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The sitting thing is common in England (and perhaps elsewhere in Europe). It definitely stood out to me when I was visiting.

agentdrtran 10y ago
It's the standard in Germany as well, at least for grocery stores.
mdip 10y ago
It's so rare here I can't think of another time I've seen it. I've always wondered why: comfortable people tend to be less grumpy and the typical cashier job involves "not leaving a very small space for a long period of time". This small space is about the size of ... a chair. I think the perception of people standing in line is more likely to make them feel that the cashier is working slower because they're sitting[1]. Aldi's lightning quick cashiers would prove that wrong, but perception tends to be all that matters in these scenarios. [1] People routinely over-estimate their waiting times in situations like this. This became apparent to me when talking to the helpdesk manager at my old company. He would get an e-mail from time to time from a person complaining that they were on hold for "20 minutes". The call stats for the day indicated a maximum hold time of 5 minutes.
- wlesieutre 10y ago
  Expect to see more of it in California in the future. All it took was a class action lawsuit (and 7 years). http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-court-sitting-workers-20160404-story.html http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-court-sitting-wo...
- pbhjpbhj 10y ago
  Standing still for long periods is associated with and/or causes some bad health problems.
  - jgalt212 10y ago
    so is sitting for long periods of time.
stuaxo 10y ago
Yup, basically all food stores are sitting, but clothing shops all seem to be standing, weirdly.
- toyg 10y ago
  The difference is probably the combination of high footfall and continuous restocking in food shops, which results in role specialisation and hence a more static workforce where the role is static.
- aninhumer 10y ago
  Cashiers in clothing stores are removing hangers and folding things all the time, which is easier if they're standing.
pouetpouet 10y ago
standard in France and Germany too. I don't think cashiers usually stand anywhere.

agentdrtran 10y ago

It's the standard in Germany as well, at least for grocery stores.

mdip 10y ago

It's so rare here I can't think of another time I've seen it. I've always wondered why: comfortable people tend to be less grumpy and the typical cashier job involves "not leaving a very small space for a long period of time". This small space is about the size of ... a chair. I think the perception of people standing in line is more likely to make them feel that the cashier is working slower because they're sitting[1]. Aldi's lightning quick cashiers would prove that wrong, but perception tends to be all that matters in these scenarios. [1] People routinely over-estimate their waiting times in situations like this. This became apparent to me when talking to the helpdesk manager at my old company. He would get an e-mail from time to time from a person complaining that they were on hold for "20 minutes". The call stats for the day indicated a maximum hold time of 5 minutes.

wlesieutre 10y ago
Expect to see more of it in California in the future. All it took was a class action lawsuit (and 7 years). http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-court-sitting-workers-20160404-story.html http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-court-sitting-wo...
pbhjpbhj 10y ago
Standing still for long periods is associated with and/or causes some bad health problems.
- jgalt212 10y ago
  so is sitting for long periods of time.

stuaxo 10y ago

Yup, basically all food stores are sitting, but clothing shops all seem to be standing, weirdly.

toyg 10y ago
The difference is probably the combination of high footfall and continuous restocking in food shops, which results in role specialisation and hence a more static workforce where the role is static.
aninhumer 10y ago
Cashiers in clothing stores are removing hangers and folding things all the time, which is easier if they're standing.

pouetpouet 10y ago

standard in France and Germany too. I don't think cashiers usually stand anywhere.