Good afternoon. I was just in your store with my mother and sibling, and while we were using self…read morecheckout, I had an extremely uncomfortable and concerning experience with one of your employees. There was a young gentleman monitoring the self checkout area, and based on the circumstances and the manner in which my family was treated, I am concerned that his behavior may have been racially motivated. While interacting with other customers, he appeared friendly, smiled, and spoke to them normally, but when it came to me and my family, his demeanor was noticeably different. He was short with us, displayed very little patience, and continuously monitored our actions. When I say he watched everything, I do not mean that he occasionally glanced in our direction. He observed us for nearly the entirety of the time we were at self checkout, repeatedly staring at us and giving us side eyes while we were scanning and paying for our items. His behavior was excessive enough that it became very noticeable and made us feel as though we were being scrutinized or treated as though we had done something wrong simply because we were shopping in the store. What makes this situation even more concerning is that this is not an isolated incident involving this employee. A few weeks or a month ago, I came into the store with my grandmother, and this same employee was our cashier. During that visit, he repeatedly stared at both of us and gave us similar looks, creating the impression that we were being watched or treated with suspicion despite doing absolutely nothing wrong. I understand that employees have a responsibility to monitor self checkout and ensure that store policies are being followed, but there is a clear distinction between appropriately performing those responsibilities and making customers feel singled out, scrutinized, or unwelcome. The repeated nature of this conduct, combined with the noticeable difference in how he interacted with my family compared with other customers, was deeply uncomfortable and made me feel unsafe while inside your establishment. No customer should have to feel intimidated, profiled, or unfairly scrutinized while simply shopping with their family. To make matters worse, my mother attempted to call the store directly to make a complaint about what occurred, and while she was in the middle of explaining the situation, the person on the phone abruptly hung up on her. We were extremely disappointed by this response, as we were attempting to address the situation respectfully and through the appropriate channels. Being disconnected while actively making a legitimate customer complaint only added to our frustration and made us feel as though our concerns were not being taken seriously. I am respectfully requesting that management take this complaint seriously, investigate the circumstances surrounding these incidents, and address this employee's conduct appropriately. I would also appreciate knowing what measures will be taken to ensure that customers are treated with dignity, professionalism, and fairness regardless of their race or background. The fact that this behavior has occurred toward me and members of my family on multiple occasions, followed by my mother being disconnected while attempting to report it, is particularly troubling and warrants immediate attention from management. I hope this matter will be handled promptly, professionally, and with the seriousness it deserves.
