap bills. That is one of the ways quick change artists attempt to confuse the cashier. Once you have taken their original tender and keyed it into the register that is what you go with. Do not attempt to change it on the fly.

 

[Barcode]

I'm quite new, but today.. I picked up a shift in the Cashier department. I don't often work the registers there, but I rang up this lady's total and it came up to $10.52. I guess she gave me exact change and I didn't pay attention to the bill she had, my mind was quick and I gave her no change back. She told me she was supposed to get $10 back because she gave me $20 and I second guessed myself and gave her $10 back. What if she lied? What happens if I'm off by that much? I'm barely starting.. Also what do the symbols on the cash register mean when they show R Y and G?

If your drawer is off by $10 due to an honest mistake, you're probably OK. Having worked Cash Office we never had access to register totals (For obvious reasons) but we were told that due to the nature of many different people logging into each register on a daily basis, they account for a margin of error, and the drawer being over/under by a certain amount usually is ignored.

 

[3LetterDevil]

The only thing I would be concerned with is if it keeps happening, then they may start watching you.

 

[thetargetman]

You should be fine. I usually keep the bill on the keyboard while I count out the change and than I put the bill in so they cant question what they handed me.

 

[dondon4720]

Same thing happened to me only instead of it being 10 it was 40 I should have caught it but I didn't. You will be fine, I still have my job, it is called change fraud happens more than you think, that is why I now count the change back tothe guest so I know I gave them the right amount of change

 

[RunForACallBox]

Had a scammer try the "I gave you a $100 bill!" after I'd just closed my drawer.
I said I was pretty sure she didn't.
"Oh? And just HOW do you know?"
I popped open my drawer & lifted it up, "Because I have NO $100 bills!"
I was waiting to see if she'd accuse me of stuffing it in my pockets (that I didn't have) but she 'suddenly' found it in her wallet

I'm so glad you put the large bills under the drawer. When I used to work electronics I'd open it and see 50s & 100s in the last empty spot, and I'm like WTF PEOPLE?!

 

[redeye58]

That makes me crazy when they cram all the $50s/$100s/$2s in with the checks.
If I hopped on & found it, the first thing I did was put 'em underneath.

 

[Nauzhror]

I'm so glad you put the large bills under the drawer. When I used to work electronics I'd open it and see 50s & 100s in the last empty spot, and I'm like WTF PEOPLE?!

I'm not. When closing every register at the end of the night it's very easy to forget to check under the tray on one and then have that drawer be way off.

I hugely prefer checks on top, 100's on bottom, 50's in the middle, left-most tray, not underneath the tray.

 

[tgtguy]

So glad I work in the back room

 

[redeye58]

When I closed, I checked under EVERY drawer.
Saturday nights I pulled the drawer & did a sweep, finding bills wadded around the spring (mostly $1s or $20s).

 

[mrknownothing]

I'm so glad you put the large bills under the drawer. When I used to work electronics I'd open it and see 50s & 100s in the last empty spot, and I'm like WTF PEOPLE?!

That makes me crazy when they cram all the $50s/$100s/$2s in with the checks.
If I hopped on & found it, the first thing I did was put 'em underneath.

I'm not. When closing every register at the end of the night it's very easy to forget to check under the tray on one and then have that drawer be way off.

I hugely prefer checks on top, 100's on bottom, 50's in the middle, left-most tray, not underneath the tray.

When I closed, I checked under EVERY drawer.
Saturday nights I pulled the drawer & did a sweep, finding bills wadded around the spring (mostly $1s or $20s).

When my store had the old IBM registers, we had those dark flat plastic things (no idea what the hell they were called) in the check compartment and we would hide the large bills underneath them. We don't have them anymore now that we have the NCR machines.